Curse of Fate

Title: Curse of Fate
Author: Mistress Nika
Rating: PG-15 (Yes, 15. That's somewhere between PG-13 and R)
Summary: Thousands of years into the future, vampire Harry only wants to join his loved ones in death. However, his curse of immortality is absolute. Therefore he sends himself back into the body of his infant self, vowing to this time refuse eternity. When do things ever go according to plan? Unexpected changes to the timeline, people who aren't as they once were and more send his life spiraling out of his control.
Pairings: Harry/Lucius(main), possible Harry/Severus, possible Lucius/Severus, possible Harry/Lucius/Severus, Sirius/Remus, Theo/Hermione, possible Theo/Blaise, possible Hermione/Ginny, Draco/Luna, possible one-sided Harry/Luna on Luna's part, possible Hermione/Pansy, Cedric/Eleanor(OC), past Harry/Ginny
Warnings: AU, het, slash, angst, language, violence, time travel, VampireHarry, DarkLordHarry
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

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Chapter Seventeen:
July twenty fourth, Harry got his Hogwarts letter.

He also got letters from various other schools of magic.

The Durmstrang Institute sent one far longer than the simple invitation of Hogwarts'. Apparently, they had heard of his claims to Dumbledore that he would seek attendance at their school. It was a respectful request for his attendance, despite his being outside of their usual recruitment zone. It promised him a well rounded education, which he would not receive at Hogwarts. They cited many noble wizards who had attended their school and went on to have great futures, including his great grandfather.

The Beauxbatons Academy of Magic had granted him special permission to attend their notable girl's school. He thought their letter sounded just a bit desperate to have him though. Many noble families had once sent their female children to Beauxbatons, but had lately taken to sending them to the closer school of Hogwarts. While there were many great and powerful French families who still attended, the lines of those credited with the founding of modern magical society were primarily British. Simply put, they wanted Harry, even if they had to break with their centuries old "all girls" tradition to have him.

The Salem Institute in America had sent him a letter, as well as schools as far away as Brazil, South Africa, China, Russia, Australia, Spain and Italy.

He sent replies thanking them for their interest and explaining that he had decided to attend the school of his parents. To Durmstrang, he added a note explaining that, should the classes at Hogwarts fail to prove adequate, he may consider transferring to their school at a later date, if they would still take him. It would give Dumbledore incentive to grant Harry a wide range of freedoms most students were allowed but choose not to take advantage of, including extra classes provided by a tutor of their choice.

His reply to Hogwarts was simple and to the point, nothing more than a polite acceptance. No doubt Dumbledore would be dancing on the clouds for weeks to come.

He was surprised when, the day after receiving his letter, Dudley burst into his study, a distraught house elf rushing after him.

"Ebby's so sorry, Master Harry, sir!" it wailed. "Him just asked where you was and came running! Him refused to wait!"

Harry waved the house elf off reassuringly and looked at Dudley expectantly.

"It came!" the boy shouted happily with a bright smile, waving a piece of parchment under Harry's nose. "I'm not a squib! Isn't it great!?"

Harry took the letter, read it over and smiled at his cousin. "That is great, Dudley. I'm happy for you."

Dudley was almost bouncing with joy. "Did you get yours?" he asked enthusiastically.

Harry nodded. "I did, along with a few others." He motioned to a large stack on the side of his desk.

Dudley's eyes widened. "All those are from magic schools?" he asked in wonder. Harry nodded. "I didn't know there were that many in the world. Why'd you get so many?"

"Because," Harry replied absently, "They seem to think I would give their school prestige." Standing up, he moved over to the couch and offered Dudley a seat, which was accepted. "Dudley, you are going to Hogwarts, right?" he asked seriously. Dudley nodded. "And you're not going to hide the fact that you're my cousin?"

The other boy looked confused. "Why would I?"

Harry sighed. "Being my cousin makes you a target, for everyone from reporters to the pureblood elite. Your father was a muggle and your mother a squib. You'll be treated like a muggleborn, maybe even worse, but you'll still be held to the same standards as any other member of a noble family because you're a member of the House of Potter."

"How so?" Dudley asked, obviously not seeing how it was possible.

Harry attempted to explain. "Neither of your parents were noble, but your aunt, my mother, was, through both marriage and blood. When she married, she tied the House of Quinn, and Ravenclaw by default, to my father's house. When they died, her title went to me, along with his. You are my first cousin and, while you have the blood of a Quinn, I am its family head. I accept you as my family and that makes you a part of my house. The Houses of Quinn, Ravenclaw, Gryffindor and Slytherin, as well as the House of Black in the future should Sirius not have any children, are all gathered under the family name of Potter. Both you and Aunt Petunia are untitled members of the House of Potter."

"Why isn't Mum titled?" Dudley asked in curiosity. "She was Aunt Lily's older sister."

"She's a squib and, by law, a squib cannot inherit a title. Had she not had a sister, the title would have gone dormant until a wizard was born of her line. In effect, if my mother had not been born, you would have become the Lord Ravenclaw when you came of age, if you were a wizard. Understand now?"

Dudley blinked slowly, trying to absorb it all. "Yeah, I think I get it. But I'm still going to Hogwarts and I'm not gonna pretend I'm not your cousin, unless you want me to. Even though I don't see you much, Mum's always going on about how great you are. How you're so smart and mature and how you've taken on so many responsibilities at such a young age. If someone starts in on me, I'll just beat 'em up!"

Harry laughed. "Dudley, these aren't the kind of people you can just "beat up". However, if you don't want to, I'm not going to make you pretend to be something you're not."

The stubborn look on Dudley's face was answer enough.

"In that case," Harry continued, "you'll need preemptive lessons. You can take basic magical theory from Remus. Sirius and I can teach you basic etiquette and protocol. By the time you get to Hogwarts, you should be able to defend yourself against most other first year students and avoid potentially disastrous situations, such as you insulting someone's family honor. By the way, that's a major no-no, unless you're prepared to deal with the consequences. Normally, things like that among young children are dealt with under the table by the heads of their families. Unfortunately, in this instance, that's me.

"I take it you haven't been to get your school things yet?"

Dudley blinked again at his cousin's sudden change of subject. "No. Mum said to ask if I can go with you."

Harry nodded. "A few of the things on the list can't be gotten in Aurum and I know Aunt Petunia doesn't like large magical crowds. My friends and I are going tomorrow to Diagon Alley. If it's alright with your mother, you can go with us. Run home and ask her. If she says yes, pack an overnight bag and you can stay here tonight. Then we can leave first thing in the morning after breakfast."

"Okay," Dudley replied simply, heading out the door.

Once he was gone, Harry smirked. This was going to be interesting.

Though he had long ago forgiven Dudley for the bullying of their original childhood, he'd still maintained his distance. Now, if Dudley were going to survive Hogwarts, Harry would have to make a friend of him.

Squib borns, such as he, were rare and when they appeared, they were usually treated very badly. Squibs were originally thought to occur when an otherwise pureblood witch or wizard was deemed unworthy of wielding magic by whatever cosmic forces the family believed in. As such, any magical children they may have had were considered to be cheating the magical system and were often treated worse than their parents.

It was now known that squibs are caused by underdeveloped magical pathways. It isn't that they have no magic. They're just unable to use it. However, old pureblood traditions are hard to break. Continuing prejudice against muggleborns was proof of that. It had taken a law specifically against it to get families to stop killing squibs born of their line. It would take much more to get them to accept those different from them.

Harry hoped he had made some progress with his friends.

-SCENE BREAK-

The next morning, the house was a beehive of activity.

Harry had been up since five and had woken his godfathers at six, much to Sirius' dismay. He thought anything before nine was simply abhorrent.

Seven marked Dudley's waking, though not of his own choice. A certain snake had taken it upon herself to investigate the new human in the house. Harry spent twenty minutes calming Dudley down, assuring him that she was just curious and no, she wasn't venomous.

Breakfast quickly followed. Dudley still seemed a bit in awe of the life Harry led.

"The bedroom's the size of our living room! I got lost in the closet!"

"How many floors are there!?"

"Is that a ballroom!?"

"Your godfather said you have dungeons! Do you have prisoners down there!? Can I see!?"

Harry laughed as Sirius groaned in protest at the enthusiastic boy.

"No," Harry said, picking at a piece of toast. "The dungeons have been converted into potions labs. There are no prisoners. Nor are there any skeletons, treasure chests or dragons. There is a kelpie in the back lake though."

"A what?" Dudley asked with wide eyes.

Harry left Remus to explain that one and went to meet Lucius, Narcissa and Draco who had just flooed over.

-SCENE BREAK-

Draco had been too excited to sleep and Lucius brought him early just to get the boy to shut up and sit still for half a minute. Narcissa was smiling indulgently at her son.

"It's only once in a child's life," she said, "that they can say they're going Hogwarts shopping for the first time. Though, I do hope you manage to maintain a shred of dignity in public, Draco."

She was promptly knocked to the floor as Pansy shot out of the fireplace and toppled her over.

The young girl looked horror-struck as she helped the noble lady to her feet, apologizing profusely and dusting soot off the woman's once immaculate robes. Draco rushed over to help his mother while Lucius' lips twitched in amusement.

"Don't think I can't see that, Lucius," Narcissa growled, using her wand to repair her elegant coiffure, strands of hair slipping easily back into place.

Lucius automatically moved a step closer to Harry at his wife's glare.

"I'm so sorry, Lady Malfoy!" Pansy exclaimed. "I was just so excited and I didn't think anyone would be standing there, but I shouldn't have run through the floo like that! It was an irresponsible thing to do and-"

Narcissa managed a reassuring smile for the girl who, if she had her way, would one day be her daughter-in-law. "It's quite alright, Pansy dear. No harm done."

Thoroughly amused, Harry cleared his throat, drawing their attention to him.

"If we're finished with this display," he said with a smirk, "you're welcome to join us for breakfast. Or, if you've already eaten, I'm sure Lucius can find you all some diversion until the others arrive. However, you should know that my cousin is here and will be joining us in Diagon Alley. He's relatively new to most things magical, being raised muggle, so he's still in the awed stage. He also doesn't know that I am the Dark Lord. So, let's keep that to ourselves."

With that, Harry made his way back to the dining room with Draco and Pansy in tow. Narcissa was still fussing over her dress, hair, make-up and whatever other issues women dealt with when making a public appearance. Lucius led her to a bathroom where she could repair whatever imagined damage Pansy's hasty entrance had caused, assuring her all the way that she looked fine. He cast a longing glance over his shoulder at Harry as they headed in separate directions.

Introductions were made with Dudley, the boy becoming even more awed at the noble children's elegant robes and perfect manners. Harry thought the boy's eyes were going to pop out of their sockets after being introduced to "Lord and Lady" Malfoy.

Theo arrived an hour later, dragging a yawning Blaise behind him. The youngest of their group was never an early riser. Even Blaise's mother had given up on trying to wake her youngest son at a reasonable hour. That task now fell to Theo, who had a standing invitation to floo directly into Blaise's bedroom at anytime and wake him however he saw fit. He took full advantage of it, much to Blaise's dismay.

Eleanor wandered in a few minutes later, giving a hesitant smile when Harry called her over.

As the four adults and seven children prepared for their little excursion, Dudley slipped away from the planning and moved over to Eleanor's side.

Out of all the children, she seemed the least intimidating to him, even if she was a bit older. She was very quiet and stayed mostly to the side of the activity. Her brown hair was tied just below her ears in loose pigtails and she kept her hands clasped in front of her and her eyes downcast.

"Hi. I'm Dudley."

The girl jumped and spun to look at him, relaxing when she saw he was no threat. She gave a small, if a bit forced, smile and replied, "Eleanor Bell."

There was a long pause as neither knew what to say. Dudley assumed anything he could come up with would sound incredibly foolish to the young witch and Eleanor was simply too shy to speak first.

Finally, the girl worked up the courage to innocently inquire, "You're Harry's cousin, right?"

Dudley beamed, finding this something he could speak confidently about. "Yeah. Me and Harry and my parents used to live together in Surrey, but after Dad died, we moved to Aurum. I don't get to see Harry much, but-"

Eleanor smiled and nodded at all the right places as the boy continued on. It was nice to have someone speak to her as an equal, other than Harry.

Across the room, Harry smiled as he watched his cousin babbling at Eleanor. Despite being two years ahead of them, perhaps she and Dudley could become friends. Dudley would need all he could get and Eleanor could always use more.

"Alright!" Sirius announced loudly, getting everyone's attention by enthusiastically waving a piece of parchment over his head. "It is now the bewi-, er,shopping hour!" he declared with a grin. Lucius facepalmed. "Now, the schedule, as given to me by the always intelligent, ever organized Remus Lupin," he stopped to bat his eyelashes dramatically at said lycanthrope, "is as follows! At precisely nine, we will floo into the Leaky Cauldron. No doubt, we will be mobbed the moment we're recognized by fans, groupies, well-wishers, reporters and random worshippers all out for a chance to meet either the famous Boy-Who-Lived, the dashing moi or...him," he finished with a negligent wave toward Lucius.

Lucius let out a rather undignified growl and started to move threateningly toward the grinning animagus, but Remus stepped between them with a sigh and plucked the parchment out of Sirius' hands.

Remus continued with the itinerary while Sirius pouted.

"I know all of you have had the run of Aurum unsupervised, but Diagon Alley is not a private village and the crowds will be much larger. I would appreciate it if you would stay with an adult, especially considering the publicity our little group is likely to bring. First, do any of you need to go to Gringotts?"

Most of the children shook their heads to the negative, but Dudley spoke up.

"Where?" he asked in a small voice, blushing in embarrassment as everyone turned to look at him.

Harry took pity on him. "The wizard bank. Don't worry. I'll pay for all your purchases."

"No, Mum gave me money-" he started to protest, but Harry cut him off.

"As the head of our family, it is my duty to take care of you. Muggle money can be exchanged, but I really don't see the point of going to Gringotts when it's just as easy for me to pay. If you'd like, you can pay me back later. Alright?" After receiving a nod, he said, "Right. Moving on?"

Remus continued to explain their schedule. "We'll be splitting into two groups for the first round since not all of us will fit into Ollivander's at once. Narcissa and Lucius will take Pansy, Eleanor, Blaise and Theo to Madam Malkin's for school robes while Sirius and I will take Harry, Draco, and Dudley to Ollivander's for wands. Your legal wands," he said with emphasis. "Which means leave whatever other wand your parents may have gotten you here. Except Eleanor, of course."

"Draco," Lucius stated with a glare when his son didn't move. Reluctantly, the boy removed his wand from his pocket and handed it over to his father, who stowed it away in a desk drawer for good measure.

Pansy and Theo also handed over wands which were put with Draco's for safe keeping while Blaise shrugged. "I left mine at home," he said with an easy smile.

"Bloody Ravenclaw," Pansy muttered. "Always two steps ahead."

Remus glanced at Harry questioningly and Harry smirked. "It's upstairs," he answered the unspoken question. "Olivander recognizes wands by proximity. I'm not stupid enough to be caught carrying that particular wand."

Remus responded with a smile. "Well, after that, we'll switch. Lucius and Narcissa will lead their group to Ollivander's while ours will go to Madam Malkin's. Eleanor, since you already have a wand, you'll join our group. Afterwards, we'll meet up at the Leaky Cauldron for lunch. Then it's on to the Apothecary and the cauldron shop across the way. Followed by Flourish & Blott's, a quick run through the Alley for various odds and ends and ending up at the Magical Menagerie or Eeylops for pets. After we're through shopping, we'll stop in at Florean Fortescue's for a treat before heading home. Is everyone in agreement or do I need to change something?"

Most of the children blinked at him. Lucius raised an eyebrow. Narcissa shook her head and chuckled under her breath.

Sirius peeked over Remus' shoulder at the parchment. "Is that a diagram?" he asked, snatching it away with a laugh. "It is!"

Remus flushed in either embarrassment or anger. "Well, someone has to be organized!" he defended. "Otherwise we would never get everything we need in one day. We have, not just one, but seven children to buy for! Take the usual time it takes to complete school shopping and multiply it by seven."

Sirius patted Remus patronizingly on the shoulder. "Don't worry, Moony. We know you're smart. Hey! There's a timetable!"

Remus' blush darkened and he yanked the schedule away from his mate. "Actually," he mumbled, "I made copies for everyone."

Giggles broke out amongst the children as the werewolf handed out the copies. Harry read his with great fondness.

Group A: Lucius, Narcissa, Pansy, Eleanor, Blaise, Theo
Group B: Sirius, Remus, Harry, Draco, Dudley
9:00am - floo into Leaky Cauldron
9:15am to 10:30am - Group A at Malkin's, Group B at Ollivander's
10:30am to 11:45am - Group A at Ollivander's, Group B at Malkin's
11:45am to 12:30pm - lunch
12:30pm to 1:15pm - Apothecary
1:15 to 1:45pm - cauldron shop
2:00pm to 4:00pm - Flourish & Blott's
4:00pm to 4:45pm - miscellaneous
5:00pm to 6:00pm - Menagerie or Eeylops
6:30pm - Fortescue's
7:00pm - floo back to Leonis

-SCENE BREAK-

Their arrival at the Leaky Cauldron did indeed cause quite the stir. Remus was the first out, causing several people to back away fearfully. Sirius followed closely with Harry. The unease the people felt at the suspected Death Eater werewolf and the "former" Death Eater and pardoned Azkaban escapee's presence was enough to keep most of them back despite their desire to get closer to the Boy-Who-Lived.

The rest of the children emerged from the fireplace, Dudley looking a bit green, with Lucius and Narcissa right behind them.

Whispers immediately broke out at the appearance of the odd group. Two Death Eaters, two upstanding members of the nobility, four noble children, one untitled pureblood, the Boy-Who-Lived and what looked like a muggleborn. What could they all possibly have in common?

A camera flash broke the tense silence that had fallen upon their arrival.

Chairs scrapped loudly on the floor and tables were shoved aside as everyone rushed forward.

"Mister Potter! Such an honor!" His hand was shook fiercely even as Sirius pushed the man away, only to be replaced with another.

"I can't believe it's you!"

"Such a handsome boy!" A matronly woman pecked him on the cheek.

"Harry! Over here!" A young witch leap up and down to be seen over the crowd. "Harry! Harry!"

"Lord Potter, I can't tell you how much I appreciate what you did! You're my hero!"

Nellie hissed in distress from her place around Harry's shoulders as one man had the audacity to squeeze him in a tight hug. The man immediately backed away in shock as the snake reared its head.

"I believe that is enough!" Sirius shouted, silencing what could have quickly become a mob. "Just because he set foot in public does NOT give you the right to assault him like this!"

Most had the dignity to look slightly abashed, but one brazen man snapped yet another photograph causing Lucius to reach out a hand in his direction. The camera flew into his hand and the man quailed under Lucius stern gaze and display of wandless magic.

"Don't do that again," he said with a snarl. Dropping the camera to the floor, Lucius turned to lead their group into the Alley.

No one dared approach again with the ill-tempered and untouchable Lucius Malfoy leading them.

-SCENE BREAK-

The two groups had split off and now Harry, Draco and Dudley were in the process of purchasing their wands. Harry had opted to let Dudley go first.

Wand after wand rejected him and Dudley was obviously worried that he wasn't a really wizard, no matter that he had gotten his Hogwarts letter and his Healer confirmed it. Ollivander finally handed him a wand traditionally used by apprentices before education was standardized in schools. Dudley's face lit up as gold sparks shot from the end of it.

"That wand," Ollivander explained, "was made to focus the undeveloped power of very young children. It is made of Rosewood, is ten inches long and has a Phoenix Feather core. I'm sorry to say, my boy, that I very much doubt you will ever be casting any extremely powerful spells with it. I don't think I have to tell you that you are very nearly a squib." Dudley shook his head sadly. "Well, nevertheless, that wand is quite good for Charms. I suggest you put effort into making your spells as efficient as possible. A weak wizard can be just as dangerous as a powerful one, if he knows his magic."

After that, Draco went through eighteen wands before Ollivander declared him unmatchable and drew the boy into the back to custom make one. Twenty minutes later, Draco emerged with a smug grin. In his hand was a long purple-red wand. Rosewood, he declared proudly, with a Bloodwood handle and the core a heartstring from a Ukrainian Ironbelly. Harry found it interesting that Draco's wand was made two extremely powerful healing woods based strongly in the emotions.

Harry was next. He let the old man go through half his stock, just as he did last time around. Though Harry could have been just fine with any wand, he wanted his back. Finally, Ollivander grabbed the Holly wand with a curious, "I wonder..." and handed it to him.

Harry smiled as he felt the rush of familiar magic, but frowned slightly when he felt a minute resistance. Something in the wand was pushing back against his magic, as if refusing to channel it properly.

"How odd," Ollivander remarked. "It seems you are meant for that wand, and yet not." Taking it from Harry, he rolled it between his fingers as he pondered. "Tell me, and be completely honest, have you ever cast a purely Dark spell before?"

"I'm eleven," Harry stated with a pointed look.

"Please, Mister Potter. I know the feel of one who's held a wand before. Wands are my job. Plenty of pureblooded children who come in here have a second wand at home. I just make the wands. I don't report their use." When Harry still did not reply, Ollivander attempted to explain. "This wand is made of Holly, eleven inches with a Phoenix Feather core. The core accepts you, but the wood both does and does not. Holly is an exceptionally pure wood. It repels all evil and darkness. For this reason, it has been known to reject those who are comfortable with the Dark Arts. However, it is also the symbol of life, vitality, immortality and resurrection. It is these qualities that accept you, so I must assume you have more than a passing acquaintance with Dark Magic."

Harry sighed. "I do. Is that going to be a problem?"

"Well," the man replied, placing the wand back in its box, "this wand is undoubtedly yours and no other could wield it. However, if you want to reach your full potential with magic, you will have to have another. I will allow you to buy this wand, but you must allow me to make one custom for you, as I did young Mister Malfoy."

Harry shrugged. "Why not."

Ollivander's eyes twinkled in a rather unsettling way as he led Harry into the back room.

Bits of broken and unfinished wands, ingredients and tools littered the workspace. Harry was fascinated. Wandmaking, to him, was one of the lost arts. His Holly wand had been his lifeline throughout the Second War, acting as a last defense against Voldemort, but he'd never put much thought into it. Eventually, it was destroyed, but by then he no longer needed one. During the war, there were far more important things to worry about and when it was all over, he'd devoted himself to learning other types of magic. Like many other specialized and highly secret forms of magic, it had been lost. Not even his predecessors had knowledge of how they were made, as they'd had no need of them either.

A large stone cauldron sat in the middle of the room and a metallic gold liquid roiled within it without the aid of a fire.

"That's not for you," Ollivander said, noticing the direction of his gaze. "Perhaps, if you're lucky, one day I'll teach you my secrets, young vampire." He ignored Harry's startled expression and laid out several items on the table. "What is your other wand made of?" he questioned.

"Yew," Harry answered, moving to join him at the table. "How do you know I'm a vampire?"

Ollivander chuckled. "Ah," he said, seeming to ignore Harry's question. "Yew. I should have known. Very similar to Holly, but very different as well. The Dark side of life, I suppose you might say, very destructive." He laid a black cloth on the table beside the woods, rolling it out to reveal a motley assortment of wand cores. "As to how I knew, your glamours are quite good, very strong, but not quite strong enough to fool me. I see hidden secrets quite easily. Now, hold out your hand and I will match your wood and core."

Harry did as the enigmatic man asked, taking a good, long assessing look at him for the first time. As complex lines of magic, invisible to most, wound themselves around his hand, reaching out for certain items and shunning others, Harry realized with sudden clarity that Ollivander was not human. Sure, he looked human enough, but that was where the similarity stopped. His mind was completely unreadable, even to Harry's most advanced skills, and the feel of his magic was like a desolate wasteland. Vast and incomprehensible. He'd never encountered anything like it before.

"What the hell are you!?" Harry demanded.

Casually picking up a couple of items and moving others away, he replied, "I've kept my secrets for a bit over two thousand years. Why should I tell you, little vampire?"

"Because I'm fourteen times older than you," Harry deadpanned.

That managed to startle Ollivander into dropping a stick of Ebony which rolled across the table and hit the floor with a hollow clack. "You're what?" he asked, as if struck dumb with astonishment and surprise. "How?"

"Reincarnation, body thieving, magical impregnation... Take your pick."

Ollivander narrowed his eyes thoughtfully. "What is the Genotian Order?"

Harry responded without hesitation. "An organization of seventeen wizards and four witches formed in 390AD with the sole purpose of protecting a magical amulet said to have power over nature. They were wiped out in 474AD by a freak tsunami when the amulet was swallowed by a dog."

"What is the first rule of the Genotian Order regarding the use of planetary magic in extra planetary summoning?"

Harry smirked. "Don't."

"Who and what was the only non-human member of the Asiatic Conglomerate of Power in 1692?"

"Meria was a lycanthrope. A Werelion, to be exact." Harry chuckled as he thought back. Malak had been rather fond of the dark eyed beauty. "She had a wicked tattoo of a lion on her left thigh."

Apparently satisfied, Ollivander replied, "I'm a half breed. Mother was a Dryad. Father was a Sylph. Don't ask me how it worked. I haven't seen them in centuries. It's an honor to create a wand for you, Ancient One."

Harry blinked. No wonder the man's thoughts were all over the place. Wind was ever changing.

Ancient One. He'd never been called that before. He'd been 'Old One' to most magical creatures and 'First One' to most vampires. Ancient One was reserved for beings over ten thousand years old and was a title of highest honor.

"What are you doing in the wizard's world?" Harry asked curiously. "I should think you'd be more inclined to ride the winds or find a nice grove and plant yourself."

"Ah, but that I could!" Ollivander declared wistfully. "I inherited neither gift and must content myself to play the wizard. I have not a wizard's magic, but my gift with wood and magical creatures makes me an excellent wandmaker. What wizard would question that the old man cannot use his own product? Macassar or Gaboon Ebony?"

Blinking again at the sudden change in topic, Harry raised his hand to see which piece of wood the man held better suited him.

Ollivander nodded, putting one away. "Gaboon it is."

Harry watched as two lengths of wood, one dark red and one black, were tossed into the cauldron. A vial containing a single heartstring was emptied into the gold mixture next. Harry winced as the man unexpectedly yanked out one of his raven hairs, dropping it too into the cauldron.

"Hair from your head to stabilize it," he explained belatedly.

Harry scowled, growling petulantly at the old man and rubbing at his abused scalp.

"Don't be like that, my lord," he said in response, dropping the more formal 'Ancient One'. "It's all for the best. Your wand will be a rather remarkable and unique creation. If I had time, I'd engrave it with a likeness of that pretty little snake you have there."

'Nellie doesn't like the fumes,' she hissed, sounding both displeased and happy at the same time, 'but Nellie does like him.'

"Why, thank you, my dear!" he said, smiling at the drowsy snake around his shoulders. "You make me wish I could speak your noble language, but alas..." With a shrug, he turned back to the cauldron. "You're lucky to have a snake that can understand human tongues. Most don't. Ah! It's ready!" With a gleam in his eye, he plunged his hand down into the cauldron, searching through the thick fluid for something.

"Yes," Harry replied, glaring suspiciously at his serpentine friend. "I'd been wondering about that."

She simply tucked her nose back under his collar with a disdainful, 'Nellie is smarter than she looks,' before drifting back off to sleep.

Harry sighed and shook his head. He didn't think he'd ever understand her. As mad as she appeared most of the time, there were odd little moments where she seemed, not only sane, but perhaps a bit wise, as well.

Turning his attention back to Ollivander, he accepted the wand he was proudly presented.

"Twelve inches of Gaboon Ebony, the finest and blackest Ebony available in the world, with a Bloodwood handle. Core of an Antipodean Opaleye heartstring with a strand of your hair.

"Antipodean Opaleye heartstring is a quiet and unassuming core, yet extremely powerful. Ebony is the most powerful of all wandwoods. The Bloodwood handle unveils and frees secret, hidden powers from deep within you. The hair from your head makes it impossible for anyone not of your direct blood to wield it. This wand is capable of utilizing unprecedented amounts of power, especially when used to protect. It will give the wielder pure, unadulterated power and is non-discriminating, useful for any sort of magic. It will cast the greatest of Light spells or the Darkest of curses with ease.

"Though not a masterwork, I have never created a wand with such potential for pure power before in my two millennium of existence. My lord, if I were not already aware of the power you possess, I would be afraid to hand you this."

-SCENE BREAK-

When they exited the back room, Harry's new wand in hand, they found the rest of their group waiting. Apparently, they'd taken longer than was planned. Sirius, Remus and Narcissa were standing outside to give a bit more room in the cramped shop while the children and Lucius waited patiently for their return.

"Ah!" Ollivander exclaimed upon spotting the Malfoy patriarch. "Lucius Malfoy! Cocobolo and Ebony, dragon heartstring, fifteen inches! A very passionatewand!"

Lucius stiffened and paled.

"Yes, yes," the old man continued. "A rare creation. Within it courses the energy of desire, sexuality, ambition, adventure, even rage! A very masculinewand!"

"Do you have to say that every time I so much as pass by your shop, you old pervert!?" Lucius growled.

Harry struggled to stifle his laughter at the manic gleam in Ollivander's eye and the light blush on Lucius' pale cheeks. He was unable to restrain himself from commenting. "Oh, Lucius, but it fits you so well. You're such a very passionate person."

Lucius sputtered inelegantly for a few seconds before shouting out the door, "Narcissa!" As his wife bustled into the shop, he pointed an accusing finger at Ollivander. "He's doing it again."

"Oh for Heaven's sake!" she said, rolling her eyes. "You two are like children!"

"He set me on fire," Ollivander mumbled so that only Harry could hear. "Dryads don't like fire and a Sylph's wind just fans the flames. I thought I was gonna die."

Harry's laughter began anew as he pictured an eleven year old Lucius setting Ollivander on fire.

-SCENE BREAK-

Madam Malkin directed her seamstresses with the confidence of a conductor leading a symphony orchestra as they attended to Harry, Draco, Dudley and Eleanor. Less than half an hour later, they were back on schedule and sitting down for lunch in a private room of the Leaky Cauldron.

"I think I should get a manservant," Harry stated nonchalantly, kicking his bag with his school robes in it out of his way. "I'm not allowed to do magic outside school and it would be suspicious to see me cast shrinking charms at this age anyway, it's not practical to have an adult with me at all times, it's annoying to always ask clerks to shrink my purchases and having a house elf follow me around is unseemly."

"Why didn't I think of that?" Draco said with a gleam in his eyes. Turning to his father, he demanded, "I want a manservant!"

Lucius just raised an eyebrow. "No."

Draco pouted and turned his best puppy dog eyes on his mother. "Mummy, can I have a manservant? Pleeeaaase?"

"Of course you can, dear," she replied, patting his shoulder lovingly.

"Narcissa," Lucius said sternly, glaring at his wife.

"Lucius," she responded, glaring back defiantly.

"No."

"Yes."

"I said no. He doesn't need a manservant."

"I said yes. What my baby wants, he gets."

"Imagine how it'll look. We'll be seen as flaunting our wealth, in an entirely inappropriate way."

"No. It'll show how much we love our son!"

"I am lord of this family! Don't countermand my decisions!"

"You knew Black women were strong willed when you married me!"

"Well, I didn't have much of a choice, did I? It was either you or Bellatrix!"

"You horrid man! I can't believe my father made me marry you!"

"At least I'm not inbred!"

"No! You're not even fully human!"

"Don't go there, Narcissa! It was one Veela nine generations ago!"

"Keep telling yourself that!"

"Well, I didn't see you complaining about my Veela blood when you shared my bed!"

"Oh, what? The one night we were together, when Draco was conceived!?"

"You were the one who moved rooms the moment you found out you were pregnant!"

"Shouldn't that tell you something about your sexual prowess then!?"

"How dare you!? I'll have you know I am a great lover!"

"Yes! I heard all about your exploits in school! From the BOYS!!"

This went on for quite some time, the arguing couple seemingly oblivious to the world around them. The others watched the ping-pong shouting match with rapt attention.

Draco smirked. "I do this on purpose, you know. It gets me great blackmail material."

---

A/N: No one can argue quite like a married couple. A spouse can insult you, your family and your sexuality and still have more in reserve! I imagine one of the few things Narcissa and Lucius would really clash over to be Draco. Narcissa being very indulgent and affectionate with Lucius trying to teach him what's "right" and proper for a noble pureblood. And in the middle is Draco, who knows exactly how to manipulate his parents into a knock-down drag-out. In the end, he still gets what he wants AND he has blackmail material for later!

Has anyone noticed how much I hate writing shopping scenes..? Unfortunately, this one is unavoidable.