Gringotts
Immediately after arriving on November 1st, 1981 Animus went directly to Gringotts to make the final arrangements.
Once in the office he arranged multiple vaults to be created. They would be set aside for certain death eaters for later. If they were not claimed within a decade they would be returned to his main vault. He also took out the money he was going to have to give to the Dursley's.
Then he quickly went over the different things he had had Gringotts doing for him, including looking over the town he had had created, Avalar.
The town was beautiful from the few pictures included in the file. Already a few people had moved in. A grocery store, an apothecary, and a small restaurant had already been opened. Each of the houses were unique, and thanks to space expansion spells being built into them the small buildings were each large family dwellings. There were even two apartment buildings intended for single people or those that couldn't afford their own home yet.
All he really had left to do with that was go to the town itself and finalize the wards.
Going over the final things he needed to set up he arranged to have the goblins go to the Black Castle to attend and verify the rituals he was planning for later that evening.
Privet Drive
After leaving the bank Animus had gone to Avalar and finished the wards before going to the garage where he said he would meet the Dursley's.
It was only 5 minutes later that their car pulled into the garage. Rather than allowing them near his younger self he went and collected him from the car himself, completely ignoring Dudley in the high end carseat next to himself in the basket without even a seatbelt around him.
Once he had himself he laid out the paperwork he needed the Dursley's to sign, something they thankfully did without argument for once. Although he knew their agreeability was only because they had been offered money. After he left them he was going to make a quick stop at a group home in the next town over and slip them into a file in case anyone came looking.
With everything he needed signed he handed over the cash, 5000 to each Dursley. He knew from his time with them that it was better to split it between them as they were both greedy and didn't necessarily like sharing, even with each other. If Petunia had money in her purse she would only hand it over to Vernon if she absolutely had to, and Vernon was the same. It didn't matter that they really only got cash from the jar Petunia kept on the fridge where she put the 100 pounds she took out of the bank each month, they both saw any cash they had as theirs alone.
It was why he had offered them 5000 each. It would ensure they both kept hold of it. The reason he needed them to have equal contact was that each bill had been coated in a slow acting memory modification that was set to attach to the first person to handle it. From that point on, as they spent each and every bill, their memories would slowly be altered until by the time the money was gone they would have no memory of him, and no one would be able to detect the modification if they ever thought to look.
The memory he created was that they found him on the doorstep in the morning, they didn't see a letter or anything with him. They covered him with a blanket and moved him to the car where they immediately took him to the group home and left him on their doorstep. From that point on they just chose to forget about the child that had been abandoned with them. If confronted about it they would claim they never saw a letter and would just assume it got blown away in the wind.
The paperwork he planned to file at the group home would show that they found a boy on November 1st. He also placed papers in the file showing that he had been adopted only a few weeks later, but none of the adoption papers would be there. Those at the group home would just assume it to be a clerical error by the overworked staff, but it would also serve to ensure no one would be able to figure out what truly happened. He didn't think that James or Lily would go that far in looking for him, but it was better to lay a false trail and not need it than need one and it not be there. And to finish off he added a few memory modifications, but made sure they could be detected in case anyone ever looked, it would be a way to make them think who ever had taken Harry Potter was magical as another way to send them looking in another different direction.
Black Castle
As soon as Animus entered the Black Castle he was practically ambushed by Bronwen. The woman was looking much better since the last time he had seen her, it would seem life with the Black's was doing good things for her overall health. Her main focus was of course the baby in his arms.
"Is this him?" She questioned excitedly before reaching for the child regardless. It had been so long since she had held a child, not since the loss of her own.
"Yes, this is him." Animus had no problem handing the child over. Despite his long life he had never really dealt with children. He was a Lord of Magic, there wasn't really anyone who was willing to ask him to babysit. He figured the only person that probably would have been brave enough to do so would have been Luna, but she had died before she had had the chance to have any children of her own and Andromeda had kept him away from Teddy.
"Hello my sweet boy." Bronwen cooed at the little boy that was just starting to wake. "Hush now, you're safe."
"Did you file the birth certificate and choose a name?" Animus questioned as the two of them walked to the sitting room where the others were waiting for them.
"Yes. As far as anyone is concerned Hunter Loki Black was born July 13, 1980." Bronwen said as she worked to hush the upset child. She fully understood why he would be upset given everything he had just been through.
"Hunter?" Animus questioned. "Doesn't seem like a traditional Black name."
"We talked about it. Hunter was my grandfathers name so it's special to me. Reg wanted to give him a name connected to his dad, but it's tradition in the Black family to put at least two generations separation before reusing a name, as I'm sure you know. But, in mythology Orion was a hunter so it fit. We thought Hunter would be a good way to pay homage to both sides of our family. His full name is Hunter Loki Phineas Aodhan Cian Animus Black, but his public name will be Hunter Loki Black. We have already planned his formal magical naming ceremony for once we get back to France so only we will be involved and no one but us will know his true name, but we trust you of course." Bronwen finished just as they entered the room to greet the others.
"I approve." Animus smiled as he moved towards Arcturus as Melania and Regulus both moved to greet the new child.
Letting the others dote on his younger self he had Arcturus quickly catch him up on what had been happening. Like he had suggested Melania had gotten the school board to remove McGonagall as deputy headmistress due to her failures as head of house, and she was on probation for her head of house duties too. This had ended up causing some hard feelings with them and Sirius, but after confronting him with the facts about McGonagall not doing her duties, something he was well aware of since he'd been in Gryffindor, he had calmed down.
They had even managed to get the woman replaced with someone surprisingly competent, Ursula Merrythought. Ursula was the granddaughter of Galatea Merrythought who had been the defence professor that Tom had wanted to replace when she retired. She had served as a member of the OWL and NEWT testers for over 3 decades and when the alterations being done to the marks was found she had been questioned and proven she had not altered a single mark, there were even reports that she had filed each and every time she had been approached. The woman had a sterling reputation and had dedicated her life to ensuring the children of the United Kingdom got the best education possible so she was a perfect fit for the job. It also didn't hurt that she had absolutely no problem with smacking Dumbledore down when he tried to pass off his work to her or do something she didn't feel was what was best for the students or the school.
Arcturus knew from what Regulus had told him that Severus had followed his instructions and had introduced the potion to assist in pregnancies at the exact time he had said and it was already having an impact. He had also introduced the potion that would allow werewolves to keep control over themselves and control their shift. He had of course given some credit to Animus himself, announcing at the potion conference he had presented it at that he had received a package of potions notes from him that he had used in creating the potion.
But there was one major change, Bartemius Crouch was dead. From how it was explained to him the man had finally pushed his wife too far and she had snapped. Afterwards she had contacted Arcturus in a panic.
Arcturus explained that Barty and Rabastan had quietly gotten married shortly after his last visit, something Barty's father had been infuriated over. The man had only become angrier when a few months before the couple had had a daughter with the assistance of Severus's potions. Charis had been spending the day with little Calliope Crouch-Lestrange when her husband had come home for lunch in a snit. He had started in on the baby since he hated her very existence, both due to who her other father was and her gender.
Charis had loved and been devoted to her husband for almost 30 years, but the instant he became a threat to her granddaughter was the instant that stopped. In that moment the calmest and most passive Black in generations fully embraced her Black heritage and removed the threat.
After realizing the full extent of what she had done she had contacted Arcturus as her head of family. Rather than turning her in as she had obviously feared he had had her take Cally to visit Melania and then gone to Lord Lestrange, as Cally's grandfather, and they had arranged for it to look as if Bartemius had been killed in an accident in the floo. They had actually done such a good job of it that the Ministry had paid compensation to Charis.
And with Bartemius dead he was no longer the head of the DMLE. Originally, after he had been transferred Amelia Bones had managed to claim the position as her only competitors, Mad-Eye and Scrimgeour, had been busy. Mad-Eye had been taking great joy in rounding up as many suspected Death Eaters as possible, whether he had to kill them to do so or not he hadn't cared, and Scrimgeour had been in St. Mungo's after he had tried to arrest, attack, Thorfinn Rowle and gotten beaten into the ground.
But now Crouch had been removed while both were still viable options and Bones hadn't had a clear shot at the job. This time Scrimgeour had gotten the position and was head of the DMLE. It threw a wrench in the works since there was no guarantee that he would behave the same as Crouch had the last time. But, at the same time, he was just as pompous, arrogant, and ambitious as Crouch had been from what he knew of the man so he could follow the same path. He knew for a fact the man wasn't above putting innocent people in prison for appearances sake. He was just going to have to rely on time trying to hold to the original pattern as much as it could as often happened.
For the first time Orion had been included in one of their meetings. And after being filled in by his father just who this man was he was equal parts shocked and grateful. If not for this man his sons would have grown up being abused and controlled by Walburga, an idea he couldn't stand. If there was one thing he would never regret it would be having his wife exiled to the cabin in Wales all those years ago. And then there was the fact he had arrived just in time to stop Regulus from getting himself killed.
"Is there any danger to Regulus now?" Orion questioned as he watched his son and surprise daughter-in-law bond with their new son. He had been extremely relieved when his father called him to visit 2 years before to tell him that Regulus had secretly left the country and that despite many people starting to believe he had been killed he was just fine.
"Regulus should be fine." Animus said. "No one knows he's back in the country, and he will be leaving this evening. He should stay out of Britain for another month or so. Not so much because he would be in any danger or anything, but so he can bond with his new son without any pressure or distractions.
No, the one that is in the most danger right now, is Sirius. At this point in time Sirius is off hunting down Peter Pettigrew. Sirius was the decoy secret keeper for the Potters, Pettigrew was the real one and he was the one that betrayed them too Voldemort. Pettigrew is much more clever than people give him credit for and will escape, framing Sirius for his murder, along with others, as he does so.
Originally Sirius was arrested November 3rd and sent straight to Azkaban without trial. The Potters finally took a moment from basking in their new found fame long enough to admit he wasn't their secret keeper a few weeks later, but he still wasn't given a trial for the murders he was accused of as they believed him guilty. Now, that may have changed. Bartemius Crouch was the head of the DMLE that signed off on not giving him a trial, as he ended up doing to quite a few, but now that he is dead it may not happen. However Bagnold also agreed to it and Scrimgeour is a lot like him so he may take the same path. Either way, the Wizengamot needs to be ready to demand trials for everyone. And make sure to publicly name and shame anyone opposed to it in the press."
Arcturus's fist clenched at the idea of his grandson being treated in such a manor. "I will ensure it."
Orion was stunned, then furious. He and Sirius may not often see eye to eye but he loved him with all his heart, and no one messed with his child. If they tried something like that with his boy he was going to make sure they paid for it, figuratively and literally. He worked at the Ministry himself, and he was in a position to make any who acted against his son suffer.
Animus then had Orion join him in another room. He needed to have a private conversation with the man.
"What is it you need to talk to me about that couldn't be done in front of my father?" Orion asked.
"What we need to discuss is what was done to you."
"Done to me?"
"Yes." Animus was not looking forward to this discussion, it seemed he was having to have plenty of unpleasant conversations with some people, but it was almost done. "Walburga wanted to be Lady Black, and she was willing to do anything she had to to do so. You started mentioning wanting to cancel the contract between the two of you when you reached your teen years. I bet it was because you were starting to feel drawn to one of your house mates."
Orion didn't fidget, but it was a near thing. No one outside his parents, and Walburga's parents, knew that he had asked about getting out of the contract. Following contracts and honouring your words or the will of the family was about family pride and dignity, even the idea that he had wanted out or didn't want to fulfill the contract could have harmed his families standing, it was why he had ultimately married the horrible woman. But at the time, he just couldn't help it, he had had such a massive crush on one of the upper years, Tom Riddle, who he knew had gone on to be the Dark Lord.
"In her desire to get her way Walburga made a deal with the most unlikely of people, Albus Dumbledore. Both had something to gain from keeping you separated from the person that was actually your soul mate."
Orion froze at that, every magical being understood the importance of a soulmate. Interfering in that kind of bond was considered one of the worst forms of heresy possible as it was a direct insult to Lady Magic herself. "Tom was my… I could have helped him, and now he's gone."
Animus heard the despair in his voice, it was something he fully understood as he had lost his soul mate. "Not completely. Do not despair, you will still have your chance."
With that Animus launched into a full explanation of what had happened. He covered the existence of the horcruxes, along with his belief of the compulsions.
"Tom can come back, and he will." Animus assured. "Ten years from now he will return, and his soul will be repaired. Only the small portion that your soon to be grandson holds will remain separated from him. That portion can not be removed without killing him, but it is thankfully only 1.5% of his soul so it won't cause either of them any real problems.
When he is returned he will be a bit out of it for a while, during that time you are going to need to keep him under control. He won't be overly violent or anything, but it will take some time for him to sort out his mind and memories. You will need to take control and keep him as calm as possible."
"Take control? Of a Dark Lord?" Orion was flabbergasted by that idea. Even as a student Tom was always in control. "Soul mate or not he's not just going to submit to me."
"Yes, he will." Animus said knowingly. "All Lords and Ladies of Magic have a soul mate. In nearly all pairings it is the partner that is the dominant in the relationship. It's to counter balance all the pressure they are under as a leader.
In day to day life a Lord or Lady of Magic is expected to have all the answers. They are in control of nearly everything to do with their faction. Their soul mate takes the pressure off and allows them to relieve tension by having someone else take over the responsibility, even if it's just little things. They need that relief.
If your bond with Tom hadn't been messed with you could have served as a stabilizing influence, and Dumbledore couldn't have that. But even then, nothing could have stopped Tom from losing it due to the rituals. Truthfully, having the bond intact as Tom lost it would have only put you in danger, and anything happening to you would have only increased his instability."
Orion thought things through. It was horrifying to know that he had been denied his soul mate for decades. But at the same time, if he had been with Tom he wouldn't have Sirius or Regulus and he loved his sons. And like Animus said, being around Tom as his mental health spiralled would have put him in danger, and if they had had children together they too would have been at risk.
"So I just need to go and have the goblins purge me of whatever Walburga and Dumbledore did?"
"No. While the goblin purges can remove potions from your system, and some magic, they have little to no effect on higher level magics like rituals since goblin magic and wixen magics are so different. I have already taken the liberty of making the arrangements to have you purged at the Oasis of Zerzura. The sandmen that live there are protectors of the desert. Their magic is as old as the desert itself and they will find little to no trouble with removing all foreign magics from you regardless of its origin or type."
"One thing I don't get…" Orion said. "What did Walburga think Dumbledore was getting out of it? Despite her craziness, she was still a Black, and no Black would ever accept someone offering their assistance without knowing what they would be getting for themselves."
Animus smiled knowing it was the truth, Blacks were inherently suspicious people, even Sirius after over a decade in Azkaban had had his doubts about a lot even if he wasn't in a position to do anything about them. "That is true. When Dumbledore offered to ensure she became your wife, and therefor Lady Black after your grandfather and father passed, he exchanged it for the loyalty of your first born son.
It was why Walburga was never willing to bond with Sirius, she had already offered up his future. She agreed to allow Dumbledore to use potions to control Sirius if he needed too. It was why she wanted to keep him separated from the family in an effort to disown him."
"He…?" Orion growled.
"No." Animus assured. "Since the Black family is once again close he was limited in what he could do. The family magics would have warned your father if a member of the family was under any dangerous or higher level potions, I ensured he would be on the look out for that before Regulus was even born." Animus had made sure Arcturus monitored the family magic for that exact reason. "And since Walburga was removed from the boys lives long before they started school she wasn't able to alienate him from the rest of you or start giving him the personality potions Dumbledore sent her last time. Sirius is a Gryffindor, but this time it is because that is who he is and not because of what Walburga and Dumbledore did.
I also made sure your father knew to watch over the family magics. And I told him to make sure it was known he was doing so… I believe your mother spoke of it during a tea party that was attended by a few that were loyal to the old man so it definitely would have gotten back to him. The most he could do was give him the most basic level trust or compulsion potions and those aren't even guaranteed to work on a child let alone a teen."
Soon enough it was time for Animus and Regulus to go the the Death Eater meeting he had arranged. Barty had already stopped by to drop off Cally, Bronwen had offered to watch her while he and Rabastan were at the meeting since Charis was in the hospital undergoing tests for the week. Without her husband ignoring and belittling her illness Barty had forced his mother to get herself checked when she started struggling, catching the illness early may just have been enough to save her life.
It was useful to be a parselmouth. All it had taken was a quick conversation with the snake in Regulus's mark to learn anything he needed to know and make the arrangements for them to call a meeting when he was ready.
Death Eater Meeting
"QUIET!" Animus shouted out, his power fluxing around him 5 minutes after the meeting was set to start. There were over 700 people present, all those that were marked, and nearly all of them thought it was appropriate for them to behave with all the dignity of Hogwarts students when a good bit of gossip was going around.
"We are not here to gossip, we are here to get things under control." Animus glared them all down, this time almost none of them were wearing their masks. The original members had joined him on the dais, but they were off to the side and he knew they were slightly suspicious of him since they had just lost their friend and Lord.
"THE DARK LORD IS DEAD!", "POTTER KILLED THE DARK LORD!", and "WHAT CAN WE POSSIBLY DO?" Was shouted out from a number of people.
"ENOUGH!" Animus raised his voice again and flexed his magic warningly, silencing them all almost instantly. Say what you will about Tom, but he had trained them all to respect the danger of power. "Take everything you have heard in the past 12 hours that has come from the Ministry or Dumbledore and forget it. None of it is true."
"The Dark Lord?" A hopeful voice questioned.
"The Dark Lord is alive, he just isn't here right now." Animus saw the relief so many had, despite Toms habit of torturing them recently they all really were devoted to him. "The reason he isn't here right now is due to a protection ritual placed on the child, nothing else mystical about it. But, as many of you know, the Dark Lord said he made plans in case of an emergency, I am one such plan.
Currently the Dark Lord has been temporarily disembodied, he is still alive in spirit form. I have already started gathering the needed materials to restore him to a body. But that will take time."
"How long?" Many questioned as one.
"Ten years." Animus said with a slight shrug, seeing the disappointment many displayed that it was going to take that long. "The Dark Lord will be restored in just over ten years and shall return to you. And when he does return, he will find you as loyal as ever…" The 'or else' wasn't said, but they all heard it.
"And the Potter's?" A voice hissed in fury as they thought of the girl that had taken their Lord from them.
"They do not matter." Animus saw as those in the room started to grumble their dissent. "As I said, nothing you have been told by others is true. Marigold Potter had absolutely nothing to do with what happened to the Dark Lord.
Allow me to explain what led up to last night. A prophecy was given about a child that would be the end of the Dark Lord. He decided to investigate all children that matched the prophecy. What has been kept hidden is that the Potter's in fact had twins. Marigold Potter is a perfectly average 1 year old witch, but her elder twin brother Harry Potter was in fact the child of power that had been prophecised. He moved to remove the threat but a protection ritual that had been placed on the children activated, disembodying the Dark Lord.
Dumbledore and the Potters arrived home to find the babysitter dead, Harry Potter unconscious, and Marigold Potter screaming her head off. The backlash of the magic cast had caused a portion of the roof to collapse, resulting in a gash on Marigold Potters head.
Dumbledore, being the bright spark he is, saw one child screaming and the other unconscious and assumed it was the one awake that had done it. Not bothering to examine the children beyond that, if he had he would have no doubt found the reason the boy was unconscious was due to the magical drain caused by the ritual connected to him being activated. He and the Potters immediately started making plans to train Marigold Potter and declare her the saviour of the light, but they couldn't have her elder brother getting in their way so they got rid of him.
Last night they left 1 year old Harry Potter on a muggle doorstep expecting the muggles to look after him until they came back to collect him when he turned 11. I hope I don't have to explain to any of you just how monumentally stupid that was… The child may have been able to survive the Dark Lord, but Albus Dumbledore leaving him, magically exhausted, outside all night, in November is not something he could come back from.
The Potter's, while an incredible annoyance and a disgrace to magic, aren't worth your attention. Going after them will just give Dumbledore more he can use. Our best path moving forward is to treat them the same as any other light side fool. And that means there will be no attacks on their child, the girl is nothing more than a normal girl, and if anything we should have sympathy given just who she is being raised by and how much Dumbledore's pro-light nonsense she is going to be surrounded by at all times."
"So what do we do now?" One of the Death Eaters he didn't know by face alone questioned.
"For now you are going to keep your heads down. I have placed lists on the walls." Animus indicated the back wall of the hall and both of the sides. "Go to the one that has your name on it. A simple point-me spell will work so you aren't running around like headless chickens, just cast the point-me spell on your name. I will meet with each group.
I want to make this perfectly clear, there are plans. Some of you will be having your marks hidden, that does not mean they are gone, and it does not mean that you have betrayed the Dark Lord. All of you must be united to get through this. No one here is a traitor, no one here is your enemy. It is going to be a long ten years as you work your way into positions of trust and power, but it will all be worth it when the Dark Lord returns.
As it stands right now the Ministry is trying to get their heads out of their collective backsides and they will begin their raids in three days. If they come for you, you will not oppose them. You need to appear as innocent as possible and fighting will just give them an excuse to attack. If you go quietly and they hurt you in any way or so much as damage a flower in your garden you will be able to sue them all you want after. I would also recommend you open a private artifact vault at Gringotts and store anything the Ministry can claim is even slightly dark. And so long as you only store artifacts and no money the goblins won't even put it on any tax forms they are required to submit to the Ministry for a flat fee of 100 galleons per year."
With that everyone moved to their areas. Animus was pleased to see that Severus had done as he requested and there were over a dozen extra large cauldrons sitting at the back of the hall.
Of the over 700 people in attendance over 400 were congregated at the back of the room. And that was where Animus went first, bringing with him Voldemort's elite with him since he didn't have the time to deal with every single one of them.
"Those in this group are going to claim to be completely innocent of everything, including having the dark mark. This potion, when applied to your mark, will make the mark disappear. It will be completely invisible until the ritual is complete and the Dark Lord is returned.
As I said, this is not a betrayal nor does it mean you are no longer a death eater. This is just to allow you to move freely amongst society without any stigma so you can gain higher positions.
If you are arrested during the raids you will play the innocent victim of vicious gossip or mistaken identity. As each of you has the potion applied you will be swearing a vow to one of the elite, the vow is already written up for you. The vow is worded in a way that you will literally be incapable of saying anything to them about your time as a Death Eater. Your magic will force you to claim you had no involvement in any way. We have allies in the Wizengamot who will be able to influence any trial you are given to ensure you are declared innocent."
Animus showed them how it was done by painting the potion on Lucius's arm. With a tap of his wand and saying a basic invisibility spell the mark was completely gone. Then he handed him the vow he needed to take and allowed him to make the vow to his father, it wouldn't work for him to make a vow to Animus himself since he was going to be gone in only a few more hours and that would end the vow. He instructed half of the elite to remain there and work their way through those who had already started lining up.
Then he went to the left side of the room. This group was the second largest numbering around 200.
"Those in this group can't simply have their marks removed the way others can. This is due to the fact that the existence of your marks aren't just rumours as it is with the others. Your marks have been seen or are known to exist since many of you were assigned the role of double agent by the Dark Lord.
This potion will fade your marks out but won't remove them completely." The potion would fade the marks to only a few shades darker than the surrounding skin tone, they would be seen, but only if one looked for them. "Each of you will then take a vow limiting what you can say. You will be able to acknowledge that you joined the death eaters, but you won't be able to give any details about any crimes you may have committed.
If you were identified earlier you will only be able to talk about how you were forced to take the mark, either by being tortured or by having family members threatened. For those of you that served as double agents you will be able to do the same and add on that you only remained to provide others with information."
This group was the one that held those he knew had at some point or other passed information. He had specifically ensured they were in this group since between the wards he had added to the room and the vow they were going to have to take they wouldn't be able to do so again. As an added precaution he would also be slipping a list of the names he knew to Lord Kaiden Selwyn just in case they tried to betray them. He trusted Selwyn to handle it objectively and not go on a killing spree the way some others might, the man had joined Tom out of loyalty to the dark, he had never taken part in the violence and almost always advocated against it. Although he was Elite he hadn't been in Tom's friend group at school, he had instead been the prefect in Toms first year and had taken it upon himself to help the boy find his footing in the magical world. The man had kept his family together and above suspicion last time so he knew he would be able to handle things.
Like with the previous group Animus showed the application of the potion and had his test subject, in this case Severus, swear his vow to Lord Lestrange. This group was going to be a little more complicated since the vows would need to be tailored to each person, but he knew they could handle it.
Then he moved on to the third and final group, this one numbering around 100.
"I wish I could tell you all that we can handle everything and it will all be fine, but it won't. No matter what we do there is going to need to be a few that take the fall to ensure the survival of the whole, in this case, you. Each of you have been selected with diligence and care.
This is not an order, instead this is a request. We are asking you to take the fall to ensure the survival of our plans. Each of you will be given a vow to swear that will limit just how many crimes, and the types of crimes, that any of you can admit too. We are asking you to accept going to Azkaban so that the rest can go free." Animus told the group.
He had selected each of these people for a reason, some were lower level and really hadn't done anything to illegal, while others were a danger and could cause serious problems in the future, including Macnair and the Carrow twins. Macnair had gone on to work for the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures at the Ministry of Magic as their executioner, but he had secretly been going around killing all manner of magical creatures and beings without any permission or reason. He needed to be removed to mitigate the damage he would do to wixen and being relations. And since he would have been in Azkaban he wouldn't be able to work at the Ministry and wouldn't have their backing in killing. He had also made sure to leave a note that would be sent to Greyback if he started killing after his release, the werewolf wouldn't hesitate to get rid of him if he saw him as a threat.
The Carrow twins had much of the same issues. They had both gone on to work at the Ministry and had made things needlessly harder for those that didn't agree with them completely, and they spent much of their time off torturing and killing people, he had managed to link over 30 deaths and disappearances in the muggle world to the two insane siblings. The two had actually liked Umbridge, and that said everything there was to say about them.
He was using this to remove the more dangerous or unstable people from the equation, even if it was just for a few years. Unfortunately there were a few lower level people that would need to be sacrificed as well, they weren't a true problem, but the Ministry needed to believe they were accomplishing something.
"We will be applying a potion that will lighten your marks to match the others, they will darken again once the Dark Lord returns. You will also be taking vows to hide anything you do not wish the Ministry to know, as well as to force you to give certain answers if pressed about different topics."
These vows were worded so they would only be able to confess to certain crimes. He wished he could completely remove those like Macnair and the Carrows, but he couldn't, all he could do was trust that they wouldn't change and would end up removing themselves in the end, either by ending up back in Azkaban or getting killed. They would only be able to admit partial culpability in any of the attacks that resulted in death.
The second vow would force them to give certain responses, and he would make sure the elite on the Wizenagmot asked the questions he wanted. If asked about why it always seemed there were so many Death Eaters they would say they were given illusion rings to wear during raids that would create multiple duplicates of them making the numbers look more impressive then they actually were. If asked about people identified as having the dark mark but being found without it they would say that the Dark Lord had had them use glamours to make it appear certain people supported him, especially those from well known or powerful families. They were also encouraged to use any sob story they could, especially if a member of the Order or an auror killed or harmed a member of their families.
When he was finished explaining what the vows did and how they should act after being arrested he asked if any of them had any questions.
"Why should we allow ourselves to be thrown in Azkaban?" Macnair sneered.
"Do we really have to do this? Azkaban is horrible." Another questioned.
"I understand this is asking a great deal from each of you." Animus said in a soothing tone. "But you are not doing this for me, you are doing this to protect the Dark Lord and his plans. If you do not wish to assist him I will work out which of the other two groups you could fit into. The Dark Lord will of course be made aware of just who did what after his return naturally, so don't be surprised if he is less trusting of you after, he will naturally make assumptions about your loyalty and devotion to the dark based on your actions this night.
And, as I said before, we were prepared for this. Those being sent to Azkaban will not suffer the way a regular prisoner would. Arrangements have already been made to have their cells warded and an illusion placed around it. While the guards will see a regular cell and will see the prisoner as they would expect it won't be real. The cells will be properly furnished with a comfortable bed, sitting area, and a desk. There will be heating charms in the room to keep you comfortable. And you will be provided three proper meals each day. On the desks will be a list of books that you will be given access to to keep yourself from becoming too bored. And, the dementors will be kept from feeding on you fully, giving you some protection from them. The only thing we really can't alter is the shower situation as you will be given access to the communal showers twice a week and if we changed it we couldn't hide it.
There are also arrangements for once you are released. After you are released you will visit Gringotts and find that a vault was set up for you. Each month you serve in Azkaban a predetermined amount will be added to your vault. Although, the cut off point is five years, anything longer than that and more money won't be added so there is no point in trying for an extended stay, not that anyone would really want that, in an effort to get more money."
After that they all agreed. He had known they would, none of them wanted the Dark Lord to think they wouldn't do anything he wanted, and those that weren't as fanatical weren't willing to give up the money.
As each person went through the process he set up Animus watched and went to speak with each person he needed to.
"Karkaroff." Animus moved over to the man he knew would have betrayed so many to save his own skin. He didn't like the man, but he had his uses.
"Lord Animus?" Karkaroff questioned wearily.
"I have a task for you."
"What can I possibly do now?" Karkaroff was in his own way incredibly relieved to have had his mark removed. While he fully supported dark magic he had long since lost his faith in the Dark Lord and wasn't willing to go to prison for what he had done on orders. He would sell out anyone he needed to to protect himself.
"You will be brought in for questioning in a few weeks, you will just need to stick to your story as they have no evidence of anything and Dumbledore is just trying to unsettle you since he knows you are an expert in magical theories he wants banned." He had been surprised to learn just how intelligent Karkaroff had been given what he had been like when he knew him. Dumbledore had had him arrested originally in an effort to discredit him, and it had worked better than the man had hoped given not only had Karkaroff's reputation been damaged, but he had also given up the names of many others. "Once you are released you will leave."
"Leave?"
"Yes. The magical theory professor at Durmstrang is planning to retire at the end of this school year and you would be perfect for that position. If you play your cards right you could be Headmaster in less than 15 years. Dumbledore has been trying to get one of his allies in in an effort to try and take control of that school and reduce it to the embarrassment that Hogwarts has become under his guidance and we can not allow even more students to be held back like that."
Animus knew Dumbledore would destroy the school if he could. He had been surprised to learn the truth about the school in his later years. Yes, Durmstrang was predominately dark and did not allow muggle-borns in, but that didn't mean muggle-borns were left out completely. It would be incredibly stupid, just because they couldn't attend Durmstrang didn't mean they didn't exist, no one would leave that many magicals uneducated, it was a recipe for disaster.
Instead, Durmstrang had a sister school, Kolwrath, which was where all those raised in the muggle world were sent. Each of the schools had their own Headmaster, and there was a Highmaster that managed both schools, keeping them connected and encouraging them and their students to interact. It wasn't even just because of bigotry, Kolwrath specialized in teaching those from the muggle world the reality of being a part of the magical world, things those raised in the magical world already knew so it would be a waste of their time to force them to go through those classes. And it worked, in the UK over 60% of muggle raised students that attended Hogwarts returned to the muggle world since they couldn't figure out how to live fully magical lives since they were never taught even the basics of how things like the government and taxes worked, less than 10% of those who attended Kolwrath did the same.
Despite Durmstrang and Kolwrath being sibling schools Dumbledore only included Durmstrang in the invitation to take part in the triwizard tournament. The man wanted to portray them as nothing more than dark bigots, and it had worked since most didn't bother to look into why there were no muggle raised students in the delegation.
Karkaroff liked that idea. He had attended Durmstrang himself and wouldn't like to see his alma mater destroyed by that lemon sucking fool. Agreeing he went home to start looking into moving.
From there he turned his attention to Corban Yaxley. "Auror Yaxley, you are going to need to conduct an investigation into what happened at the Potters. Many of the idiots you are forced to work with are going to blindly listen to Dumbledore and won't bother to do so themselves and just let his insanity stand.
Since it has been publicly stated that there was some form of strange magical phenomenon you will have an unspeakable come with you as well. You will use Unspeakable Rookwood." Animus looked over to the unspeakable he had waved over. "Over the course of your investigation you will look under the carpet in the nursery. There will be a runic array and a letter left behind by Lady Dorea Potter née Black.
Dumbledore is planning to hold a special session on November 9th where he will declare his story the absolute truth, with the full backing of the fools in the Wizenagmot and the Ministry. Attending and presenting your findings before Dumbledore gets the chance to spout his nonsense would be highly recommended. And they can't even complain, after all, you were only following the law, unlike them apparently."
After that he sent Yaxley off to go get some rest before starting to do his job properly the next day, but he requested that Augustus go to the Black Castle and wait for him there.
Augustus was more than happy to do as asked. He had done so before and it had worked out wonderfully. He had given Mira the short courtship she wanted and the two had bonded 3 months later. As he had been warned, her parents and brother did not approve and after her grandfather died and her father took up the title they tried to force her to break the bond, something that wasn't even possible, and then tried to force her to be with one of her brothers associates regardless of her bonding. When she continued to reject their demands they had disowned her. It had saddened her, but since the Rookwoods were a higher ranked family it hadn't harmed her social standing in the least, instead it was the Fenwick family that had suffered since many looked down on their treatment of their daughter, plus he was going out of his way to secretly make them suffer given what they would have done. And now, his lovely wife was at home with their 2 week old son, Julius. And none of that would have been possible without Animus's warning.
It took a few hours, but eventually everyone was put through the process he had created and left. Some going to the Black Castle while the majority went home to get ready for the raids.
Gaunt Shack
After leaving the death eater meeting Animus cast a tracking charm to locate Nagini. He knew the maledictus had been with Tom since they met while he was on his travels. She was a cross between a sister and a mother for him and he knew she would be suffering greatly thinking him dead.
He had pieced together old stories and bits of legend of a giant snake being seen crossing the continent in the early 1980's to make his assumptions. From all that he had found he believed that Nagini had found somewhere to hibernate for the winter before setting off to find the place she had first met Tom. He didn't know if she really knew of his survival or if she was just going there out of sentimentality.
It actually did surprise him somewhat to learn that Nagini seemed to have ensconced herself in the Gaunt Shack. That was odd since it wasn't exactly a nice place and wasn't very much protection from the coming winter. But, at the same time, it made sense since there was a horcrux there so she would have been able to feel his magic around her there.
Apparating over he knocked before entering the shack. As soon as he entered he heard Nagini start hissing her outrage at her grief being disturbed and he went to his knees and bowed to the snake.
"Please Miss Nagini, I mean you no harm."
"You are a speaker?" Nagini hissed in confusion. She had heard of this man, her Tom had often muttered about the time traveler that would show up from time to time, but he had never mentioned he was a speaker. She often didn't attend meetings unless he was angry and wanted her to intimidate his followers lately.
There had been a time when they were often together, but that time had long since passed. She still loved him, but she had seen the damage he had been doing to himself. She stayed out of loyalty, she had lost one friend to the anger before, she would not lose her Tom. But in the end she had.
"Yes, I speak." Animus said, not knowing everything going through the snake woman's mind. "I came here to collect you and bring you somewhere safe."
"Why should I trust you? You knew the future yet you let my Tom be hurt. I heard them, I heard his followers talking about how he is gone. I know they are wrong, and I will prove it. I am going to find him. My Tom can not be dead." The last part was practically a whimper and Animus knew that if a snake could cry Nagini would.
"Yes, Tom is alive. But there is nothing you can do for him right now."
Nagini practically snarled as she reared up, ready to strike. "I will find him and I will help him."
"I know you want to help him Nagini, but none of us can, not now." Animus told her in a sympathetic voice. "Tom has broken Lady Magics rules. She has punished him, you of all understand just what that means."
Nagini did. When one broke Lady Magic's laws they were punished most severely. It was what had happened to her, not that she had been the one to break the laws. Her grandmother had done it, and as a result they had all suffered for it. Their line was punished with the maledictus curse.
Her grandmother had sworn her fealty to a Dark Lord, only to turn around and kill him. Lady Magic had been furious at her breaking her vow and the maledictus curse on their entire bloodline had been the punishment.
It was one of the reasons why Nagini was so loyal to Tom. She had sworn to be loyal to him, and she didn't want to think of what more Lady Magic would do if she broke her vow. Her curse was why she had never had children of her own, she didn't want them punished for their ancestors crimes as she had been. Tom was the closest she had allowed herself to come to being a mother, and he had already been in his 20's when they met.
"What is his punishment?" Nagini asked softly.
"He is being exiled for about 10 years. We will be able to restore him 10 years from now. And I know you will want to be there for that, which is one of the reasons I came here to get you."
"Why didn't you stop him earlier, rather than helping him after?"
"Because we were all already too late." Animus summoned a chair and sat down, he could only stand for so long, especially since he was talking to a snake on the floor. "The ritual that started Tom's decline was done when he was 16. Neither of us were around him then. He has done the ritual again a few times and that has exacerbated his issues, but it was already too late.
Now that he has been banished to a spirit form we can undo the ritual and heal him. That is another reason I am here, one of the pieces we need to heal him is hidden here. I figured you could come with me and stay safe while you and the others that are still loyal to Tom get ready for his return."
Nagini thought about it. She had been planning to go in search of Tom, he had always said he couldn't die because he had backup plans, but knowing that he was being punished by Lady Magic meant that she wasn't going to be able to fix things by being there to support him.
"Will I be safe there?"
"Yes." Animus assured. "You also will have someone to talk to eventually as my younger self is there so once he gets a bit older you will be able to talk with him. You will also get to meet Tom's soulmate."
"And just where have they been?" Nagini questioned in irritation, furious that her Tom had a soul mate and they hadn't been there for him.
"He had their bond blocked when he was in his early teens so he and Tom never managed to make their bond." Animus told her, not surprised when she started hissing in fury at the idea someone had blocked a soul bond, and it was even worse in her opinion since it hurt her Tom. "I've arranged for him to be cleansed so once Tom returns they will be able to bond finally."
Nagini gave a decisive nod before she slid her large body over to Animus and he picked her up after casting a feather-light charm on her since she was so large and he was an old man. Then he went and collected the ring, the enchantments having no effect on him given the life he had lived and his own power levels, and left.