A/N: {} marks Parsel speech, [] marks Goblin speech.


Myrtle Warren's bathroom was on Hogwarts' second floor and had been out of order since Myrtle's death in 1943. It was depressing and gloomy. The small windows were almost opaque with grime, letting in only enough light to show it wasn't dark outside. Candle stubs in holders on the walls sputtered fitfully, casting grotesque shadows. There was a row of chipped sinks beneath a cracked and spotted mirror. The floor was damp, probably from Myrtle overflowing the sinks when she was upset. The wooden doors to the stalls were moldy and scratched and one of them was dangling off its hinges. Bill wondered if the elves ever came in and cleaned or if there was magic to keep the room looking so filthy.

Bill Weasley remembered firsties being dared to go in and talk to Myrtle. She was mostly harmless. Sometimes she behaved nicely. Sometimes not. But to Bill's knowledge she'd never hurt a student but she did like to scare them.

Today she was more curious than anything else since she hadn't expected to see a group of armed and armored goblins accompanied by two wizards, one of them under-aged, invading her bathroom.

Bill showed Harry the tap with the snake symbol scratched into it.

Harry frowned at it then hissed {Open}. The sinks moved aside to reveal an opening large enough for a man or goblin to climb into – or a freaking huge snake to crawl out of.

"You opened it just like that boy did before…" Myrtle said. There was a tremor in her voice.

"Before what, Myrtle?" Bill asked gently.

"Before I saw the huge yellow eyes and I died."

"Did the eyes have vertical slits like a snake?" Bill asked.

"Yes."

"Did you recognize the boy who talked like Harry did just now?"

"It was Tommy Riddle. He… I thought he liked me," Myrtle said with a whimper. "He said he liked me…"

Bill didn't have the heart to tell her that they were certain Riddle had control of the beast that killed her. She'd been murdered and there was speculation that Riddle had created his first soul anchor with her death. It was magic that Bill knew of due to his involvement with locating Riddle's soul fragments but he had no interest at all in studying the vile magic beyond recognizing the evil and destroying the anchors.

Bill also knew it was a little known fact outside of the non-human nations that not only had the goblins been hunting and destroying soul anchors for thousands and thousands of years but they also had a mandate from the ICW to hunt and destroy them and any magical foolish enough or evil enough to break their soul in that manner.

Bill notified the goblin beast handlers waiting in the main hall that the Parsel locked passage had been opened.

Professor Flitwick led the beast handlers teams to Bill and Harry's location. Hogwarts could be confusing.

The beast handlers carrying cages of roosters in stasis led the way into the cave-like passage followed by the goblin curse breakers, the rest of the beast handlers, and finally by Bill, Harry, and Professor Flitwick.

Bill's job right now was to safeguard Harry. He was glad that Flitwick had joined him in the task of keeping Harry safe. None of them actually wanted the boy to enter what they were sure was Slytherin's hidden chamber but Harry has the only known Hogwarts touched Parsel speaker around.

A short way beyond the bathroom entrance the passage opened to a much wider area. Torches sprang to life on the walls, revealing a vaulted chamber divided by a floor to ceiling iron barricade and gate. The air smelled dank and stale as if air hadn't moved in the chamber for a very long time. Beyond the gate, a huge greenish black snakeskin could be seen. Bill knew that snakes shed their skins when they outgrew their old ones. Considering how big the discarded skin was, he didn't want to think about how big the monster that shed it was now.

The lead curse breaker checked the barricade for curses then motioned for Bill and Harry to come forward. The goblin pointed out the snake engraved on the gate latch. There was no discernible lock but the gate was held closed by magic.

{Open,} Harry whispered. The latch moved out of the way and the gate opened without a sound. More torches magically came to life, showing wall carvings of snakes that seemed alive in the flickering torchlight. The centerpiece of the newly lit room was a huge carving of a human face with monkey-like features and an open mouth large enough for Bill to walk though. The goblins and two humans crept forward past the gate in silence thanks to silencing spells and wards.

The mouth of the stone face grew larger and kept opening wider and wider until the hole was big enough to allow a medium-size dragon to pass. There was a scraping sound along with a hissing that seemed to be coming closer.

Harry had started shivering. "It's angry that it's been woken by intruders. It's hungry. It's very hungry. The way to the forest has been blocked. It can't hunt. Its babies will starve."

A huge horned snake poked its head out of the opening. Bill enlarged the a tall dragon-hide and steel shield he'd pulled from his kit bag and hid behind it, pushing Harry behind him. All the goblins had enlarged their own tall dragon-hide and steel shields. Even Flitwick had one. He'd obviously come prepared for a beast hunt.

Basilisks couldn't kill with their eyes what couldn't meet their gaze. However, their gaze wasn't their only weapon.

The lead beast handler canceled the silencing wards. The beast handlers uncovered the roosters, breaking the stasis on them.

The roosters crowed mightily. The great snake froze and collapsed, glowing eyes turning dull and lifeless.

The lead beast handler came from behind his shield and took a good look at the monster the roosters had killed. He gave his team a signal to stay in position then disappeared into the passageway then returned after several moments.

The goblin was swearing. Then: "That is a true monster. At least fifty feet long. And there are twenty live eggs. There are human sized doors and more open chambers off this passage. Rendering this beast should be quite lucrative for all concerned. However, we need to move the eggs to a more secure location right now."

Bill knew the Goblin Nation had multiple island preserves for extremely dangerous beasts, including basilisks. It was not within his remit to know any of their locations. What he did not know he could not tell. He was a curse breaker, not a beast handler. Besides, all the curse breakers knew that beast handlers were crazy. Even Bill's brother Charlie was crazy. Charlie was a dragon handler.

The beast handlers disappeared down the passage. When they returned each one had a dragon hide bag slung over their shoulder.

The goblins led the way out of the chamber, taking care that the gate locked behind them. Two curse breakers stayed to keep guard. The gate was locked but for all intents and purposes this was an ancient tomb and curse breakers never left an open tomb unguarded.


Minerva was serving refreshments to Petunia Evans in the headmistress' library when she felt the wards shift. Something had happened, although she wasn't quite sure what.

Several minutes later Bill Weasley, Harry, Professor Flitwick, and an armored goblin came in.

"I am Gurgok, master beast handler of the Goblin Nation. The basilisk is dead as contracted," the goblin stated. "A rendering team is on its way and barring complications, they should be able to render the snake within a few days. We will be able to give you a full accounting then. When that is complete, we will have curse breakers go through the chambers for a more thorough inspection. We do not know what other precautions Founder Slytherin put in place in his chambers."

"We believe," Bill said, "that there was once an entrance from the chambers to the Forbidden Forest that is now blocked. That should be investigated once the curse breakers have secured the chambers."

"So the stories of the Chamber of Secrets were true?" Minerva asked.

Bill shrugged. "Looks like. There are chambers with a lot of snake symbols and a really big basilisk." He turned to Petunia. "Since Harry's the only one we know of who can open the locks in there, he's going to have to be here when the teams need to get in and out."

"We have a funeral tomorrow evening and then Harry and Dudley have classes every weekday afternoon for the foreseeable future," Petunia told them.

"Is one of those Mister Tonk's classes?" Minerva asked. "If so, those will be held here in the main hall."

"We can work with that," Gurgok assured them. He stopped, seeming to listen to something. "The rendering team is waiting for us. Mister Potter, if you would open the way for us?"

Minerva noted that Harry looked to his aunt for permission. Petunia nodded and Harry cheerfully trotted after Mister Weasley and Master Gurgok.

Flitwick stayed.

"So it really was a basilisk that killed Miss Warren?" Minerva asked. "Rubeus was expelled and his wand broken by mistake?"

"Minerva, you're a fool if you think it was a mistake," Flitwick admonished. "Anyone who actually looked at the evidence knew Hagrid was innocent. There were petrified students. Spiders can't petrify. Spells can and so can basilisks and it doesn't take an expert to tell the difference. Then Dippet and the ministry had a student death on their hands and had to show they were taking steps even if those steps were cruel and suicidally stupid. Miss Warren wasn't killed by an acromantula. There were no bite marks on her body and no sign of venom or poison. She was petrified. Hagrid's wand was broken before anyone bothered to check it with prior incantato."

"Do you think Dippet had an idea who actually released the basilisk?" Petunia asked.

"I don't know and I'm not sure it matters," Flitwick said. "Dippet's actions showed he didn't care how Miss Warren died and he chose to 'sacrifice' the half-human to protect a human. And no one called him out for it."

"Albus did. I was teacher here when it happened," Minerva said with a frown. "And you're right. Absolutely no one spoke up for Rubeus except for Albus and... Oh dear Morgana, loyalty potions… Even then the staff was under loyalty potions. The headmaster wasn't to be questioned. We didn't object because we couldn't."

"It sounds like the school and the ministry were deeply corrupt even then," Petunia observed. "But if everyone was potioned, how was Dumbledore able to speak up for Hagrid?"

"Unless he was the one actually doing the potioning?" Flitwick suggested with a sigh. "We may never know the truth. I know my parents were having second thoughts on allowing me to attend Hogwarts because of the petrifications and what happened to Hagrid. My father was convinced Dippet was covering for Warren's killer and only threats of closing the school made the perpetrator stop the attacks.

"My father was also convinced that it was Tom Riddle who opened Slytherin's chamber and had control of Slytherin's monster because my father was Guardian of the Records when Riddle successfully claimed the Slytherin heir ring. I also know that Riddle never claimed the Slytherin head of house ring. If anyone at Gringotts knows why, they will never say."

"I didn't know you had a family connection to the heir of Slytherin," Minerva said softly.

"Being a witness to history does not create a 'connection' beyond the event," Flitwick said. "But the fact that Riddle took the heir ring of Slytherin would have automatically been reported to the Ministry. As a founding house of Hogwarts, Slytherin's heir being acknowledged should have been major news. That they chose not to release that information is not the fault of the Goblin Nation."

"I remember Tom Riddle as being charming, clever, maybe a little cold. I don't think he called anyone 'friend'," Minerva said. "Albus spent more time with him than I did. Albus seemed 'concerned' about him but he never shared anything with me about the boy. All of my interactions with Tom were cordial, as I recall. But I was told by other people that Albus didn't trust Tom and could be quite harsh to him. Headmaster Dippet didn't seem concerned. I don't remember Professor Slughorn being concerned either, even when the petrifications started…"

"And nobody recognized there were problems?" Petunia sounded incredulous. "No student told their parents about it?"

"Not until Hagrid was expelled," Minerva said. "Myrtle's death had to be reported and apparently the DMLE took Dippet's word that the situation had been resolved." She sighed. "We've asked Headmaster Dippet's portrait about the events surrounding Miss Warren's death and he claims there were no attacks. Miss Warren simply disappeared and then showed up here as a ghost. Pity we can't give veritaserum to portraits."


Gurgok led the rendering team, along with Curse Breaker Weasley and the Potter child, to Myrtle's bathroom. The entrance to the snake chamber was open even though the goblin was certain the boy had closed it when they left. It was a mystery and the beast handler had often said that mysteries gave him a pain in the gut. His gut was telling him bad things at the moment.

The Parsel locked entrance was a security issue for the school. Just because everyone said that the boy was the only one to have the ability to control the chamber entrance didn't mean he was. And just because Gurgok was a beast handler didn't mean he was oblivious to security issues. He'd been a curse breaker before deciding he really hated Egyptian wizard tombs and trained to become a beast handler.

"Where's Myrtle?" the boy asked.

The ghost wasn't there.

Gurgok turned to the curse breaker, "Goblin ward and lock that door. Use a personal token."

The human curse breaker went to work and had the job done in a few minutes. Gurgok inspected the work, nodding when he recognized anti-apparation wards for the room. The human did decent work. Goblin runes were not the easiest for humans to learn. Gurgok then added his own glyph and power to the rune array before hiding the carvings behind a conjured layer of stone. Hiding runes this way was goblin magic. Something no human magical could do unless they were one of the extremely rare humans with an earth affinity.

Weasley gave him a wide eyed stare. Obviously the young man had never seen this bit of goblin magic.

Gurgok grinned at him. "You did not see this."

"See what, Master Gurgok?" Weasley responded with his own grin.

"Somebody's going to be really unhappy that they can't open that door," the boy commented.

Gurgok led the way into the chamber beyond. The two guards at the gate didn't seem to notice the new arrivals. The gate was open. It had been shut and locked when his team left the chamber.

Gurgok stepped forward, keeping his senses open to any anomalous magic.

[You shall not pass] one of the guards stated in Goblin, hefting his ax.

"Incarcerous," Weasley chanted twice, binding both guards with thick ropes. Gurgok was surprised at how quickly the human had caught on that something was wrong. Gurgok relieved the guards of their weapons, taking care to not disturb the bindings. He pushed the gate open.

[You shall not pass] the bound guards repreated. Their voices were flat.

"Imperious curse," Gurgok muttered. "A powerful one." He turned to the render team. [Work quickly. Do not lower your mental shields.]

The team hurried forward to start their work. [The body has been tampered with] one of the renderers called out.

[The nature of the tampering?]

[A fang and some venom] the renderer stated. [Not detecting any curses on the body.]

"What's going on?" the boy asked.

"Someone was down here," Weasley explained in English. "They imperioused the guards and took a fang from the body."

"The gate and the entrance were both open and I know I closed them," the boy reminded them. "That means whoever it was may be in the school right now. We need to warn them."

Weasley conjured a fox patronus, gave it a message that would warn Professor McGonagall of the threat, and sent it off.

"That's neat," the boy enthused. "Can you teach me that?"

"When you're older, maybe," Weasley said. "Not everyone can master it."

"We should have brought more guards with us," Gurgok muttered to himself. "I do not want to open the Parsel locks or the new wards until the renderers are done."

"If someone was down here, either they came through the bathroom, and Myrtle saw them, or they came through somewhere else," the boy said. "I think Myrtle would have said something if someone else had opened the entrance from the bathroom. But Myrtle wasn't there, was she? So someone came through here."

Gurgok chuckled. Unlike most wizards he'd encountered, this little one had a brain in his head. "You want to go exploring a dank dungeon?"

"If there's another entrance from outside the castle wards, shouldn't we find it and lock it?" the boy asked with a grin.

[The child is either very brave or too young to realize how afraid he should be.]

Weasley laughed. [I think he's going to grow up to be a curse breaker.]

[Brave and stupid? May Lady Magic preserve us all.]

Gurgok handed the human one of the confiscated axes. "Me in front, you behind, the boy between. You mark the path." Gurgok turned to the busy rendering team. [The thief may not be gone. They are extremely dangerous. Keep your guard your mind at all time. If attacked, strike to kill.]

Gurgok enlarged his shield and headed down the passage, past the remains of the basilisk. It had been an impressive beast. But whoever had thought having such a beast so near a school filled with precious children was a good idea was a madman. Gurgok was glad that wizard was long dead.

Gurgok tested each door they passed for traps. He didn't detect any but that didn't preclude there being traps inside the doors. The boy hissed the locks open and Gurgok checked the rooms beyond. Weasley jotted down notes on what each room contained. The stasis charms had failed in what looked to be an old potions room. There didn't seem to be anything salvageable there. Several rooms were obviously food storage with stock enough to last a siege. Again, any stasis charms had failed centuries ago.

There were a two simple bedrooms. The furniture and wall coverings had not survived well. An archaeologist might have found them interesting. Gurgok wasn't an archaeologist.

The various open chambers had simple furnishings that, again, hadn't survived the passage of time. The passage ended in floor to ceiling rubble. Gurgok's earth sense told him the outside was no more than twenty feet away. The rubble had enough voids to allow air and water through, as well as small animals. He sensed that whatever wards had been placed in this section had failed some time ago. Even hidden goblin wards could not survive the destruction of the walls the wards were meant to guard. He also sensed that the outside opening, the connection between the expanded space of Slytherin's chamber to the world, was outside the castle wards.

The boy unlocked the last door before the rubble. To Gurgok's surprise, the room beyond was clean. The wall hangings were intact and the furnishings appeared to be undamaged. Weasley blocked the door open with a stone. Obviously the wizard had learned some caution while working in Egypt. You never wanted the door to close behind you and then discover it had locked itself.

Weasley cast a lumos so he and the boy could see inside the room. There was an ornate bed against one wall. Chairs and an eating table sat in a small alcove. An overstuffed chair that was obviously not original to the room sat next to a table piled with old books.

Weasley stopped the boy from approaching the pile of books.

Gurgok inspected the other doors in the room. One was larger than the others and he sensed that it opened to the outside. He had Weasley rune lock it like he had the haunted bathroom. This door would now require a token and a Parsel speaker to open it.

One door led to a bathing room that may have been original to the chamber but Gurgok doubted it. Another door opened into a dark corridor somewhere.

"What's the corridor leading to the Slytherin common room," Weasley said. Gurgok nodded at Weasley's questioning look and the human rune locked the door. This door was a major security issue for the castle above.

The last door opened into a vast library. Gurgok chose not to enter the room, not wanting to risk a trap that would destroy the books. He had also felt evil in the room. Cursed objects or worse.

The trio left the living chamber and Gurgok ordered Weasley to rune lock that door as well. The goblin hid the runes behind stone and placed a mark on it warning of cursed items within. He knew Weasley understood the mark and was gratified the human hadn't asked questions.

Weasley nodded toward the rubble. "A couple bombardas might be able to unblock that."

"I suspect that is what brought the ceiling down in this area originally," Gurgok told him. "This feels like it happened thirty years ago or so. I would guess someone tried to block the basilisk from leaving to hunt but they didn't know what they were doing and broke the wards in this section. They're lucky the expanded space didn't collapse. The damage has made it unstable."

The boy looked around the blocked passage. "If you used more than one rune lock in here and maybe sealed the rubble on the outside so it matches whatever's out there and had Madam Sprout plant a lot of mean plants along the outside…"

"Hiding a problem does not fix it. Better we fix the damage," Gurgok said, pulling a large crystal from his kit. "Get back to the renderers," he ordered.

The goblin waited for the humans to leave before triggering the rock sealing crystal. Such crystals were a Goblin Nation secret and the reason goblin mine shafts so rarely failed. All goblin youth spent a few years in the mines, honing their knowledge of the magic of the earth before moving on to master other skills. But those who felt the music of the stones the fullest always returned to the caverns. Gurgok had always been too curious about the rest of the world to return to the mines forever. But he still felt the music of the stones. He felt the wrongness in this place.

He backed away from the heat of the rocks softening and forming themselves into a solid wall blocking the entrance. He felt the tear in the expanded space seal and stabilize.

Gurgok knew he should have called for reinforcements to seal the breach. Humans had cores that stored magic and wands that amplified it. Goblins did not. Goblins worked rituals in groups to access the level of magic a single wizard could command. A single wizard could outmatch any goblin. But no wizard could outmatch a group of goblins working together.

Standing alone, Gurgok's magic came from his being and his connection to the Earth, the Mother of All Things and Lady Magic. And he knew he had expended too much of himself in repairing the damage done to the space and sealing this place away from those who would use it against the children. But he didn't care. The children would be as safe as he could make them. And the music of the stones in this place now sang like the stones of home.

The goblins who found him reported he had died with a smile on his face and the crystal next to the newly formed wall was blackened and shattered.


Petunia noticed how subdued Bill Weasley and Harry were when Bill escorted them both back to the house on Privet Drive. She'd been told of Master Gurgok's death but neither Bill nor Harry volunteered any details on how the goblin had died. She did gather that it hadn't been a 'natural' death.

Even Dudley noticed how quiet Harry was over dinner. Dudley had spent the day with Mrs. Figg helping her with her newest batch of kittens and had said he'd had a good time. But now he seemed worried at Harry's sad and worried demeanor.

"I was there when Bill sent his… what was it called..?" Petunia said, trying to get Harry to talk, even a little.

"Patronus," Harry answered.

"His patronus to Headmistress McGonagall warning her of a probable security breach. That someone may have gotten into the castle undetected."

"Yeah," Harry said. "I know I ordered the gate and the entrance to close, but they were open when we went back." He went on to tell her and Dudley about the imperioused goblin guards and the fact that the basilisk body had been tampered with. No one had told him any of it was secret in any way. He told them about exploring Slytherin's chamber with Bill and Master Gurgok, of finding a room that looked recently lived in and Gurgok detecting something that worried him around the cave in.

"He ordered Bill and me back to where the rendering team was. We expected him to follow us, but he didn't. A couple of goblins went to check on him and found him dead. The cave in was completely sealed with a solid rock wall. I overheard them telling Bill it was a monumental feat of goblin magic. He single-handedly sealed a tear in the magic that kept the chamber from collapsing. He sealed an unstable hole in a rock wall that should have taken three or more mining experts to fix. And he knew it would kill him. They said he died smiling. They said he died knowing he made good music."

Harry started crying and Petunia pulled him into a hug. It was getting easier over time for her to show real affection towards the boy. It seemed to be getting easier for Harry to accept affection as well.

Dumbledore had a lot to answer for in cursing Petunia Evans' family and setting her sister's family out as bait for a mad man. And she had little doubt that Dumbledore was involved in what was found in the ancient chamber.

The next morning was busy. The ordered bookcases had arrived. They were flat-packed which meant she and the boys would have to assemble them. Luckily the instructions almost made sense and only required a screwdriver and hammer and she had those.

Also luckily Harry loved puzzles. Putting flat-packed furniture together was a 3-D puzzle that probably had all the pieces.

Things went faster after the first one was built and secured to the wall beside the window. All the cases were up before lunch and she and the boys put the books onto the shelves. There was a lot of empty shelf space left but Petunia was certain they'd fill the shelves soon enough.

Severus came by in the late afternoon to accompany them to Malfoy Manor for the funeral.

"You look tired," she commented.

"The past few days have been… eventful," Severus said. It wasn't much of an explanation.

"And how are Mrs. Malfoy and Draco doing?"

"As I said, the past few days have been 'eventful'. At the time of Lucius' death, he had not only broken with Riddle but had made plans to get the Ministry to reinstate the safeguards that the original Council of the Wise had put into place to ensure that decisions and laws were based on facts not wishes and were enacted for the benefit of all the people, not just a corrupt few working to benefit themselves," Severus told her. "It hasn't been an easy transition for many people."

"I was at Longbottom Manor when Algernon Longbottom was arrested," Petunia told him. "He admitted to falsifying his research. He was furious that was no longer going to be tolerated."

"St. Mungo's has lost nearly a quarter of its staff," Severus said. "Nearly all of them younger people who graduated from Hogwarts. Nearly all of them from families who supported Riddle. It seems that the healer oaths they actually took were weak to the point of uselessness, assuming they took oaths at all. None of us realized how insidious the anti-muggle, anti-muggleborn bigotry was that healers didn't administer proper healer oaths to their apprentices."

"What do you know of a German doctor named Josef Mengele?" Petunia asked.

"I did go to regular primary school," he reminded her. "I was in Lily's classes and I do recall the name. He conducted heinous experiments on prisoners, including children, during Grindelwald's war. I don't recall if he used the phrase 'for the greater good' but I know Grindelwald did."

"Mengele's government declared certain people to be less than human based on their religious and political beliefs," Petunia explained for the benefit of the two boys. "They could be experimented on and outright murdered with impunity because the government declared they weren't human at all. His government murdered more than six million people. And there are people even now who say it never happened even as they try to classify certain ethnic groups and religious and political groups as not being human. Not deserving to be protected by law. Not deserving to live."

"And that is why so many magicals believe they are superior to muggles. The number of dead is lower," Severus added.

"So magicals believe they are superior because the raw number of deaths is smaller? That's like a murderer claiming moral superiority for killing a family of three rather than a family of four. From what I've heard, there aren't all that many magical families left that anyone can claim it's okay to kill them."

"Magicals do have one advantage in making laws," Severus said. "Properly worded magical oaths, like the ones set in place when the Wizengamot was founded, makes it much harder for corruption to take hold."

"In that case, we have to wonder why the oaths were dropped."

"Bad men need nothing more to compass their ends, than that good men should look on and do nothing," Severus quoted. "Too many men who claimed to be good looked on and did nothing. Dumbledore refused to make magical oaths. He claimed they were too dangerous. But he had no qualms about having staff sign magical contracts they weren't allowed to read before hand."

"He also had no qualms about stealing money from orphans."

"Such a grim conversation before a funeral," Severus commented. He turned to address the boys. "Funerals among our people are generally a celebration of the departed's life and deeds. To remember them in their strength to fight off the dark emptiness of their passing, to hope that they can pass beyond to their next adventure, to hope that in reminding them we remember them well, they won't be tempted to return to remind us."

"Will it be a burial or cremation?" Petunia asked. The Evanses had preferred cremation. They saw no need to take up valuable land to house the dead. They were not, after all, Egyptian nobility and the remains could not be used to bind the souls of the dead if there were no remains.

"The old families prefer cremation using the old ways," Severus said. "They want to know the soul has departed this world and nothing remains to be used against them." He paused. "Dumbledore had James and Lily given a Christian burial in Godric's Hollow…"

"Who gave him that right?" Petunia hissed.

"According to him, you did."

Petunia swore. "I certainly did not! And if either of them were baptized, it was at Hogwarts. James was a pureblood from an old family. Lily was an Evans and the only reason an Evans goes to church is to keep the old biddies in the neighborhood from starting witch hunts. You remember what they were like in the old neighborhood. Your mother sent you to Sunday School to shut them up."

"I remember. I remember you and Lily both telling me to keep my mouth shut and just nod when the teacher said something completely asinine."

Severus sighed. "Two days after Lily's funeral, Minerva McGonagall, Pomona Sprout, and I went to the graveyard they were buried at. Minerva had 'concerns'. Her father was a minister but she knows and respects the old ways. She knew James wasn't raised a Christian, and suspected Lily wasn't. She and Pomona discovered their souls hadn't been fully freed to pass on. I don't know why their souls were trapped. The killing curse doesn't do that. It was some other spell. Something evil.

"The three of us conducted the rites to free them and burned their bodies to ashes. Pomona spread their ashes over the garden behind the house where they died."

"Thank you," Petunia said. She didn't want to cry but she was crying anyway. James Potter had been a bully and a prat, but he hadn't deserved to have his soul trapped. Lily hadn't deserved any of the evils that had befallen her.

It was a subdued group that made its way to the secluded spot where they could use Petunia's portkey to Diagon Alley and from there they would floo to Malfoy Manor.

"I should warn you that Narcissa invited Sirius Black to stay at Malfoy Manor while his London residence is repaired and cleaned," Severus said quietly.

Petunia gave him a questioning look.

"There are concerns that his mind… Azkaban is a hellish place even for those with strong mental shields and resolve. There are suspicions that his mind may have been compromised before being sent there. He may not have had a choice in abandoning Harry to Hagrid that night and chasing after Pettigrew."

"So, you're warning us to tread lightly around him."

"Yes."

Draco was waiting for them at the floo in Malfoy Manor. "Thank you for coming," he said solemnly. "The others are already in the garden."

The boy led them out to the gardens. Tables had been set up with sandwiches and appetizers. One table had small desserts.

Petunia spotted Arthur Weasley and his kids. They looked out of place in their worn robes. A young woman with hair that kept changing color appeared to be entertaining the younger Weasleys while Arthur and Bill Weasley seemed to be in a deep conversation with a woman who looked like she might be Narcissa's sister and a man who looked to be about Petunia's age.

A funeral pyre had been built in the center of the lawn, well away from flammable plantings.

The body atop the pyre was dressed in white linen robes. The body appeared to be that of a very old clean shaven man with long platinum blond hair. But Petunia sensed there was something wrong with the body. Her detect magic ring told her there was transfiguration magic around it and that was more than a little concerning.

She tapped Severus' arm to get his attention. "The body's been transfigured," she said quietly.

Severus gave her a startled look before nodding his head once.

"With Black taking the Head of House ring and bringing disowned family back into the fold, Narcissa has been looking for lost Malfoy relatives," Severus said aloud. "Apparently there was a cousin."

Narcissa was coming towards them, accompanied by a very large black dog. Narcissa held out her hands to Petunia who took them.

"Madam Evans, Harry, Dudley, thank you for coming." Narcissa dropped her hands and the dog moved forward, tongue lolling out. Harry scooted over to stand behind his aunt and Dudley moved to stand in front of him.

"Harry's afraid of dogs," Petunia explained, glaring at the 'dog'.

The dog seemed taken aback. He whined before backing off and heading toward the manor.

"My apologies," Narcissa said, watching the dog trot away.

"Was that Pa'foo?" Harry asked, peering out from behind Dudley.

"You remember him?" Narcissa asked.

"I think so… maybe."

"He didn't mean to scare you," Narcissa told him. "He just doesn't realize how big and scary he can be." She looked around the area. "Why don't you get something to eat and we'll start the ritual when Sirius gets out here." The two boys ran to the tables.

"How's he doing, really?" Severus asked when the boys were out of earshot.

"As well as can be expected for someone who'd been mind-raped and compelled as least as badly as other members of his year were," Narcissa said. "He remembers certain events… differently than other people who were at Hogwarts at the time." She nodded meaningfully to the couple talking with Arthur.

"You and Andromeda always wore your Black family rings," Severus commented. "Sirius refused to even though I know for a fact that Potter and Lupin told him more than once that he should."

Narcissa was watching Severus carefully. "You know Sirius doesn't remember you being partnered with him in potions in second and third year. He doesn't remember Lily threatening to hex him for costing Gryffindor points for being a git about it. He doesn't remember you spending Yule break at Potter Manor with him and James the year your mother forbade you to come home."

"I knew he didn't remember but I wasn't aware that incident was common knowledge," Severus stated. He seemed a little annoyed at the discovery.

"Only to every one who saw James letting his parents know they were having an extra guest over Yule in the middle of the train platform. Lucius was watching to see if you needed rescuing. We all knew what gits James and Sirius were."

"Fleamont and Euphemia took their responsibilities as hosts seriously. Sirius and James were hexed more than once for behaving in ways not befitting scions of great Houses. Although…" Severus stopped and he was looking over at Harry and Dudley.

Harry had taken shelter behind his larger cousin as a man with a gray streaked beard and graying brown hair pulled into a ponytail tried to approach Harry.

"Cousin," Narcissa shouted with unlady-like loudness and tone. "You will stop harassing the children! If you are unable to behave, I will lock you in the dungeon until you can!"

The man seemed surprised to find Arthur and the wizard Arthur had been been talking to grabbing his arms to get him away from Harry and Dudley. They marched the man over to Narcissa. The woman who resembled Narcissa followed them, wand drawn, pointed at the man. The Weasley children and the girl with color changing hair had run over to Harry and Dudley. Even Draco had run over to join the group of kids.

Narcissa turned to Petunia. "My apologies for failing to introduce the rest of my guests. Arthur Weasley, you know." She nodded her head to indicate the others. "My sister Andromeda, her husband Edward Tonks, and my cousin, Sirius Orion Black the Third… Madam Petunia Evans, Harry's aunt and guardian."

Sirius looked like he was ready to faint. "Dumbledore left him with you?!"

"After he made sure you were safely out of the way and I would be hard pressed to take on another child," Petunia said coldly "Based on the curses the bastard laid on my family, I rather suspect he wanted me to kill Harry or have him become an obscurial. I'm guessing he didn't realize how hard it is to curse an adult Evans."

"But… Headmaster Dumbledore knew that James and Lily didn't want you to raise Harry. He witnessed their wills. We both did," Sirius protested weakly. "He knew I was Harry's oath sworn godfather."

"But he still signed off on you being sent to prison without a trial and he illegally sealed the Potter wills and tried to set himself up as Harry's magical guardian," Severus told him, keeping his voice low. "Since Harry was and is your heir, I'm surprised he didn't have you killed outright so he'd have access to your vaults as well as the Potters'."

Sirius's expression became combative.

"Siri, do you need a calming draught?" Andromeda asked softly. "You don't have to attend the ceremony for Lucius."

"I… I want to be here," Sirius said. His expression had cleared almost as if he'd forgotten what he'd just been told about Dumbledore's crimes. Andromeda and her husband led him back into the manor.

Narcissa glared at Severus. "You know how he gets when Dumbledore's actions against him and the Potters are discussed."

"Better he focus his ire on me rather than Madam Evans," Severus responded. "Looking back, I can recognize that his actions, and that of the others, were being orchestrated. One shouldn't blame the knife for the actions of the wielder, as tempting as it may be. But childhood hurts cut deep."

"Is he a threat to Harry?" Petunia asked.

Arthur spoke up. "I wouldn't advise leaving him alone with Harry, or you for that matter. He seemed confused that Harry wasn't a baby and kept calling him 'Jamie'. He didn't seem to understand he was scaring the boys or why Harry wasn't behaving the way he expected. But aside from that, I'm told the healers are satisfied with his recovery. Personally, I think they may be overly optimistic."

Petunia looked over to where Draco and the younger Weasleys were playing a game while the two oldest boys, make that men, were keeping guard. Petunia doubted Harry and Dudley recognized what the two oldest Weasley brothers were doing. She was fairly certain Draco and the Weasley twins knew.

"Bill and Charlie are formidable wizards, if I say so myself. And the twins are 'effective' fighters even at their age," Arthur added.

"So is Percy," Petunia reminded him.

Narcissa called everyone to join her in the ritual for the departed. Narcissa, Arthur, Andromeda, and Edward positioned themselves at the quarters. Draco stood beside his mother wearing a black robe like the adults in the ritual. Bill and Charlie arranged the rest of the children in a circle outside the ritual circle that was going to be cast.

Narcissa called for the guardians of the West, water, healing. Blue light arched over her head.

A drum started beating. Sirius was seated nearby, striking an ancient looking drum with an even beat. An old man with close cropped hair sat near him, a house elf watching them both.

Arthur called for the North, earth green joining the blue.

Andromeda called for the East, dawn yellow arching over to meld with the previous hues suspended in the air.

Finally Edward called the South. His invoked light was the red of passion, fire, and cleansing destruction.

The light melded into a rainbow dome over the pyre.

Draco walked slowly around the inside of the dome carrying a censer that had incense smoke wafting from it. The smoke smelled of frankincense and myrrh.

Narcissa spoke. "We ask with all humility for the guardians who have heeded our call to cleanse the soul of Lucius Abraxas Malfoy, beloved husband, beloved father, that he may be welcome in the halls of our ancestors, that he not be shunned from the cycle of rebirth when his soul departs this plane. As thou will, so mote it be."

Completing his circuit, Draco handed his mother the censer and look a lit candle from her hand. He stepped forward and lit some kindling at the base of the pyre. As he stepped back to where his mother stood, the top of the dome opened and the pyre erupted into multi-colored flame.

After a few minutes the fire died down, the body and pyre nothing but ashes.

The drumming stopped. The ritual participants thanked the guardians of the quarters and broke the circle.

Petunia recognized that Narcissa hadn't asked for Lucius's soul to be allowed to cross over to the halls of his ancestors, only that he be welcomed.

Severus followed her as she walked over to the still seated Sirius and the old man.

"I'm afraid Mrs. Malfoy didn't introduce everyone," she said. "I'm Petunia Evans, Harry's aunt."

"You may call me 'Lucien'," the old man said. He gestured to Black who seemed puzzled to see her. "You've met Sirius, Mrs. Malfoy's cousin and head of House Black."

"And Harry's godfather," she said, keeping her voice low. She sensed Severus standing beside her, watching, guarding her. "My condolences on the recent losses to your family. It is difficult to deal with family who have lived down to their worst impulses. But they were still family, were they not?"

"Lily didn't want you to raise Harry," Sirius said softly.

"I know that. And I know why and I agree with her reasoning at the time," Petunia told him. "But what you don't know is that she had hopes that she and I could reconcile. She was betrayed and murdered before she could make the attempt."

Sirius had stopped looking at her and was watching Harry and the other children.

"He's so small."

"You never met Lily's father," Severus said. "My mother once accused him of being part goblin. I'm a little surprised that Rose Evans didn't leave me an orphan."

Sirius started to stand and Petunia motioned for him to stop.

"He's not James. And you need to know he's terrified of dogs. My late husband's sister had a bulldog with an appallingly nasty temper who hated children. He attacked Harry more than once. My sister-in-law is in jail now for animal cruelty and assault with intent to do bodily harm and her dog was put down for being too vicious to be safely adopted. So if you want to interact with Harry, you'll need to do it on two feet."

Sirius seemed surprised rather than annoyed. "Okay, but he used to like Padfoot better."

"That was a long time ago, Black," Severus said. "He barely remembers you or Lupin."

"He doesn't remember his parents at all except in nightmares about that night," Petunia added.

"I should never have let Hagrid take him that night," Sirius said. He seemed ready to burst into tears. "They shouldn't have been alone there!"

"Do you really think you could have stopped Hagrid from following his orders about the boy?" Severus asked.

"No?"

"No," Lucien stated. "Someone wanted Lily's son placed outside of our world, with people they thought would be incapable of rising to the task of raising a magical child, and they wanted you out of the way. I rather suspect they would have killed you had you not run after Pettigrew. I'm sure Hagrid would have been shattered with remorse at being too forceful trying to keep you away from the boy and Albus would have been 'devastated' to realize you'd succumbed to the Black madness, forcing Hagrid to kill you, but dead is still dead and they would have been the ones to tell the tale."

"The healers won't allow the goblin healers to evaluate me until I'm in better shape physically. They say it's an unnecessary risk to my health," Sirius said. "But I know my mind has been messed with. It's more than just spending too much time as the hound to stay alive in that hell hole. I know dementors steal memories but I also know I'm missing more than 'good' memories. I remember Lily talking to James about reconnecting with her family and I remember James getting angry but I don't remember why. I remember James asking me to be Harry's godfather using the old rituals, but I don't remember James holding Harry in his arms or feeding him or changing his nappies. I remember Lily doing those things, I remember me doing those things, I remember Dobby doing those things." Here he gestured vaguely in the direction of the house elf standing quietly next to Lucien. "But not James. Why don't I remember James caring for his own son?"

"I think we need to take this discussion inside," a woman said. Petunia looked over to see Andromeda Tonks standing beside Severus.

"Ted and Arthur will keep an eye on the children," she added. "Draco needs a break from pretending to be a grown-up."

"He's afraid he won't be worthy of becoming the Malfoy Head of House when the time comes," Lucien explained. He stood, leaning on a simple cane. He waved off Dobby's unspoken offer of assistance.

"He will," Lucien continued. "But what he needs to learn aren't in any of the lesson plans Lucius had for him."

Lucien led the group to a meeting room. More food and drink had been set up for them. There was a lot of chocolate.

Lucien took the seat at the right hand of the head of the table. Dobby stood behind him. Severus took the seat to the left of the head of the table, offering Petunia the seat to his left. Andromeda sat next to Sirius beside Lucien.

Narcissa walked in and took the seat at the head of the table waving her hand to indicate the men didn't need to stand on her behalf.

Petunia felt protection and privacy wards go up.

"Dromeda, what is Cousin Sirius's true condition?" Narcissa asked.

Sirius looked confused.

"Physically, barely acceptable for the length of time he was being treated," Andromeda reported. "Mentally, as far as I can tell, they did nothing. No mind healing, no cleansing of mental magics. Granted, they could have been acting under an abundance of caution but since they have refused to send me copies of his treatment records, even though I am currently listed as his primary healer, I cannot even guess as to why his mental health was neglected. There are known protocols for treatment of dementor exposure, even long term exposure. There's no evidence they were followed."

"Given what we suspect was happening at Hogwarts while I and this generation of Blacks were at Hogwarts… And if I were a suspicious person by nature... I would ask what the results were of Mister Black's last magically performed medical evaluation, and how it was done," Severus said.

"Standard evaluation parchment activated by three drops of blood," Andromeda answered. "He's severely underweight, suffering from severe malnutrition and long term dementor exposure. His magical core is depleted. With proper treatment he should have an acceptable recovery if not a complete one." She paused, eyes narrowing as she thought about her response. "The information in the standard form regarding mind magic effects is corrupted. It should have, at the very least, showed similar residual effects of the mind magic potions you and I had in our systems from our years at Hogwarts. Goblin-made forms picked those up."

"Mind effect potions at Hogwarts?" Sirius asked. "When was this?"

"We don't know how long it was going on," Narcissa said. "But there is evidence that most of my housemates, including Severus and myself, were potioned to hate Gryffindors, and most of yours were potioned to hate Slytherins. There is also evidence that students belonging to families with certain family magical gifts were cursed into infertility."

"What gifts?" Sirius asked.

"Parsel speech," Severus stated. "There may have been other gifts targeted but that one we're sure of. Riddle targeted Parsel speakers by killing them and their families. But someone else was targeting them too, magically, while at school."

"Part of me says that Parsel speakers are evil and should be wiped out," Sirius said. "But another part of me says that can't possibly be true." Sirius actually paled. "Harry's a parselmouth. He spoke to the garden snakes. James was furious. I feel like I should have remembered that, but I didn't. Something made me forget. Someone made me forget a lot of things." He turned to Andromeda. "How soon can I get checked by goblin healers?"


Sirius Black had hoped his visit with the goblin healers would solve all his health issues, both physical and mental. But magic didn't pay all that much attention to hope. Hope was a passive thing. One hoped to do well on a test, but hope couldn't counter lack of study or talent.

It would take a lot of time and effort to recover from the physical damage ten years in Azkaban had done to him. Magic would help, but even magic couldn't replace the need for a healthy lifestyle. A lifestyle he hadn't had even before his imprisonment. He would be on nutrition and bone strengthening potions for months. Even with magic a damaged body could only heal as fast as it was able and the healers weren't certain if his magical core would fully recover from the damage inflicted by the dementors.

It was the deliberate mental damage that was found that was the worst. He'd been potioned to hate Slytherins and to be slavishly loyal to his Gryffindor housemates and Headmaster Dumbledore. He'd been warned about that and so wasn't surprised. But he'd also been spelled to disrespect witches, even housemates. He wept at remembering how many female classmates and others he had wooed and discarded. At least he'd never actually committed rape although that was more out of self preservation than consideration of their wishes. By the time a girl became old enough to be interesting, she also had the means to defend herself against him.

Sirius Orion Black III was a narcissistic prat who barely avoided being labeled a sex predator. No wonder his own brother had been disgusted with him.

But what really shocked him to his core was that he'd been under an imperious curse when he found baby Harry that night, Lily dead by the crib. He'd been ordered by Dumbledore to hand Harry over to Hagrid and go chase after Pettigrew. He'd been ordered to implicate himself in the deaths of his best friend and his wife even though Dumbledore knew that magic herself would have killed Sirius if he'd been guilty. Sirius knew that James had told Dumbledore that they'd used old Potter family magic to bind Sirius to Harry as his godfather.

It hadn't occurred to him before now to wonder how a half-giant without a wand had gotten to Godric's Hollow so quickly when the wards fell. Lily's body hadn't even cooled. And it had been cold in Harry's room when Sirius got there.

"How did Hagrid get there so quickly after I did?" Sirius asked aloud.

"Get where?"

Sirius was surprised to see Severus sitting near the bed in the goblin's recovery room. He'd been reading a book which he set on the bedside table. Sirius didn't catch the title. He barely caught Severus's next words.

"The ladies determined that my experience with getting twenty-years of malicious spells and potion effects cleared out of my system would be the closest to what you will be experiencing," Severus said. There was no sarcasm in his voice. Just a statement of fact. "How did Hagrid get where so quickly?"

"Lily and James' safehouse," Sirius answered. "I had a feeling that night that something was 'off'. I went to check on Peter and he was gone. Just gone. Then I felt… Harry was frightened. I apparated to where he was. I shouldn't have been able to but I did."

"The wards were already down," Severus commented. He wasn't quite frowning.

"Lily was dead. Harry was in his crib screaming. There was a set of robes on the floor and a wand I didn't recognize. I wrapped Harry in his blanket and went downstairs with him. James was at the bottom of the stairs, dead. His wand was on the tea table. Why didn't he have his wand with him? He knew Voldemort was looking for them. He was wearing his wand holster. So why was his wand on the table?"

"There are speculations that he was lulled into a false sense of security," Severus said. "Since Harry survived, I suspect Lily was more suspicious."

"Her hands… her fingers had blood on them. Harry had runes painted on him with blood. Her blood. She spent her last moments using her blood to protect her baby. James hated blood rituals. He would have allowed them both to die if he'd known. She probably used Parsel magic, too. James would have killed her himself if he'd realized Harry had inherited Parsel speech from her."

"But the godfather ritual is a blood ritual," Severus reminded him. "He was okay with that."

"Nothing makes sense," Sirius complained. "You don't hate me. At least you're not acting like it. You should hate me. I almost let Remus kill you. I should have been expelled for luring you to where he was locked up. James, too. We were vicious monsters and the teachers let us off with detentions and lectures."

"Any student who could read a calendar and didn't have a memory of a guppy knew Lupin was a werewolf and the school used the Shrieking Shack to confine him during the full moon," Severus told him. "You didn't tell me anything I didn't already know. I had no intention of going out there that night until someone decided for me. Having me dead and you expelled or worse would have suited their schemes and having your younger brother as the Black heir was probably their goal. I didn't know at the time but I was the Prince heir. Having me dead would have suited them as well. I think James recognized I wasn't acting of my own volition. He did save my life even though he hated me. I was never his rival for Lily's hand, you know."

"I don't think that mattered," Sirius admitted. "You were her friend and protector despite being sorted into different houses. Merlin, this is weird. We're having a civil conversation about what happened while we were at school."

"You're not the only one who has had to rethink what they thought they knew about their time at Hogwarts. Narcissa and Andromeda probably have the least dissonance in their memories. There's no evidence they were ever obliviated. I also know they've reached out to other classmates to to check their impressions of what was happening then.

"Basically, everyone who had any brains in their heads knew that the staff were ignoring the activities of the gangs in Gryffindor so long as they weren't crimes that could cause a blood feud if the parents found out. We're pretty sure Dumbledore made sure that parents didn't find out. Frankly, your gang wasn't even the worst of them. You and James both stopped short of rape at least. Narcissa and Andromeda remember what you were like before Hogwarts. They say they weren't surprised that you were sorted into Gryffindor but they also saw you and James change and not in a good way. Impulsive, inconsiderate… mean. Andromeda said neither you nor Regulus were mean as children. She tried more than once to convince your parents to get you checked. Walpurga didn't see the need. I don't know if anyone advocated for the others."

"I doubt the Potters would paid attention to the suspicions of a third year Slytherin," Sirius said. "And who would bother with a dirt poor pureblood or a werewolf child?"

Sirius laid back on the bed. "James told everyone that it was love at first sight with Lily. That he met her on the train and decided then and there that was the girl he was going to marry. That's the story. But I was there and what he really said was 'that's the mudblood they want me to marry'. He denied it later, but I know what I heard and I know what his actions said until sixth year. And I know what she thought of him until the start of seventh year. And then, suddenly, they were inseparable."

"And absolutely nobody thought that amortensia might have been involved?" Severus asked. "There were indications of amortensia being used at his conception noted in Harry's health evaluation here. The fact that he doesn't show any of the affects that would indicate its use has caused me to reevaluate certain assumptions related to the potion's effect on the children born under its influence. You and the wolf both bonded with the child. As did his mother. Maybe that was enough to counter the effects."

Severus paused. "But who wanted them together badly enough to potentially damage their child?"

"A marriage contract," Sirius said. "But that doesn't make a lot of sense. The Potters didn't hold with selling daughters for gain. But maybe something like it. The Evanses were one of their important business partners. It would have made sense to try for a marriage alliance, even though they were muggles."

"I doubt Lily knew about it. She would have told her sister."

"And James didn't want to be married to a mudblood. He certainly didn't want a muggleborn wife who could beat him in a duel and knew more about magic and traditions than he did and wasn't going to take any old fashioned pureblood nonsense from him."

Severus barked a laugh. "Dumbledore was convinced the Potters were so light and pure. Fleamont and Charlus supported him one hundred percent, or so he claimed after they were dead and gone."

"The Potters were gray. They were business people. Quietly traditionalist. They cared about competency, not blood purity. James? James was a spoiled brat and they let him get away with it. Charlus' son had died and they couldn't have another. Fleamont and Euphemia were afraid they couldn't have children. James was their miracle child and could do no wrong. No interest in learning how to run the family businesses. Lily would have been the one running everything had she lived. She would have loved it."

"That's true. She would have. She could have changed the world, if they'd let her."

The two men were quiet for a time. Then Severus spoke up again. "Harry's aunt gave me a memory she wanted you to look at."

"But… she's a muggle."

Severus snorted. "I would advise you not use that term to describe her in front of anyone in the wizarding world who has met her, including Rita Skeeter." He nodded to the goblin healer watching them. "Or to any in the goblin world. Petunia Evans is technically a squib."

The healer took a stone bowl from a cabinet and handed it to Severus who placed it on Sirius's lap. The bowl was far lighter than the material it was carved from would indicate. Goblin runes were engraved around the inside of the bowl. Severus opened a crystal vial and poured the contents into the bowl.

"Use the index finger of your dominant hand," Severus instructed.

"Have you seen this?"

"Yes."

Severus didn't add anything more so Sirius poked his finger into the silver-white mist in the bowl. He was watching a party through Petunia's eyes. She was seated and had her attention on a much younger version of himself and James. They looked to be no more than seventeen, prancing around like they owned the place, shooting off sparklers from their wands… in front of muggles. Then James cast a spell at Petunia and the man seated beside her. James' expression hadn't changed at all. Sirius didn't recognize the spell but it felt dark. Evil. Petunia was engulfed in confusion and felt something constricting around her magic. She got angry. Then the constriction dissipated but she was still angry.

Lily was screaming at James. Aurors popped in to deal with magic in front of muggles. Sirius, James, and Lily popped out. The memory ended.

"I don't remember any of that. James and I can't have been punished if I don't remember doing any of that. Do you know the spell James cast at them?"

"The obscurial curse. It drives non-magicals into a blind, witch-burning, tear-the-world-down hatred of all things magical. It can drive people with weak magical cores to madness or suicide. It can turn magical children into obcsurials."

"And it isn't listed as an unforgiveable?!"

"Luckily it is extremely obscure and difficult to cast without it rebounding on the caster. If the victim realizes they've been cursed and they get help quickly, the curse can be dispelled. If the victim has strong enough mental shields or a strong enough core, they can throw off the curse rather like throwing off an imperious. That's when the caster risks a rebound."

Sirius was speechless. James had cast such a dangerously complex spell at Lily's sister? It didn't make sense.

"James shouldn't have known the spell. It wasn't in any book he would have had access to," Severus continued as if reading Sirius's mind. "I don't need legimancy to know what you're thinking right now. Professor Flitwick found the spell in an old family grimoire that should not have been in the headmaster's private library. The family it belonged to was one Riddle attacked during the first war."

"You're saying Dumbledore taught James that spell?"

Severus shrugged. It was an odd motion for someone as reserved as the man was. "That is a logical assumption."