Hydrus cast the levitation spell, and growled as his body protested the effort. A few days had passed since the second trial, and he'd long since given up on trying to maintain appearances. If people judged him for the fact that he was standing around in the Study Hall all day practising first year spells, he'd deal with them as needed. He still had a few minutes before other students started trickling in for actual club hours, for whatever that was worth.

His spells kept burning his arm. It had taken him a while to understand why it was specifically affecting that limb, but he was pretty sure he understood now. His magic typically flowed through his arms, primarily his right since losing the end of the left, and that meant the more practised extremity was suffering the worst of his affliction.

The real question was 'why'. Why was his magic practically rebelling against him? Why was it burning through his flesh? Why the hell wasn't his body adapting?

That might've been the real question, but what mattered was what he could do to stop it. Thus far he hadn't come up with an answer. Transfigurations, charms, curses, jinxes, hexes, enchantments; it seemed like no matter what the former leader did he was left cringing in pain and regretting trying whatever he tried. Hydrus took another deep breath, and attempted levitating the stone he'd picked up for the thousandth time. It rose into the air just fine, but even in spite of the complete disregard and lack of focus he cast the spell with it left his arm popping and sizzling.

"Young Lord Master." Hydrus turned to see Kreacher had appeared. "Old Lord Master Arcturus has requested your appearance this weekend at the Wizengamot meeting."

"Tell him I'll be there." He ran a hand through his hair. "Imply that I was excited and unexpectedly pleased with the development, like all my plans were coming to fruition. Got it?"

Kreacher nodded. "Yes, Young Lord Master. Was there anything else?"

"No, thank you." Hydrus reached out and rubbed his hand along the top of the elf's head. "As always, your hard work shall help pave the way for a more glorious future for our family."

Hydrus was almost surprised when Kreacher actually beamed back at him. The being's rotten and half-filed teeth would've been intimidating if it weren't for his small stature. In this timeline or the last he'd never seen such a genuine exuberance emanate from the Black family elf.

"Of course, Young Lord Master." Kreacher bowed his head. "Kreacher is your servant, now and always."

With that the elf popped away, and Hydrus was forced to return to his work. He'd nearly managed to cast the spell despite some internal restrictions he placed on his magic when Fawkes appeared in a burst of flames, wings spread and feathers fluttering. The phoenix plopped down onto his shoulder, caw'ed at him, and Hydrus chuckled as he took the note tied around the bird's leg.

Come see me?

Hydrus nodded. "Go ahead."

Fawkes screeched, and a tower of flame enveloped them.

Unlike portkeys, floos, or apparition, the phoenix's transportation ability actually took some time. It was still a monumental speed up compared to just walking to the destination, but Fawkes was never one to hurry. He'd once imagined the legendary bird 'flying' to its destination, soaring through walls and all other boundaries to get to where it was going, but eventually he'd settled on the better visualisation of Fawkes needing to lock onto a destination and then burning away all boundaries between it and there.

Hydrus appeared in the headmaster's office with a roar of flame, and nodded towards Dumbledore. He strode forward, Fawkes still on his shoulder, and sat down on one of the chairs in front of the headmaster's desk. Albus looked over his shoulder and nodded back.

The old warlock was painting. He had a rather large easel, and a canvas that dwarfed it, standing in front of him and his brush moved up and down the beige surface with practised ease. The background of the painting was properly solidified, some sort of classroom or lecture hall with torches providing light. The actual subject of the painting was still a bit vague; obviously it was male, but beyond the skin tone it could've been anyone from Hydrus himself to Professor Snape. He had to give some credit to the much older man, it was rather impressive.

"Not bad," Hydrus said. "But you've got a long ways to go if you hope to truly capture me."

Dumbledore chuckled. "I appreciate the compliment, but I would caution your arrogance." He drew another stroke along the figure's cheek. "You are the absolute last person I would try and paint, and it's why I called you here."

The headmaster beat his brush against the leg of the easel before tucking it into the water can on his desk. He turned away from it and sat down in front of Hydrus, folding his fingers together and resting his elbows on the desk. "You told me, not so long ago, that you weren't ready to talk." Dumbledore looked deep into his eyes. "Are you ready now?"

Hydrus swallowed, then considered. On the obvious side were his complete discomfort with talking with the man, his inability to handle the emotions such talks left him with, and much more besides. On the other was the fact that he needed this. He knew that fact rationally, he'd spotted more than his fair share of near-broken soldiers during the war and had taken care of them, so it wasn't like this came out of the blue. There was just a burgeoning sensation of empathy towards them and their discomfort as he nodded.

"Alright, what do you want?"

"Do you love Bellatrix?"

"What?" Hydrus reared up like his familiar liked to do. "Why would you start there?"

"Why wouldn't I?" Dumbledore chuckled and grabbed one of the candies on his desk, so Hydrus did the same. "From what I remember about your memories, love was just as important a matter to me then as it is now."

Hydrus rolled his eyes. "Back then it was about using my mother's sacrifice to protect me against Tom. Clearly that doesn't apply now."

"Hmmmm," Dumbledore started. "Perhaps that's how you understood it, and if it is then it's my own fault. But no, love is much more important than just that, Harry."

"Just call me Hydrus, please." He glanced back and saw that the headmaster had already 'dimmed' the portraits. "Separating myself from the previous timeline helps keep things stable."

"Very well, Hydrus, do you know what makes love so special? Special, and powerful, enough to entice your supposed deity into making multiple deals with you for it?"

Hydrus frowned. "Unless you know of any other sort of being that can do what she's done, I don't think you can exactly call Magic a 'supposed' deity."

It actually surprised the younger man to hear Dumbledore be so skeptical. The old warlock might've called them eccentric, but he'd still been the one to introduce Hydrus to the camp of centaurs that first introduced him to the figure. The headmaster had died before Magic had actually shown herself to Hydrus, but still. The Dumbledore of that time assured him the beings weren't crazy.

"If you were to reveal to a muggle the powers you wield, would you not be able to convince them you are a god?" Dumbledore was rolling the candy around in his mouth. "One of Gellert and I's original plans for expanding our world's influence was to do just that, in essence. Appear to the muggles not as men with magic, but as saints descended from the heavens to 'save' them." He shook his head. "I was a strong advocate for that plan. I figured it would be more peaceful."

"Fair enough," Hydrus said. "But if it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, and calls itself a duck; does it really matter if it's technically a goose?"

The headmaster cocked an eyebrow at him. "Not if it were a goose, but what if it were instead a Peruvian cockatrice?"

"I… A what?"

"A Peruvian cockatrice." Dumbledore drew and waved his wand, and a large leather-backed tome floated off one of his shelves and landed with a soft thump on his desk. The pages fluttered open until he stopped them, and he turned the book so that Hydrus could see. "They're found in north-western South America, primarily Peru obviously, and they're rather deadly."

The bird in the photo was puffed up and staring down Hydrus. It was, unsurprisingly, very goose-like; with a rounded bill, webbed feet, and it was beginning to strut back and forth in front of a pond. As Hydrus looked closer, he realised there were talons at the ends of its feet, and when it mimed a honk at him he saw the little needle-like fangs inside its beak.

"The oils they secrete to keep the water from clinging to their feathers also causes calcification of the skin if you were to come in contact with them." Albus closed the book just as the cockatrice was about to jump into the pond. "Something you'd be more likely to do, if you were to think it was just some common waterfowl."

"I take your point." Hydrus grabbed another lemon drop, having crunched through his first one far too quickly. "But I'm going to drop the metaphor now. Magic has never taken something from me that I wasn't willing to give, nor have I given her anything that I regret losing."

"Not even the lives of your friends?"

Hydrus took a breath and shook his head. "It was the correct move. Our backs were against the wall, and it was either die by our own hands in an attempt to save ourselves, or…"

He trailed off, not feeling the need to explain what would've happened. He knew Dumbledore had gone through his memories, seen the things that had been done to him at Castle Lestrange. In the end Harry might've gotten his revenge, but that didn't take away the memories. It didn't protect him like Magic stealing away his love had.

"I see." Dumbledore sighed. "There's something I'd like to show you, Hydrus."

The headmaster retrieved his pensieve from a nearby shelf, and there was already a memory floating along the bowl's bottom. He sat it down on the desk and gently pushed it towards Hydrus.

"Go on."

With a sigh of his own, Hydrus nodded. "If you insist."


Albus watched as Hydrus dipped his head into the pensieve, and once he was certain the boy was enraptured, relaxed. His protege might've been trapped in a teenage body, but now that he was no longer putting on a mask of casual arrogance and charisma, it was like dealing with a wounded dragon. The way his eyes constantly snapped back and forth across the room, the twitch in his finger as if itching to grab his wand, the general tenseness of his whole body. The headmaster wasn't afraid of him, not yet at least, but he certainly didn't want another event like what had happened in the study hall.

He jumped slightly when Apophis slowly appeared, draped around Hydrus's neck and shoulders like a scarf. The basilisk had apparently joined his 'father' in viewing the memory, its head was dipped into the pensieve alongside Hydrus's, but it seemed it'd been unable to keep its invisibility going whilst doing so.

"What a strange duo the two of you are," Albus mumbled. "One a harmless child raised into becoming a monster, the other a monster being raised like a child."

Fawkes crooned in agreement. The phoenix had flown back to his perch, and was watching over the duo like a mother hen.

Before Albus could reply to his familiar, Hydrus reemerged from the memory. Apophis shook his head as if to dry himself off. The one-armed wizard glared at the headmaster once he'd settled back into his seat and Albus prepared himself for the retort.

"Seriously?" Hydrus asked. "Please tell me you didn't bring me here just to show off some meaningless prophecy about yourself."

Albus blinked. "Myself?"

"Obviously." The boy waved his hand. "From the tapestry, blah-blah-blah, pathway burns? You're a historical figure associated with fire. Lord arrives and returns, you gave up on the pseudo-position you held as the leader of the magical world, but you could potentially take it back.

"Pieces of the warrior, crushed under what you climb; you'll have to become the figure you saw in my memories, losing the things you consider to be so precious to your current self. Twice dead, when you lost your ambition with the death of your sister and again when you saw my memories. Thrice born, when you were actually born and again after both of those moments." Hydrus took a breath. "No grave to call your own because I never gave up my love for and memories of you. King of an empty throne, because its a dramatic way of saying it'll be a hollow ascension."

"That's…" Albus was stunned. "You can't be serious."

"Why can't I?" Hydrus sneered at him. "You were when you showed this to me, thinking there was no possibility it could be about anyone else."

Albus leaned back in his chair to process that. The boy's logic wasn't completely sound, not compared to how well the prophecy lined up with Hydrus himself, but still. He was right. Albus had been so certain that it had to be about the time traveller, he'd nearly begun to obsess over it exactly like… Exactly like he'd done in Hydrus's own timeline. All just because of how enthralling it had been when he first witnessed the prophecy being given, and because it was an answer that fit into an unanswered question from over a decade ago.

Of course, that didn't mean the prophecy wasn't about Hydrus.

"I shouldn't have been so quick to assume, you're correct." Albus nodded his head. "Still, it would be wise to be cautious regarding the potential for it to be true. I'd hate to see you sacrifice more than what you already have, only to wind up atop an 'empty throne'."

"Fine, I'll be cautious." Hydrus looked away, clearly holding back on rolling his eyes. "Can you get to your original point, sir?"

"Very well." Albus gestured towards Hydrus's wand hand. "Would you mind casting the patronus charm?"

The boy winced. "I'd rather not."

Albus frowned. "Why not?"

"Because…" Hydrus looked like he was trying to come up with an excuse, but eventually he sighed and drew his wand. "Expecto Patronum."

Rather than a dazzling display of light, his wand coughed out a puff of translucent vapour, and Hydrus sucked at his teeth. He mumbled something that Albus couldn't hear, but before the headmaster could question him about it the boy cast the spell again.

This time the patronus came exploding out of the boy's wand as though it had been trapped within. The jornrir stampeded through the suddenly cramped office like a wild thestral caught in a wranglers' pen, clearly as agitated as its summoner. Once more the little basilisk on Hydrus's shoulders caught Albus off guard when it launched itself upwards, attempting to bite at the patronus but only sailing right through it and plopping onto the ground.

The snake reared up and hissed at the spectral jornrir, then at Hydrus. The 'teen' hissed back, a look of bemusement on his face. Actual drops of venom flew across the floor with the basilisk's next outraged hiss, and Hydrus flinched before holding out his hand. He hissed something once more as his familiar approached and began to slither up his arm.

"He burned his mouth, and wasn't amused with my lackadaisical response," Hydrus explained. "I told him now he knows better than to go biting strange creatures."

"Why would it burn him?" Albus asked, curiosity filling him. "I must admit, I've never studied basilisks all that much."

"Normally it wouldn't." Hydrus pulled up his sleeve, a clumsy gesture given he had to try and use his stumped left arm to do it, and Albus felt a cold chill run down his spine. "My magic has just been a bit… temperamental, lately."

The teen's right arm was bright red and covered in sores. It looked as though he had dipped it into a cauldron of boiling water, and Albus watched in awe as the boy slowly healed it. The blisters shrunk back into clear virgin flesh, the redness of the skin faded away into a natural tone, and before too long the arm looked as though it were fresh off the assembly line. Once the injuries were gone, Hydrus shook out his arm to get the sleeve to come back down.

"Temperamental?" Albus asked. "Hydrus, what's wrong with your magic?"

The boy shrugged. "If I knew, I wouldn't be in this predicament." He ran his hand through his hair. "It's been getting progressively worse since… I don't know, around the start of winter break? Somewhere around there.

"At first I was just overpowering my spells when using my wand, but lately its begun to, well, you saw what it was doing." Hydrus sighed. "Truth be told, I'd rather not be missing out on classes but—"

He was interrupted when the door swung open. To Albus's surprise, the boy moved faster than he would've given the diminutive figure credit for. He snap[ed to the side, his disabled arm whipping out as if to cover for the older man as his right hand caught the wand that slid down his sleeve. It took less than a second for the boy to relax when he saw who it was.

"Hydrus, headmaster." Bellatrix Black nodded her head at them. "I was worried something had happened when Hydrus didn't show up to Study Club."

"Everything's fine, Bella," Hydrus said. "Honestly, if there's one person in the world you don't have to worry about, it's Dumbledore."

The woman certainly didn't seem to agree with that opinion. She maintained a completely neutral expression after she was finished sneering, too neutral, the sort that was only possible by keeping your guard up and forcing it into place. "Do you know how much longer you'll be?"

"As long as I deem it beneficial." Hydrus stood, strode across the room, and to Albus's surprise wrapped his arms around his Defence teacher and kissed her. He'd known the two were 'together', but for him to just show it off like this… After several seconds, he pulled away. "There, if that doesn't tell you how much faith I have in him, nothing will. Get going."

The woman didn't even look at Albus. She just nodded with an immature grin on her face, giggled, and turned away to leave. The headmaster had never fallen for her 'dignified noble' act, he'd known from the moment the school board placed her on his staff that she was only here for her cousin's son, but now he truly understood the fanatical devotion she held for the man. He'd seen what she'd done in the name of Voldemort in Harry's time. Now he could finally fit this version of the woman into that version's shoes.

Once the door shut in her wake, Albus said, "Well that was certainly something."

To his surprise, when Hydrus turned around, the man was smiling. It wasn't some forced and pained smile, nor was it a bitter and ironic one. It was just the cheeky look of a teem who'd gotten teased by a friend. "That's one word for it."

Hydrus returned back to his seat and plopped into it as Albus cocked an eyebrow at him. "You trust her more than I realised."

"I'm certainly giving her that impression," Hydrus said noncommittally. "Things were getting a bit rocky between us, so I'm trying to give her more leash."

Albus hummed, not quite believing him. "I can't help but recall how you refused to answer whether or not you love her."

"I don't love her." Hydrus said it like he was banging the last nail into a coffin. "She's just the most useful person to have in that position."

"He says whilst nursing a smile coated in her lipstick."

And there was the man who'd once led the free wizarding world against its would-be dictator. Hydrus's eyes went cold, the twitching in his finger came to a stop, and he tilted his head up as though he were looking down on the entire world.

"Do not mistake my respect for, and openness with, you for weakness, Albus." The man folded one leg over the other. Apophis settled down on his shoulders, staring the headmaster down, while the patronus that had been 'swimming' around them finally came to a stop and sat down beside him. "You may think love is powerful, but I assure you I do not need it to achieve my goals."

"Why do those queries offend you so much?" Albus asked. "And before you answer, might I suggest you calm yourself?"

For the first time in years, decades even, Albus Dumbledore flared his magic. Back when he and Gellert had been youths, all the way up until their separation, it had been something he did regularly. After all, it was the easiest way to cow the dissenters around them. Even his lover had to give the begrudging edge to the more naturally talented wizard, and that meant everyone else around the duo had to practically scrape and bow before him. He'd learned to stop leaning on the crutch years ago, it was the mark of a truly great wizard when one didn't need to simply brow beat those around him to get them to listen, but it felt an appropriate time to use such methods.

To his surprise, it almost worked. Hydrus blanched and a look of genuine fear spread across the boy's face. It would've broken the older man's heart if that fear wasn't immediately replaced with vitriol, and the boy's own magic hadn't flooded the room. For the briefest of moments Albus worried Hydrus's would overpower his own, something he hadn't even considered a possibility, when the boy yelped in pain. His functioning arm shot up to catch Apophis, wrapping around the basilisk's head and keeping its mouth clenched shut.

Hydrus hissed something at the snake. It thrashed around for a moment, then settled down once he'd finished hissing. Slowly the younger wizard released his hold on the beast, and when his arm dropped back down to his side, a chunk of charred skin fell from his sleeve.

"My apologies, sir." He was staring down at the ground, head bowed. "I, and Apophis, lost our tempers."

Albus stared down at the piece of flesh. It had been smoking at first, filling the air with a putrid, acrid smell that he had to fight hard not to cringe at. It reminded him too much of the old war, of making his way towards Gellert for their final duel. 'And despite this, he still clings to his goddess.'

"At least you didn't destroy my office." Albus offered a bemused smile, trying to regain a peaceful atmosphere. "It would've been much worse if your magic went out of control like last time."

"Not that," Hydrus said. "You deserved to know that your power pales before my own." Albus blinked. "Apophis nearly killed you with his gaze thinking you hurt me."

A chill ran down the headmaster's spine. He'd spent so much time around Hydrus and his familiar that he'd nearly forgotten that the little 'toddler' could kill him with just a look. Hydrus wasn't in the least bit scared of the man that most considered to be the most powerful wizard in the world, he was just upset that the man had nearly been killed.

"I see." Albus took a breath. "Your arm?"

"I've already healed it." Hydrus rubbed at his face. "I told you, my magic's acting up. To be honest I think this conversation has gone too long as is, but if you have any advice on how to fix it, I'm all ears."

The real answer would be met with a scoff and derision, so Albus went another route. "Work on your dual casting. If you're able to simultaneously cast healing spells as you perform whatever you need to actually do, it should help keep things from spilling over."

"A bandaid solution," Hydrus said. "But it'll work for now. Thank you."

"I'm sure you're about to run away again," Albus said. "But allow me to finish with this, and then you can go.

"You ask why I care so much about your ability to love, question how powerful it can be, but the answer lies directly next to you." He gestured at the rapidly fading patronus beside Hydrus. "The Patronus Charm is one of the most powerful works of magic known to mankind. It breaks down the boundaries of what is possible and what isn't. It is powered by the emotion of joy." The ancient warlock stared down his apprentice. "Just imagine what sorts of magic, what level of spells, you could cast with the power of love. Think of just how strong your mother's dying wish was, and reflect upon just what it is you've sacrificed for the ability to do what I can already do with just a bit of practice and time."

Hydrus swallowed. "Yes, sir. I'll be sure to remember."

And with that, the 'teen' left.


Hydrus stood on one end of the duelling platform, staring down Blaise. The boy had actually requested the chance to face him, stating that he wanted to see for himself just how strong the de facto leader of Slytherin was. At first, the one-time war leader wanted to just smack him aside, but it didn't take him long to realise the boy had been respectful and humble with his request. Because that was the case, Hydrus planned to make this quick and, if not painless, then at least only painful for a short amount of time.

At first the Study Hall had ignored the small commotion that tbe forthcoming coming duel had caused, but quickly members of all four houses had gathered around the platform. There wasn't much in the way of conversation going around, but the distinct hiss of whispers floated around them. Blaise was ranked fourth or fifth in the fourth-year rankings last Hydrus had heard. Not the best, but certainly better than the majority of the crowd watching them.

Cedric had volunteered to act as judge, and the boy raised his hand up into the air. Two seconds passed, and he brought it down fast. Before the Zabini heir's wand had even moved, his body was launched through the air. The boy crashed through a gaggle of Hufflepuffs who'd gathered together to watch the display, which meant that at least he had a soft landing.

Hydrus smiled, relieved that he'd managed to do as Dumbledore suggested and keep his arm from shredding itself by applying healing magic at the same time, and turned away before Cedric broke from his stupor and called the duel to an end. He headed back to his usual seat, a comfy chair he'd set up directly beneath the WWW plaque. The twins had made several attempts to destroy his masterpiece, but thus far each try had been unsuccessful and carried more dire consequences than the last. Last time they'd been left with irremovable fingerless gloves stuck on their hands for an entire week.

They still hadn't spoken to him for the forced fashion faux pas.

There were dozens of eyes staring at him, almost none of them from his own house. His fellow Slytherins had mostly gathered around the Zabini heir and were no-doubt teasing him, but from the expressions everyone was making it wasn't too bad. To his credit, even Blaise himself was wearing a rueful grin.

"Um, Hydrus?" He turned. "I was wondering if you could help me with something."

It was another Hufflepuff. Somewhere between her third and fifth year, depending on if puberty was being cruel or impatient with her. Hydrus didn't recognize her, nor did he spot any telltale features, so he assumed she was muggleborn. He quirked an eyebrow at her.

"What do you need?"

"My mother, she's a waitress at Snapwhip's, says you're always really kind." The girl swallowed. "I need… I need your help."

Hydrus frowned. He always made sure to stop by that restaurant, along with every other establishment in Hogsmeade, each visiting weekend. There weren't any figures that jumped out at him as resembling the teen, but he nodded nonetheless.

"I love their floats," he lied. There wasn't a single thing in the restaurant he'd been satisfied with. "What do you need?"

"It's…"

The girl froze, and Hydrus recognized the panic. He once more put his dual casting to the test and silenced the area around them, then cast a privacy charm. Most witches and wizards of a certain level would be able to recognize the charm's effects all on its own, but he found with less skilled individuals it was better to give an initial muting effect to help them understand what he'd done.

"There," he said. "Speak freely."

"Save my brother!" The girl had clearly overestimated just how much privacy he'd given them, and Hydrus was forced to throw up a wall of stone to stop anyone from seeing the way she dropped to her knees and started bawling. "It's not his fault! It's that monster's! And, and my parents are going to just kill him! I know they will. They're going to kill him, and it's not even his fault. He didn't ask that thing to, to, to—"

Hydrus cut the girl off by kneeling down beside her and wrapping her in a hug, trying to cut off the panic attack she was descending into. She responded by doubling down and hugging him back, nearly strangling him in her grasp. Whoever she was, he had to at least admit that she had a strong grip. It took several minutes for the teen to calm down enough to stop strangling him.

'What the hell is wrong with her?' he thought. 'I've had breakdowns before but this is ridiculous.'

"He was bitten by a werewolf." Hydrus's blood went cold. "And I just know my parents are going to kill him for it."

"I assumed you were muggle born," he said. "Is that not the case?"

She froze. "I… I am. Both my parents were, um, magical, but they were both muggle born."

"Then why would they want to put him down?" Hydrus returned to his seat, leaving the girl kneeling in front of it. He had to heal his arm after the panicked work with the stone walls they were surrounded by, so he made a mental note to keep practising. "I could see my own family trying to kill off a relative who was turned, but the Blacks are, well, you know what my family is like."

"They, they said I needed to come home this weekend." The girl was sniffling still, not fully settled down. "To say goodbye."

"I see."

What possible excuse could he use to help her? Unlike his housemates, her family was worth nothing. The girl herself didn't have potential like Hermione and Giannis. He'd never even noticed her before, even just in passing or in company of people he actually had to make note of. Hydrus rubbed at his forehead, as if trying to massage out an answer from his brain, when one actually came to him.

"Even if I save your brother, what will you do with him?" he asked. "Don't take this the wrong way, but I don't think you're quite ready to be looking after a child on your own."

"I'll… figure something out," she said lamely. "I can drop out, get a job being a waitress like my mom…"

"Unacceptable." Hydrus stood. "I'll help you and save your brother, but you must still say your goodbyes." The girl stared down at the ground. "Legally speaking, you're asking me to commit a kidnapping, and I won't be dragged down into legal troubles because you failed somewhere." Hydrus sighed. "He'll be taken care of still, I promise."

"Alright," she said. "Alright that's fine."

"Good." Hydrus helped her to her feet. "I need you tell me everything there is to know about your brother, and your family." A thought occurred to him. "Do you know who bit him?"

She shivered. "It was that monster, Fenrir Greyback."


Once Hydrus had written down all the information he needed from the girl, her name was Marianne Williams, he made his way towards where Bellatrix kept her desk, against a wall on the practical side of the hall so that she could be on hand if any accidents happened. Hydrus stepped through the silencing and protective wards constructed around the section and Bellatrix looked up with a smile that immediately vanished when she saw his expression.

"What's the matter?" she asked. "What's going on?"

"I need to go take care of some business." He took a breath. "Could you keep an eye on things here? I'm going to need your floo."

"Where are you going?"

"Can I tell you when I return?" he asked. "I want to get this settled as soon as possible."

"Of course, dear." She stood. "Make sure to come see me when you're back, even if you have to wake me up."

He nodded and left. The other students made way for him as he went, and he didn't stop until he'd reached Bellatrix's office. The room was still sparsely decorated, but it did have some more furniture now. Hydrus grabbed some floo powder and threw it down. "House Lupin."

Nothing happened.

He blinked.

"Remus's House!"

Still nothing.

'God damn it,' he thought. 'What the hell would he call his floo address?'

"Remus's Room! Moony's House! Moony's Den!"

It took him a dozen more tries and several more handfuls of floo powder before he landed on "Moony Manor", and with a whoosh of flame he was away. As soon as he stepped out he groaned.

"God damn it."

Sitting on a recliner to his left was the man he was looking for, an exceptionally young and healthy looking Remus Lupin. To his right, on either side of a couch, were Sirius Black and James Potter. Hydrus lifted his hand to hide them from his sight and focused entirely on his former Defence professor.

"Excuse me for intruding, Mr. Lupin," he said. "But I was hoping to speak with you about something."

"I, uh…" The man glanced to the side and Hydrus didn't want to know what sort of looks his 'fathers' were giving him. "Alright, I guess."

"Do you have somewhere we can talk in private?"

Remus stood. "Sure. Follow me."

It seemed 'Moony Manor' wasn't quite deserving of the title as they only had to walk a few steps to get to the mudroom. Just as Hydrus was about to throw up the privacy charm, he barely heard James say, "What the hell did I do to get the block out?"

"Guilt by association," he called back in annoyance.

With that he slammed the charm up, and added an over-powered protego shield to block their line of sight as well. He took a long breath, and released it slowly as he tried to settle his emotions . Once he was sure he wouldn't snap, he nodded at Remus.

"Again, I'm sorry to bust in like that, Mr. Lupin."

"Don't even worry about it," Remus said, brows furrowed. "I hope I'm correct in assuming you're Hydrus?"

"Yes. I was wondering if you could help me with something." He fished the paper out from his pocket and handed it to the man who still looked as baffled as possible. "I'm sure you can see why."

The man's face went from confusion to shock to cold anger in rapid succession. He looked up from it to Hydrus. "What do you need?"

"I—"

He cut himself off when he noticed something poking out from underneath Remus's front door. Something that almost looked like an ear. It took him a second to recognize it, and then he stepped past the werewolf and slammed his boot into the door, eliciting a pair of yelps from the other side. Perhaps the Weasley twins did have other investors, and ones with a taste for their products.

"Protego Maxima." With the domed shield in place, Hydrus cast a few more privacy charms before continuing. "There. As I was saying, I need someone who would know more about this sort of thing than me." He rubbed his brow. "Maybe I just like to see the best in people, even the worst sort of people, but I'm hoping that the parents were going to sell the kid off. Or even just give him to Greyback out of fear. I figured you would have a lot more information on that than I do."

Remus cocked an eyebrow at him. "Did Sirius tell you I'm a werewolf?"

"No." He snorted. "Does it seem like he and I are close enough to gossip about his friends together? I have my own sources, and you're the only werewolf within a degree of a separation that I have."

"I see." Remus read over the note once more. "And you're sure this is true?"

"Nope." Hydrus shrugged. "But either it's real, and there's a child who needs my help. Or it's a trap for me, and I have to kill some idiots. Either way."

The werewolf hummed. "Do you know anything else about what's going on?"

"Not yet, you were my first stop," Hydrus said. "I was hoping you could gather up as much information as you can about anything at all related to werewolf trafficking. After that I'll be hitting up my contacts in St. Mungo's and the Ministry to get as much information about the incident and family as possible."

He didn't have any such contacts yet, but the Black family did. Calling them 'his' contacts just made it sound more official and well thought out, and that would help make sure Remus didn't go into his nagging nanny mode.

"I'll see what I can do," the werewolf said. "But don't you think this is something that men like, say, your father should be handling? Aurors?"

Hydrus shot his former friend a look that told him exactly what he thought of that suggestion. "You of all people should know exactly how helpful the Ministry would be in our efforts to save a werewolf."

"Fair enough." Remus sighed. "I'll say this. Most likely if they are going to kill him, it'll be directly after the sister's had a chance to say goodbye. If they're going to sell him, it'll be during the next full moon so they can prove he's really a werewolf."

"So tomorrow and the day after." Hydrus nodded. "Makes sense."

"You know I'm going to have to talk to your father about this, don't you?" Remus asked. "Even if he hadn't been here."

"I'm aware." Hydrus rubbed at his brow. "The other one too, I suspect."

"Must be some friend," Remus said. "If you don't even mind me 'gossiping' about it."

Hydrus chuckled. "Never even met her before today." He stared down the man who had gone on to become his most valuable soldier. "And don't go trying to attribute some altruistic reasons to it either. I just enjoy having people in my debt, people from all walks of life."

Remus cocked an eyebrow at him. "I didn't say I would."

"Whatever." Hydrus rolled his eyes. "I don't trust the answer you'd give to 'which side do you think those two idiots are waiting for us on', so tell me this: do you have anti-apparition wards?"

"Uh…" The werewolf was giving him a confused look. "Yes?"

"Then send the bill to House Black." He paused. "Or make Sirius fix it, that'd be even better."

With that he slammed his magic against Moony Manor's wards. They came down much quicker than he'd expected, and to his surprise he felt his own, former-familial magic slam against his protego shield in their wake. His eyes widened at the impact.

"Merlin's tits, Dad," he muttered.

"Ah," Remus said. "Actually I think that was James."

"Whatever."

Trying to ignore his slip-up, he apparated away, and hoped that his fathers wouldn't accidentally kill their friend when the shield dropped. He'd apparated to the Leaky Cauldron's back room and quickly made his way to their floo and back into Bellatrix's office. Remus would need the most time to prepare, but there were other stops that Hydrus needed to make.

'When this is all over, I'll be able to reach out to Remus if the need ever comes up,' he thought. 'Even if Marianne is useless, having a werewolf in my debt is valuable, and can be used as the reason I'm helping.' He grinned as he stepped back into the study hall. 'And if they really are about to deliver him to Greyback, getting to kill that bastard will be the cherry on top.'

"Potter," he said to his 'sister', who jumped to her feet at the call out. "Rumour has it that everyone in your family has their own invisibility cloak, is that true?"

"Oh, uh, yes?" She blinked at him. "Why?"

"May I please borrow yours?" he asked. "Just for tomorrow and the day after. We'll call it even for me helping you out with the seventh years."

It really was strange how much the girl resembled a perfect balance between their parents. The uncanniness almost made him appreciate the people who constantly went on about how he resembled his father.

"Of course." The girl straightened her back, clearly unpracticed with such 'formal' interactions despite her time in Slytherin thus far. "I can go get it right now."

"I would appreciate it."

With that, the girl took off. Hydrus was about to head over to Bellatrix, when he found himself ambushed by himself.

"What did you want with my sister?" his younger self demanded.

Hydrus almost laughed at the immature demand. If his 'sister's familial resemblance left him off balance, then staring down a boy who was literally the same as him at that age was like a cudgel to the head.

"You do realise that, in a sense, she and I are siblings as well?" The Gryffindor blinked at him, a mirror to 'their' younger sister. "Sirius is your godfather, I am his son." Hydrus shook his head. "You should show more respect to your older god-brother."

Harry scoffed back at him. "That's not how that works."

"Says you." He turned away. "Kreacher!"

The elf appeared before his younger self could respond to his 'witty' retort. To Hydrus's amusement, the elf was carrying a casserole dish with an uncooked shepherd's pie in it.

"Young lord master." The elf bowed awkwardly. "How may Kreacher serve you's?"

"I need you to inform Lord Arcturus that, with regret, I will not be available to attend the Wizengamot meeting this weekend." Hopefully the old man wouldn't hesitate to invite him to the next one. "Advise him that something urgent has come up, but that I will still take time to visit and explain myself."

"Kreacher will pass you's message." The elf bowed again. "Woulds you be liking some of this when Kreacher is finished?"

Hydrus laughed. "I would love some, but I'm afraid my business will keep me away from it. You may return now."

The elf gave another awkward bow and popped away. Hydrus looked up to find Harry staring at him with amazement. "House elves can apparate inside of Hogwarts?"

"They can perform many miracles," he said with a bemused grin. "Perhaps you should make better use of the other side of the Study Hall?"

His younger self huffed at him. "Whatever. You still haven't told me why you were chatting with Lee."

'Lee? Must be some nickname.'

"Nor do I plan to." Hydrus folded his arms over his chest. "I mean our sister no harm, I just asked a small favour of her for a project I'm working on."

"That's—"

"Have I done something wrong to you, Potter?" he interrupted. "You treat me with such disdain, but I don't recall having done anything to earn that."

"You—"

"Not only did I step in to save your sister from being bullied at the beginning of the year," Hydrus started. "I've also done my best to help your friend Hermione, even going so far as to adopt her so that she will no longer have to face discrimination. I gave your friend Ron a chance to beat my own best friend, to try and help stop the feud between all of you. I put an end to the harassment Luna Lovegood was facing, I invested in people like the Weasley twins, I've even helped you master a spell or two.

"So I ask again." He tilted his chin up. "Why do you have such a problem with me?"

Harry's jaw worked up and down, fumbling for a response, when Dahlia returned with her arms behind her back. "I brought what you asked for, Hydrus."

"Wonderful, you can either leave it with Professor Black if you don't want your brother knowing, or I can take it."

She puffed up a bit. "I don't care what my brother thinks."

The youngest Potter at Hogwarts handed over the cloak, and Harry's eyes widened. "Dahlia, you can't just let whoever you want borrow that!'

"Oh its fine, Potter." Hydrus took it and folded it over his arm. "I'll be returning it on Monday, if not sooner." He shot a smirk at his younger self. "And if it makes you feel any better, our fathers are already aware of my project."

That took both the Potter children by surprise, but he ignored it in favour of making his exit from the Hall once again. He could've stuck around and just bothered Bellatrix for the last part of his plan, but he needed to know just how much danger he was in regarding another situation. Once he was back in Bellatrix's office, he grabbed some floo powder and prepared for his final trip of the night.

"Malfoy Manor."


BBaRtS


Wouldn't you know it, despite all odds, there's 22. A bit early since I was a bit late last week. Hydrus beginning his Dumbledore-managed therapy, some more Potter family interactions, a dash of Apophis, and the beginning of a two to three chapter long subplot. The last chunk is actually a heavily deleted and modified version of chapter 19 which I previously replaced. I wanted more Remus in the story, and now we're getting it.

Regarding 'angst', which has become the review buzzword of the day, I'm just going to keep going. Man, I started the week (Sunday) without reading the reviews as they came in like I usually do. Then I got drunk, as I usually do on Sundays, and decided to use the opportunity to read them. Figured I was too drunk to remember any unnecessary ones. Instead I found an outpouring of positive responses to the last chapter, a chapter which I myself didn't like, and it completely changed my mood from 'I GUESS I'll work on this even though I'm not feeling it' to 'Aight you wrote 3k words in one day, it's 11PM, go to bed you nerd.'

I'm still trying to figure out how to... Idk the word, 'receive', commentary on my work. I've posted samples of my writing on Reddit, sent pieces I've written to my family, shared individual paragraphs with friends; the responses have all been totally different. Reddit responses, when I've even gotten them, have been helpful to hapless. Sending things to my family has received unending praise, which is about as useful as a highfive on a sinking boat. My friends have all (positively) laughed at what I sent them, which is nice but unhelpful. Here on FF and Ao3, the comments are obviously and expectedly reactionary. Which is fair. My writing here ain't planned out beyond the skeleton, after all.

But yeah, I'll just stop responding to/explaining the angst thing. I don't feel like the story goes too far in that direction, some readers do, and that's fine. Like the Bellatrix concerns, I've said my peace (piece? Idk how that expression is spelled) on it, and I'm just gonna keep on keeping on.

Speaking of Bellatrix though, lots of reviews wanting more of her in English or otherwise, and I hope this chapter at least provides some catharsis there. Hydrus isn't a reliable narrator, and despite his disagreement, Dumbledore sees through it.

Random note, I've stopped uploading on the third site I was uploading on but have now forgotten the name of, because there was literally 0 views. I ain't egotistically expecting anything, but zero views = I did something wrong, so I ain't gonna continue. Ao3 and FF seem like a fine duo and no one's said anything to upload elsewhere, so I'll just keep going.

On to reviews!

"The 'S' isn't capitalized in Lestrange."

Imma be honest, I should know that, I do know that, I just can never remember it when I'm typing. I always wanna type those Frenchy names in a Frenchy way.

There was some general criticism regarding Magic/Death/other gods.

I promise I *do* have a properly formatted plan for them, even if the story doesn't always portray it properly. Generally with this story I have three levels of story going on, the 'god' level, the 'main' level, and the 'subplot' level. The bird's eye view, the regular view, and the view that basically stands just to push the story forward and provide support to the regular view.

"Hey, genuinely love this story. Like I said in my comment last chapter those issues I had were just that, my personal preferences and my frustration with reading them."

I don't want anyone to think I'm 'calling out' individual reviews, even when I'm responding to individual points, so I'm sorry if it felt that was the case. The week before last was just kind of a gut punch regarding how negative the reviews were compared to normal, and it was a learning moment for me regarding online criticism. Once I got over that hump of being like 'You know what? I don't care if people think its too angsty' I forgot all the specifics lol

There were a ton of kind reviews, and I appreciate them. As I've said, and as if you couldn't tell, I read all the reviews so believe me when I say they have an impact on me. The most specific 'goal' with this story is to write something with an over powered protagonist that suffers more from internal issues and conflict than external ones, and I've got a better grasp on the audience that such writing causes. I will say this much, the next chapter at least starts off with a lot more of the early story's "Hydrus trying to fit in with pureblood society and dominating it" vibe than the recent writing. (I say 'the early chapter' because I'm only around 4k into it lmao)

Like I said, we'll quit acknowledging the 'too angsty, dropped' comments, and just keep moving forward. Thank you all for the support, see you next Saturday!