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.
Notes: I really, REALLY hate cannon Ginny. Because of this, I feel the need to make her somewhat acceptable in my fic by making her a stone cold bitch. I think I'm starting to like this older, future version of her. Too bad this is probably the one and only time she'll appear.

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Chapter Twenty One:
Severus waved his wand threateningly in the face of Montague. "And if I ever see the two of you fighting in the halls again," he growled, "I will make sure that you never see the outside of detention for the rest of your Hogwarts education!"

Pucey cringed when their Head of House shifted his angry gaze to him. While he never took points from Slytherin and never gave them detention where others could see, he was not a forgiving man. He merely handled Slytherin affairs in the privacy of the dungeons, where they belonged.

"Now get back inside at once!" he demanded and both boys took off running.

As the two disappeared into the Slytherin common room, Severus sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. How he despised Halloween.

He'd had double potions first thing in the morning with Gryffindor and Hufflepuff, which was good for at least three exploded cauldrons and possibly half the class in the hospital wing before they were done. At lunch, Dumbledore had volunteered him to help with the Halloween decorations. His free time for the rest of the day was spent with Hagrid and a gaggle of house elves, none of whom seemed to respect his desire for a little silence, nor had any concept of personal space. He was then repeatedly plied with sweets by the barmy old codger for a good hour before he was finally able to retreat to the peace and quiet of his dungeons. Only to be disturbed by the Slytherin alarms alerting him to an altercation outside the common room.

With all of his brats securely tucked away for the night, he hoped to get a little rest. He had another double class in the morning and would need to be vigilant. Although, while he couldn't fall asleep at his desk, he was certain it would be less dangerous by far than all of the others combined. Ravenclaw/Slytherin. There were only two he needed to watch out for in that class, Crabbe and Goyle. It was easy enough to pair them with a more talented student, Parkinson for example, who would keep them out of the way and do the entire potion themselves.

A loud, resounding thump was his first clue that his night was far from over. Drawing his wand, he crept toward the sound, only to duck back into the shadows as a black blur ran past at inhuman speeds.

'Potter?' he wondered, catching the boy's scent easily in the stuffy dungeons. 'What is he up to?'

Silently, he followed after him, both of them drawing closer to the origin of the sounds, which had by now changed from rhythmic thumps to thunderous crashing.

Turning the corner, he found the youngest Weasley male cowering on the floor behind a flailing suit of armor as a raging troll smashed at the walls with its club, trying to reach him. Severus was more than a bit surprised to see Draco Malfoy hiding in an alcove too small for the troll to penetrate, either bodily or with its crude weapon. He was shooting an impressive array of hexes at the creature, but its thick hide protected it from the onslaught.

Potter had paused at the sight as well, but in the blink of an eye, faster than Severus could react, he darted forward and slammed his small fist into the back of the troll's knee. Bones broke and green blood spattered the floor as the creature fell forward, bashing its head against the stone wall on the way down and knocking itself out.

Severus was impressed. He knew Potter had knowledge of a variety of useful spells that he could have tried, but upon seeing that magic wasn't working, the boy had made the split second judgment to use brute force. Extremely powerful brute force. Severus was many times stronger than a human himself, but he didn't know if he could have pulled that off.

Hanging back for the moment, he watched the three boys interestedly.

-SCENE BREAK-

Harry growled lowly as Ron and Draco emerged from their hiding places.

"What in Nyx's name are you two doing out here?" he demanded.

Draco hung his head. "Pansy demanded that I go to the kitchens to get her a drink and I agreed just to shut her up. I was on my way back when I heard Weasley scream like a girl."

Ron flushed angrily. "I do not scream like a girl!"

Draco wisely ignored him. "I honestly thought it was Pansy. I thought she'd come out after me and been cornered by the Bloody Baron or caught by Filch or something, so I came to see. When I saw the troll going after Weasley, I ducked into that niche over there and... Well, 'tried to save him' seems too Gryffindorish and I certainly didn't think I could actually kill it. I guess I wasn't really thinking. Sorry," he finished sheepishly, eyes downcast.

Harry sighed. "I'm not going to yell at you, Draco. I'm sure your intentions were noble, but you still shouldn't have tried to take it on yourself. You should have gotten Professor Snape or one of the prefects." Turning on Ron, he asked, "And you? What were you doing down in the dungeons long after midnight?"

Ron shakily held out his clenched fist. Draco gagged at the stench when the other boy opened his hand. A single crushed dungbomb lay on his palm. "I-I was gonna- uh..."

Harry quickly whipped out his wand and vanished the foul object before they all began to retch. His anger returned in the face of Ron's obviously hostile intentions. "Let me guess. You were going to ambush an unsuspecting Slytherin? Or were you going to wander the dungeons all night searching for the Slytherin common room just so you could chuck it in? Maybe you were hoping to catch Professor Snape on patrol and use it on him?"

"I-I was going to hang it over the Potions classroom so it'd fall and hit whoever opened the door," he stammered, still shaken from his near death experience and shamed at being lectured by a boy his own age.

"Ron, you idiot!" Harry exclaimed, throwing up his hands in aggravation. "That would have hit me! Or Hermione! We have Potions first thing in the morning and we're always the first ones in the classroom! No. I take it back. Professor Snape would have been the first one in the classroom to set up and he wouldn't be caught by such a stupid prank. He would have seen it and likely been able to ascertain just who had done it. All you would have done was earn yourself a detention, and you're lucky to escape tonight with your life!"

"But, Fred and George said-"

Harry glared. "If Fred and George told you that you'd automatically win Gryffindor the House Cup if you run through the castle naked, backwards and singing the school song, would you do it?"

Ron's eyes crossed as he tried to reason that one out, both if he would be stupid enough to fall for it and if he would actually do it.

"Forget it," Harry said, interrupting his confused contemplation. "Go to the hospital wing and get checked out, both of you."

-SCENE BREAK-

Severus was once again amazed at Potter's maturity and intelligence. He'd scolded both boys as if he were the adult and they were simple unruly children. He'd made both of them see the error of their actions, even if Weasley still looked a bit confused, and Draco had apologized. Quite a feat considering his own parents had trouble making him apologize for anything.

As they went to walk past him, Potter called out, "And Ron? If anyone asks, Professor Snape hit the troll with a blasting curse. I didn't do anything."

Smart boy.

Weasley looked confused, but Severus choose this moment to show himself. Both boys paled at the sight of him emerging from the shadows.

"Actually," he said, glaring down at the two, "if anyone asks, Potter is the one who found me and informed me of your plight, after which I mercifully saved your foolish hides. All of you have detention for the next week. Potter, five points from Ravenclaw for wandering the halls after curfew. Malfoy, five points from Slytherin for the same and for attempting to take on the troll yourself. Weasley, twenty points from Gryffindor for wandering the halls with deliberately malicious intent. Now, Malfoy, Weasley, get to the infirmary." When they remained where they were, gaping at him as if he were an alien, he barked, "Move!" and they both shot off down the hall.

Turning to the remaining boy, he said imperiously, "Potter, come with me."

Turning on his heel, he set off down the corridor at a brisk pace. Potter followed after him, managing to keep up with Severus' long stride.

-SCENE BREAK-

Harry mused silently as he followed the Potions Master to his office.

He was extremely angry with Ron. He was dismissive and rude to Hermione, antagonistic and hateful to Draco and anyone else in Slytherin, made fun of Eleanor and the Hufflepuffs, was overly flattering to Harry himself and was well on his way to being little more than a bully. His petty jealousies and insecurities allowed his brothers to goad him into stupid stunts like this and his childish behavior irritated Harry more with each passing day. It was getting harder and harder to pass his bad attitude off on his age and Harry was very close to snapping. He was afraid that very soon he would have to tell Ron to grow up, a ridiculous notion as he was only eleven, or sever what few ties he had with him.

On the other hand, he was both very proud of Draco and slightly disappointed. To protect Ron, a rather hot-tempered and arrogant boy from a family of self-confessed Blood Traitors, meant he had come a long way in his preconceived notions of the world and the people around him. However, he had expected him to display better judgment in such a dangerous situation. He was clever and powerful for his age, but Harry had to remind himself that Draco was still only a child. He may have seen much of the training and preparation his father and the other Death Eaters had gone through, but he'd still not been trained himself. Harry wondered if perhaps it was not time to rectify that. After all, some muggles trained their children in martial arts from the moment they began to walk and it was readily apparent that Draco and the other children would serve him one day, as their parents did now. Better to start early and ensure that they were well prepared for whatever may come their way.

Snape surprised him when he not only went along with Harry's version of events, but elaborated on them in a way that set Harry in a positive light. He'd known the man had followed him, but when they came upon the troll and Snape momentarily froze, he had been forced to act. Knowing Snape would help him cover up his display of inhuman strength, he placed a subtle suggestion in the Ron's mind that compelled him to believe what he'd said was the truth. It wouldn't last for long, as he hadn't had more than a few seconds to plant it, but for the moment, as far as he knew, Harry had found them being attacked by the troll and ran to find Snape. Their professor had then saved them, scolded them and sent them to the infirmary. The suggestion wouldn't last more than a few days, but it was plenty of time for Harry to make more permanent alterations to the boy's memory. Draco's memory, of course, wasn't a problem. He would never willingly betray him and if a certain headmaster tried to pry the secret from his mind, Draco could simply hide it behind that ever present shadow that Harry had placed there years before.

Harry was directed to a seat in Snape's office and ordered to stay put as the man flooed Dumbledore, smirking wickedly at the thought of interrupting the bothersome imbecile's sleep.

Snape obviously had an interest in him and had no qualms about showing it. He singled him out in class, gave him extra homework and took every available opportunity to test his intelligence and help him improve. As a Ravenclaw, it did not seem abnormal when Harry answered advanced questions and did the extra work without complaint. He was a bit surprised at the difference between this man and the Snape from Harry's memories, but realized it wasn't that unlikely considering the changes in both of them. As a vampire, even only half, Snape would have faced constant struggle to hide his nature from wizards to hold on to his tenuous position in society. As a half breed, he would not have been accepted by either species. Where the other Snape had become cold and even heartless at the disdain and rejection of wizards for being Dark and a Death Eater, this Snape also dealt with the prevailing fear that someone somehow would discover his deep dark secret and reveal it to the world.

Snape saw in Harry a parallel to himself. They were both struggling to hide what they were in a world that would condemn them. They both had a quick mind and a love of Potions, though with Harry it was less a love and more a habit. After all, how could he not be good at something as necessary as Potions when he'd had six thousand years to study? Snape was determined to protect Harry from the very thing he feared for himself, being revealed as a vampire, and had a need to see Harry's 'potential' be fulfilled in ways he had been unable to with his own. It was true that he was considered one of the most talented Potions Masters in the world, but he'd never been able to show his true worth because of either his work for Voldemort, the risk of drawing too much attention to himself or simple things such as an aversion to certain ingredients that could cause harm to a vampire.

In his mind, Harry would not have those limitations. Even if it were suspected that he weren't human, his position amongst the wealthy pureblood elite and their tendency to overlook such things in their own would protect him from outright accusations. A born vampire did not have most of the aversions that turned vampires did and so he would not be as restricted in what ingredients he could handle. Harry could obtain great acclaim by spending all of his time creating new and innovative potions because, unlike Snape, he did not have to work for a living.

Harry felt a surge of indignant anger upon remembrance of the denial of Snape's heritage by the Ministry. His mother had been of royal blood, the last of a long line of powerful witches and wizards who could trace their lineage all the way back to Prince Osric, who's mother, Queen Elfleda, was the last monarch to sit on a wizarding throne. Hence the family name of Prince. However, while his mother had held the title of Lady of the Royal House of Princes until her death, Snape had been denied it simply because his father was a muggle. It was one of the only modern cases of an heir being denied their birthright based solely on their blood by the government. Families could disinherit them or refuse them the headship if there was another suitable heir, but to deny them any part of their family's estate when they were the only living member was nearly unheard of. Technically, the Ministry had simply refused him the title, as, like Slytherin, the original Head had declared that all subsequent Heads should be of above halfblood, but old laws that were still in effect declared that all assets belonging to a noble family as a whole went along with the title. It was the duty of the Head of the family to care and provide for others and see that they received their due inheritances. With Snape being the last heir and denied the title, the Ministry seized the entire Prince estate. From money to properties to vaults and even items of purely sentimental value, they had destroyed one of the oldest and noblest of families. They had left sixteen year old Severus Snape, still grieving over his mother's death, a pauper and a ward of the Ministry.

Severus had been degraded almost overnight from respected wizarding royalty, with the unfortunate but easily overlooked circumstances of his paternity, to a penniless halfblood wretch. He'd been devastated and enraged and it was then that Voldemort had stepped in. He'd seduced the teenage boy with an affinity to the Dark with promises of revenge and restitution and Severus had fallen quickly and easily.

Though he had once explained to Harry, in a rare moment of introspection and amicability amongst the turbulent times of the Second War, the hows and whys of what he'd done and the turning point which had brought him back to the 'Light', it wasn't until several years after the man's death that Harry had realized just how much he had been wronged. Severus had a right to be a cold, angry bastard and if there were any way possible, Harry would have seen to it that his birthright was returned to him. Unfortunately, the only way a law set down by an originator of a family line could be countermanded was by a seated wizarding monarch. Obviously, there wasn't much hope of that. It would be many years, if ever, before Harry had the authority to command something like that. By then, the Ministry probably would have liquidated and spent every bit of the Prince estate, if it hadn't already.

"-troll! I told you that-!" Severus raged into the fire as Harry waited patiently. Harry watched amused as Severus lit into the headmaster about his delusions of grandeur, endangering the students and negligence with the proper restrictive wards. "If I hadn't been nearby all three of them would have been killed!" Severus paused, presumably as Dumbledore twinkled at him and reassured him that everything was perfectly under control. He huffed, causing the green flames around his head to flare up briefly, and said, "Yes, he's fine. Potter, unlike those other two brainless dolts, had the modicum of intelligence required to find me and inform me of their plight. I sent Weasley and Malfoy to the hospital wing and no doubt Poppy is, at this very moment, making them regret they ever had reason to visit her. I've got Potter here. Shall I send him back to bed or do you want to...speak with him?" A moment's pause. "Very well then. I'll hold him."

With that, he pulled his head from the fire and brushed the soot off his robes.

"The headmaster wants to speak with you after he visits the infirmary, Potter," he said as he took his seat behind his desk. He ran a hand over his eyes tiredly and pinched the bridge of his nose.

It was nearing two in the morning and Harry could see the normally stalwart man was obviously exhausted. While he likely favored the night as a personal preference, he didn't have the vampiric proclivity to become nocturnal, nor did he become energized when the sun went down, as Harry did.

"Potter," he began, dark eyes staring unwaveringly into his own, "you have secrets. Very important secrets that you cannot afford to allow others to discover. I know this because we share one of these secrets in common."

"You're a vampire, sir," Harry stated simply.

Severus merely nodded. "Yes. As are you. I will not sugar coat this, Potter. The headmaster is a powerful, dangerous man. Perhaps even more so than the Dark Lord."

'I highly doubt that,' Harry thought with a mental smirk, secure in his own superiority.

"He would like nothing more than to have you under his complete control and he has ways to achieve this. Do you know what Legilimency is?"

Harry paused, as if to collect his thoughts, then replied, "Legilimency. From the Latin words 'legens' and 'mens' meaning 'a reader of minds'. It is a Dark Art and is highly restricted by the Ministry. It allows the user to discover surface emotions and memories within another persons mind. In its least invasive form it can be used to detect whether or not a person is lying. In its most invasive, it can lay bare all that resides in the victims mind, can be very traumatizing to the victim and is akin to mental rape. Most Legilimens require eye contact to initiate Legilimency, but the more skilled and powerful aren't hindered by indirect use, even across great distances, providing there is a link between user and victim."

A small smile turned his lips upward and Severus nodded once again, this time in approval. "Very good. And Occlumency?"

"The opposite," he answered. "Occlumency defends the mind against invasion, possession and outside influence. It is the defensive counter to Legilimency. It allows the user to suppress feelings and memories that contradict what the user wishes a Legilimens to believe, thus allowing the Occlumens to lie successfully. You wish me to learn Occlumency because the headmaster is a Legilimens, correct?"

Something akin to pride entered Severus' eyes as the supposedly eleven year old boy caught on so quickly. "Yes, I do. It's only a matter of time before Dumbledore becomes frustrated and tries to take your secrets directly from your mind. I am both a Legilimens and an Occlumens and, while he has forbidden myself and the other teachers from giving you advanced lessons, I would be willing to teach you Occlumency in secret."

Harry smiled. "I appreciate the offer, sir, but that won't be necessary. I already know it." Surprise entered the man's eyes and Harry explained, "Remus realized what I was the moment he met me and knew it was dangerous for me not to be able to protect my mind. He taught me."

"I see," Severus mused to himself. "Lupin is, by necessity, extremely skilled. He would have found it easy to teach." Staring Harry directly in the eyes, he sent out a mental probe to determine if he really did know Occlumency and if he was capable of defending against Dumbledore. Where before there was nothing but empty space, this time he encountered powerful shields. He prodded at them experimentally, searching for any weakness, but found none. After a moment of dumbfounded contemplation, a gentle yet firm presence wrapped around his and guided him back into his own mind before retreating. Blinking, he stared at the smiling young boy before him. "How is it that I did not encounter your defenses during your first Potions class? Surely you knew what I was doing."

Harry just continued to smile at him disarmingly. "Why should I defend against you? You weren't trying to hurt me. You were just curious."

"How innocent," Severus replied with the closest thing to a sneer he'd directed at Harry since that first lesson. It vanished though as a shadow passed through those emerald eyes.

"Not really," Harry said quietly, averting his eyes in a show of introspective sorrow. "I just sensed your intentions. I haven't been innocent since I was a year old." Raising his gaze to meet the other man's, he gave forth a feeling of determined strength that showed in his eyes. "I remember that night, sir. I remember my father's strength and defiance in the face of death. I remember my mother's pleas, not for her own life but for mine, followed by her dying screams. I remember those angry, triumphant red eyes, full of hate and victory. I remember green light and the searing pain of being touched by death. I remember the agonizing fire as my magic fought against the curse. I know how it feels to have my soul torn from my body in an instant and ripped and stretched and thrust back in the next. I remember the look of pure disbelief on Voldemort's face when the curse turned on him. I saw him die. I saw my mother die. I killed my uncle in a fit of rage, and yes I remember it, despite what I told the Aurors. I am hardly innocent and I have no wish to be treated as such. Especially not by you."

Severus stared at him in mute shock for several moments before finding words to reply. "Why..." He cleared his throat and shifted uncomfortably. "Why are you telling me this?"

"As you said, we have something in common. Perhaps more than you realize. You want to protect me and further my gifts where most others would want to shelter me or use me to their own ends. My friends are too young to understand. Dumbledore sees me as a tool, a means to an end. Most of the other teachers see me as just a gifted child. Professor McGonagall, should I tell her what I just told you, would want to hide me away from the world. My own Head of House, well meaning as he may be, would only tell Dumbledore. Sirius and Remus see me for me, but they're not here. I believe that you are the only person at Hogwarts that can understand where I'm coming from. One cannot be innocent, nor a child, when they have seen what I've seen, experienced what I've experienced. Before I was even two years old, I lost my parents, was for all intents and purposes killed and returned to life and then lost those who I could have grown to love as parents when my godfather was condemned to Azkaban. I was sent to live with my squib aunt and her magic hating husband, abused for eight years and then killed my abuser in defense of, not myself, but the last of my blood relations.

"Then I was thrust into a situation that was the complete opposite. I went from a cupboard under the stairs in a muggle house of pain and enforced obedience to a magical world where I was rich, famous and powerful. I was suddenly in control of a vast fortune and an entire noble family and the entire wizarding world looked at me in either worship or pure hatred. I threw myself into my studies in an effort to never again be the victim, the weak one who allowed others dictate my fate. If someone tried to slap me down, this time I would be able to fight back.

"I have many enemies, most of whom hate me only because of what I am and what they have been told of me. I've learned to make allies where I can and you are a great man. You are powerful in your magic. You are intelligent, cunning and able to see that, though I have the body of a child, I am fully capable of controlling my own life. You will fight for my rights against those who would lock me away in a glass box and try to destroy my freedom. Loyalty is rewarded with loyalty. If you help me, I will return the favour in any way I can."

The fire flared bright green, abruptly cutting off Harry's monologue, and Dumbledore stepped out of the fireplace. He adjusted the belt to his red night robe trimmed in white fur and righted the matching hat on his head.

Unable to resist, Harry cocked his head to the side and said in his most childish voice, "Santa?"

Choked, disbelieving laughter came from Snape which he quickly turned into a cough. Dumbledore just twinkled.

"Well, Harry," the old man began benevolently, "I heard that you've had quite the night. I'm proud of your quick thinking which very likely saved your friends' lives. However, would you mind telling me just what you were doing out of bed at such an hour?"

Harry felt a subtle touch at his mind attempting to skim along the surface of his thoughts and emotions. Along with it came an insidious compulsion to be truthful which attempted to wind itself around his mind and influence his actions. He grabbed hold of it and wrapped it in shadows, locking it away while making it seem to have taken hold. He met the man's eyes boldly and replied, "I was talking with Myrtle and lost track of the time."

Dumbledore blinked in confusion. "And just who is Myrtle?"

Harry smiled guilelessly. "She's a ghost. She stays in the girl's toilet most of the time. She's very lonely so I try to visit her as often as possible. She wanted to hear all about the Halloween feast. I had to describe to her all the food and how it tasted because she says she's forgotten what it's like to eat and by the time I realized how late it was, it was way after curfew. I was heading back to my dorm when I heard the crashing. Then, after I saw the troll, I went to find Professor Snape. I knew his rooms were near the Potions classroom and figured he'd be able to deal with it."

"Indeed." Dumbledore smiled, accepting his story at face value and upped the twinkle. "Well, I believe that you've been given detention for the coming week and had a few points taken, so I think we'll let that stand as punishment for being out of bed. For your quick thinking, I think ten points to Ravenclaw would be appropriate. Madam Pomfrey informed me that your friends should be out of the infirmary by morning. Now, it's past time for you to be abed. Why don't I walk you to your common room?"

Harry groaned inwardly. He'd rather continue his conversation with Severus, but he couldn't very well refuse.

"Thank you, sir," he replied, standing up. "That's very kind of you."

He fought the urge to sneer in disgust as a wrinkled hand dropped onto his shoulder. Stepping around his chair, he managed to shake off the man's hand without seeming disrespectful and headed for the door. Dumbledore followed, but Harry glanced back over his shoulder at Severus.

"Shall I come after dinner for detention tomorrow, sir?" he inquired politely, giving a mischievous wink when he knew Dumbledore wouldn't see.

Severus visibly shook himself before answering in the affirmative and Harry allowed Dumbledore to lead him out.

When he left Dumbledore at the portrait hole and entered the Ravenclaw common room, he first noticed that Hermione was nowhere to be seen. She'd probably awoken to find him gone and assumed he'd gone up to bed and then done so herself. Nellie was curled up on the hearth stone before a dwindling fire, dozing lazily. Shaking his head in amusement, he picked her up and headed up to his dorm. He'd investigate the appearance of the troll tomorrow when he wasn't under so much scrutiny by Dumbledore.

'Mmm...' Nellie stirred as he placed her on his bed. 'Did Puppy slay the nasty troll and save the damsel in distress?' Harry chuckled aloud at the thought of Draco and Ron in princess dresses and his snake's drowsy state vanished as her head shot up and she accused angrily, 'Puppy locked his Nellie in! Puppy ran off to fight the troll and left his Nellie behind! Nellie is VERY ANGRY with her Puppy!'

Harry ignored her as he slid into bed, shutting the curtains and stroking her head absently. The snake's eyes glazed over as she murmured pleasantly, quickly forgetting her ire.

As he drifted off, Harry had the strangest feeling that he was forgetting something. Something important. But for the life of him, he couldn't remember what it was. Oh well, he thought. He would remember in time.

-SCENE BREAK-

"You're a Parselmouth," Hermione accused quietly over breakfast.

Harry choked on his eggs. "W-what!?"

Glancing around for eavesdroppers and finding none, she leaned closer and whispered, "I saw you talking last night with that winged snake in the common room."

Harry frowned in confusion. "What winged snake?"

"Harry, don't play dumb," she replied with a huff. "You're really bad at it."

"I'm not playing dumb!" he insisted. "I don't remember any winged snakes! I remember Nellie, my snake who is most definitely wingless, coming to tell me about the troll, but-"

"What troll!?" Hermione demanded with wide eyes, but he ignored her. Something was wrong here.

"I remember doing the essay...and you'd fallen asleep. Then I heard Nellie at the portrait and I opened it for her... No, wait. I didn't open it. She must have, but I don't know how that's possible. And...she told me about the troll...but I don't remember her flying...I don't remember her slithering either though..."

Harry furrowed his brows. He normally had perfect short term memory and could recall every minute detail, but now there seemed to be a fog over his memories of those few minutes. He knew for a fact that Nellie did not have wings, but he couldn't remember how exactly she had entered either. It was odd. He knew that no one could possibly invade, alter or otherwise tamper with his memories, but it looked as if it had been done. If Hermione had not mentioned it, he probably never would have realized something was off.

Standing, he abandoned his unnecessary breakfast and asked, "Hermione, can we talk? In private?"

Without hesitation, she agreed and followed him out. Padma was the only one to notice their early departure, but was far too enraptured by her new book, "Home Life and Social Habits of British Muggles", to care overmuch.

Rather than heading back to Ravenclaw Tower where Nellie was still sound asleep, Harry lead Hermione to the kitchens. The moment they entered they were immediately swarmed by a half dozen house elves which Harry waved off after explaining that they only wanted a safe place to talk. With wide, reverent eyes they ushered the two into chairs and left them to their business. Harry was glad that not only were the Hogwarts House Elves completely loyal to him rather than Dumbledore, there were also no sneaking portraits in the kitchens.

"Now, Hermione," Harry began, interrupting her staring at the strange creatures she'd never seen before. "I want you to tell me everything you saw last night. Afterwards, I'll explain what I can. Including house elves," he added with a smirk. There would be no bids for House Elf freedom this time, even if her activism had been a rather good story to tell the grandkids. In the end, she'd done nothing but cause the little creatures misery and embarrass herself.

Reluctantly turning her attention away from the fascinating little creatures, she began. "Well, I was asleep in the chair, but I woke up when you stood up. You probably didn't notice, but you knocked a book off and I'm a light sleeper. I saw the portrait open and a blue snake with black wings came flying in. It flew straight at your face and I was on the verge of reaching for my wand and cursing it, but you didn't seem afraid. In fact, you kinda seemed annoyed. The snake was hissing loudly and you hissed right back, as if you could understand it. After a few minutes of hissing, you suddenly rushed out. I went to get up and follow you, but I suddenly felt so sleepy. I just couldn't hold my eyes open any longer and the next thing I know it's morning and I'm in my bed. I don't know how I got there, but I assumed someone found me and levitated me up to my dorm. As for how I know about Parselmouths, I read about them in 'The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts'. Now," she demanded, sticking a finger in his face. "I want some answers, mister! Why didn't you tell me you're a Parselmouth or that you have a snake? Why does that snake have wings? Do the others know you're a Parselmouth? What happened last night and what was that about a troll? Where have you been sneaking off to and why do you feel you can't trust me with it? Why are you so..." She waved her hands wildly through the air as she searched for the right word. "...pretty!? Stop smirking at me! And for Merlin's sake, why do you have fangs!?"

Harry chuckled at her behavior. For once, Hermione didn't have all the answers and it was driving her crazy.

"Well," he began, leaning toward her conspiratorially. "You promise to keep everything I tell you a secret? Even from teachers and your parents?" At her frantic nod, he replied quickly, "Because you're eleven years old with a great respect for authority figures and I only just met you a few months ago. I don't know why she had wings. Draco, Blaise, Pansy and Theo know. I'm not sure yet, but a troll somehow managed to find its way into the school and attacked Ron. Draco tried to defend him. Nellie, my snake, told me where it was and I found them and knocked the troll out. Snape found us and took care of the rest. I've been sneaking off because I'm running my own personal army in a bid to take over the magical world and I haven't told you because you're an innocent child and I would not take that away from you for the world. I blame the 'pretty' on my father and I have fangs because I'm a vampire."

Harry watched in amusement as Hermione's eyes grew to the size of saucers. Reaching across the small table, he gently grasped her chin and closed her mouth.

-SCENE BREAK-

'Nellie hates the Fox!' the agitated snake hissed, flying around Dumbledore's mostly empty office in frenzied circles. 'Nellie thinks the Fox should just curl up and die!'

Fawkes glared dispassionately at the winged reptile from his perch as she continued on her warpath, knocking various delicate objects off their shelves to smash on the stone floor. "I can't die," he replied easily. "I'm a Phoenix." He then ducked as she flew overhead, almost hitting him with her tail. "Will you stop that? The old man is going to think I did all this."

'The Fox deserves it!' she cried, launching herself at Dumbledore's chair in an effort to tip it over. However, as she weighed relatively little, she smashed into the back of the chair and crumpled dazedly into the seat.

Fawkes couldn't contain himself and squawking laughter filled the office. Nellie's head popped up from behind the desk looking more than a little miffed. Feathers askew, she slithered across the desk, petulantly knocking an inkwell over as she passed. 'The Fox will rue the day...' she hissed lowly in an effort to sound intimidating, which failed miserably. She propelled herself off the desk at the offending firebird, fangs bared and hissing angrily. In one smooth move, Fawkes flapped a wing and swatted her out of midair. Proving that you can't keep a crazy snake down, she began moving for the perch again in an effort to climb up it.

"Can't we just agree to disagree?" Fawkes queried, hoping from one end of his perch to the other.

'Nellie did what Nellie thought was best,' she insisted, inching her way up the smooth surface, only to slide all the way back down just as she reached the top.

"Yes, well, Nellie's crazy, isn't she?" Fawkes answered softly, shaking his plumed head in exasperation. "Look, we can all see quite clearly that he's more than worthy. Linara, Ophion and myself have already agreed to accept him. I don't know why you refuse to do the same."

'Puppy must prove himself!' she declared, giving up her efforts to attack him in order to knock all of Dumbledore's books off the shelves.

"So you say, but what's the real reason?" Fawkes asked, pinning her with a pointed stare.

Nellie paused, looking oddly thoughtful, before knocking off 'Theories of Transubstantial Transfiguration' with a negligent flick of her tail. 'If Puppy is accepted, Nellie would have no purpose. Nellie doesn't want to disappear,' she answered sadly.

-SCENE BREAK-

"So, wait, let me get this straight," Hermione said, stirring her tea absently. "You're Voldemort? Or, not really Voldemort, but pretending to be Voldemort? Because you're the Dark Lord, but you're not evil?"

"Exactly." Harry nodded, encouraging her to go on.

"I don't understand. How is that possible?" she asked plaintively.

"Like I said," Harry explained patiently. "Dark doesn't really mean evil. For as long as there have been magical humans, there have been the Dark and Light Lords. The representatives chosen by Magic itself to lead their people. The Light Lord is chosen for his pure, noble heart and unfailing morals. The Dark Lord is chosen for his understanding of the darker emotions and aspects that make up our human nature and his willingness to do anything to accomplish his goals. The Light Lord may sometimes be naive and the Dark Lord sometimes cruel, but neither is intrinsically good or evil. There haven't been real Lords to lead us for quite sometime as those who are chosen usually go mad or are killed before they can have any impact. Eventually, everyone just started calling the baddest wizard around the 'Dark Lord' and forgot what a real one was like. In all technicality, Voldemort wasn't really a Dark Lord. I am. I was chosen by Magic to lead the Dark and my, then dormant, vampire blood prevented the madness that being chosen at such a young age could bring.

"I'm pretending to be Voldemort because, quite frankly, who would take an eleven year old Dark Lord seriously? There's also the bonus that, by pretending to be Voldemort, I don't have to form my own army. I just stole his. Most of the Death Eaters still think I'm Voldemort, but the ones with the 'new' Mark are those who know me for who I am and are loyal to me. When I'm old enough, I'll reveal myself and hopefully by then people will have realized that I'm not evil."

Hermione nodded thoughtfully, her rational mind able to make sense of things that should have been years beyond her comprehension. "So, you want the public to get to know Harry Potter as an intelligent and powerful but otherwise 'good' person before they find out that this supposedly 'good' person is actually the Dark Lord. It'll make them think instead of blindly accepting what they've been told. What about the others? Draco and them?"

"They know," Harry said with a smirk. "The sneaky little buggers spied on a Death Eater meeting last year. Sometimes they have trouble with the fact that I'm both their friend and their Lord, but they've become accustomed to the idea. However, there is the issue of having the knowledge taken from them."

"Oh," Hermione interjected, "Like with Veritaserum, the most powerful truth potion in existence?"

"Well, there's that too, but it's illegal to use Veritaserum on anyone under seventeen without parental permission and it's effects easily detectable, so I doubt anyone would try it for fear of being caught. My Mark prevents the successful use of Veritaserum and other truth potions, but they're too young to be Marked. What is really dangerous is the fact that Dumbledore is a Legilimens and is in the habit of taking leisurely strolls through people's minds."

Hermione looked horrified. "That's abominable!" she exclaimed. "Not only is that illegal, it's a terrible invasion of privacy! I haven't done anything wrong and I still wouldn't want anyone wandering around unchecked through my mind! Imagine, all your deepest secrets and most embarrassing moments laid out for someone to read! That's unthinkable! That...that... That MAN doesn't deserve to be headmaster! He... Ah!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms up in frustration.

"Easy, Hermione," Harry soothed, physically restraining her with a hand on her shoulder before she could get up and go tell Dumbledore exactly what she thought of him. "There are ways to stop it. Occlumency, for one. You know what that is, right?"

"Yes," she replied heatedly. "But still! Not everyone knows it! The fact that there's a counter doesn't give him the right! Just because someone is unable to protect themselves doesn't mean they deserve to be attacked!"

"That's not what I was saying. It is very wrong of him. I know Legilimency myself, but I don't delve into people's minds unless I have a very good reason. I just think that, with what you now know, you should learn Occlumency. The others are already studying it and I think you should join them."

"Harry," she said, shoving her teacup angrily away from her, "I don't think I could learn Occlumency over night. Dumbledore is sure to use Legilimency on me before I'm able. Maybe you should just memory charm me. I'd be willing to give up my memories of this if it'll protect you."

Harry smiled reassuringly. "That's not necessary, but I appreciate it. I can plant a shadow in your mind and teach you how to hide what you want with it. It won't be able to stop a Legilimency attack, but it will allow you to keep secrets. We've already missed half our classes, so why don't we spend the rest of the day and the weekend on it? I'll write up a huge essay on the Unbreakable Vow while you're practicing and we'll hand it in on Monday. I'm sure Flitwick wouldn't mind that we 'got lost in research' and missed all of our classes today. He'll probably even give us points."

"Oh but," Hermione said, worrying her bottom lip with her teeth, "Should I take credit for something that isn't my work?"

Harry laughed. Trust Hermione to go for the really big issues.

-SCENE BREAK-

Dumbledore entered his office intent on getting his sugar fix for the day, only to pull up in shock at the great mess spread over the floor. All of his books had been pulled from their shelves. His ink had been knocked over and poured out all over his desk. His Whatchamacalits and Thingamajigers were all smashed and shattered. Looking to one of the only things still sitting in its place, he asked dumbfounded, "Fawkes? What happened here?"

The bird just blinked lazily at him before taking flight. As he headed for the window, his tail feathers struck the bowl on the desk which hit the floor with a loud clang. A lone sherbert lemon rolled across the floor to land solemnly at Dumbledore's foot.

All he could manage was a flabbergasted, "Wha..?"

-SCENE BREAK-

Harry had left Hermione in the kitchens to eat lunch in order to go visit Draco. He found the boy just heading into the Great Hall and pulled him aside. After he was certain that he was well, he informed him of what had occurred with Hermione. Draco assured him that he would inform the others and then told him of Ron's odd behavior.

Ron had been downcast and introspective since last night. Just before they were allowed to leave the infirmary, Ron had even approached him and thanked him for trying to save him. He'd then apologized for his previous behavior and scurried out.

Hopefully this indicated a serious change in his attitude.

After his brief conversation with Draco, Harry had gone to the Chamber of Secrets for some silence and privacy. There he'd attempted to figure out exactly why that troll was in the castle. Hogwarts herself was of little help, but a thorough search for strange energy sources revealed a high concentration of magic in a hidden chamber accessible through a certain third floor corridor. Harry cursed as he recognized the thick, rich magic swirling around and clinging to the Philosopher's Stone.

Why hadn't Dumbledore made an announcement if it was here? Why was it here if Quirrell wasn't conscious to even think about stealing it? Was there someone else after it? Or had Dumbledore simply failed to mention to Nicholas Flamel that there was no longer any need to hide it? Did that mean that he had appropriated it for himself? Was Dumbledore's mind so far gone that he would seriously consider using it? Or was he already? Come to think of it, he had been unnaturally spry for a hundred and fifty year old during the previous timeline. Was it ever really destroyed? Had Dumbledore only claimed it destroyed and kept it for himself? Harry had thought this madness that seemed to come over him was a result of changed events, but could he simply have been better at hiding it before?

Regardless of the reasons, Harry could not allow the chance of such a powerful item in the hands of either Dumbledore or Voldemort. In short order, he had Shadowed into the room, grabbed the Stone and Shadowed it to Night Haven. There he placed it in a secure room under so many spells and wards no one would ever have a chance of breaking through them, even if they did somehow find his house. Afterwards, he wrapped the entire room in protective shadows, ordered the house elves not to enter that room under pain of dismissal and returned to Hogwarts. The entire trip didn't take any longer than twenty minutes and no one was the wiser. He could just imagine Dumbledore's expression when he found his protections undisturbed and the Stone gone.

Nellie was suspiciously absent from Ravenclaw Tower and he eventually found her lurking around the gargoyle that protected Dumbledore's office. Upon questioning, she claimed to have been waiting for the old man to come by so she could trip him. Harry quickly advised her against such an action, scooped her up and headed back to the Chamber for a little chat. She denied ever having wings and said Hermione must have been dreaming, but her assertions were far from convincing. Put simply, Nellie was a bad liar. However, any intention of pushing further was discarded when Nellie purposely provoked the imposing Ophion and a chase ensued. Nellie darted here and there, hiding in the smallest of crevices while Ophion threatened to squash her if she didn't apologize. Harry recognized the diversion for what it was, including the fact that Ophion never would have responded to her goading in normal circumstances. Obviously it wasn't only Nellie hiding something. If the Basilisk thought it was something he shouldn't know right now, Harry trusted him enough not to question it. For now.

Harry's week-long detentions with Severus included little work and quite a bit of conversation. They spent most of the time discussing their personal ideologies, the world at large and, of course, potions. Severus had Harry brew complex potions such as Veritaserum and Wolfsbane and continued to be amazed by Harry's knowledge and skill. They quickly made plans to visit the Ministry over Christmas break so that Harry could take his Potions OWL and, if he passed, his NEWT as well. While Dumbledore could control what Severus taught as a professor of Hogwarts, he could not control what Harry did during holidays, nor whether or not he had any part in it. Severus promised Harry that as soon as he passed NEWT level Potions, he would officially take him on as his apprentice. As a Master of Potions, no one could prevent him from taking anyone as his apprentice, provided they had completed and passed their NEWT in the subject and were of age or had parental consent.

By Monday, Hermione was as able to protect her secrets as the others and had begun training in Occlumency. It seemed that Mind Magics interested her and she had been learning intense concentration when practicing with Tonks. As to that training, she blushingly admitted that she was already able to change small things and had made her first permanent change to her body. She'd reduced the size of her front teeth, going against her parents wishes that she not use magic for such things. Harry was slightly chagrined to realize he'd not noticed, but she said she'd changed them slowly to prevent precisely that.

It was only a few days later that a frantic Richard Bradley, Ravenclaw's Quidditch captain, approached Harry. Ravenclaw was set to play Hufflepuff the next day and their Seeker had come down with Dragonpox. They had no reserve and if they didn't find someone to fill the spot, they would have to forfeit. Damon Zabini, Blaise's elder brother and a sixth year Chaser, had so lauded Harry's skills on a broom that the desperate captain insisted that Harry show him. After coaxing him onto the pitch and onto a broom, he got to witness his skills firsthand. The seventh year begged and pleaded with Harry to become their Reserve Seeker, with special permission from Flitwick and Dumbledore, and Harry felt so bad for the poor boy that he agreed.

The next day, Harry floated high above the pitch, lazily circling the action below him. Ravenclaw was currently down by ten points and he'd let the game go on for twenty minutes now despite the fact that he had the snitch clearly in his sights. A normal wizard would not have been able to see it, so he left it alone. There was also the fact that Hufflepuff was breaking in a new Seeker, one Cedric Diggory, and he couldn't bring himself to catch it before the other boy could even find it. Cedric was good and he didn't want the boy to think otherwise just because Harry had an unfair advantage.

"Go, Ravenclaw!" came the Weasley twins' cheer from the Hufflepuff side. "Catch that snitch, little birdie!" they cried, waving at him ecstatically. Harry waved back just before a large boy waving a Hufflepuff pennant, sporting facepaint and a "Hufflepuff OWNS!" t-shirt clocked both boys on the back of the head and knocked them out of their seats.

Harry chuckled. "They so deserved that," he laughed, shaking his head.

"They do it on purpose," came Cedric's voice as he pulled alongside him. "Jack made them wet their pants in first year with a badly cast tickling charm and they've had it out for him ever since." Cedric smiled brightly at him and leaned precariously across the distance to offer his hand. "I don't think we've met. I'm Cedric Diggory."

Harry smiled back as he shook the boy's hand. "Harry Potter. Nice to meet you."

"You're friends with Eleanor, right?" Cedric asked almost nervously. After Harry nodded, he continued, "Do you think..? I mean, have you talked to her lately?"

Harry shook his head. "Not in the past couple weeks. I've been really busy. Why?"

A light blush pinked his cheeks and he averted his gaze in embarrassment. "No reason."

"Oi! Diggory!" came the cry from Hufflepuff's keeper. "Stop chatting and look behind you!"

Cedric's head whipped around to find the snitch hovering not two inches from his nose. The second he spotted it, it shot off across the pitch and Cedric spun his broom around to give chase. Harry was quick to follow, but his hastily borrowed school broom was no match for Cedric's top of the line one and he lagged behind. However, in an odd twist, the snitch doubled back and zipped through the gap between them before Cedric could get turned around. Out of reflex, Harry's hand shot out and grabbed the little golden ball as it passed by his face.

The Ravenclaw stands went wild. From that point on, whether he wanted it or not, Harry became Ravenclaw's permanent Reserve Seeker and was expected to take the current seventh year Seeker's position next year. Harry wasn't complaining. He did love Quidditch and flying. Sure, he had an edge over all the other players, but he really couldn't bring himself to care. If torture didn't bother him, beating everyone at a game using his enhanced senses certainly didn't.

At first, he thought that all the practices would be a problem, as he needed that time to himself for various reasons, but reserves weren't required to make every practice. As long as Harry continued to display that level of skill, they didn't care if he never showed. The only reason he may have needed to practice with them was to work on teamwork. However, as Seeker, he really didn't need to work well with the others. As long as he caught the snitch, they were happy.

Two days before the students were to leave for Christmas, Hermione came running up to him in a panic. Her curls were bushier than usual and flying in all directions, her robes were askew and her eyes were wild and panicked.

"Harry!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms around his neck desperately.

"Hermione?" he asked in confusion as he hugged her back.

"Oh, I am in so much trouble!" she cried mournfully, uncaring of the multitude of curious eyes watching them from around the Ravenclaw common room.

"I doubt that," he murmured comfortingly, patting her back. "Why don't you tell me what happened and I'll decide who I need to kill?"

She laughed dolefully and pulled away, wiping a tear from her eye. Now Harry was worried and a bit angry. Someone had made her cry. They would need to pay.

Drawing herself up, Hermione confided in a whisper, "I punched Millicent Bulstrode."

It was Harry's turn to laugh at this. Whatever he'd been expecting, that wasn't it. "Well, I'm sure she deserved it."

"Well, yes," she agreed quickly. "But that's not the point. She said she was going to tell Professor Snape and that I would be expelled."

Harry patted her hand reassuringly. "Don't worry. You won't be expelled. The most you'll get is a detention and maybe a letter home. What'd she say to make you hit her?"

"Well," she began, looking down at the floor. "I was walking back from the greenhouses with Neville when she came around a corner. She called Neville a squib and me his..." She paused looking undecided and blushing heavily, but continued nonetheless. "She called me his mudblood whore."

Harry actually growled, startling Hermione into looking up at him. His eyes blazed with anger and a hint of red had begun creeping into them. A fang peeked over his lip and she quickly grabbed him by the hand and dragged him up to his empty dorm room before anyone else could see.

"No one," he snarled as he prowled around the room looking much like a caged, angry animal. "No one calls my sister that!"

Hermione blushed again. She knew she and Harry were close, the best of friends, but that he saw her as family made her heart swell with joy and pride.

"Harry," she said, attempting to calm him and completely unafraid of the pacing vampire. "It's okay. I mean, Draco and Pansy call me a mudblood sometimes... Of course, it is a bit different when they do it. More like an endearment than an insult. But still! It's not like it's the last time I'll hear it as an insult and it's not something to get this worked up about. I don't even know why it bothered me so much. I think I was defending Neville more than myself."

"It's not that exactly," he said, stopping before her and visibly controlling himself. "Mudblood is bad insult, yes. Whore, I don't particularly like directed at you either, but it's the two together that makes it so horrible. You see, not too long ago, muggleborns weren't allowed 'respectable' positions in wizarding society and were so far removed from the muggle one, after seven years or more of education in the magical, that they had no marketable skills there. Most wizards wouldn't even hire one as a servant. So, many muggleborn women ended up selling themselves in an effort just to stay alive. To the purebloods, it was an affirmation to their beliefs that 'mudbloods' really were just filthy creatures, lower than house elves and there solely for a 'true' wizard's pleasure. Calling you a mudblood whore is both an insult against your parentage and insinuates that all you'll ever amount to is a whore. If you were an official member of my family, I would be well within my rights to demand either an honor duel with her father or her life as recompense for such an insult."

"Oh my," Hermione breathed, bringing her hand up to cover her lips in astonishment. She had no idea that it had been such a horrible slur and, had she known then, she probably would have done more than just punch her.

"However," Harry continued, letting out a heavy sigh. "I am probably overreacting. It's been almost two weeks since I've seen my Consort, so I'm a bit on edge."

Hermione's focus immediately changed directions and her eyes sparkled at the chance of learning more secrets about her...brother. "Consort?" she questioned interestedly.

Harry smiled and began to explain a Consort's place, leaving out exactly who his Consort was, and vowed to speak with Severus before he left. Hermione would not be punished for that vindictive little mini-bitch's insolence.

-SCENE BREAK-

Dumbledore spun a single black feather between his thumb and forefinger, watching from his office window as the students boarded the carriages to spend Christmas with their families. He'd found it when he was cleaning up his office weeks earlier after Fawkes' uncharacteristic display of belligerence. However, he was coming to believe that it wasn't Fawkes' doing after all. He'd had the feather analyzed by some of his contacts and they were unable to determine what species of avian it belonged to.

It was certainly not an owl, he'd known that right away, nor any other postal bird, exotic or common. For one thing, the shaft of the feather wasn't hollow, which indicated that the bones of the creature weren't hollow either and that flight was supported by magic rather than decreased body weight. There were also tiny blue scales covering the base of the feather, which indicated that the creature it came from was reptilian in nature. The only winged reptiles were the Occamy and Dragons. He highly doubted one of those would have paid him a visit, only to trash his office and rile his Phoenix. There was also the fact that his researchers would have recognized it had it been from either creature. Unless it was from an unknown species.

Yes. Perhaps a baby dragon of some kind. He could see one getting lost, flying in his window, panicking and destroying his office before flying back out. There were some species of dragon who's young had never been documented. The Hebridean Black, for example, was thought to be born with scales a sort of blue-green color which darkened as it aged. Maybe it was from an unknown cousin.

Whatever the case, the creature who left it was certainly unique and warranted further examination. Dumbledore tucked the feather away in a locked box for later study, never noticing the steady gaze of his Phoenix companion.

"Albus!" Minerva cried, throwing open the door with a resounding crash. "A first year has been mauled by one of the Thestrals!"

"Which one?" Dumbledore asked calmly, mentally calculating which student's parents could do the most damage if their child was hurt.

"Millicent Bulstrode of Slytherin House," she replied with growing annoyance at the man's blasé attitude toward an injured student. "Apparently Bulstrode had a piece of raw, bloody meat in her pocket and it attacked her to get to it." Leading Dumbledore out and to the hospital wing, she pondered on why the girl would be carrying around raw meat of all things.

As the office door shut, the wooden box with the feather burst into flames. Flames which quickly spread to the desk, chair, floor and everything else.

"Whoops," Fawkes muttered with the bird equivalent of a smirk before disappearing in a ball of fire, intent on hiding out with Harry for the holidays.

-SCENE BREAK-

On the train, in their expanded compartment compliments of Tonks once again, Harry was watching Ron, Dudley, Seamus, Dean and Neville play Exploding Snap on the floor while he and Hermione read from the same copy of Potions Monthly. Hermione was planning to try her hand at Wolfsbane over Christmas, with Harry supervising of course, and it had a wonderful article on it. Ron would be spending Christmas with Dudley and Petunia, not wanting to be the only Gryffindor left at Hogwarts over the holidays.

Both Draco and Blaise were passed out on the bench opposite them, draped over each other and drooling. Theo had woken them both up at an ungodly hour that morning because the two had forgotten to pack the night before and neither were very pleased about it. Theo was busy dipping both of their hair in ink with an evil little smile.

Pansy had been picked up at Hogwarts by her parents who were going to Italy to visit a cousin. They had an early morning portkey to catch and couldn't wait for her to ride the train home.

Harry himself wasn't really paying much attention to the newsletter he was sharing with Hermione. All he could do was smirk in satisfaction while remembering Bulstrode's screams as something invisible, to her, began ripping at her clothes and chewing on her side. He felt little to no remorse at setting a flesh eating creature on an eleven year old girl. She'd insulted his family and deserved it. Besides, she'd survive. Maybe.

A flash of fire erupted suddenly in the middle of the compartment. The five Gryffindors screamed and ducked as they felt the heat of the flames over their heads. Theo pressed himself against the window and Draco and Blaise came awake with a start, knocking over the bottle of ink Theo had been using onto Ron's head. Harry just chuckled at their reactions, well used to the firebird's manner of travel. Before the flames could die away to reveal Fawkes, Hermione whipped out her wand and sent a jet of water at the bird, knocking it out of the air with a squawk and into Draco. The blonde shrieked at the sopping mass of scarlet and gold feathers in his lap and leapt to his feet, dumping the indignant bird onto the floor, and jumped up to stand on the seat in fright.

Fawkes raised his dripping head, glared at Hermione and then turned his glare on Harry as if to say, 'This is all your fault'.

Harry laughed. "Guys, meet Fawkes."

-SCENE BREAK-

Platform 9 ₃/₄ was, as usual, crowded with people. Parents shouted their children's names loudly while students hopped up and down and climbed on their trunks in an effort to locate their kin. Squeals of joy sporadically cut through the cacophony as families were reunited and people elbowed their way through the crowd without care or concern for whoever may be in their way.

Seamus was suddenly plowed into by a pretty red-haired woman and enveloped in a suffocating hug. "There's my baby!" she exclaimed, rocking his head back and forth where it was firmly wedged between her ample bosom. "I've missed you so much! Yes I have!"

"Aw, Mum," he groaned, red faced. "Leggome-ack!" Without a single glance at anyone else, the ecstatic woman wrapped an arm around her son's neck and began dragging him towards the apparation point, cooing all the while to him about how much she'd missed him and how she was never letting him go again. Seamus waved wanly to his friends just as they disappeared into the crowd.

Dean began to laugh at his friend's plight, but quickly blanched upon spotting his own mother advancing on him with a wide smile and teary eyes.

"Oh, my precious baby boy!" she cried, wrapping him in a tight hug and squeezing until he began turning blue. Luckily, his father was there to pry them apart before she could do permanent damage. He smiled apologetically at his son's friends before steering both mother and son toward the exit into muggle London.

Neville was the next to be retrieved. Resplendent in her dowdy grey robes with a high collar, clutching her handbag to her tightly, the vulture on her hat bobbing slightly as she was jostled by the crowd and a stern frown on her face, Augusta Longbottom strode through the crowd with a determined expression. Neville ducked his head submissively as she drew close to them.

"Neville," she said by way of greeting.

"Gran," he mumbled back, not looking up from his shoes.

Harry frowned. Neville had been gaining in confidence these past few months, but it all seemed to unravel when faced with the stately Longbottom Matriarch. Drawing himself up, Harry stepped between the two and gave a winsome smile.

"Madam Longbottom," he said formally, offering his hand. "It is an honor to meet you. I am Harry James Potter, Lord of House Potter and Heir to House Black."

The older woman seemed to study him a moment, sizing him up, before clasping his hand to shake it. Harry could feel her approval as he gave a short bow over it instead.

"Augusta Longbottom," she replied with a dignified half-smile. "Matriarch of House Longbottom."

Gesturing to the others, he continued to introduce them, heedless of Blaise's mother as she came up behind them. "May I introduce my friends? This is Draco Malfoy, son of Lord and Lady Malfoy. Blaise Zabini, son of Lady Adeline Zabini and John Durand."

Blaise grimaced when reminded of his father, an untitled pureblood who's fortune had been made in the potions industry. Rumor had it that he'd died only days after Blaise was born, killed in a freak Floo accident in which his mother 'forgot' to remove the grate on the only fireplace hooked up to the network in their home. Supposedly, it'd taken the house elves weeks to remove all the chunks of John from the sitting room after he'd been shot out through the finger sized, razor sharp holes in the decorative grate. Like a block of cheddar through a cheese grater, he'd heard said.

Harry continued on, ignoring Adeline's wistful smile at the mention of husband number three. "Ronald Weasley, son of Arthur and Molly Weasley. Dudley Dursley, my maternal cousin and Hermione Granger, my Chosen Sister."

Augusta gave barely perceptible nods to each, but her eyes widened minutely when Fawkes flew down from the top of the train to perch on Harry's shoulder, obviously annoyed at being left out of introductions.

"Ah, and this is Fawkes," Harry smiled indulgently at the firebird, ignoring Nellie's irritated wriggling under his shirt. He had no idea why, but his snake had detested the phoenix since roughly a month or so ago. Nellie claimed Fawkes had tried to eat her, but refused to say more when reminded that the phoenix only ate fruit, nuts and ash.

"It was my understanding that," Augusta said, looking down her nose at the group of children, "that particular phoenix belongs to Headmaster Dumbledore."

Harry gave a forced chuckle, reaching up to scratch under Fawkes chin. "Yes, well, a phoenix doesn't 'belong' to anyone, madam. They are incredibly intelligent, independent individuals and would never lower themselves to fill the role of 'pet'. According to 'Hogwarts, the Founding Years', Godric Gryffindor had a phoenix familiar which promised to protect and serve each subsequent headmaster after him. I believe that to be Fawkes here."

The topic of current conversation gave a happy trill in the affirmative, sending waves of Light magic pouring fluidly over everyone nearby. The other children, Augusta and several others in the area all felt a sense of peace and joy wash over them, but Harry gave a small shudder at the cold sensation of an icy wind whipping through him mind, body, soul and magic as Light clashed with Dark. A hint of unreasonable fear crept up on him before he threw up his most powerful mental shields to keep the magic at bay. His sigh of relief was easily misconstrued to be a happy one in response to the phoenix song by the others. Silently, he made a note to always keep his best shields up around Fawkes. The phoenix may mean well, but the magic of such a pure Light creature did not blend well with his own Dark nature.

Continuing on as if it had not affected him, he said, "As Fawkes was the familiar of my ancestor, he is pre inclined to take a liking to me. Blood, after all, is more powerful than the title of headmaster."

"Forgive me," Adeline interrupted, looking quite pale. "I must steal my son away. Excuse me, Madam Longbottom," she said with a respectful nod at the aging woman, pulling Blaise behind her as they disappeared into the crowd, her hand on the boy's shoulder shaking ever so slightly.

Frankly, Harry was surprised the woman had held up as well as she did. While she had rather impressive Occlumency shields, they were far from capable of withstanding a phoenix's song. Her own Dark wasn't as all encompassing as his own, but she was very definitely a Dark Witch, through and through.

Augusta opened her mouth to speak, but was rudely shoved aside as twin blurs of red sped past her on either side. Knowing from experience what this particular whirlwind was and wanting no part of it, Fawkes immediately took flight and disappeared in a burst of flame.

"Ronnikins!" Fred shouted, thrusting the Tarantula he held into his brother's face.

"Ahhh!" Ron shrieked in terror, ducking behind Draco and clinging to the other boy's robes.

George immediately pounced from the other side, pried his little brother off the noble boy and held him captive. "Isn't she a beauty?" he exclaimed as his twin shoved the large spider in Ron's face again.

"Ge-get- GET IT AWAY!!" Ron screamed, going pale and shaking when a hairy leg brushed against his cheek.

Just as a thoroughly disgusted Augusta had righted her hat and was preparing to attempt to speak again, Lee Jordan ran by shouting for the immediate return of his pet. With a huff, the woman turned away, commanding imperiously, "Come along, Neville. You know how I detest such crowded places as this."

The boy nodded compliantly and gave a soft, "Bye, guys." and the two were promptly whisked away via portkey.

With a sigh, Draco eluded Ron's grasping hands and easily ignored his pleas for help. "I'd best go find Father before he finds me," he explained, glancing pointedly at Harry. "We don't want a scene here. I'll see you tomorrow, Harry."

Theo quickly excused himself soon after, having spotted his mother and pleading an insistent need for the toilet. He surprised Hermione by bidding her farewell with a polite kiss to the hand, before hastily darting away. Hermione just stood there dumbfounded.

A loud cry of "Prongslet!" made several heads shoot up and the twins paused in their torment of "ickle Ronnikins".

Sirius seemed to materialize out of thin air as he wrapped both arms around Harry and lifted him off the ground in a bear hug.

Fred and George exchanged speculative looks and murmured simultaneously, "Prongs-let?"

Harry laughed as his godfather hugged him soundly, both feet dangling off the ground and his arms trapped against his sides. "Hiya, Padfoot. I take it you missed me?"

"Oh, it's been awful!" Sirius declared melodramatically, setting Harry back on his feet. "Moony moped around the house for weeks after you left! And then he left! Said his pack needed him, but I think I just exhausted him with all that 'distracting' I did."

He made to wink suggestively, but a clawed hand promptly smacked him on the back of the head as Remus appeared beside him. "Sirius, stop corrupting the children!" he demanded, smiling warmly at Harry despite the reprimand to his mate. "Hello, Harry. Ready to go?"

Harry nodded and turned to the twins. "Sorry, but we need to borrow ickle Ronnikins for a while. You two have fun at Lee's."

With that, he took Dudley and Hermione by the wrists. Hermione grabbed a traumatized Ron's hand, pulling him away from his brothers just as Sirius laid a hand on her shoulder and the lot of them apparated away, leaving the twins to ponder.

The moment they arrived at Leonis House, Harry was pounced by the waiting Lucius Malfoy. Blindsided by his Consort's surprise attack, he fell onto his back as the blonde man curled up against his side and, Harry would swear to it later, purred happily.

Hermione blinked curiously, Dudley stared openmouthed and Ron was startled out of his spider induced daze. All three could do nothing but stare in astonishment as the handsome gentleman in the fine robes proceeded to knock their friend to the floor and nuzzle into his neck. They were further surprised to note that a blissful smile the likes of which none of them had ever seen before spread over Harry's lips and he began to run his fingers through the man's long hair lovingly, oblivious to anything else around them.

"Oh, for the love of-!" Remus exclaimed, shooting three quick wandless stunners at the children and catching them as they crumpled to the ground.

A memory charm apiece later, they were revived and sent through the floo to their homes, Ron going with Dudley to his house.

Sirius flooed Malfoy Mansion and informed Narcissa that it appeared her husband would be staying the night again, before retreating to his room with Remus to attempt to wipe the image of his godson cuddling with a man several years older than Sirius himself from his mind. The kitchen elves had a light load that night as none emerged for dinner and indeed no one was seen until late the next morning.

-SCENE BREAK-

Harry could not stop smiling as he snuggled closer to Lucius. The sun had set hours ago and Lucius had finally fallen asleep nestled in his lord's arms. For the first time in months, Harry did not feel the restlessness that routinely disturbed his nights. His vampiric nature was at peace and perfectly content to lay still and silent, to comfort his beloved and take pleasure in the serenity of the moment.

The light of a single candle, sitting on the bedside table, cast a warm glow over the sleeping man, giving him an unearthly glow, a halo surrounding the white-blonde locks of which Harry was so enamored.

Lucius' arms were firmly locked around his waist and Harry took advantage of his small size, usually a subject of frustration when it came to showing his Consort affection, to curl into Lucius' chest.

His head was tilted at an angle, tucked under Lucius' chin, his lips resting lightly on the man's throat as per usual. The pulse which would usually prompt an urge to feed in most vampires merely served to reassure him that his love was alive and well and there. Harry regularly breathed in deep, taking in the scent of the one who was his, forever.

One of his hands lay flat against Lucius' broad chest while the other had snaked up under the hem of his loose pajama shirt to caress smooth skin. Direct contact was always the best to soothe their bond after more than a week apart and Harry was quickly becoming enraptured by the feel of his Consort's bare skin beneath his touch. So vital. So full of life and warmth.

So unlike his Ginny. She had been cold and hard, still and stale. Even in the early days, before time and loss had killed her soul, she had never felt like this. Not even when the blood nourished her body, warmed her skin and made her supple and responsive. She had been glacial perfection, unnatural in her allure. The flame that fed her soul in life became diminished by her darkness. Her passion vanished as her heart, once pure and noble, was withered by so many nights without end.

She was not made for an eternity of darkness. Many times in his life, Harry had mourned the fate dealt her. Had he not been so selfish, so blinded by love, he would not have allowed her to follow him into darkness. In the end, he truly believed that the only thing that held her to her long unlife had been the bond of love between them. She had not been an affectionate person near the end, but no one could doubt her love for him, and his for her. When he held her in his arms as she slept, he could feel the dead soul that inhabited that frozen, marble flesh and so many times he had come close to ending her existence, freeing her from her torment. To puncture that porcelain neck and drain the last vestiges of the woman she once had been from her frigid flesh until her pallor truly was that of the grave. He was a selfish man though, as he had always been, and he could not bear to part with the last thing that remained from his life, the last person who knew him completely.

When she was finally lost to him, his desperation drove him to break all the laws of nature and the universe in order to have her back with him, better this time, alive. And now, he had not thought of her in years. Now, he had filled the void left by her death with something new, something better, something alive and warm. Something so perfect, it could not be described in words.

Tears filled his eyes and he clenched them shut, a wave of sadness and guilt threatening to overwhelm him as he realized. He had never felt with his wife as he did with his Consort. So whole and complete. So perfect. The sense of betrayal was acute and sharp and he clutched Lucius to him tightly. His Ginny would never exist again, but his memories of her were as clear as ever. This was meant to be, he and Lucius. The bond between them was forged by Magic itself, but he still couldn't deny the pain he felt as he remembered his lovely wife. Not cold and callous, dead in body and soul, but alive and passionate. The woman he fell in love with.

"Harry," a soft voice whispered and for a moment he couldn't distinguish the source, from his memories or the here and now. A gentle hand, soft and warm, caressed his cheek and heated lips pressed against his forehead. "You think too loudly, my love."

Strong arms pulled him closer and he couldn't help but sigh as the cold past was driven away and replaced with tender moments and warm embraces. As he fell into the land of dreams, secure in the arms of his beloved, he knew that though his Ginny was gone, he still lived, and he would continue living.

-SCENE BREAK-

The sun shines down upon the Alley as people laugh, shop, meet up with friends and enjoy the summer. He stands to the side, leaning against a partition between stalls and watching as the happy people go about their daily lives. Just a few feet away, a beautiful woman in the prime of her life is sifting through bolts of fabric, chatting with the shopkeeper and laughing at some joke the matronly woman made as she is handed a fabric sample for her inspection. She tucks a stray lock of brilliantly red hair behind her ear with a delicate hand and leans forward to drop several gold coins into the other woman's hand, accepting her purchases with grateful smile.

A dark haired young boy runs forward and darts behind the woman's legs as a teen girl with the same vivid hair as the woman chases after him. The woman just laughs as her daughter chases her son, waving a large fish in the air and laughing happily.

Suddenly, the woman looks up. Her eyes meet his and a bright smile lights up her face. "Harry!" she exclaims as he pushes off the wall and makes his way toward her. She throws a loving arm around his neck and hugs him tight. "I'm so glad you're back. I've missed you."

"I've missed you too, Gin," he hears himself saying.

"Dad!" the boy cries, leaping up into his father's arms with a grin and giving him a tight hug as well. "Make Lily stop," he pleads.

"I'm just doing it for the halibut," the girl says with a smirk, throwing her arms around her father and giving him a peck on the cheek, before playfully smacking her little brother on the side of the head with the fish.

"Lillian, stop teasing your brother," he says with a playful smirk mirroring hers.

"Oh, but I'm serious, dad," she replies, waving the fish at him. "The fish told me to. See?" Using one hand, she moves the mouth of the fish while throwing her voice. "Smack Nick with me. Smack Nick with me," she moans in a deep voice, her mother stifling giggles behind her hand.

He laughs as well, unable to maintain his admonishing glare in the face of her silliness. However, something feels off. The sun is warm, but that's not right. The streets are crowded, but they shouldn't be. People are happy and carefree, but where is the misery and fear? Everything is right, but so very wrong.

Ginny sighs and he suddenly finds himself alone with her. The streets are empty. The sun is covered by thick clouds. All the stores are boarded up. There are deep pits and gouges in the cobblestone street from many explosions and debris litters the ground. Black burn marks cover what's left of what was once Madam Malkin's robe shop. Everything is grey and depressing, yet this is right. This is how it is supposed to be.

"You could never allow yourself this little bit of peace. You could never delude yourself into believing something could be so right," Ginny says, her face drawn and gaunt. Her eyes are shadowed and despair haunts them. Her clothes, before a bright colorful summer dress, are now torn and frayed battle robes with the remains of spell damage and quick sewing charms evident. Just down the street, the children are huddled together against a doorway, as if hiding from some terrible unseen evil. His wife's voice is tired and filled with sadness as she speaks. "It's just a dream, Harry. It's alright to be happy in dreams."

"Ginny?" he questions, but she only shakes her head in response.

"We were never really happy, Harry. Our lives, long though they were, always fell to pain and sorrow in the end, no matter what we did. We had our ups and downs, highs and lows, but the joy that other people experienced was never really ours. We gave our own happiness up in order to protect that of others. We were soldiers, my Harry, and we could not afford to put ourselves above what we knew to be right. We loved each other and we loved our children, but love doesn't always bring happiness. We watched those around us die, those we loved die by the enemy's hand and by that of time, and with every death, our hearts hardened just a bit more. We became callous and cruel, decadent and indifferent, and when we should have tried to heal each other, we only withdrew further, too lost in our own suffering to care about that of husband and wife. We changed. From children to adults. From adults to battle hardened warriors. From soldiers to heroes."

The skin of her face pales, becoming beautiful and terrible. Her eyes harden and take on a preternatural shine. Her lips darken and become drenched in blood.

"From heroes to monsters." A cold hand tipped in deadly claws comes up to stroke his face, nails leaving behind trickles of crimson in their wake as they break the skin. He winces. "I loved you more than life itself. It was my choice and you should not blame yourself. Perhaps I should have died a mortal, but I enjoyed my life, my family, my love for you. It was hard, painful and I was so very tired, but I would not have traded it for anything."

Suddenly, she lashes out, striking him hard across the face with the back of her hand. Her eyes flash angrily and her fangs are bared threateningly. "Forget me, Harry," she growls. "I don't exist. I never did and I never will. Throw away your memories of me. They lie to you. You never had a wife. Your only existence is Now. You lie in the arms of one who loves you, who will be faithful to you beyond all others and will never want for anything outside of your embrace. If you dare to give less than everything you are to him, because of some sense of betrayal of me, I swear I will haunt your dreams from now until eternity. Your own mind will never let you rest. My love was conditional, dependent upon external forces. His is made just for you. To deny it would be to deny your fate, and we both know how well that can turn out."

"Leave me be, my once and never husband. Let me live my life without you and you live yours with him. Now, WAKE UP!!"

-SCENE BREAK-

Harry shot up in bed with a gasp, dislodging Lucius' arms and waking the man from his slumber.

"Harry?" he slurred, blinking owlishly at him as early morning sunlight shone in the window. "My lord, are you alright?" he tried again after getting no response, sitting up and placing a comforting hand on Harry's shoulder.

Harry smiled. "Yes, I'm fine," he replied softly. "It was just a dream."

Laying back down, he drew Lucius with him, curling into him once again. "Lucius?" he asked softly after a few moments of silence.

"Mmm?" the other man mumbled, nuzzling against his hair.

"Have I told you that I love you?"