Innocence Lost

by kathryn518

Presented with an opportunity, Vernon jumps at the chance to get rid of the unwanted burden foisted upon his normal family. In the hands of those wanting to create a true weapon, Harry's entire life is altered, sending not just his destiny but those of several others down a different path. But when your fate is to be a weapon, can that ever truly change?

3. Preparing for a Fight

~Chapter 3~

Harry and Laura were both in the infirmary, standing impassively, not far from one another, while two women were waving sticks in front of them.

One of them was the blonde french woman, Fleur, from the night before, the other was an older matronly type they had met a few minutes previously, Poppy Pomfrey.

"I've never seen anything like this," the older woman, Madam Pomfrey, muttered for the sixth time, while examining Harry.

Harry watched with interest as the different symbols and images came from the matron's wand. Some of them were familiar to Harry, though only in an abstract way. He recognized them from Riddle's memories, but as the man had almost no interest in healing, his knowledge was incredibly basic, at best. Laura did the same as the blonde French woman who scanned her; unlike Harry, she had no idea what she was seeing in the symbols as they emerged in the air around the wand.

Harry was shirtless, standing only in dark boxers. Laura was standing in utilitarian grey panties and a bra. Neither seemed concerned with their state of undress. In fact, both had begun to strip almost mechanically, without concern or shame, still somewhat unused to the idea that they were able to keep any clothing on at all during the exam. They were both used to far more intrusive medical examinations.

And they were hardly shy around one another. Given all the times they had fought one another, their clothing had more often than not ended up shredded anyway.

They were here in the medical wing reluctantly, and only because their mother had convinced them it might offer different insights into their respective physiologies.

Sarah stood watching the spectacle, with her arms crossed and a bemused expression on her face. She could see the symbols sprouting from the wands but had no clue what any of them meant. To her, it looked as if the two women were just waving sticks in front of her children, albeit with special effects.

Madame Pomfrey stopped, followed about fifteen seconds later by Fleur. The older woman had just opened her mouth to say something when the doors to the infirmary slammed open.

A man with shoulder-length hair, a goatee, and a wild look in his eyes threw the door open. He was panting with exertion as if he had just sprinted a fair distance. The man froze just long enough to look around the room wildly, his eyes taking only a moment to do so before fixing on the group on the far side.

His already wide eyes locked on Harry for several seconds. He breathed out the word 'Harry', though it was soft enough that only Laura and Harry's enhanced senses picked it up from across the infirmary. The man gathered himself and sprinted across the room toward Harry, his arms spreading.

He got within a few feet when Harry moved suddenly. Stepping toward the charging man, Harry snapped his hand forward. Harry grabbed the fabric on the front of the man's clothes and jerked the older man toward him. The unexpected movement sent him even further off balance than his run alone.

Harry reversed his momentum with a thrust of his arm and slammed the man backward into the floor, causing him to let out a loud "Oof!" from the impact. Harry finished the movement by putting his foot on the man's chest to pin him solidly in place.

SNIKT

The man on the ground froze as he stared at three blades, which were less than a few centimeters from his eyes.

Pomfrey spoke up quickly, protesting, "Mister Potter! It's okay! I don't know what's gotten into him, but that's Sirius Black! He won't hurt you!"

She stepped forward to pull back Harry's arm when his eyes flicked up to pierce her with a dangerous glare. She stopped herself at the unspoken threat there and barely kept from stepping back.

"He smells like a werewolf." Harry said without emotion or inflection in his voice.

"And dog," Laura commented, her stance relaxing only slightly as she scrunched up her nose slightly in vague distaste. "Wet dog."

She'd tensed up and shifted into a defensive stance but relaxed slightly when it was clear that there was no other immediate threat, given that the only one present who might have been, was the one Harry had a handle on.

"I-" Sirius started to say before the infirmary doors banged open once again.

Dumbledore hurried in, out of breath, "Sirius, I told you to…" He trailed off, seeing the man's predicament. The older wizard slowed and took a breath, exhaling in a deep sigh. "As I was trying to say, wait and let me explain everything before you go rushing off."

Dumbledore shook his head in exasperation before looking up at Harry. "I promise you, especially you, he means no harm."

"Why does he smell so strongly of a werewolf?" Harry demanded, his claws unmoving from their position and pointed directly in front of Sirius' face.

"He usually spends his full moons secured in one of our dungeon rooms with a friend of his who is a werewolf." Albus explained, "We have two werewolves that take a potion every month to retain their minds. Then, to add an extra layer of protection, they voluntarily secure themselves in a confined space every full moon."

Harry stared down into Sirius' grey eyes for a few moments more before deciding to relent and allow the man up. He removed his foot from the man's chest and resheathed his claws, stepping back once more.

Sirius stood slowly, although both Harry and Laura noted that rather than staring at Harry's hands where the claws disappeared, his eyes never left Harry's face.

Harry was a little bit surprised to note that the man didn't seem to have any fear, especially after what had just happened—just shock.

"Harry…" Sirius breathed out, he shifted his weight as if he were going to move forward once more, but he managed to restrain himself. "It… is you."

"Mr. Black." Harry nodded slightly in acknowledgment, his expression and tone calm.

Sirius didn't seem to know what to say to that, so it was Dumbledore who jumped in, after he'd ensured that the infirmary was otherwise empty. It was, leaving only the injured girl from the night before unconscious on one of the beds. "Harry… this is Sirius Black, he's your-"

"Godfather," Harry interrupted in the same matter-of-fact tone, "Yes, I'm well aware."

"You remember me?" Sirius asked with a widening smile.

"No." Harry said flatly, deflating the man, "However, as I said, the goblins were most informative of many circumstances, including your relation to myself."

"Oh." Sirius responded, somewhat disappointed, either by the response or the manner in which it was delivered.

There was an awkward silence afterward. Harry didn't seem inclined to say anything, and Sirius didn't have any clue how to respond in this situation. Harry's response was nothing threatening, but there was no hint of anything welcoming either. Sirius, for all he'd dreamed of this day, had no clue how to respond in this situation that was going absolutely nothing like he had expected it to. Though to be fair he didn't exactly have many expectations.

It was Sarah who stepped forward and held out her hand to Sirius saying, "Hello, I'm Sarah Kinney."

"Potter." Laura's voice spoke up as Sirius' attention was forcefully dragged from Harry to the woman who appeared younger than himself.

His attention whipped back to Laura as she spoke up from beside Harry. "What?" He asked, his brow furrowed in confusion.

"Harry adopted us into his family," Laura explained at the raised eyebrows all around.

"The goblins said it would help with protections for them. Both magically and not." Harry explained at the surprised looks both Dumbledore and Sirius were giving him.

"Huh." Sirius said eloquently.

"Sarah has been my mother in all ways that matter for years, and Laura is my sister. If not by birth, then by blood and circumstance." Harry explained shortly, a clear note of challenge in his voice.

"I knew your parents," Sirius said slowly, choosing his words carefully as he saw Harry and Laura's eyes narrow. "And since they couldn't be here, I think, blood or not, they would be happy that you've found a family that cares about you. I was not directly related to either of them, beyond the nature of all pureblood families anyway, but the two of them were my family."

A brief smile broke on Sirius' face when he saw Harry and Laura both relax their defensive stances minutely based on his reply. An awkward silence descended upon them, though it was less uncomfortable than it had felt for nearly a minute. No one was certain what to say.

"I do have some news," Dumbledore spoke up, breaking the silence and drawing all of their attention to him. He continued, his eyes focused on Harry and Laura, "Before I told Mr. Black about your arrival, we discussed the topic you brought up last night. It took a bit of figuring out based on the information you gave…. But thanks to Sirius and his house-elf-"

"Demented bloody thing…" Sirius muttered in a not-too-quiet voice.

"Yes, quite." Dumbledore agreed dryly, sounding distinctly unimpressed with the house elf. "However, we were successful. We think."

Dumbledore carefully held out his hand, which held a white handkerchief. On that handkerchief sat a locket. "It's certainly filled with dark magic, and it resists any efforts I make to either open it or determine its secrets… much like the diary and headpiece did," the aged headmaster concluded.

Everyone stared at the locket before Harry spoke up, "It looks just like the one Riddle made. There's only one way to find out. Can you set it down?"

Dumbledore looked uncertain for a moment.

Everyone's attention turned to the older man and the reluctance he displayed. "We have to destroy it." Harry said, his voice going flat.

"I'm well aware of that," Dumbledore said, his tone reassuring, "However, last night, when the headpiece was destroyed, it didn't go quietly, and neither did the diary. Perhaps it's better if several of us waited somewhere else?" Dumbledore's eyes were not subtle when he shifted to look at Sarah, Poppy, Laura, Fleur and Sirius.

The group exchanged glances indecisively before Dumbledore took charge and gestured toward the back of the infirmary and Madam Pomfrey's office. "Please, if only for my peace of mind, if nothing else."

Pomfrey was the first to acquiesce, with a quiet nod, heading into the directed office with a glance back. Sarah was the second, but only after a moment of exchanging looks with both of her children.

Fleur hesitated a moment and backed up to the office but then stopped and crossed her arms. "I saw ze other two destroyed. I wish to be 'ere when zis piece is destroyed."

Dumbledore looked over at Laura who just returned his gaze without so much as letting her expression flicker. He seemed to realize it was futile to try and get her to go, and turned his attention to Sirius.

The man immediately crossed his arms and shook his head, "Absolutely not. My brother apparently died to get that away from the dark wanker. I'm going to be here when it is destroyed." His tone was resolute, and his gaze challenging.

Dumbledore nodded carefully at the other man. He turned his wand and cast a sealing spell at the door of the office just to be safe. At questioning looks from others in the room, "Just a bit of protection, to keep most things from getting in without dispelling it, and to keep them in as well."

"Why?" Harry demanded immediately. He clearly didn't like the idea of his mother being sealed in somewhere.

"All three of these items have had compulsions to be worn or used. Tom was always manipulative. I have no idea what this could do, and I prefer to be safe. Madame Pomfrey can disable the spell with a few minutes of work," Dumbledore explained.

Harry considered it a moment, and then, after sharing a quick glance with Laura, he nodded in satisfaction, "Okay. You are correct, that among many spells on it, compulsions are definitely included." He knew this from Riddle's memories.

Dumbledore nodded in response, then he carefully set the locket down on the ground before backing away, gesturing for the others to do the same.

There was a snikt sound as Harry's claws came out. He then stepped forward and smashed his fist downward against the necklace. The tip of his center claw smashed right into the middle of the locket.

For just a moment, nothing happened, and then, all of a sudden, Harry was blown back off his feet, hard enough to be sent tumbling all the way across the room.

Black and grey smoke filled the air as the locket snapped open. Invisible wind and pressure forced the five people present in the room to brace themselves to keep from getting blown off their feet too. As it was, each one of them was forced back several steps.

The black smoke swirling up from the locket seemed to focus on the closest person to it. The closest person, who was forced back against a table by the initial shockwave, happened to be Sirius.

The smoke coalesced into two figures, a man and a woman. The male of the pair bore an almost uncanny resemblance to Harry if Harry wore glasses. The woman had vivid red hair, even in the darkly washed-out images the smoke presented. They both fixed their gaze on Sirius, who had gone wide-eyed at seeing them.

"Traitor!" The woman snapped at Sirius.

Sirius was quickly shaking his head as he took another step back, his face stricken, "No…!"

"You betrayed us, Padfoot." The man spoke accusingly.

"No!" Sirius called out desperately, "It wasn't me, Prongs! It was Wormtail!"

"Your betrayal was worse than that! You betrayed your responsibility to care for our son, to go after revenge. Typical Black. Just like the rest of your family. We should have known you couldn't be trusted with our son!" The woman's voice cracked sharply as she sneered at him.

Sirius recoiled as if struck.

The spectres looked like they were going to say more, but then Sirius was pulled to the side, and Dumbledore moved in front of the man, arms spread and wand glowing.

He pointed it at the spectres and a light shot out of it. The smoke shifted, briefly appearing as if it was affected by the spell. But it only shifted to another form.

This form shifted to the form of a bald man. Though perhaps it was stretching the term 'man' quite a bit. He was bald, and his features vaguely resemble those of a man. But he had no nose, and the shape of his face was vaguely serpentine.

"Ah… Dumbledore. Still clinging to life." A sinister voice hissed out.

There were indrawn breaths from Sirius and Fleur while Dumbledore stiffened and waved his wand at the apparition.

"That won't work!" the spectre laughed wickedly. "You can't get rid of me. I'll just keep coming back. And your prophesied one… has never even held a wand in his life. You have failed. I will come for you, and, in the end, the measures you take to remain strong and vital will be useless. You will tremble at my approach!"

"I have not and will never fear you, Tom." Dumbledore replied, his voice strong despite the buffeting pressure forcing him backward. The old wizard waved his wand once more, murmuring a spell that sent a white light into the dark, choking miasma surrounding the spectre. It still seemed to have no effect.

"You fear what I will become when I rule the entirety of the magical world." The ghostly Voldemort replied smugly, "I will take your wand from your cold dead fingers and then I truly will be unbeatable… with no one left to stand before me. Then I will burn the filthy muggles to ash and ensure the world belongs to magicals alone!"

The phantom whirled around suddenly, looking away from the older wizard.

Its focus was on Laura, who was forging forward against the buffeting pressure and had gotten closer to the locket, her claws extended, toward its resting place on the floor.

The cloudy form of Voldemort shifted into the form of Sarah after only a moment's hesitation. Her voice rang accusingly, "You nearly killed me! I knew I never should have given birth to you, that you would be nothing but a monster."

Laura's forward progress halted as she flinched.

The ghostly version of Sarah strode forward, her finger pointing accusingly at her. "Every time I look at you, I have to swallow disgust… for those you killed!"

Laura took a step backward, shaking her head, as tears welled in her eyes as the spirit stalked forward. "I have to pretend you are a daughter I love because if I don't… I know that you could just snap and kill me. Every day, I live with that."

The teenager flinched backward as if physically struck with each punctuated sentence.

"You will never be loved, never be accepted, no one will ever get close to you, and you will never be anything more than a weapon!" Sarah's voice cracked out at her.

Laura felt herself pulled back as the only other magic user in the room stepped forward and interposed herself between the shattered looking girl and the phantom. Fleur's wand was held up defensively.

The phantom shifted once more, "A half-breed like you alive, while we're all dead!"

A woman's voice came out as a ghostly image that looked very similar to an older Fleur, only if possible, more beautiful. "Why do you deserve to live when the rest of us were killed?" The woman's voice sneered, "Even your own mother… dead saving your pathetic lives."

A snarl cut off anything else that the spirit might have said as it turned its attention once more. Harry was forging forward against the waves of pressure from the locket, albeit slowly, as the locket focused on him.

The shadows coalesced into yet another figure, this one a blonde man that only Laura and Harry recognized. "I was wrong about you. You will always be nothing more than spare parts—always a spare for X-23."

His words didn't seem to phase Harry as the teen plodded forward. The figure shifted again, this time to a fat man. "Freak. Selling you was the best decision I ever made. Those men certainly told the truth! They knew how to handle your freakishness. They even managed to turn you into an even bigger freak!"

Harry's slow strides against the buffeting pressure didn't falter in the slightest, he was within five meters and closing.

The shadows surrounding the ghostly Vernon started to writhe more violently, as the apparition shifted forms once more, this time to Sarah, much like Laura's had been: "I will never love you like I love my real daughter—my real flesh and blood."

Three meters.

The shadows grew more agitated and, this time flipped into the same two figures that had confronted Sirius. "God… I can't believe we gave our lives for you… and look at what you became. A killer. A monster. A weapon. A fr-"

Harry snarled wordlessly as he threw himself forward the final short distance and stabbed his claw down into the center of the open locket.

The shadows writhing in the air froze for a moment before the figures disappeared. A loud scream of agony echoed into the air as there was another explosion of pressure forcing everyone but Harry, back a step, before the shadows disappeared with a flash of light and the fading echo of a terrified scream.

With the disappearance of the phantom, the infirmary seemed very quiet.

Harry's chest was heaving with exertion, and he was still shirtless, making the effect even more dramatic. He took several deep breaths before sheathing his claws and looked around at the others in the room.

Sirius and Dumbledore looked pale as they stepped forward slowly toward the locket pieces on the ground.

"Is… it dead?" Sirius rasped cautiously, his voice hollow, dry, and cracking simultaneously.

Dumbledore was casting spells at the pieces, which were at the center of a charred spot on the ground.

Harry's attention turned to Laura who stood with tears on her face and whose arms were crossed over her chest as she stared at the area where the locket was.

He watched as Fleur hesitantly stepped forward and slid her arms around Laura, who stiffened, as Fleur slowly and carefully pulled the younger girl into a concerned hug.

Harry watched cautiously, wanting to be careful, to ensure the blonde wasn't going to get hurt if Laura snapped. However, some of the tension left his shoulders as surprisingly, Laura relaxed into the older blonde's arms.

Harry's attention turned to the office, where he saw his mother looking frantic, her fist flat against the doorframe. Harry guessed she pounded on it a few times while Madame Pomfrey was watching Dumbledore, waiting for any sign of an all-clear. He held his hand up with one finger raised, indicating to wait a moment. Sarah nodded a little bit and visibly made an effort to calm down.

Dumbledore had finished casting spells and finally seemed to slump. "It's destroyed. Like so many of Tom's works, it was an impressive and horrific, bit of magic."

"He got the idea that it would make the locket difficult to destroy." Harry volunteered from the memories he had acquired. "Make people face their worst fears."

Dumbledore turned to him, "You knew it would do that?"

"If it was opened, I knew it would confront people with their fears, yes, but only someone who speaks to snakes could open it. I didn't think it would get the chance if I stabbed it first. Unfortunately, that only broke the first protection." Harry answered. Then he pointed toward the office with a wordless demand.

Dumbledore started, then nodded, and, with a wave of his wand, dispelled the seal on the door at the back of the office.

Sarah burst out first, immediately heading toward Laura and Harry. "Are you okay?" she asked, her voice betraying her panic.

Laura blinked a little bit and looked up at her, her expression hesitant, before her mother pulled her forward into a hug. Harry thought Laura was distraught enough that she didn't even realize she hadn't let go of Fleur, who was still rubbing the younger girl's back in concern.

Sarah looked up from Laura to look at Harry, and she mouthed, 'Are you okay?'

Harry nodded and pointed to Laura, who seemed to be calming. As she straightened up, she released both women from the hug and, turning to look at Harry, the same question Sarah had mouthed was clearly on her tongue.

Harry waved it off before she could ask it, "I'm fine."

Then his expression shifted to a smirk: "And another piece of the bastard dead. The two hardest pieces gone, and three in less than twenty-four hours. Now, as far as I know, we've just got the bastard himself."

A silence descended on the infirmary, one that no one seemed to be sure of what to say, to break it.

"Headmaster," Poppy's voice finally broke the silence when it seemed no one else was ready to break it. "If you have some time, I would like you to sit in to discuss all the results we've found… looking at… Harry and Laura... It's… quite a lot. Some of it I can't make heads or tails of."

"If they don't object," Dumbledore responded after a moment's consideration, with a glance at Harry.

"I do not mind, provided it does not go beyond you," Harry responded. "And as we said, when the tests started, that Mom can be a part of the discussion."

"As she 'as some idea of what 'as been done and what you've gone through, it is almost certainly necessary." Fleur added, grateful that they seemed to be moving back toward more familiar ground, although she had not yet drifted far from Laura, a comforting arm still at the base of the younger girl's back.

"Good," Harry responded firmly. "You feel free to talk that out then."

He turned and grabbed his clothing; an action mirrored a few moments later by Laura, who had regained her more collected demeanor, and pulled away from Sarah and Fleur.

"You will not be joining us?" Dumbledore asked, his eyebrows raised.

"I'm sure whatever you want to talk about, Mom's insight will be far more helpful. She's the doctor." Harry waved his hand as he knelt down to tie his boots. "Our knowledge of anatomy, while extensive, tends to be focused entirely on knowing... where to hit to get a desired effect."

"Besides, we have to speak to Mr. Moody again," Laura added as she straightened up, sliding into her shirt.

"Oh?" Dumbledore asked, his interest piqued.

"What do you need to see Mad-Eye for?" Sirius asked.

"It is often better to get second opinions." Harry said, reaching down to pick up a duffel bag that was sitting unnoticed next to one of the infirmary beds, "Do you know where we can find him?"

"He is probably walking the perimeter walls," Sirius said.

"I shall send for him." Dumbledore offered and waved his wand, a silver phoenix shooting out into the air.

"Alastor, our guests would like to speak to you and get your opinion on something, if you would join us in the infirmary." He told the silver phoenix before it flew away, leaving a wispy trail behind.

"Convenient." Laura opined.

/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\

It was less than five minutes later when Moody stumped into the room.

His eye spun as he saw Dumbledore already ensconced in the medi-witch's office with the two healers, as well as the woman Harry addressed as 'Mom'. Harry Potter and his sister were leaning over a large table Moody hadn't seen before. A cursory glance with his magical eye told him it had been conjured.

Sirius Black was with them and was alternating between looking at whatever was on the table and looking at the two teens at opposite sides of the table.

He walked over to them, his leg and staff making alternating thudding sounds with each movement.

As he approached the table, his eye spun once in its socket, a sure sign of surprise.

On the table, a large map was laid out, one showing the Hogwarts' grounds.

The focus, though, wasn't on the castle itself. Its vaguest shape was outlined, but the map was far more detailed about what lay outside the protective walls on the far side of the main bridge. The map extended into the forest and to the area surrounding Hogsmeade.

"You want to… what?" Sirius was asking in disbelief, glancing over at Moody as he joined the conversation.

"We want to set a trap," Harry said firmly, glancing up and seeing Moody enter. "But for that, we wanted a second opinion from someone who probably knows the most magical strategy."

"You don't want Albus?" Moody asked, his eye spinning around once and then fixing on Harry.

"You seemed the most pragmatic last night, and I'd rather ask someone who might not get too squeamish on certain details," Harry said frankly.

"Alright, lad. What are you hoping to trap?" Moody asked after a few moments of consideration.

"I want to set a trap for the dark arsehole and as many of his people as possible," Harry said calmly.

A strange mix of emotions rode across Sirius's face: disbelief, exasperation, and fear. Moody's expression didn't shift, though his magical eye spun in its socket a few times.

"You know that even Albus doesn't think the bastard's ever going to be captured? Even if we could…trap him, he's too dangerous to imprison, too powerful. It won't work with him," Moody said slowly, his face shifting into a scowl.

"Trying to trap the Dark Lord is insane!" Sirius added. "Especially if you take into account all the dark wizards and witches that have flocked to his banner."

Harry and Laura both stared at the two of them blankly.

"When we say 'trap,' we don't mean capture. What we really mean is 'guide them into an ambush and kill as many as possible.'" Laura clarified slowly.

"Oh," Sirius said, not able to think of a response to that.

"Alright, I'm listening." Moody stepped forward, looking down at the map, unable to disguise his interest.

"We want to do the same thing we did for the werewolves, only on a larger scale." Harry said.

"You want to burn down Hogsmeade? I hate to say, you pretty much accomplished that last night." Moody chuckled, his eyes fixed on the map.

"Well, no. We just knew that's where the wolves would pass through, thanks to their trails," Harry said. "But first, we need to check our assumptions with someone who knows."

Laura picked up almost immediately, "The Goblins said Hogwarts' protections will keep them from flying on brooms."

Moody nodded, "As long as Hogwarts' defenses remain, flight is impossible, as are apparitions and portkeys, unless specifically allowed by the Headmaster."

"How far out do those protections extend?" Harry asked.

"Well, we know from initial reconnaissance that Mom started to feel uncomfortable out here before the forest got dense." Laura ran a finger along one edge of the map, pretty far away from the castle.

"Aye, those would be the outer boundary protections," Moody said with a nod.

"They are wards that keep muggles away with a pretty strong aversion feeling. Those were up even before this war. Keeps people without magic from noticing us." Sirius said, looking where Laura was pointing.

"Mum just felt uncomfortable," Harry said with a raised brow.

"Well, she knew about magic and that Hogwarts was here, which helped. Strong-minded ones can push through it. Or it was the fact that you were guiding her, or she could be a squib." Sirius ran a hand through his goatee in consideration.

"The protections are layered. The farther away you are, the less restrictive they are," Moody explained, shifting around the table. The closer you get, the stronger they are."

"Do you know the distances on that?" Laura asked, meeting the scarred man's eyes.

"This ain't exact or anything… but… the portkey and apparition protections probably extend about here..." Moody drew a circle with his finger on the map. "The physical and much harsher protections start within line of sight from the gate." He drew a much smaller circle with his finger.

Laura took a moment and traced a light pencil marking where Moody's finger had traced.

"How strong are the protections?" Harry asked.

"Very," Sirius interjected immediately.

Moody glared at him a moment before nodding in silent agreement.

"And the chances that Voldemort could break through them?" Laura asked.

"Impossible, they're the strongest on the planet," Sirius said almost immediately.

Moody didn't say anything, but this time, his reticence seemed more cautious than irritation at Sirius speaking for him.

Harry looked up from the map once more, sensing the hesitation, and pinned Moody with a stare that the grizzled wizard met for several long moments before heaving a sigh.

"It's not impossible." He said gruffly.

"What?!" Sirius sputtered out, turning to look at the auror with an expression of pure disbelief.

"Enough magical power expended on the protections would make all of them shatter… eventually," Moody said shortly. Albus being here as headmaster and the one they're tied into keeps them fully powered. So it would take an enormous amount of magic to break them—months at least. Possibly years of most of Voldemort's forces pounding on them continually, especially with people inside that could shore them up."

Moody paused, and Harry's eyes narrowed, watching him. The two locked gazes for several long seconds in a mute challenge before Moody's shoulders hitched slightly. "But... if Albus falls, the protections fall with him, until a new headmaster is chosen, and then they take time to power up."

"How much time?" Laura asked, looking up sharply.

"No real certainty, as we can't find reliable records on a headmaster falling during a siege. Albus guesses that it will take at least a full lunar cycle." Moody answered.

"Mad-eye!" Sirius snapped looking aghast, "That's… impossible. Everyone has always said Hogwarts' protections are the strongest on the planet."

Moody fixed him with a glare, "Aye, and they are."

"Right… unless Albus falls… or keels over," Sirius said.

"What do you want me to say, Black?" Moody spat, "People's morale is low as it is. If they knew that if, and when, Dumbledore goes, that we're buggered, we'd lose without the bastard even having to lift his bloody wand."

"That's a poor strategy," Laura said quietly, looking up at the two wizards. "One linchpin that… if he dies for any reason, then everything goes with it."

Harry nodded, "You won't have the fear of Dumbledore keeping Voldemort wary, and you won't have full strength protections."

"Aye," Moody agreed. "Albus and I have discussed as much."

"I'm surprised you're willing to admit that much," Laura said, watching Moody. Her gaze reflected a mix of curiosity and suspicion.

"I saw you last night, saw how you moved in Albus' office. I didn't know you were that fast. But if you wanted to kill him, you could have. And gotten me and Delacour as well, without breaking a sweat." Moody admitted gruffly. "You would have done so last night before we could have stopped you. And I don't think someone who wants to betray us would be killin' parts of the bastard's soul…"

Harry waved off any further comments, as it looked like Sirius was about to explode into a full-on diatribe, "Unless the man has a stroke shortly… it's not our immediate concern. My big question right now... is there any approach to the castle the dark arse might take other than this one here?" Harry tapped a finger at the field leading up to the gate and then bridge.

Sirius and Moody exchanged glances before Moody shook his head. "Not likely. There are some secret passages into the castle that are all sealed. The cliffs are magically resistant to any attempt to scale them. The lake was something we were concerned about and have that pretty well-warded. We destroyed the side bridge a year or two ago."

"Leaving them one way to really attack unless they find another secret passage in," Harry said, looking satisfied.

"Aye, but Hogwarts helps as well. Especially in wartime, it helps protect us. Unfortunately, one way in pretty much traps us without leaving us any way to escape." Moody said.

"This is nearly perfect…" Laura mused, exchanging a look with Harry.

"You're not wrong. If we seed this entire field with explosives… at the very least, we'll have to take some of them out," Harry muttered, running his finger through a cone of space leading up to Hogwarts.

"Enough of them prepared… and it ought to produce mass casualties." Laura agreed, tracing the cone with her own finger.

Moody's eye spun wildly. "You want to blow him up."

"Mhm," Harry said absently, "Him and as many of his followers as possible."

"You realize… fire only really is dangerous to wizards if it's fiendfyre? Otherwise, a simple flame-freezing charm will make fire nothing more than a tickle to wizards," Sirius said after a few moments' hesitation as he looked between Harry and Moody and Laura.

"Er, the actual danger of explosives has rarely got anything to do with the fire… at least initially." Laura said blandly. Seeing his confusion, she continued, "The fire… is usually a byproduct? It's the shrapnel, ball bearings, nails, really anything small and hard that fly out when something explodes that does the damage… hard to cast anything with your sticks when a couple of dozen things go through you at the speed of sound."

Sirius paused as he processed Laura's explanation before protesting, "That's ... not something I've ever seen wizards do in a fight."

"This isn't a fight," Harry said, his voice cold but firm. "It's a war. And the other side doesn't use underhanded tactics?"

"Well of course…" Sirius said, backtracking.

"You've been at war for a long time, and as the old wizard said, they're winning the war." Laura said quietly. "But we're here now, and one thing the two of us know is warfare. We've been learning tactics since before we could read."

Moody hadn't said anything, but his good eye was fixed on Laura while his magical one was fixed on Harry. "Alright… How do you plan on getting him into your trap?"

"We need to do two things," Laura replied evenly. "We'll worry about the first right now."

Her tone made it clear they weren't sharing both steps of the plan at this moment.

"We'll need to get his attention at some point." Harry picked up in agreement, "We need to make him think something is happening beyond you all sitting here and turtling up, waiting for him to come seige you and kill you. It could be a number of things. As far as I know he still fears Dumbledore, and if he thinks Dumbledore is acting, doing something, I'm willing to bet that he will have to respond."

"Do you think eliminating the werewolf pack will accomplish that?" Sirius asked, his tone curious.

"Might. Might not." Harry offered unhelpfully, "If it doesn't, we can escalate it after we prep the field. Then see about drawing attention for a confrontation in the place of our choosing." He tapped the map with his finger once more.

"You plan on drawing the Dark Lord here to have a confrontation? Are you insane?" Sirius demanded, looking back and forth between Harry and Laura.

"Black." Moody said, trying to keep the man calm. "Listen before you fly off the handle. You don't know the whole story. You didn't see what we saw last night. If they think they can do this, I want to hear them explain."

Sirius seemed less than thrilled with that particular idea.

Harry and Laura seemed to ignore the byplay. Harry was scowling as his eyes flickered over the map.

"What's bothering you?" Laura asked.

"The logistics." Harry responded, pointing to the field on the map, "We don't have anywhere near enough explosives to cover all this ground… especially not if we hope to control the detonation remotely, and enough overkill to make it so much harder to survive."

"There are a couple of supply caches the company set up for missions here in Europe that I'm… pretty sure the facility will have no need of again. They're pretty scattered, but if the old wizard lets us use his firebird again, we could maybe get those?" Laura half-asked after some consideration.

Harry hummed and glanced over where there seemed to be a deep conversation going on in the medi-witch's office. "I guess it doesn't hurt to ask."

A sudden burst of fire in the air caused Laura and Harry to jump back into defensive stances. They only relaxed slightly when they saw the orange bird from the night before. The bird circled them before landing on Harry's shoulder. Harry stiffened up at the sudden weight, watching the bird warily as if waiting for it to attack.

The fire bird, on the other hand, seemed rather pleased as it landed and shuffled in a self-congratulatory manner on Harry's shoulder.

Seeing their confused looks, Sirius hesitantly spoke up. "I think… that's Fawkes' way of saying he will help."

The beautiful bird bobbed its head up and down affirmatively, causing Harry and Laura to exchange another look.

"It seems like we have a way forward," Harry said, still keeping his eyes on the bird that seemed quite pleased to be on his shoulder.

It was the work of almost two hours, with Fawkes repeated help, where they found themselves in the corner of the infirmary, standing in front of a waist-high pile of explosives.

Harry and Laura both stared at the pile with arms crossed, looking more than a little displeased.

"What's the matter?" Sirius asked.

"Three of the safe houses were empty. They should not have been. The only people that were supposed to know of them, be able to access them, and have cause to make use of them should be dead." Laura answered after a pause.

"How do you know?" Moody asked.

"Because I killed them," Laura answered shortly. Her answer caused Sirius to stiffen, and Moody's eye spun once, but he showed no other reaction.

"And blew them up," Harry added helpfully.

"And blew them up." Laura echoed, sounding not at all bothered.

"Seems like something of a theme," Sirius muttered, glancing back and forth between the two.

Harry nodded, "While I don't like mysteries, our more immediate concern is that we don't have anywhere near enough explosives. Unless we could get him to stand in a rather small spot."

"We don't. Not for the entire field if we want it to be effective, no matter how much shrapnel we add. We either risk not covering enough space, or we risk the explosions not being enough to be fatal on even regular humans." Laura confirmed before she looked up at Sirius and Moody who were watching them, and she tilted her head, "You wouldn't happen to have any convenient explosives on hand, would you?"

"The more, the better," Harry added.

Sirius and Moody exchanged a long look before turning their attention back to the girl. Sirius spoke slowly as he considered the question, "I think… we need to introduce you to the Weasley Twins."

/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\/V\

They had spoken to Dumbledore, when he had left the meeting between the school mediwitches, Poppy and Fleur, as well as Sarah, looking incredibly troubled. Though, he hadn't explained what had troubled him. Moody insisted they make him aware of the plan.

They brought him over to the table and outlined the basics of their plan for him. Dumbledore looked incredibly uncomfortable with the idea of an ambush. While the conflict was clear on his face, he didn't outright shut down the idea.

His one concern was that they weren't sure when Voldemort might show up, so what would result if someone were to wander across the field in the meantime? That led to a brief explanation of what remote detonation meant to the old wizard.

In the end, after a long look exchanged between himself and Moody, he nodded his assent. Dumbledore even offered his help in preparing the field.

"No," Harry replied immediately. When the Headmaster looked like he was going to protest, Laura spoke up.

"Mr. Moody has explained how the… protections work around here," Laura said quietly.

Dumbledore had turned his head to glare at Moody who met his gaze, looking only slightly uncomfortable.

"They had to know Albus," Moody defended against the wordless accusation. "You may have most of the wizards in the castle fooled-"

"So they don't give up!" Dumbledore interjected. "The witches and wizards out there are depending on Hogwarts to keep them safe. If they lose hope-"

"You are right. But unlike the people you're responsible for. We don't need hope." Harry cut in, drawing their attention back to him. "We are going to beat Tom Riddle. But while we don't need hope, what we do need is solid and correct information."

"Besides," Laura added, "telling us it's impossible to break through the protections would have us trying to figure out what you were overlooking."

That seemed to shut everyone up. In the end, Albus nodded and agreed to remain in the castle.

The meeting with the Weasley twins was productive, though the two weren't really twins. If their introductions were to be believed, one of them, Fred, limped around on a cane, missing his left foot. The other one, George, was either blind in his left eye or missing it entirely.

It wasn't just the patch over the eye that told Harry; it was the way George moved. Harry and Laura were both able to tell the man had minimal depth perception, and what he did have was likely more familiarity with his immediate surroundings than anything else.

Still, they were very helpful with explosives and seemed equally fascinated by the concept of remote switches and explosions building off one another. Though they were somewhat uncertain of the ability of remote and electronic triggers, they quieted when Harry mentioned that there hadn't been many problems with them when they blew up Hogsmeade.

After getting the explosive supply, it took some time to figure out how they would rig them to be reliably explosive to said triggers. By the time the two of them were ready to head out it was already early evening. They waited, ate dinner in the infirmary, then ventured out an hour and a half before midnight.

The three wizards and one witch who helped them were invaluable. Moody and Sirius assisted them, planting the explosives according to a specific requirement, while another witch and wizard, who were good with plants, helped the field grow carefully over the dirt covering the explosives. The tall wizard Harry, who was Harry's age, was named Neville, and the older witch with white hair was named Sprout.

When they first met the other two that would help seed the field, Sprout had looked at him for several long moments before her eyes widened. However, before she could say anything, Moody had cut her off. "Not a word. To anyone." Clearly, she recognized him, or who he might be. As she kept staring at him and up at his forehead, trying to see under his hair.

Harry couldn't help but approve of the idea of keeping his presence under wraps. Whether it was Dumbledore's idea or Moody's, Harry knew enough of Tom's mind to know the instant he heard word of Harry Potter, Voldemort would be forced to react.

Their labors, even with the help of the others, took all evening. Setting up the explosives, and preparing them to detonate on activation, took almost seven hours and it was getting on to daybreak when they had finished.

"I have to admit… that's pretty impressive. There are enough explosives to hopefully turn that field into a crater, and you can't tell anything has been laid down," Laura commented into the pre-dawn morning air. She was smudged with dirt and looked completely unbothered by her current state.

Harry nodded in agreement, examining the field critically. Even for an eye looking for signs, it didn't show any hints of excavation.

Still, they were well prepared… if it worked.

\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/

Late the next afternoon, after everyone involved in the night's labors had gotten some rest, Harry and Laura both found themselves in Dumbledore's office again. The headmaster was present, as was Sarah, along with Sirius and Fleur.

Harry was just looking at the headmaster expectantly, "You wanted to see us?"

Fawkes had apparently decided that Harry's shoulder was a good place to take up residence, so he was once more sitting there. He had flown from his perch the moment Harry walked in the office, to Harry's confusion and Dumbledore's surprise.

"I feel it's best that you know the results of our tests yesterday." Dumbledore explained after moving his gaze from Fawkes to Harry, "I thought it might be best shared with everyone present, that way, we might be able to answer any questions you have. Your mother has agreed that, as I'm most familiar with the magical aspect, that I might be best suited to explain it."

"Alright," Harry said, raising his eyebrow curiously after glancing at Sarah, who nodded slightly.

"You are magical." Dumbledore started off bluntly, before his gaze drifted over to Laura. "Both of you."

"Me? Magical?" Laura asked, wrinkling her nose slightly as she seemed to be testing the words.

"Yes, as in you both have magic inside of you." Dumbledore confirmed, "However, Harry's magic is significantly stronger than yours. Harry's magic is... incredibly strong. In fact, greater than anything I've seen recorded before assuming the readings were right. Though based on the readings from Madame Pomfrey and Madame Delacour, I would estimate they're both still growing and yours does seem to be closing the gap."

Harry's eyes narrowed, "Are you about to suggest we try and learn to use wands?"

"No," Dumbledore demurred quickly. While you both have magic inside you… and Laura has any and that it's growing inside her—this offers some fascinating thoughts and insights into magic and how closely it is tied to blood in the family. However, neither of you are wizards… or witches, as the case might be."

The aged wizard pointed at the both of them, "That… metal that's coated your bones interferes with magic. It twists it. Or changes it. Or focuses it. We're not really sure. Not only will it impact magic used on you… but I very much doubt either of you will probably ever be able to use a wand."

"What do you mean, 'impact the magic used on us'?" Harry asked, glancing first at his sister, then his mother and then back to the aged wizard.

"Unfortunately, zat's about as specific as we can get. It seems to affect magic spells. Even our spells to check you out, which are about as passive as possible, came back distorted." Fleur interjected from behind them, "Most took several castings to make sure we were getting ze answers we did get."

Dumbledore nodded and picked up the thread, "At least while that metal is in your body. Aside from… maybe potions, and runes, I highly doubt there's any branch of study we normally teach here that you will find yourself able to successfully cast with a wand. That metal twists the magic, making the chance of you being able to use any other focus practically impossible."

"That's okay. We're not really planning on hanging around here after your dark lord is well and truly dead," Harry said with an uncaring shrug after a moment's pause. Fawkes didn't seem to mind the shrug, but shifted a bit on his shoulder.

Dumbledore seemed slightly unhappy, seeing no real disappointment in Harry's expression or tone. But he did continue. "However, that being said… there was at least two interesting pieces we gleaned."

"You two are siblings," Dumbledore said, waving his finger between them.

Harry and Laura exchanged a look, before Harry spoke slowly, "Um. Yeah, we explained that already. I even told you about the whole goblin adoption thing."

Sarah snorted in amusement but didn't say anything.

"It's a bit more than that." Dumbledore glanced at her with an exasperated look but it seemed more vaguely irritated than anything. He sighed a bit. "Harry. When your mother died, your biological mother, Lily Potter," He corrected quickly seeing the slight narrowing of Harry's eyes as if preparing for an argument. "She left you with protection tied to your blood. That is why I placed you with your relatives."

Harry's jaw clenched but he didn't snap at the man who held up his hands defensively. For a fleeting moment, he had visions of inflicting all the pain and trauma he had endured at the hands of his so-called relatives, and by proxy, the doctors at the institute he had been sold to, upon this man.

"I'm not saying I didn't make a mistake in placing you there. I'm simply sharing the information, as I promised, and giving you context." Dumbledore said, this time with a nervous glance over at Sarah who seemed to bristle just as much as her son had. "However, my point is that somehow that protection now extends between you and young Laura, as well as your mother. Despite the fact that it should have gone completely, long ago, when you didn't spend any time with your relatives."

"Protection on them? What do you mean by 'protection'?" Harry asked sharply.

"It's a level of protection from Voldemort's magic on you. Beyond that, I… don't know." Dumbledore admitted, spreading his hands once more. "I don't understand how Lily created it, or what she did, but I recognize the protection and it's links through blood, and we can tell it extends between the three of you. But… what that means? I haven't the faintest idea. Nor do I know exactly what it will protect against or not. It might protect you from all or some of Tom's magic or it might not."

"Well… since we had no idea it existed, we're definitely not going to be relying on it." Laura said dryly. "Especially if you cannot adequately describe what, if anything, it will provide protection against."

"Quite, I don't know if it will do anything at all. Especially with that metal in your bodies twisting the magic. But again, I promised that I would share whatever we found with you." Dumbledore explained. "However, the other piece I wanted to tell you, is that, while you may not be capable of using a wand to do magic… you are capable of magic. At the very least, it may be possible to experience bursts of accidental magic in times of great stress, but, it may also be possible, with a great deal of work, that you can perform magic affecting yourselves, magic that can be done without a wand."

"Like… what?" Laura asked, her eyes narrowing, her expression almost exactly matching Harry's.

"It might be possible for you to apparate… or be able to become animagi or achieve self-transfiguration. But perhaps other more esoteric branches of magic. We're of differing thoughts on that." Dumbledore explained.

"Teleport and change into an animal," Harry explained at Laura's confused look at the terms.

"Yes. However, considering one general requires familiarity with magic and we've never really tried to teach someone who isn't, and the latter almost always requires competence in transfiguration, it may not be possible. But there is some theory about your magic adapting yourselves... Especially with the metal inside you, which may be a focus or it could be completely resistant to any sort of change." Dumbledore sighed, "The tests really left us with far more questions than answers. I just wanted to offer all the insights we had gleaned from them."

"It doesn't really change anything," Harry said in reply. "We're here to get rid of the bastard who killed my biological parents. After that, we're gone. It would probably be best for you not to spread around that 'Harry Potter has returned.'"

The Headmaster nodded, "I thought as much, if only to keep it from getting back to Tom. Aside from the people in this room, the only people who know your identity are Alastor Moody and Madame Pomfrey. Both are used to keeping secrets. Madame Sprout has guessed but Moody assured me she knows to keep it to herself. Given your arrival, especially the sight young Laura showed to those on the wall; people have no idea what to make of you."

Laura snorted but refrained from saying anything.

"As much as all that is interesting, I would like to focus on other problems, such as how we might be able to get Tom here now that we've prepared the trap," Harry said.

"I'm not sure how long it will take Tom to notice that his werewolves have gone missing. The last communication I got from Durmstrang was of their notice that their outer wards had fallen. If he's working on getting through the inner ones, he probably doesn't have any use for his werewolf packs." Dumbledore said, running a hand through his beard.

Harry sighed in irritation, "I don't want to sit around waiting for him. There has to be something we can use to draw him here, to bait the trap further, so to speak."

"Well… I could think of one thing…" Dumbledore mused and stroked his beard. Seeing the looks everyone was giving, "We could go the opposite way… let him know that the 'Boy-Who-Lived' has arrived and is prepared to finish things…" Dumbledore's eyes flicked up to Harry uncertainly. He wasn't sure how much Harry knew or didn't.

"It's a pointless prophecy. It's him or me." Harry waved off any trepidation from the older wizard, simultaneously confirming his awareness of the prophecy that had two old wizards so obsessed with, "But… you think that would make him show up?"

"I think he wouldn't be able to stop himself. Tom wouldn't-" Dumbledore started to say before a silver ram bounded through the window. "Albus, Durmstrang has fallen. We have refugees at the front gate. Minerva and I are handling it. Stay in your office. Black's cousin is inbound."

Dumbledore stood up and a frustrated look with Moody's demands crossed his face before his eyes narrowed, "We're about to have company."

Less than a minute later, the office door burst open, and a young man with short dark hair and dark robes pushed his way into the office. He was heaving from exertion, bent over, and clutching his knees.

Behind the man, several seconds later, Flitwick and Charlie Weasley ran into the office.

Their wands were pointed at the man, but since he'd made no move toward Dumbledore, they didn't cast a spell.

"Sorry, sir. He portrayed to the main gate first and then had the password to get in to see you. He was right ahead of the group that just arrived. He ran all the way here." Charlie said, his wand still pointed at the man, by way of explanation.

Harry and Laura had shifted, closing space, positioning themselves in front of Sarah while slightly facing away from one another. The other wizards in the room had their wands out and pointed at the man.

"Sorry… sir," the young man panted out. His features suddenly started to morph, the hair growing longer and turning from dark to pink.

"Nymphadora!" Sirius stepped forward to hold the woman's shoulder. She looked like she was about to collapse, even as her change continued slowly.

The metamorph didn't even glare at him for the use of her first name. She just looked at Dumbledore, "Bad news. He cracked the final wards. Durmstrang is his. He's going to move on Hogwarts almost immediately."

Tonks leaned against Sirius, clearly exhausted from more than just the run up to the Headmaster's office. Even as her breathing slowed from the exertion, she seemed to be struggling to stay standing.

"He's not going to take any time to regroup?" Dumbledore asked, his voice sharp.

"From what I heard… that was supposed to be his original plan… a couple of weeks to regroup," Tonks shook her head wearily. "However, Karkaroff was more clever… and less of a coward than You-Know-Who, and everyone else for that matter, expected. He sacrificed himself in a ritual to break the portkey wards the death eaters had set up so a small group of survivors could escape here."

"That pissed him right off, and would've been bad enough but then someone told him about some sort of attack on the werewolves at Hogsmeade?" Her tone lifted in curiosity, she didn't ask the question, though she did look pointedly at Dumbledore, "I stayed long enough to watch his temper tantrum and some of the fallout."

At their questioning glances, she just waved her hand in irritation. "Just him killing half a dozen grunts… But, I did learn he wasn't sure if you attacked Greyback or if Greyback and his pack got extra stupid on the full moon and attacked Hogwarts and you used Hogs… Hogsmeade to burn the bodies. He's going to rest just long enough for people to recover. I would expect he'd be here in a day. Two days at mosst."

"He's already portkeyed magical creaturess to the far side of Forbid.. Forbidden Foressst… on their way…Dementors on their way too..." She swayed precipitously, and Sirius slung her arm over his shoulder to help her. "But he's coming. He's coming for Hogwarts like a sstorm."

Dumbledore nodded gravely, "Thank you Miss Tonks. Your warning is helpful."

"Kay, I'ma… sleep now." Her eyes rolled back as her features slackened once more. Her pink hair changed to black, and her face shifted slightly. She passed out into Sirius' arms, who caught her expertly.

Dumbledore saw the looks of suspicion and curiosity that flitted across both Harry and Laura's face so he gestured. "Miss Tonks is a metamorph, meaning she can change her form. She has been a spy for us in the Dark Lord's forces."

"Was a spy." Sirius interjected with narrowed eyes, "She's not going to be spying anymore. She's done."

Dumbledore ducked his head in acknowledgement, "I dare say there's not much good she can do, and the risk of her being caught is too great. The portkey she used to get here probably attracted his attention."

"And it does that to her?" Harry asked, gesturing as Sirius laid her down on a small couch he'd conjured.

"No, she's like that because she's exhausted." Sirius waved a wand over her, before adding, "Mostly physically. Doubt she's gotten much rest recently."

"Do you trust her word?" Harry asked.

Sirius looked up and narrowed his eyes, the first time he had displayed any sort of ire at Harry for any reason, "She's been risking her life day after day hoping she doesn't get exposed. She's braver than any wizard here."

"You didn't answer the question," Laura commented calmly, not looking bothered by Sirius' ire.

"I trust her word," Dumbledore said, cutting off any argument that might be about to explode among the people in his office. "She has managed a tough line operating as one of the dark wizards in Tom's army."

Sirius looked up at Dumbledore, "You're not going to go down to the others that showed up?"

Dumbledore scowled slightly, revealing some frustration. "It was pointed out to me yesterday quite… forcefully by Alastor … that I was putting myself, the protections of the castle, and everyone inside at risk by going down there at every arrival."

"All it would take is one of them to get a lucky spell off at you and suddenly, you're in a great deal of trouble," Harry nodded in approval before his eyes narrowed, "What did she mean when she said magical creatures to the far side of the Forbidden Forest?"

"The Dark Lord's forces aren't just dark wizards," Moody said, "He's got trolls, giants, vampires… inferi."

"Zombies," Harry clarified with a glance at Laura and Sarah.

"Aye, close enough." Moody agreed with a nod and a glance at Dumbledore. "He was smart if he had portkeyed them to the far side of the forest, where they wouldn't have bounced off any portkey restrictions or anything else in the castle's protections."

At the confused look from Harry, Laura and Sarah, as well as Fleur and Sirius, Dumbledore spoke up, "One of the headmasters some time ago had protections added to the schema to prevent deadly animals from just being delivered by air or portkeyed in. Apparently, it was used either as an attack tactic or a prank tactic. The headmaster's notes weren't clear on the circumstances. They have to be brought in normally; Hogwarts more powerful and physical defenses only reach out to the gate to stop creatures just walking up. So they could easily make it through the forest and wander up to the front gate to begin pounding on the defenses."

Harry reached into the pocket of his pants and pulled out a folded-up piece of paper that he began unfolding even as he stepped to Dumbledore's desk, and with a swipe of his arm, pushed a bunch of clutter to one side of the desk carelessly, not much caring as a bowl of candy teetered and fell to the floor. Dumbledore didn't even flinch.

He laid out the same map they had used the previous day to set up the field, a drawn map of Hogwarts and the surrounding area. Laura moved up beside him, "Okay, the far side of the forest."

"Any idea where on the far side?" Harry asked with a grimace and a look up at Dumbledore and then to Moody, who moved up to look down at the map.

Moody heaved a sigh, his one good eye squinted down at the map, "Not really. Anywhere on this edge of the forest might have worked." He gestured along one side in the same direction as Hogsmeade, only further out. "The lake and the cliffs make coming from the other directions too unlikely. And he won't want to spread the forces out too much because if they stagger up one at a time, they'd be easy pickings."

"Not to mention it's easier to portkey multiple things to one area rather than making all sorts of portkeys to separate areas." Sirius spoke up from Tonks' side.

Harry grunted in acknowledgment and looked from the map to Laura, who didn't look any more pleased than he did. The forest was nearly spread out in a circle around the castle and its grounds. Even with only part of the circle vulnerable to attack, it was easily forty to fifty miles to the outer boundary, and the boundary itself was much more expansive and could be used against them.

"Well, the good news is that they'll be headed this way, so we can get them when they reach the inner boundary." Sirius offered.

"That's not actually a good thing," Harry countered.

"Why?" Sirius asked, looking between Harry and Laura and restraining a comment about how similar their expressions were at that moment.

"Because if the monsters are on the front line, they'll not only absorb an unknown amount of explosives, it may not kill them, and it may keep Tom Riddle's forces back from the field and the blast zone," Laura replied for both of them. "And while the monsters are likely in the same locale they probably aren't concentrated on a single space, and we can't just wander in random directions in the forest and hope our paths cross.

"I'd much rather take them where the terrain favors them being scattered, especially with our unfamiliarity with their combat abilities." Harry added, getting a nod of agreement from Laura.

"At least this means we won't have to do anything to bait the trap. He's coming here." Laura said quietly.

Harry hesitated and then turned his head to the bird that had seemed so comfortable on his shoulder. "I'm sure you're not supposed to be used as a taxi service… but could you get us to the highest concentration of the monsters that are incoming?"

When Fawkes bobbed his head, Harry nodded before turning back to Dumbledore. "We're going to waylay these creatures, keep as many of them from entering the fight as possible. We'll be back." Laura nodded in agreement and stepped forward next to Harry after a glance at her mother.

"You're not going alone!" Sirius protested, stepping forward.

"You're just going to get in our way," Harry said bluntly.

"Have you ever fought magical creatures before?" Sirius challenged, lifting his chin to meet Harry's gaze. When Harry hesitated, Sirius pressed his advantage, "Then you're going to need someone who at least has an idea of what they can do, who can watch your back."

"Oui, I will go too. You may need a 'ealer. At ze very least someone to watch both of your backs." Fleur spoke up.

Harry exchanged a look with Laura, who seemed conflicted about the idea. His gaze flicked over to Sarah, who was nodding ever so slightly in agreement. Harry heaved a sigh before he acquiesced, "If you come, we don't want you watching our backs. Though if we need information on something we don't recognize, you might be useful." He looked at Sirius pointedly, distinctly displeased to acquiesce to his demands and equally resolute as his commanding tone.

His gaze flicked over to Fleur, "You'll stick with Sirius, watching out for one another."

Laura spoke up, "We can't be held back trying to compensate for you or watch for you. We can't afford hesitance in combat."

Harry nodded in agreement, "Stay back, prevent us from being flanked, advise on creature abilities, and be on hand to corral monsters, no more unless we need it. Otherwise, trust us to handle it. Get the hell out of there if you're in danger." He spoke firmly.

Harry watched as Fleur nodded in a serious manner; she wasn't going to be an issue. Sirius looked like he was barely managing to bite back a rejoinder. In his mind, he was the one setting the conditions, the one protecting his godson.

His eyes searched for support, burning with the desire to countermand but he found nobody willing to aid his position. No one was going to back him wanting to abrogate the terms the two teens had conditioned for their agreement in bringing the two of them along. If anything, they agreed with what Harry and Laura had said.

Harry grimaced, but Fawkes cawed in what could only be interpreted as an affirmative.

Dumbledore hesitated and then nodded, "I will make sure Alastor has any final preparations for Tom's arrival, but will do my best to let him lead things unless absolutely necessary."

Harry went to say something but was interrupted as he caught something small that was tossed at him. A moment later, Laura did the same. They barely had to look at each other to slide the earpieces in.

"Keep in contact; I'll be monitoring and ready if you need anything," Sarah said, waiting for Harry and Laura to acknowledge and agree to her words. After receiving their nods, she turned to Sirius "I hold you responsible for making sure they get back." Her eyes drifted over to Fleur as well, the unspoken movement denoting her culpability as well.

Sirius resisted the urge to step back from her penetrating gaze. Thankfully he was saved from replying as Fawkes burst out in flame, and the four disappeared from the headmaster's office.

\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/

Sirius Black sat in Madame Pomfrey's office. He was slumped at a small table, alone with his thoughts, as he stared at a full glass of fire whiskey, next to a relatively full bottle sitting in front of him. His leg was restless, bouncing up and down mindlessly.

"Drinking when we might be under siege any time in the next day or two?" A woman's voice intruded on his thoughts, tinged with a hint of disapproval though far more filled with curiosity.

"That's why Merlin invented sobering charms," Sirius replied instinctively. He looked up to find Sarah, the woman Harry called 'Mom,' standing there looking at him.

"Wanna talk about it?" She asked, sympathy in her tone as she looked toward the empty chair at the table with Sirius, the question clear in her expression.

"Please," Sirius kicked the chair lightly, scooting it out for her, which she took without any hesitation. "Talk about what?" He asked halfheartedly, his leg slowing its restless movements as his upper lip curled upward.

"You don't think I've seen that expression before?" Sarah asked, taking a whiff of the firewhiskey out of curiosity and then grimacing and pushing it away. "You saw them in action, and it freaked you out."

Sirius looked up at her in surprise, which caused Sarah to scoff slightly. "Believe me. I've seen them in action many times, and... there are still times…" she trailed off.

"It… was like nothing I'd ever seen before. I mean… I guessed they'd use those hand knives to cut. But… not like that." Sirius said slowly, looking down at his glass again. "And the way they moved… Merlin… I thought werewolves were fast. But those two..."

His eyes grew distant a moment, staring off to something unseen before he looked up at her. He seemed to choose his words carefully. "What… Dumbledore told me a little bit about what happened to them, but I don't understand what you did to him, them… why..."

Sarah regarded Sirius solemnly. His question wasn't accusatory or angry but a plea for understanding. She slumped a little bit and ran a hand through her hair. "You know, there are so… so many times I ask myself those same questions." Guilt coloured her expression, but she pressed on, explaining her actions, actions that regularly plagued her thoughts, a continual source of culpability for the life she'd condemned them to.

"I was hired because I was… am, a brilliant geneticist." Uncertain of Sirius' understanding of what that meant, she clarified, "I work with blood, the building blocks that make us who we are. It has always made sense to me, and I grasped it instinctually. A natural at it so to speak." Seeing understanding in his eyes, she nodded and then continued, "So I was incredibly young, a prodigy, with a doctorate to my name before I could drive, much less vote. And this company came to me, they presented me with a challenge. Unlimited funding in order to repair a damaged genetic sample, in order to produce a viable clone. Essentially a copy of a person."

Sirius seemed to be following her explanation because he nodded slightly, "Why did they want you to do that?"

"It was the blood sample of a mutant codenamed Weapon X. He is one of the most dangerous beings on the planet. His unique combination of abilities make him not only one of the most lethal men to ever walk the earth but also make him damn near unkillable."

"Lethal and unkillable, how?" Sirius asked slowly.

"He has enhanced reflexes, strength, and senses that make him the perfect hunter. On top of that, he has claws, and also has the ability to regenerate from even the most extensive wounds and injuries."

"Sounds familiar," Sirius opined with a glance out at the infirmary beds where both Harry and Laura slept.

"Quite," Sarah agreed, "And additionally, his bones were coated in a metal that is, for all intents and purposes, unbreakable, once it hardens the first time; it can cut through essentially anything."

Sirius pointed out at the sleeping figures in the infirmary with a question on his expression.

"Harry is essentially the same. He has the same metal coating the claws and his bones." She answered the unspoken inquiry, "Laura has it on her claws, though it's possible magic is affecting it, as it seems to be spreading very slowly inside of her."

"Alright," Sirius said slowly as he digested those facts, his nose wrinkling and forehead creasing. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean to derail your explanation."

"It's alright. It's not like I've really talked about this with anyone." Sarah answered as her fingers picked at the table. "This company… I didn't really think about the long-term consequences of what they were asking. I didn't look into why. They issued me the challenge, which was on the level of putting together a puzzle with a billion pieces, that 95% were already in place, but the other 5% were missing and you had to guess on replacements. It was something few in my field would have even believed possible, and I gave it my best. I managed to succeed—partially. I fixed part of the genome—half of it—the X chromosome."

"I know a little about those," Sirius said, cutting her off when it looked like she was about to go into a deeper explanation. "One of the muggle-born explained it to Remus and me when they were talking about the silliness of blood purity and the dangers of inbreeding."

Sarah snorted, "The goblins said something very similar."

"Really?" Sirius asked, "They willingly talked about something like that with you? That's not something they tend to bandy about. Then again they're quite miffed with all wizards right now. So."

"Yeah," Sarah replied and glanced over at the other room, "The truth is… at first? I didn't think about what I was doing beyond trying to prove I could do the impossible." A hint of pride finding its way into her voice, "I proved I could fix and replicate the X chromosome. But I couldn't fix the Y chromosome. Some sort of degradation prevented it."

"That means I could give them what they want, but… only with two X chromosomes, identical ones are what I told them." Sarah explained, seeing Sirius' puzzled expression, "It would mean that the embryo was a girl, and they didn't want that."

"Ah. That I am familiar with. Growing up, pureblood families always wanted males: an heir and a spare," Sirius said, and then his expression turned to concern as Sarah flinched and looked out at the resting forms of her children.

"We'll get there in a moment," Sarah said before slowly turning her attention back from the beds to Sirius. "They kept having me try to fix the Y chromosome, but it was just too damaged. I couldn't give them the male they wanted. So they finally assented to a female subject. But… they demanded that I carry the child."

Sirius leaned forward to regard her intently, gray eyes moving over her expression.

"I was not even out of my teens when I agreed," Sarah grimaced and looked down at the table, not really seeing it. "I was so stupid. Blinded by wanting to prove once and for all that I could do something, without thinking through the ramifications." Her tone filled with self recrimination as she took a breath.

"Though… I did make one change they never knew of." She looked up and took a breath. "I thought that two of the exact same repaired X chromosomes would lead to problems and possible stability issues, so I paired them with my own. She's not a partial clone. Laura… is my daughter. She's half my blood, and I carried her to term. I gave birth to her."

Sirius nodded slowly, at last seeming to understand, "So… how did Harry… end up involved?"

"Laura was young, still an infant, and it would take time for her to develop," Sarah said slowly, "My boss and my colleague kept on the lookout for signs of young mutants who may exhibit similar characteristics, specifically, fast healing. Unfortunately, at least to my former colleagues, the mutant gene usually comes out during puberty, except in extreme situations, and most of those have far too many people watching, or aware of them for something like the Weapon X program to get ahold of them without drawing attention. Harry… was different."

Sirius paid her close attention as she seemed to stumble over her words.

"Looking for people who could heal fast, they kept an eye on hospitals and educational institutions all over the world. That's how Harry came to their attention. Harry's powers seem to have manifested at a young age and seemed the type they were looking for. He healed a broken bone in his arm between one X-ray and the next hours apart," Sarah explained.

Sirius tilted his head, and Sarah was vividly reminded of the dog form he had shown them previously. "Magicals do heal faster from injuries."

Sarah nodded, one of her hands idly reaching up to fiddle with her necklace, "Yes, but the company had no idea about magic. And even better in the eyes of the program, they got him without the risk of anyone immediately reporting him missing. His uncle sold him." She couldn't help but grimace as she informed his godfather of that fact, partly understanding how it must feel to be told that about someone you were supposed to protect and raise.

Sirius inhaled and his jaw clenched for several moments before he nodded, "Albus… mentioned that part."

She watched him for a moment, ensuring he was levelheaded, or as much as he could be, given the circumstances, before she pressed on. "So we thought it was a mutation until we tested his blood. We found out he wasn't a mutant. But we tested it a bunch of different ways and found something else… his entire being seemed like it had some sort of energy we couldn't really quantify, but that was adaptable, which is why he healed. The healing just wasn't fast enough for the program." Sarah glanced back out to the infirmary, "And… after some debate the decision was made to try an experimental procedure, irradiate him to deaden his immune system completely and then add Laura's genetics to his to see if his body would adapt." Even now, she still felt horrible for her part in what she'd done to Harry.

Squashing it, she continued her explanation: "In anyone else, it wouldn't have worked…it would have killed him. But this time, unknown energy inside him took the healthier, regenerative blood, adapted to it, and integrated it as part of his base genome in ways I still don't understand."

"Why? If he wasn't a mutant... Why do that to him if he wasn't what you were looking for?" Sirius asked, unable to keep the anger out of his voice.

"Because Zander, basically the adopted son of the head of the project, at first wanted a Spare to experiment on, one that was older and could be useful more quickly," Sarah explained, meeting Sirius' eyes as he flinched at the term this time. "That's why he goes by Spare at times."

"And once his body adopted and integrated the DNA they put him through brutal training and experiments. And… soon Zander preferred Harry as his success story over Laura. Because in his mind X-23 was my idea, and part of me, and he viewed Harry as his." Sarah grimaced.

"X-23?" Sirius asked; when Sarah nodded, he continued, "I heard him call her that today."

"Weapon X-23. It was her experiment designation." Sarah spat in anger, her eyes ablaze. "It's what they both were, weapons. Their only use to the program was to be sent out on missions."

"Missions?" Sirius asked, pressing for more details, fully expecting them to be different from what he'd hoped to hear. He wasn't stupid and was already getting a pretty good picture of what the 'uses' would be for those abilities.

"Sabotage, assassination, any sort of covert operations, you name it, they've probably done it," Sarah said, her voice filled with a mix of emotions.

Sirius looked up across the table at her, his brow furrowed as she met his eyes. His jaw clenched as he slowly inhaled and exhaled through his nose. "And you turned them into this?"

"Not alone… but yes, I was a large part of it," Sarah answered quietly. It would be impossible to miss the self-incrimination that was wholly evident in her tone and in her body language.

Sirius' hand flexed around the glass he was holding, and Sarah felt a sudden feeling of pressure against her from the other man. She swallowed but didn't flinch away.

"I was there the day Harry was born." When Sirius' voice came out, it was harsh and accusatory; it was obvious that he was trying to keep control of his temper. "He was such a sweet-natured child. He hardly ever cried. He loved to be held. He hated to be put down. We, his parents and I joked that he wouldn't be able to walk until he was five because someone was always holding him. I was there when he had his first bout of accidental magic before he was a year old. I would give him rides around the house as a dog while he giggled on my back."

He finally let his eyes look up again from where they glared at the glass in his hands, "What I saw today in the forest… was not that."

Sarah regarded him levely, not saying anything. Nor did she flinch back from the accusation in that tone.

"They just… just killed." Sirius breathed, "They went through a dozen trolls like… like..."

"Hot knives through butter?" Sarah offered, without a single sign of amusement on her face, as he searched for words. Sirius' gaze flicked to the beds once more then back to Sarah as he nodded.

"The giants? They're near impossible to kill, resistant to magic. They're over eight meters tall. It usually takes a dozen or more wizards to stagger or bring a single one of them down. But... I've never seen giants scream like that." Sirius went on, "One of them hit Harry with a club nearly as large as the Knight Bus!"

"Harry was up almost as fast as the giant lifted the club." Sirius couldn't keep the disbelief out of his voice, "Fleur and I both rushed over to him… but he barely even seemed staggered. He clawed through the giant and… it was left in two pieces…" Sirius shook his head as if that would rid him of the mental image.

"They both were so… so… I don't even know how to describe it." Sirius struggled for a description before he looked up.

"It's hard to describe to people who haven't seen it… seen them… in action." Sarah allowed, the admission as challenging to say as it was for Sirius to comprehend.

"At least… until the dementors showed up." Sirius said after a long pause, "Then… then they both lost their minds."

"What do you mean, lost their minds? What are dementors?" Sarah demanded, her brow furrowing.

"Harry and Laura… they'd been… efficient? They were quick, wasting no time or energy as they worked through the trolls, giants, and then the acromantula, lethifold, even some shambling inferi…. But, when the dementors came… it was like… a switching spell. They both clutched their heads and let out a cry and then… then they became… I don't know… feral." Sirius said, ignoring her question.

"My best friend is a werewolf; I grew up seeing their lack of control and the danger they represent." Sirius said, his eyes now unfocused as he remembered, "What they became… made anything I'd ever seen from werewolves seem like a toddler's fit." His eyes dulled, and his expression was vacant, horrified recalling what he'd witnessed. Sirius blinked and then swallowed, his eyes lifted up and surveying Sarah. He could see her worried expression—it couldn't be missed. Her knuckles were whitened, and she was leaning forward, listening intently.

Sirius ran his back and forth on his forehead, rubbing it, before picking up where he'd left off. "They were in a frenzy. The dementors swarmed the two of them and they charged the dementors before we could stop them. Neither of us could get a patronus to them in time."

"They became berserkers…" Sarah said grimly, turning her head, clenching her jaw.

"Yes, it was like… I don't know. Wild rabid animals… or one of those…" Sirius gestured but failed to find something he could equivocate to what he'd seen. "I spent time in Azkaban. I know the sound of dementors and their cries. But I've never heard them… scream in terror? They were shredded. I didn't even think dementors could be killed!"

"But they didn't stop there. They didn't know friend from foe. When they'd decimated every monster anywhere in their vicinity… there was only us, Fleur and I." Sirius shut his eyes tightly the vivid memory of Harry's snarling visage turning to him, claws dripping with blood, his body covered in all manners of muck, grime, and bodily fluid, and his clothing torn and shredded. He'd not be forgetting the frenzied flight.

"We tried to snap them out of it. I tried stopping them, but they didn't seem to even notice stunners." Sirius said, "Petrifying them seemed to slow them for about half a second before they shook it off. Though Harry shook it off before Laura."

Sirius paused and saw that Sarah was grimacing, but the surprise he thought he might find was utterly lacking.

"No, if they're in a rage they don't recognize friend from foe, especially if you do something they think is some sort of an attack," Sarah said with a sigh.

"I transformed into Padfoot, I dodged and led Harry away from Fleur. There was no way I'd have escaped both of them. We each took one, and I had to sprint, to keep from being sliced." He shuddered involuntarily. "I'm not sure what Fleur did exactly. We went in separate directions. I wasn't there to see it. What she said later, is that when she was cornered she used her allure at full blast. It seemed to wake Laura up and snap her out of it."

Sarah's eyes narrowed as she frowned, not understanding what happened.

Seeing Sarah's expression clued him in that she'd yet to be told of veela. "The allure is something Veela possess, a form of control that tends to heighten physical attraction can cause people to do all sorts of crazy things for them. Normally it's men who are drawn to the veela. But it can have an effect on anyone."

"But it was Laura, not Harry, who succumbed to it?" Sarah clarified slowly.

Sirius nodded. "And it was a good thing it did. I don't think Fleur would have escaped Laura otherwise, she doesn't have an agile animagus to save her, like me."

"But," she closed her open mouth, opened it once more, and shut it again as her expression turned calculating. "That shouldn't be possible. Nothing we've seen should affect them during their rages like that. It takes… well, usually it takes time or incapacitation if you manage it to get them to snap out of it." Her eyes darted back and forth as her mind worked through the possibilities of what may have occurred, not noticing Sirius' darkening expression.

"Incapacitation... you mean, like, being stabbed through the neck and held down?" The words came out at a normal decibel level, but they were sharp and harsh.

"Erm. Probably not at first. But eventually? Yes, I suppose," Sarah answered slowly as she nodded, "that might do it."

"Well, that's what it took!" Sirius hissed at her, seething in anger as he recounted what he'd seen. "One minute I'm trying to keep away from those bloody claws while he cornered me, and the next, she hit him from behind! And that was probably all that saved my life!" The thought of Harry almost taking his life obviously infuriated him.

"She didn't hesitate, sinking her claws into his neck and side, then the back of one of his legs with a claw on her foot." He swallowed thickly as he struggled to calm himself. "Threw him to the ground and kept him there."

"He bucked and growled, and I'm sure he would have screamed if not for the blades in his bloody neck! But he still thrashed around, trying to shake her off of him." Sirius ran a hand through his hair, "I have no idea how she managed to keep him down, given how he tore up the ground. But no calming spell worked; Fleur tried her allure… nothing."

"It felt like forever before he stilled and stopped thrashing. I thought she was killing him. But she apparently understood because she popped her claws out of him and hopped off." Sirius' eyes looked up, catching Sarah's. "Do you know what he said?" Though he was asking questions, they were rhetorical in nature.

"He thanked her. My Godson. He thanked her! For stabbing him in the neck… forcing him to gurgle his own blood, He bloody thanked her." The last repetition of his words took the wind out of his sails.

"What did you do to them? That wasn't natural. I've seen the unnatural. I've witnessed one lose his mind and turn into a mindless beast. My best friend," he punctuated each word, "is a werewolf! I've seen those eyes before. I've seen a man becoming a beast. Whatever you did is worse than that! When the dementors came, they lost control of themselves and would have killed anyone, including each other!"

Sirius' hands slammed down on the table, palms down. "What. Did. You. Do?"

Saraha jumped slightly from the hands slamming on the table and looked out at the infirmary, surprised that the sound hadn't woken either of her children.

"I've got the silencing charms activated. They can't hear us," Sirius explained, his tone calming slightly as he saw where she glanced.

Sarah, recovering from her recoiling when Sirius slammed his hands down, startling her, collected her thoughts before responding to his previous question, feeling more comfortable now that she knew they wouldn't be overheard. "I… we… didn't do anything specific… The source DNA from Weapon X, holds the issue. He is known for the damage he can cause in a berserker rage."

"Berserker rage," Sirius said, testing the word on his tongue, "like rages where one goes bloody insane and tries to maul, kill, and destroy anything and everything? You mean that kind of thing?"

"Well…. Yes." Sarah replied bluntly, blinking a little at how easily it was explained.

The response didn't settle Sirius in the least. "So you introduced a disease into him? You made him go berserk periodically? He's essentially a werewolf but it's not the full moon that sets him off?"

Sarah ran her hand down her face, sighing as she did so. "No. It's not a disease, and he… they don't become like a werewolf." Though it was clear she was trying to remain polite, some annoyance had bled into her tone.

Sirius scoffed, "No, it's nothing alike. He just apparently loses all sense of self and will attack anyone and anything. That's nothing like the werewolf transformation." After a harrowing experience his patience was wearing thin, and he was beginning to snap at her.

"What's done is done. I regret much of what I've done, but… I also wouldn't have Laura, and by extension Harry, if I hadn't done what I have done." She snapped back, eyes narrowed, as she got defensive about her history with Laura and Harry. "The genetic material from the original has all the elements I mentioned earlier: strength, speed, enhanced senses, and regeneration. But like all things it comes with a drawback. In this case the potential for a berserker rage."

Sirius glared back at Sarah, his lips in a thin line. He tried to push past his anger and find out more about his godson's problem. "So this loss of control... it's all kind of a package deal with… with everything else?" He was able to keep his tone slightly better than scathing by trying to focus on his need to understand the issue so he could help Harry.

"Yes," Sarah began her reply, understanding Sirius was trying to withhold his anger over what Harry had been subjected to. "But it's not something that happens at the drop of the hat. Especially to Harry."

"What do you mean, 'especially to Harry'?" Sirius echoed her statement.

"The program found a… trigger scent that puts Laura in a berserk state, it's something she can't control. One whiff and she loses it." Sarah explained, grimacing as she remembered her daughter's red eyes.

"Why would they want to do something like that?" Sirius asked, unable to control his confusion.

"They were trying to make the most complete and controllable weapon they could," Sarah answered with a grimace of distaste. "Sometimes that is a weapon that can slip in and kill someone cleanly, efficiently, making it look like an accident if needed. Sometimes, that is dropping one in the middle of a gang's headquarters and wanting no survivors. It keeps pesky things like free will and reluctance from popping up. Weapons aren't any good when they think about anything but completing the mission. Especially if they're thinking for themselves." She spat the last part before taking a steadying breath.

"Though hopefully, we destroyed the last of the trigger when we… when I made Laura destroy the facility. However, with Harry, they never could find something that would reliably set him off more than once. So, it takes something seriously traumatic, or a great deal of pain, to set it off. Then you pump them full of enough tranquilizers to bring down a herd or two of elephants, or you get the hell out of Dodge until they calm themselves down." Sarah explained, spreading her hands helplessly. "What you saw Laura do happens, or they manage to calm down or they run out of… things… to ki- destroy."

"Do you know what set them off?" Sarah asked, looking up as her initial thought returned.

Sirius's face, set in a scowl, and he started to shake his head before he paused. His expression shifted to one of realization, his mouth making a small 'o' shape. "That… I do."

Sarah eyes snapped to Sirius; her eyebrows furrowed as she waited for him to explain.

"Dementors… they are terrifying creatures. They make everything so cold," his eyes went vacant for a moment. "They suck the happiness right out of you... And force you to relive your worst memories."

Sirius's voice was hollow and flat, delivering the information with little inflection. "It's horrible, truly the worst… they used to be used to guard the wizarding prison before Voldemort recruited them." He swallowed thickly. He knew just how traumatic dementor exposure could be. Even having just a vague understanding of how difficult Harry and Laura's lives were, he shivered at how awful their memories would be.

"That… that would do it." Sarah watched as Sirius slumped back in his chair and ran his hand through his hair, stopping near the back and pulling on it.

"You've had a lot of experience with these… dementors?" Sarah asked carefully as she sat back into her own chair, her voice soft.

"When Harry's parents were murdered… I- I was there first. I knew something was wrong and raced back to their home. I found James… I found Lily… dead." He barely croaked out the last word and he leaned forward, elbows on his knees and his face thrown into his hands.

"I found Harry, crying, calling for his mama." His voice was thick and heavy with emotion as he recounted his recollection, "I'm his godfather," he almost spat the name, "and I gave him up. I chased after the man who betrayed them. I forsook my duty and went after vengeance." The self-recrimination was palpable. "And look what it cost me, what it cost Harry."

Sirius swallowed and then brought his head up; guilt was rife in his features, "Over a decade in prison. Chucked in Azkaban because everyone knew I was the betrayer." His hands clenched and unclenched on the table, before he snapped. The anger in him burst out as a sharp swing of his hand sent the glass and bottle off the table and into the wall, as he snarled "and Harry? My stupidity got him placed with a sorry excuse for blood relations that sold him…"

Sarah kept silent throughout the whole explanation. She jerked back slightly from the show of rage, but not far. He wasn't making any threatening move towards her. It was clear Sirius was dealing with more than just what went on with the forest tonight.

"I'm sorry." He choked out as his hands pressed on the table, "Sorry for getting so upset at you. It's obvious Harry cares for you, and you for him…" His gray eyes stared down at the table, "I just want to be there for the kid… I finally get to see him again, after all these years, and I… I don't even know how to relate."

After a moment's hesitation, Sarah reached across the table and placed her hand on Sirius', who looked up at her in surprise but seemed to relax slightly at the touch. "Well, he's not a kid. He may not be quite old enough for it to be official, though he's not far off. But in order to relate? Talk to him, get to know him. Even if we won't be here long, just long enough to end the dark wizard who killed his parents, spend what time you can with him… without trying to separate him from us."

"Merlin, you say it so calmly. Like you're sure this is going to be over quickly." Sirius was agitated but didn't pull his hand away from Sarah's, who was squeezing it comfortingly. How can you be so calm about this? You-Know-Who has brought most of magical Europe to its knees, in a war that's… over three years and counting now… at least since it restarted, and you're confident it's going to be over soon?"

"Yes, I am." Sarah answered firm and unwaveringly. "Harry and Laura are like nothing the wizard has ever seen. You saw the trap they planned. Do you really think this man or wizard expects something like that?"

"Well, no. I mean… It's not like anything Dumbledore or Moody ever would have suggested…" Sirius hedged.

"Exactly," Sarah said with a firm nod of her head, "From everything we know, he's an arrogant bastard who won't expect something like this."

"He's not alone, he has a whole army of dark wizards." Sirius countered.

"First, he had a whole army of werewolves and other creatures… how much good did that do him?" Sarah asked with a raised brow.

"Fair point," Sirius allowed with a swallow.

"Secondly, if the goblins, Moody, and my own children's observations are to be believed, your dark wizard doesn't have an army." Sarah said deliberately and then continued, talking over Sirius as he tried to protest. "He has a group of thugs and rapists and murderers, with no real training in warfare."

"But they have magic, and some are skilled in the dark arts, which can do horrible… horrible things." Sirius shuddered.

"Maybe so… but those two?" Sarah scoffed as she jerked the thumb of her free hand toward the infirmary, "They're two of the most dangerous people in the world."

"But in war, people still die, no matter how good they might be. What if… what if they don't survive this?" Sirius asked quietly, his voice dropping.

"Harry and Laura have survived hell on earth and come out the other side," Sarah said, her tone angry. "I didn't want to come back here. But Harry believes he has to do this, and we weren't going to let him come alone. I hate it, and I am scared… but I have to have faith in my children."

Sirius was silent as he stared into the green eyes of Sarah, a color that was close enough to vividly remind him of Lily Evans. "And… if they do kill h-"

"When they do," Sarah corrected him, her tone firm and unflinching.

"When they kill him. What then?" Sirius asked quietly.

"Then… then we're going to go to New York," Sarah answered quietly.

"New York? What's in New York?" Sirius asked.

"A school, a refuge one that is for mutants. Where they may be able to actually learn to interact with people their own age, who might be at least a little like them," Sarah answered honestly. "But also… the man whose genetic material we used may be there. He may be able to help them in ways I don't even conceive they need."

"Oh…" Sirius grimaced. Part of him rebelled at the idea of Harry just leaving, but the other part paused to think it over. The more Sirius thought about it, the less wrong it seemed. "Do you think… do you think I could come with you?" he asked, a little desperation coloring his tone.

Sarah looked up at him sharply, "You'd want to leave?"

"I.. I just want to get to know my godson." Sirius turned his hand over to squeeze Sarah's. "If he's planning to leave, I'd like to go with him. I'd like to get to know his family too. Both of you."

Sarah hesitated and then nodded slowly, "As long as neither of them object. I don't see a problem with it. But… that comes after."

Sirius small smile dropped into a grim line as he nodded agreement. "After."

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Kat's Author's notes:

1) Yes. I'm not dead yet! I could give you lots of excuses. But let's just say it's been a crazy few years. And I'm a doctor now! Yay! I'm also trying to get back into the swing of writing again. Even as it has been so long.

2) I've also been pissed because someone took one of my stories and posted it on Webnovel as their own. FUCK THAT PLACE. I can't get them to take it down. But yes, I am aware it's shown up there. The asshat does not have mine or plums permission to post it.

3) I've actually had this chapter mostly done for awhile. I just thought I'd write through the next scene or two, but realized this one is already super long. And I also decided not to write out every fight scene, instead allowing some engagement with other characters beyond Harry, Laura and Sarah.

I've also got a couple of started fics and a little work on continuing chapters of other stories going forward, but those are a ways off and I can only write what my muse focuses on. That has gone through a number of fandoms. Star Wars, Marvel, DC, Glee, Percy Jackson, My Hero Academia, Naruto. All over the place. So who knows what you'll see come from me next?

4) Plums is still alive even if he's sorta been absorbed by Wow and mists of panderia remix. I can hardly throw stones as I played classic! But if you want updates on his stories pester HIM! Not me!

5) Story Recommendation: Mother's Pryde by Dylan_Black and MeirhaBlack on Archive of our own. I adore their writing and have liked it FOREVER. Their stories usually aren't set in anything strictly canon so it also makes for some unexpected directions. But a nice blend of fun and serious. Recognizeable and new.

6) I'm looking for someone interested in cowriting a story that has caught my mind. MCU/DC cross though mostly focused on Gotham and knowledge of the bat family there would be helpful. If you think you can put up with my brand of insanity and want to write? Let me know!

Alternate Chapter titles:

"Holy shit. Kat's not dead."- All of you I'm sure.

"Are you sure Voldemort isn't a girl?" – Harry

"What the… no I'm not a girl! You will pay for that!" – Voldemort

"All I'm saying is, teenage diary, a necklace, a tiara… makes one wonder…" – Harry

"Don't forget the uncontrollable rage issues!" – Sirius

"Yeah. You're on your own Sirius." – Harry, eyeing Laura and Sarah

"Yeah. I'm out too." -Voldemort, eyeing Bellatrix.

"Harry won't be able to use a wand!" – Dumbledore

"No phallic symbols for me!" – Harry

"You have six claws. That's enough." – Laura

"You-" - Harry

"Don't even say it." - Laura.

"The Weasley Twins: Now a complete misnomer!" – Fred. Or George.

"Giant fall and go boom." – Laura

"You do like making things explode." – Moody.

"It's part of our charm." - Laura