Chapter 25: All Three Hallows

Thanks for reading and reviewing.

One or two more chapters, I think. This was only supposed to be a short story.

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Vic went home and gave Harry the Resurrection Ring. Harry went upstairs and put it with the Invisibility Cloak. He had had a few less dreams since he had gotten the cloak, now he hoped to have fewer still. Death was getting what he wanted, he hoped. He just didn't know what would happen in the end.

He had a few ideas on how to get the wand, but he really didn't want to have to fight Dumbledore. The man had a hundred year's experience over him. He'd only win if he caught him off guard. He was going to have to use his spying abilities to get him through this.

He came back downstairs and joined Vic and Arcturus in the study. He wanted to know what was happening with the horcruxes. And if this meant the end of Voldy. He certainly hoped so, that was another man he didn't want to fight. He had over fifty year's experience over him.

"Well," Vic said, going to the bar and pouring him and Harry some fizzy drinks. "We've got five Horcruxes, but Moody says that Voldemort might have made six. We don't know for sure, but we're going to keep on the lookout," he stated, giving Harry his orange drink.

"Well, what are we going to do?" asked Harry, taking the drink and resting it on his knee. "I mean, haven't you looked everywhere you possibly can?" He only knew what they had told him, and it was the bare bones of it.

"The United Kingdom is a big area. I doubt they've looked everywhere," said Arcturus, going over to the globe in his portrait as if to indicate just how big the UK was.

"Didn't somebody mention something about a prophecy?" inquired John as he came wandering in. He had been doing a ground's check. He liked to do them every few hours or so.

"That's right, I had forgotten about that," said Vic, snapping his fingers in sudden remembrance.

"What prophecy?" asked Harry, putting his drink on the table and sitting up straighter. This was the first time he heard about this. If there was a prophecy about him, he bloody well wanted to know about it.

"There's supposed to be a prophecy about you and old Voldy," John stated, going to the bar and getting some juice.

"How come nobody mentioned this to me?" Harry asked, indignantly.

"Didn't you just hear me? I said I'd forgotten about it. We'll go down to the Department of Mysteries and see what it has to say," Vic said, in a 'what can I do' manner. He showed on his face that he didn't hide it from Harry, he simply forgot.

"Can we go tomorrow?" Harry asked, wanting to get it over with now, not later. Not that he put much into Divination, but he wanted to know what it said.

"Don't you have classes tomorrow? I know I have work. We'll go next Saturday," his Uncle Pads said, waving it away like a gnat. He didn't want to be bothered by something as trivial as a prophecy. It's why he'd forgotten it in the first place, he didn't really believe in them.

"We can go after classes. You're the Minister of Magic, I'm sure you can get us in," the preteen all but begged. He really wanted to go.

"I suppose I can get a tour. I haven't been down there and that's something I'm supposed to do. You being the Boy-Who-Lived will give us some pull too," he stated, rubbing his chin, thinking it over.

"Yeah, I've never been down there. It sounds like it would be great," said Harry. It sounded really spooky and mysterious to him. He couldn't wait to poke around.

"Be careful while you're down there," said Arcturus, sitting in his chair and giving off an air of authority. "They've got some weird things down there. I hear they've even been studying Love. And while that might sound like it's an interesting thing, it's very, very dangerous." He steepled his fingers and looked at Harry with one of those 'I know better than you' looks.

"How can Love be dangerous?" asked Harry. That didn't make a lick of sense to him.

"Love can be very treacherous if used in the incorrect way. Just look at what it did to Voldemort," said John, swigging his juice.

"I don't understand."

"Oh, that's right. You don't know the back story of that, do you?" said Vic, remembering that Harry wasn't privy to all their talks.

"No."

"It seems his mum Love Potioned his dad into loving her. Until she found out she was pregnant and then she stopped with the potions and then he left her. And that's why Voldemort is the way he is," John explained, with a sad shaking of his head. He still hated Love Potions and felt bad for Tom Riddle the Senior.

"Oh, I see," said Harry, not quite understanding it completely, he was too young for that, but he got the gist. "I guess I can understand why love can be a bad thing. But that's manufactured love. Are they studying that or true love?" he wanted to know.

"I wouldn't know. I've never been down there," said Vic, getting a wondering look in his eyes. He really should know being the minister.

"Even true love can be dangerous if it turns into obsession," said Arcturus, wagging a finger in the boy's direction.

"Then that's not true love," stated John, knowing what that was like from his bodyguard days.

"At any rate, I'm not going to have this discussion. Harry, go do your homework," Vic said, wanting him out of the room for a while.

"You just want me out of the room," Harry said, pouting.

"Only for a while," admitted Vic with a weak smile.

"Fine," Harry said, not really upset. He had homework to do anyway. He was in three different schools, technically. He went to the classroom and closed the door.

Vic then went on to tell John what was happening, and what Moody had told him. He went into greater detail than he wanted Harry to know.

"So, we've got five of the Horcruxes. You think there might be six? What if that prophecy turns out to be fulfilled? Does that mean we've got them all?" inquired John, getting up and pacing. He took another swig of his juice, wishing it were something stronger. He didn't drink while on duty though.

"I would say that that's a safe bet," said Arcturus, nodding at the man's logic.

"Hey, where's Marcus?" asked Vic, looking at his watch. It was going on eight in the evening. It would be suppertime soon.

"He had some business to take care of in the muggle world," said John, waving it away as inconsequential.

"We really need to find him something better to do than his old business. I don't want him getting nabbed by the coppers," said Vic, hoping he got the terminology correct.

"Most of the stuff he does is… legal. At least you won't go to jail for too long," his bodyguard said with a smirk.

"I don't want him to go to jail at all," the minister stated, standing and putting his glass on the bar. "I happen to be good friends with the Prime Minister, remember? That would look bad on my reputation." He really didn't mean that, but it was a valid point.

"I don't know what else he can do. He's been in the business for so long."

"I'll talk to him about it. Maybe we can get him into the bodyguard business or security or something," Vic said, wondering if the PM could hire him on as a personal favor. Marcus did have some experience.

"No, I'll talk to him about it. I've got connections. You don't," John said, taking that worry off his mind.

"I'd very much appreciate it. Thank you," Vic said, nodding his head in gratitude, and going toward the dining room. It was time for supper.

"No problem, Vic." He followed his boss.

"Harry, come eat!" Vic hollered into the classroom.

"Coming," Harry said as he joined them. He hadn't been far from the door.

They all trooped into the dining room and had a pleasant meal of meaty pizza with loads of cheese and bread sticks. Harry loved that the house elves had learned to cook his favorites ages ago. They did miss Marcus being there though.

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The next day, after work and class, Vic and Harry went down to the Department of Mysteries to check out the prophecy. They met up with one of the Unspeakables who took them on a tour of the place, and they did get to see where they were testing out the vilifications of love. Harry saw that it was one very, very abused emotion, and that it could be used as a weapon. He wondered if he could use that in his spying and decided that it was not something he wanted to toy with.

"And here is our Hall of Prophecies," said the Unspeakable as he ushered them into a room filled with shelves upon shelves of white glowing globes. Well, some were dark, but a vast majority of them were glowing.

"I hear there's a prophecy about me in here," said Harry, peering at the shelves as if he could spot it right away.

"There might be," said the Unspeakable. He started walking down the aisles.

"I'd like to hear it," said Harry.

"That can be arranged," said the man in the grey robe. He was covered from head to toe in that robe. They weren't even sure he was a man. They were going by the sound of his voice.

They walked on through the rows and rows of orbs, until they came to the prophecy that had Harry's name on it. Harry took the orb down and threw it onto the floor at the Unspeakable's request. When they heard the prophecy, both Vic and Harry shook their heads at the inane words.

"I can't believe anybody believes this tripe," said Harry, shaking his head in disgust. He had never heard such dribble in his life.

"Well, Dumbledore and old Voldy seemed to have," said Vic, just as disgusted as his nephew.

"You did note that the prophecy was black when you picked it up, right?" questioned the Unspeakable, pointing to the black shards of glass.

"Yeah, we did note that," said Vic in an inquiring tone.

"That means it was fulfilled," the man said with a smile in his voice, like that was a rare occurrence.

"That can't be. Harry had nothing to do with Voldemort at any point in time in his life. Other than that night," Vic said, thinking back on it and wondering how the prophecy could be fulfilled when Harry had nothing to do with it. Only he and his team hunted the Horcruxes. Harry was at home, safe.

"I don't know how, maybe it was that night on Halloween, but somehow or another he vanquished the Dark Lord," the Unspeakable stated, waving his wand and putting the orb back in place. It was still dark and ominous.

"Huh," said Vic. There wasn't much else to say.

"Well, it doesn't matter. It's over. We don't have to worry about him anymore," said Harry. "We can go on with our lives."

"Yeah, it sounds like that's what we can do," his Uncle Pads agreed.

"I don't know what you two are on about, but it sounds like it's a good thing," said the Unspeakable.

"Let's get out of here," said Harry, already turning and walking away. "I want to see what the rest of this Department of Mysteries has to offer."

So, they continued their tour of the Department of Mysteries, which was very strange and bizarre. They studied everything to do with magic down there. Even muggle magic, which was weird to Harry, who didn't even know muggle's practiced magic.

After about an hour of touring, they went home. Harry had a better understanding of what they studied, and Vic had a better understanding of what they spent their money on. Each walked away with what they needed. Both were glad the prophecy was bunk and fulfilled.

Vic was going to have to tell the others, but Harry was blissfully unencumbered by such burdens.

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Over the Yule break, Vic had a talk with Neville's grandmother. And the conclusion of that talk was that Neville was able to join Harry and Hermione with their lessons. They didn't even have to wait till the end of the school year. He joined them at the beginning of the next quarter. Augusta Longbottom was just so excited that she had the attention of the Minister that she pulled him immediately from Hogwarts. He wasn't doing well there anyway.

Neville was a very skittish young man. He was on the short squat side, with sandy blond hair. He had a pudgy face that didn't quite go into fat. He looked so lost, yet excited, when he first got there, like he didn't know what was going on, but he was just happy to be out of Hogwarts.

"What's up, Neville?" asked Harry on their first day of class.

"What do you mean?" asked Neville, not quite sure what he was asking. He was more used to formal forms of address.

"I mean, how are you enjoying being out of Hogwarts?"

"It's much different. I get to stay at home with my Gran. If that's what you're talking about," the boy said, tentatively.

"That's part of it," agreed Harry with a nod and a shoulder pat. "How far are you on your non-magical studies? I mean, we'll be more than happy to help you catch up." He guided Neville into the kitchen where they were being served lunch. They had just had their first two magic lessons and Neville wasn't doing that great. Their teacher said it was his wand, and they were going to talk to his grandmother.

"I actually had tutors before I went to Hogwarts, so I'm not that far behind," confessed Neville, looking over the selection of sandwiches and picking out a ham and cheese one.

"That's great to hear, Neville," said Hermione as she grabbed a roast beef sandwich. "Still, if you need any help keeping up with us, you'll let us know, right?" she asked, trying not to sound pompous.

"Of course," said Neville.

"We're just ever so excited to have you here," she said, bouncing in place.

"Yeah, don't think we're going to put you under any pressure to keep up with us. You just do the best you can. Uh, Mr. Leffen will do his best to keep you entertained. Well, not entertained, but… excited. You know what I mean. Stimulated?"

"I think, I get the gist," chuckled Neville, thinking the other boy was being obtuse on purpose.

"Good, because I wasn't getting my words right," Harry said, shaking his head at his brain fart.

"You're a funny boy, Harry Potter," the sandy-haired boy said, biting into his sandwich and then trying his fizzy drink for the first time. It tickled his nose, and he sneezed. He put the drink down and looked for a napkin.

"I try my best," Harry said, handing him a tissue.

"How are you kids doing in here?" asked Marcus as he came into the room. He had just come from a job and was going to grab something to eat. Seeing the sandwiches he took a roast beef one and some crisps.

"We're good. What are you doing here, Marcus?" Harry said, beaming at his cousin.

"I just have some time between jobs and was wondering if you kids needed anything," the older man said, looking at the children with mild interest.

"No, we're okay. We're just having lunch," Hermione said, having met Marcus a time or two. She found him to be intimidating, but nice. Like someone you want at your back, but don't want to piss off.

"All right, let your Uncle Pads know that I'll be gone for the rest of the evening. Okay, Harry?" Marcus stated as he started walking out the door, lunch in hand. He even snagged a fizzy drink on his way by.

"All right, Cousin Marcus, I'll let him know," the preteen said, waving the man goodbye.

"That's your cousin Marcus. Is he a wizard?" Neville said, finally daring to breathe. That was one scary man. He was so big and muscular. Not quite as scary as Snape had been, but close.

"No, he's a squib."

"You have a squib living in your house?" asked Neville with a great deal of shock in his voice.

"Yeah, why not? He's family," Harry said with a frown on his face.

"It's just so unheard of," the other boy said, having been told all his life that he'd be cast out if he didn't have magic.

"Not by me."

"You're a very strange boy, Harry Potter," Neville said, and he didn't mean that in a bad way.

"And don't you forget it, Neville Longbottom," Harry said with a smile.

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Months went by before they ever had any contact with Albus Dumbledore. It was coming on to summer break and Harry and Vic were both in the Ministry at the same time. Harry had been visiting Vic because he had been so busy over the last couple of months, and they hadn't seen one another, and they were on their way home. Just as they were leaving, they happened to run into the headmaster.

"At last, we meet, Harry Potter," said Albus Dumbledore as he stepped in their way of the floo. He had been wanting to meet the boy for years, but Vic Potter had been standing in his way the entire time. Now was his chance to talk the boy into coming to Hogwarts.

"Hello, Headmaster," said Harry with a slight nod of his head. He wasn't dreading this meeting so much as regretting it. He had been going out of his way not to meet the man.

"I've wanted to meet you for a very long time, young Harry. I was very disappointed when you decided not to come to Hogwarts this year," Albus said, running a hand down his beard, and looking at him with his patented 'disappointed grandfather' look.

"I find it much better to be homeschooled. I like learning muggle studies. You know, English, maths, science, that kind of stuff," the preteen said with a winning smile. "That and I get to see my Uncle Pads every day," he added for good measure.

"Alas, we do not teach them at our school, but I can understand the allure of learning other teachings. Still, we are the most premier magical school in the world," Dumbledore stated as if he still believed that to be true. He ignored the seeing the relative part, there was nothing he could say to that.

Both Harry and Vic scoffed.

"Anyway, did you want something, Dumbledore?" asked Vic, anxious to get home. He had been working hard lately and he wanted to rest.

"No, I was just surprised to see Harry Potter here and wanted to stop and say hello," the disappointed man said, not liking where the conversation ended. He had been hoping there would be more to it, but the boy was determined to be homeschooled.

"And try and guilt trip me in to going to Hogwarts," said Harry under his breath.

"What was that young man?" Albus said, almost sternly.

"Nothing," said Harry, waving it away and moving past the old man.

"Come on, Harry, let's go home. It was nice to see you again, Albus," Vic stated, hurrying to catch up with Harry, who was almost at the floo. He would have to reprimand Harry for not saying goodbye to the headmaster, but he could understand the boy's standoffishness.

"It was very good to meet you, Harry Potter," called Albus after them. "Until we meet again."

Vic and Harry went home, and Harry had a twinkle in his eye the entire time. It was a short trip through the floo. When Harry left the floo, he started laughing uproariously.

"What's got you in such a tizzy?" asked Vic as he went to the bar and got a firewhiskey. "Don't think we're not going to talk about your rudeness," he stated.

"Yes, what has got you so tickled?" asked Arcturus, looking down from his portrait.

"I've got Dumbledore's wand," Harry said, from where he had collapsed on the sofa. He was holding up the Elder Wand like it was a trophy. It sat there in his hand all twisted and knobby.

"What?!" they both exclaimed, measures of disbelief in their voices.

"I did. I snitched it right out of his wrist holder," the still laughing Harry said, his face was so red from having such a hard time breathing.

"How on earth did you do that?" asked Vic, going over to Harry and sitting him up and trying to get him to calm down. He started pacing around the room, wondering about the ramifications of this.

Harry took in a few deep breaths and then slowly let them out. He was still giggling when he said, "It's one of the first things they teach us in spy school, how to pickpocket. With magic, it's ten times easier."

"I thought you had to win the wand's allegiance," said Arcturus, furrowing his brow. That is what the story said.

"Pickpocketing is winning. In a roundabout fashion. Besides, I don't think Death cares how I got it, only that I got it," Harry said, waving it away.

"Well, I'll be buggered," said Vic, sitting down ungracefully. His drink sloshing all over.

"I'm going to go put it with the rest of them. Maybe now, Death will leave me alone," the preteen said, going out of the room and running up the stairs.

"I certainly hope so," mumbled Vic. He wondered what was going to happen now that all three were together.