The Burrow - January 6, 2001
Bill Weasley slowly walked up the cobble stone path on his way up to his childhood home. He had been working weekends so that he would be able to finish out his contract a little early. He had wanted to be able to come home and visit with his brothers before they had to go back to school at the end of the weekend. Knocking on the door, he heard his father call out that the door was open and to come on in.
"Bill! You're home?" The twins and Percy all shouted happily when he walked through the door. Getting up, they all ran over to hug him.
"Bill. What brings you home early. I thought your apprenticeship didn't finish up till next weekend?" Arthur asked, hugging his son once the younger boys were out of the way.
"He must have finally come to his senses and realized that that was no type of life for him." Molly was excited that Bill had left the bank early, it would break his contract.
"No, mother." It took everything Bill had to call the harpy mother, he hated this woman for what she had done to his fathers. "I worked a few weekends so that I could finish up my contract a little early so I could be here before the boys went back to school."
"So, how have you liked the past 2 years with the bank? Do you like the job?" Arthur asked as the twins and Percy made room so that Bill could sit down for lunch.
"I love it. It's been completely amazing." Bill said, his eyes shining with joy as he thought of everything that he had done in the past two years. "I can't even begin to describe what it's been like."
Before Bill could continue, Ron and Ginny shuffled into the kitchen, sat down, and started eating. Bill raised an eyebrow at the fact it was lunch time and they had just gotten up. They didn't even notice that their elder brother was home.
"Just getting up?" Bill asked. Ron and Ginny looked up and were surprised to see him there.
"What are you doing here?" Ron questioned.
"Did you bring me presents?" Ginny wanted to know.
"They're still young Bill, they need there sleep. You remember what it's like." Molly was fussing around the youngest children.
"I remember that I was expected to be up at a decent time starting by the age of 7. Ron will be starting at Hogwarts in the fall. He is going to have to get up for morning classes, or he will fail." Bill said. He knew from everything he had heard from Charlie and the letters from the twins and Percy that it was a losing battle, but he had to try. Molly just waved him away.
"So." Arthur said. He frowned at Molly for continuing to baby the kids. "What will you be doing now. Or can you not tell us?"
"It's fine. I am currently between contracts so I can talk, just not in specifics. I've actually been offered the chance to lead my own team at a new dig site in Egypt."
"Lead your own team, already? Shouldn't it take longer." Arthur asked.
"Normally, it would. But Remus and the rest of our team gave me some great reviews, so I'm being given a chance sooner than normal." Bill said with a smile.
"How is Remus doing? I heard about some knew potion that could help him?" Arthur was glad that Bill was so happy. He had known that Remus would do well with Bill.
Bill grabbed another sandwich. "Remus is great. That potion that Professor Snape created has worked wonders." Bill knew that he had to refer to Severus impersonally, they didn't want anyone to know that he Remus, Sirius, and Sebastian were on the same team. "He told me that he has never felt better. There isn't any pain in his shifting, and he can even change at will. I've been around when he's shifted. Charlie made him do it while he was visiting so that he could get a good look at him. Remus thought Charlie's obsession with creatures was funny so he allowed himself to be examined for over an hour.
I have also gotten permission to tell you his good news. Remus is a father. He has identical twin girls."
"Oh that's wonderful. I always figured he would be a great father." Arthur was overjoyed.
"That's terrible. It's illegal for werewolves to reproduce. I can't believe that you think it's ok to put children in such a dangerous situation." Molly shrieked.
Bill rolled his eyes. "It's only illegal here in Britain. Besides, with the new potion he isn't a danger at all. He usually curls up on the floor during the full moon and the girls love to climb all over him. And just so that you don't make the same mistake many make, lycanthropy is transferred through the saliva, so the girls are human."
"Really Molly." Arthur hated how people like his wife talked about Remus. "Remus fought on our side during the last war. He was our friend, he even helped babysit the kids. I think he was one of the few that was ever able to even come close to keeping up with the twins. Our his twins anything like ours?"
"Let me put it this way. There were times I missed how calm our twins are." Bill smiled at the shocked look on their fathers face.
"That can't be possible. No one can be as… Exciting, as our twins." Percy put in, directing a smirk at the twins. Until they sent him devious smirks and he got a panicked look.
"Under normal circumstances they might have just been on par with our boys, but they weren't alone." Bill said, he had gotten permission to discuss the kids in generalities, but not specifics. "One of the other curse breakers on our team also had a daughter that had been born on the same day as the twins, so they were raised more like triplets. They also had a cousin that was born two weeks before them. Two I can handle, three I can tolerate, but four. There is just no keeping up with four of them.
Especially since their older brothers taught them how to do the puppy dog eyes when they were only a year old. They were just so adorable, no one could stay mad at them."
Arthur laughed.
"There was actually something I wanted to talk to you three about." Bill said, looking to Percy and the twins.
"Sure, what do you need?" Percy asked, speaking for the others.
"The son of one of my team members is going to be starting at Hogwarts in the fall. I told my team all about you and they were hoping that you would help him out. Percy, they were hoping that you would help to keep him in line, and twins, they were hoping you would make sure he gets into a little trouble."
"Sure, we'll keep an eye on him." Percy said, Fred and George were grinning at each other. "But how are we supposed to know who he is? I mean, like you said, you can only speak in generalities, you can't give us his name."
"You always were the clever one Perce. No, I can't give you his name, but I can give you a way to find him. He has a kitsune, though she is still just a baby so she only has one tail, although she is a true familiar so she has wings." Like Charlie had said Nemesis's, and the other familiars, wings had started to grow a few weeks after the bonding. "She looks like a fluffy white fox with white and gold wings. So just find the boy with the kitsune, and you'll find him." Bill told them.
"He won't be able to have the fox at the school." Molly said in a stiff voice. "The only pets Hogwarts allows are an owl, cat, or toad. Kitsune are dangerous and won't be allowed in the school."
"Kitsune are only dangerous if they are threatened, just like any animal." Bill told her. "And she will be allowed. His parents have all ready checked the school guidelines. She is his familiar, so the school has no choice but to allow her. It is actually illegal to forcefully separate them. And they never go more than a few feet apart."
"I want a kitsune familiar." Ginny demanded.
"You can't have one like her." Bill told his little sister.
"But I want one. If that boy can have one, so can I. Find out where he got her, and get me one." Ginny glared at her brother. The fox sounded beautiful, she wanted a white fox with wings.
"Just find out where the boy got the fox Bill. If he can have one, so can our Ginny." Molly gave Bill a demanding look, just like the one on her daughters face.
"I told you, she can't have one. The kitsune is a true familiar. Only a few of them are born every few hundred years. You can't just demand one. The only way to have a true familiar like that is if their magic resonates with yours. He found her in Egypt last summer, it was only a fluke that he was even there. He had come on a weekend trip with Charlie and I. Even if by some miracle we managed to find another true familiar, there is no way we could force it to bond with Ginny, not that I would. Bonds like that should never be forced." Bill told his mother and Ginny.
Molly harrumphed. Ginny just glared. She wanted one, who was Bill to say that she couldn't have one. Maybe she could find a way to bind the kitsune to her once she started school. She would be a much better master than that boy, whoever he was.
That night, Bill was wandering around the house. He had overheard Sirius and Frank talking about Pettigrew, and how he was a rat animigus. He didn't know, but Sirius had set it up so that he would over hear the discussion.
Bill had heard from Percy in one of his letters that the twins had gotten in trouble for testing potions they had been brewing on Ron's rat. Ron had apparently found the rat in the garden during the summer and had taken it in. As much as his little brother annoyed him, he still loved the brat, and didn't want to take the chance that the rat he had found was a death eater.
Casting silencing spells on his feet and a notice-me-not charm on himself, Bill made his way up to Ron's room. Silently slipping into Ron's room, Bill went over to the cage by the window. Looking in he could see the little door was open and the rat wasn't inside. Looking around he spotted the rat, sleeping on the pillow next to his little brother. He quickly cast a stunning spell on the rat, grabbed it, and left the room.
Once back in his own room he examined the rat a little closer. He could see the missing toe on its left front paw. There was no doubt in his mind that this was Pettigrew. If he could get this rat to Frank, he would be able to help free Sirius so that he could come back to Britain when Hadrian started school. Just to be sure he cast a quick identifying charm on the rat, the results came back as Peter Pettigrew. He placed the man in a magic proof cage he had brought with him to make sure he didn't change back and run again. He was going to have to go see Frank and Alice the next day.
Meadow House - January 7, 2001
Bill walked up the garden path to the Meadow House. He knew that Frank and Alice weren't planning on going to visit the camp this weekend so they would most likely be home, playing with their boys.
After informing one of the house elves that he was there to see Frank, he was brought through the house to the back balcony, that was obviously covered in heating charms. Frank and Alice were sitting with Alex at the small table as they watched Neville trying to teach Demeter how to fly. Her wings were still under developed, they wouldn't be fully grown for another 6 months, but Charlie had said that they would need to strengthen them. Neville waved to him, and he waved back.
"Bill, what can we do for you this fine day." Alice asked. Little Alex crawling towards him to say hi.
"Actually, it's about what I can do for you." He gently directed Alex back to his mother, he didn't want the sweet little boy anywhere near what he had. "I over heard you and Sirius talking about a rat when you were over for Yule."
"Yes, we have been having a hard time with that, it's almost been five years since the search began and we haven't gotten anywhere." Frank was frustrated, and he knew Kingsley was as well.
"Traitorous little…" Alice growled.
"That's the thing." Bill said with a smile. He was glad that he wasn't going to have to try to find some way to hide this from Alice, since she obviously knew what was going on. "I got a letter from Percy last year. He mentioned about how my youngest brother, Ron, had found a rat in the garden and taken it in as a pet. I got a little paranoid when I heard you talking so I went and checked the rat out after I got home yesterday.
It's missing a toe on its front paw. I also cast an identifying charm, it's definitely him."
Reaching into his robe pocket, he pulled out the small cage with the rat in it. The stunner had worn off a few hours ago, and now the rat was awake. Putting the cage on the table he showed Frank and Alice. As soon as the rat caught sight of who was around he started to panic, though no one heard his scared cries due to the silencing ward Bill had placed on the cage.
"Well, would you look at that." Alice practically purred. "I think he remembers us."
"Indeed my dear." Frank smiled at the vindictive look in his wife's eyes.
"I was hoping that you would be able to just tell everyone you had gotten an anonymous tip." Bill saw the confused look on Frank's face. "Ron is a kid. And with the way Molly babies him he is very immature. I don't want to scare him by letting him find out that a death eater had been sleeping on the spare pillow next to him in bed for over a year."
Frank understood. "I will have to tell Amelia, and Kings, but I don't think it will be a problem. Amelia has a niece the same age as him, so I think she will understand. And Kings understands how to keep his mouth shut."
They had a nice tea break, Bill enjoying talking with everyone. He really had become fond of everyone he had gotten to know over the past few years. He had spent hours with Neville and the other boys working with them on wand movements and spells, and different subjects. He really considered them all to be like family, and knew that he was going to keep in touch with them even after he left for Egypt.
Ministry of Magic, DMLE - January 8, 2001
Frank strolled into the office with a bounce in his step. He finally had what they needed to free Sirius sitting in a cage in the box in his hands. He quickly signalled to Kings and Amelia as he went through to one of the secured private areas. Once they were there, and the room had been warded to ensure that no one could spy, Frank pulled out the cage.
Amelia and Kings were both overjoyed to see the rat. He quickly explained about what happened, with Bill over hearing the conversation and putting it together with his brothers new pet. Amelia had absolutely no problem not mentioning the Weasley's, she didn't want to scare the child.
They talked about it and decided that they were going to gather as much information as they could as evidence to prove that it was Pettigrew that was guilty. It would push the trial back a bit, but it would be worth it. They still needed to make sure that they would have all the proof they needed.
Wizengamot - February 19, 2001
James was standing with Alice, Gerald Greengrass, and Kensington Shacklebolt waiting for the trials to start. While the regular Wizengamot session were held at the start of each month, trials were held in the middle. Due to the use of truth serum the trials usually only lasted about 5-10 minutes.
Gerald and Kensington could see just how excited the others were. They saw Lucius and Narcissa catch their eyes and grin. Gerald looked to Kensington and they smiled. They might not know what was coming, but they couldn't wait.
Stepping up to the podium, Gerald called the meeting to order. They managed to get through all of the trials on the schedule well before lunch, it had only been a few petty thieves. Gerald was wondering what had gotten the others so excited when Amelia rose to speak.
"Chief Warlock Greengrass, there is one more trial that I would like to add to the docket." She said, her face stoic, but a light shining in her eyes.
"Of course Madam Bones." Gerald responded as he stepped aside so that she could do the run through of the case since he didn't have the file.
Taking her place at the podium Amelia pulled out her paperwork. "I call to order the trial of Peter Anthony Pettigrew, for the betrayal of the Potter family to the Dark Lord V…Voldemort, and the mass murder of 12 muggles."
The hall broke out in chaos before she was even half way through her introduction. "You're mad Bones." "How can you try a dead man." "It was Sirius Black." Was heard, shouted by the Lords and Ladies.
With a signal to Kingsley, who was standing at the door that led to the most secure of the cells, Frank escorted Peter Pettigrew into the chamber. Suddenly there was almost complete silence as the members of the Wizengamot saw a man that they had believed had died a hero. Kingsley and Frank placed the man in the accused's chair, chains jumping up to wrap themselves around him.
Albus was sitting tensely in his seat. This was bad, this was very bad. If he couldn't manage to get Pettigrew off somehow Sirius Black would be released from Azkaban. If he was released, he could demand custody of the boy, he didn't know if he would be willing to allow Albus to remain in control since he had allowed him to stay in Azkaban for so long.
While Albus was trying to think of ways to get Sirius to trust him again Amelia had been laying out the evidence she had gathered. When she pulled out a box that held the wand of Voldemort that Pettigrew had taken from the house in Godric's Hollow, he snapped to attention. When Amelia set out the idea of destroying it to make sure that it could never be used again, Albus had tried to think of a way to stop it. He had already arranged for Ollivander to create a brother wand for the Potter boy. He needed that wand. But before he could do anything Amelia put it to a vote. Many in the dark faction voted against it, but the vote passed before Albus could think of an excuse. He watched in horror as Amelia picked up the wand and snapped it in half, handing it over to one of the unspeakables in the room, they then all watched as the unspeakable used fiendfyre to destroy the remaining parts.
After that, Amelia allowed everyone a moment before she continued. "Given that Peter Pettigrew has proven himself untrustworthy through faking his death, I request the use of veritaserum."
"Now Amelia," Albus cut in. "Surely you aren't suggesting that we hold a trial without Mr. Pettigrew's defence attorney present."
Amelia didn't show any response over her dropped title. "Mr. Pettigrew was offered a defence attorney multiple times since he was first arrested, he has refused every time. We even had him sign a contract stating that he was willingly giving up his right to an attorney without any coercion." She had copies of the contract appear in front of all the members. "If you read that you will see that the only way the contract would be valid was if he did it willingly. If my aurors or I even attempted to coerce him, the contract would be invalid. As the contract is still valid he has not been coerced or threatened."
Everyone was slightly surprised. This man had to be an idiot. Who gives up their right to an attorney willingly when they are being charged with treason and murder. Albus was shocked as he looked over the contract, he knew the man was dumb, but he had at least thought he had decent survival instincts, he had made it this long after all.
It was put to a vote and the use of veritaserum was approved. Amelia would be the one to question him.
"What is your name?" Amelia asked once the veritaserum had been administered.
"Peter Anthony Pettigrew." Peter's voice was dull and lifeless.
"What is your date of birth?"
"September 1, 1969."
"The veritaserum is in full effect." Amelia said as she looked around the court room. "Are you a follower of the Dark Lord Voldemort?"
"Yes."
"Did you join him willingly?"
"Yes."
"Who was the secret keeper for the Potter family?"
"I was."
"Did you tell Lord Voldemort the location of the Potter family?"
"Yes."
"Did you do so willingly?"
"Yes"
"Why?"
"I knew that he would reward me once Hadrian Potter was dead."
"Were you at the house in Godric's Hollow the night of October 31, 1991?"
"Yes."
"What did you do?"
"I followed the Dark Lord after he left his manor. I wanted to watch, but I was too late. I walked past the bodies of James and Lily. In the nursery, Hadrian was in his crib crying for his father, there was blood running down his head. The Dark Lord was gone. There was only a pile of ashes on the floor with his wand sitting in it. I knew that the boy had done it. I was going to kill him, but then I heard Sirius's bike in the distance. I knew that he would catch me if I stayed any longer. I grabbed the Dark Lord's wand and ran."
Everyone was stunned. James had wanted to kill the rat as soon as he said that he had been planning to kill his son.
"What happened next?"
"I ran away and hid. I hid the wand of the Dark Lord and tried to get out of the country. But Sirius was tracking me. He caught me in an alley in London a few days later. He was going to bring me in. I couldn't allow that. I threw a few hexes at the muggles that had gathered around us. Once he was distracted, trying to protect the muggles, I shouted to everyone that it had been Sirius that had betrayed James. Then I cast an over powered cheering charm at him, cast a blasting curse at a muggle fuel line, cut off my finger, transformed, and escaped."
"What do you mean by transformed?"
"I have the animigus form of a common brown rat."
"What have you been doing since then?"
"I have been in hiding. I knew that the other Death Eaters thought that I had set up the Dark Lord, so I knew I couldn't go to them. I have been living as a rat ever since, moving from place to place."
Amelia gave a quick signal and the unspeakables cast a silencing ward around Pettigrew. She looked at the stunned Wizengamot members. "Does anyone have any other questions before were vote."
No one had any other questions so the vote was called. Every single member voted for conviction, even those in the dark faction. Once they had decided on a sentence Amelia had the ward around Pettigrew removed and had him given the antidote to the potion.
"Peter Anthony Pettigrew, you have been found guilty of treason and mass murder. You are sentenced to 20 years in the maximum security section in Azkaban, before you receive the dementors kiss."
Peter kept screaming about how he was innocent, how they all would have done what he had done. Once he was removed Amelia returned to her place, and Gerald retook the podium. "Does anyone else have any other business that we must attend to before we call this meeting to a close?"
Albus stood up. If he was the one to arrange Sirius's release it might help him to regain the mans trust. "We should release Sirius Black from Azkaban. As we have all just learned, he is innocent. I will personally go and retrieve him once this meeting ends."
Amelia stood up. "There is no need for that Lord Dumbledore. This trial was the result of almost five years of work. It started when it was brought to my attention that Lord Sirius Black had been illegally detained and thrown into Azkaban without ever receiving a trial. With the approval of Minister Fudge, Auror Shacklebolt and I went to Azkaban and retrieved him. After a reexamination of the evidence and questioning him under veritaserum he was able to prove his innocence. As he had never been formally charged or tried, there was no need to bring it up in front of this body. After he was released he understandably needed time to recover from his ordeal. We felt that we would be able to catch Pettigrew easier if he didn't know that anyone knew what he had done. He agreed with us and left the country to recover. He has remained out of the country ever since. He has been free since March 1996. The ministry has also offered him their full apologies and paid reparations."
Albus sat back down hard. Sirius was already free, and since he didn't know, Sirius hadn't trusted him enough to get in touch. The only positive part of this was that since he had left without his godson if it ever came down to it, he could use it to keep him from getting custody. He had after all, in effect, abandon the boy. He could use that to keep custody of the boy for himself.
Both Gerald and Kensington were smiling at the particularly smug smile on Sebastians face. He must have known and helped set this all up somehow, they didn't know how, but it really didn't matter.
Hogwarts
Albus was furious as he arrived back in his office. He hated how much power he had lost. Ever since Sebastian Peverell had arrived he had lost so much. He was no longer Chief Warlock, he was no longer able to pass any law he wanted, and many of the laws he had passed in the past were now being repealed. Vampires now had basic rights, and the werewolf rights vote was coming up next month.
Minerva, Andromeda and Ted arrived. After Nymphadora had graduated Ted had had to leave the board so Albus had used what little input he had on his staffing to hire Ted as one of the wizarding law professors.
"Albus, what has happened now?" Minerva asked.
Albus looked to Andromeda. "I am going to need your help. That fool Pettigrew allowed himself to be caught. He has been convicted for his betrayal of the Potter's and the murder of those muggles. Sirius is free."
"When will he be released? I can get close to him again and start him on his potions again." Andromeda had absolutely no problem dealing with her little cousin again, she had been the one that had first started drugging him after all.
Andromeda had never liked her family much. Her younger twin sister was completely insane so they had never really bonded. Andromeda had felt that, since she was the eldest of the next generation, she should be next in line for the family title, but no, they had to name her little cousin Sirius heir. Just because he was a boy she was passed over, it should have been her, she was the oldest and smartest.
When she had arrived at Hogwarts she went in to Slytherin just so that she wouldn't have to deal with her crazy family. The headmaster had noticed her disdain for all the dark witches and wizards she was surrounded by and had started to help her. She had been the one to see how Sirius was a rebellious kid and told the headmaster. Albus had thought swaying the heir of one of the darkest known families to the light would be useful so he had arranged for her to get personality altering potions to use on her cousin. The potions would further separate him from the rest of the family, causing him to turn to her, she would then tell him how he should try and break away from the family.
The headmaster had used the potions on him, and spells on the hat, to make Sirius go to Gryffindor. Even after he had been sorted there, their grandfather had still supported him and kept him as the heir. She had been so angry, if it had been her they would have thrown her out of the family.
Then there had been that marriage contract her parents had arranged. Sure, Lucius Malfoy had been hot, but there was no way she was going to marry someone that was such a prissy man, and so dark. After the headmaster had introduced her to Ted she knew he was who she was going to marry. He had been exactly what she had wanted. Originally she had planned on using her dowery to buy them a nice home and ensure that they had a good life, but no, her awful family had denied her once again. She had been formally disowned, she would never get her hands on any of the family money, unless she could force Sirius to give it to her. It hadn't bothered her at all that her younger sister Narcissa had been forced to take her place and marry that ponce.
Now that her grandfather was dead, she could make Sirius hand control over to her. He had always trusted her in the past after all. Once she had control of the family she could force every member to support the light and destroy everything dark they had once stood for.
"That's the problem. He was released almost five years ago. He's been out of the country ever since." Albus told her.
"What? How dare he not tell me he had been released? I am his cousin, he should have come straight to me for help." Andromeda was furious, how dare he not tell her.
"It's worse, he has claimed the lordship. If he's wearing the Lord ring we won't be able to use potions anymore. The Black family was always paranoid so that ring is coated in protections." Albus said with a sigh. That was why he had had Andromeda target the boy before he had been able to get the heir ring at 11. "The fact that he didn't come to any of us shows that he doesn't trust us. You're going to have to write to him and try and get him to trust you again."
"It won't be an issue, he was always a fool, I have no doubt that that hasn't changed." Andromeda started reworking her plans on getting control. She knew Ted was already thinking of all the legal rules they could use.
"Albus?" Ted said, his voice thoughtful. "He can't have taken the lordship, he was sent to Azkaban. The law states that if you have been sent to Azkaban you can't claim any titles." Andromeda gave her husband a grin, this was one of the reasons she loved him.
"If only my boy." Albus sighed. "There wasn't near enough evidence to convict him, all he would have had to do is demand the use of veritaserum and he would have been able to prove his innocence. So I arranged for Crouch to send him directly to Azkaban and used one of our people on the paper to write about a fake trial.
He was never formally convicted so he was never stripped of his rights to inherit. If we try to use that now, it will turn the public against us. I saw many speaking to the press when I was leaving so it will be all over the Prophet by morning. An auror, framed for a crime he didn't commit by a former friend, sent to prison without trial, its the perfect story. The public will adore him by tomorrow. We can't be seen doing anything against him."
"What about Harry?" Minerva asked
"Shouldn't be an issue." Albus said, a relieved look on his face. "All my monitors are still working, so he is still with the Dursley's. Sirius has been out of the country for years, if he attempts to gain custody now that can be used against him. Thankfully he hasn't been around to cause problems. I think this is what Severus has been trying to tell me about.
Since Remus works for the bank he must have come across Sirius. The past plan that he must have wanted me to look into was Sirius's arrest."
Yes, Albus thought. This had to be what Severus was going on about. Because of the potions and compulsions he had layered on the man he would undoubtedly hate seeing Sirius free.
As they continued to talk none of them noticed the devious smile on the face of former headmaster Phineas Nigellus Black. He would wait until they finished before he would go to his other portrait in Grimmauld Place to tell his great-great-grandson Regulus.
Santorini, Greece
James arrived back at their camp and ran over to Sirius and hugged him. Sirius was extremely confused until James announced that Pettigrew was on his way to Azkaban, and he was officially free.
Sirius had hated having to let Pettigrew run around free for so long, but it had had to be done. They couldn't have had Dumbledore knowing he was free. Plus, doing it now, so soon to when Hadrian was to start at Hogwarts, would put pressure on the old man. In the end, it hadn't really mattered when the rat was caught, he was still going to pay.
That night there was a massive party. All the curse breakers they worked with had learned of what had happened to Sirius and they all wanted to celebrate his freedom with him. Regulus, Amelia, Kingsley, Cecilia Perra, Edward Brown, Bill and Charlie Weasley, the Malfoy family, and the Longbottom family all portkeyed in and joined the party. Even Ragnock and his wife, Cora, came over to congratulate him.
No one, not even the kids, went to sleep until after the sun had already started to rise.
Hogwarts, School Board Meeting Room - June 6, 2001
James had a pounding headache as he walked out of the school board meeting. They had just spent over 4 hours making strict guidelines on how tests and essays were to be marked.
Some of the students had felt that they weren't being marked equally, and they were right. After spending the last few months checking over random essays from different classes they had found that some students were being marked harder than others. James hadn't bothered to bring it up, he didn't feel that he had to anymore after all, but the students that were often being marked easier were the Gryffindors. If they hadn't started stepping in and making certain teachers start to grade fairly the top student of the year would have been a Gryffindor.
Once the teachers were forced to mark the students equally, the Gryffindor dropped back down to fifth place, while the other students that had been marked harder rose back up to their original positions in the class rankings.
They had issued more than a few warnings that that sort of thing wouldn't be tolerated but it had been decided that they would have to make up a marking scheme to ensure fairness. It had been a painfully long and loud process of deciding how the marking should be broken down, but they had managed it. To ensure that the scheme was followed they had even instituted a financial penalty to the teachers caught unfairly grading students.
Both Alice and James were happy with everything they had managed to accomplish in the past few years. The school was now a place that they felt better allowing their sons to attend, though they would still be keeping a close eye on things.
They had also managed to improve the country as a whole. During the review of werewolf rights they had managed to normalize their status, as they had done with vampires and a few other dark creatures. They were now able to have jobs, open bank accounts, get married, have children, get medical treatment, and they were also now protected from discrimination by law.
They certainly had changed the world for the better in the past few years.
Hogwarts, Staff Room - July 3, 2001
Severus calmly walked through the hallways towards the staff room. He knew from Regulus, who had been told by Phineas Black, that there was going to be a final staff meeting today.
Severus knew that he was going to have to see Albus, he had already received half a dozen letters, and his contract had only been up two days before. Like he had learned to do when he was still working here, he planned on meeting the old man around other staff members so that he couldn't be made out to be the bad guy.
Pausing at the door, he heard as Albus called the meeting to a close. He was just on time. Knocking, he walked into the room. Looking around he could see most of his former colleagues were still there, but there were now many more.
"You wished to speak with me Albus."
"Ah, Severus my boy, welcome back." Albus's eyes glittered as he finally had his old potions master back. Although, he didn't like his new look.
The Severus that had left the school 5 years ago had been sallow skinned and sickly with long greasy hair. Now he stood tall and proud with a strong muscular body. He had golden tanned skin and his hair fell in soft clean waves.
"Severus, welcome back. Did you enjoy your time away?" Fillius squealed. Like the headmaster he had seen the changes in the man, but he was happy to see them.
"Yes, welcome back Severus. We have missed you." Pomona Sprout said. She really had missed the man. Severus had always been polite and understanding when he had come to collect any potions ingredients she had in her greenhouses, he was always careful to never damage her plants. She had never realized how nice that was until he was gone. The two potions masters that had replaced him were not so gentle. Toby Zear might be a decent potions master, but he had absolutely no skill when it came to plants. And Horace, like he had always done before, always wanted her to do all the work. She already knew that it was Zear that would be leaving, but she wasn't going to miss the man, she just wished their was a way to replace Horace too.
"Well my boy, if you want to follow me I have your contract all ready for you to sign." Albus said chipperly.
"I won't be signing a contract like my last one Albus. I can no longer devote all my time to the school. I have other priorities."
"What could be more important than the school Severus?"Minerva asked.
"My family." Sev said with a small smile.
"Family?" Many voices gasped at once. Some were happy for him, like Fillius and Pomona, most were surprised, like Aurora Sinistra and Septima Vector, and some were clearly unhappy, like Albus and Minerva.
"Yes. I have a husband and young daughter. I can't just disappear from their lives for months at a time." Severus said.
"Oh, congratulations Severus." Both Fillius and Pomona squealed at the same time. They were both overjoyed that he had found happiness. Severus nodded his thanks to them.
"But you would have had to leave them while you were working for the bank." Minerva said in confusion.
"No, we had a family sized tent at base camp, so we all traveled together." Severus told her. "Now, if I am to come back and teach here, it won't be like it was before. I know that there are now houses that those with family members can use, so I will need one of those. I would also prefer not to be the Head of Slytherin again, as much as I enjoyed it, it takes up too much time. But I would be happy to be co-heads or an assistant head to Aurora. I also won't have the time to do all the schools brewing or all the ingredient gathering."
"Why don't we go up to my office to discuss it?" Albus said. His smile was brittle and there was no sparkle in his eyes.
"Certainly, Albus. But I won't be able to stay long, I am meeting my family for lunch in about half an hour." Severus said as he headed towards the door.
"Wait, Severus." Pomona called out to him. "Are you still a Snape, or did you take your husbands name. We will need to know how to address you."
"It's Prince-Peverell." Sev's smile was particularly sharp as he heard many gasps, and Minerva actually dropped her tea cup on the floor where it shattered.
Up in Albus's office Severus looked around. He caught eyes with Phineas Black and they both gave each other s secret grin. Then he noticed Fawkes empty perch, he almost laughed. The phoenix was still hanging out with the curse breakers in Greece, and didn't seem like he was going to be leaving any time soon.
"Where's Fawkes?" Severus couldn't help but rub it in.
"He is off in search of a mate. I thought it was time for him to do a little traveling so I sent him of for a year or two." Albus almost growled, of course Severus would notice the lack of phoenix first. "Let's have a seat. Lemon drop?"
Severus sneered at the candies. "No thank you, Albus."
Minerva came in then and sat down next to him. "Severus, what do you mean your last name is Prince-Peverell?"
"I mean, that my last name is Prince-Peverell." Severus smirked slightly.
"My boy are you saying that you married Sebastian Peverell." Severus nodded at Albus's question. "I know I told you to get close to him, but I didn't mean that close."
"I didn't get married for you Albus, I did it for me. You played no role in my decision to get married, I can assure you." Severus had forgotten just how much he hated when the man treated him like he was nothing more than a chess piece.
"Well then, since you have access to such… Personal information, is there anything you can tell us?" Albus asked.
"No. Not only do I have no intention of betraying my husband's confidence, I am also still bound by the secrecy contract. The only way I can speak of anything that happened over the last 5 years is with the permission of those involved." Severus got up and started to pace the office. "Albus, I came here to discuss working here again, not my personal life. If you wish to retain my services as a potions professor please contact the bank. Chief goblin Ragnock, as my financial manager, will be negotiating my new contract for me. If you do not wish for me to work here than I will find a different job."
With that, Severus nodded goodbye to the two fuming people in the office and strode out. Back straight, and robes billowing.
"I warned you." Minerva snarled at Albus. "I warned you he needed to be handled carefully. Now he is married to one of our biggest opponents and confident in his position. How are we supposed to get him back in line?"
Albus just stared at the door his former potions master and spy had just walked through. Who did that man think he was, no one denied Albus what he wanted. He would just have to remind Severus who was in control, the question was how. Maybe he could contact Amelia with some information about Severus's time as a death eater, but no, then Severus would be in Azkaban. He needed the man free, but subservient.
"We will have to use his family. There really isn't anything we can do to Severus or Sebastian, but their daughter… If I say that I have gotten information from one of my contacts that some of the former death eaters are planning on targeting her for revenge against his betrayal, he might come to us for protection once again."
"And if he doesn't?" Minerva asked.
"It will work out. The life debt that he swore will force him to return here in the end. Once he's back here we will just have to restart his training. Plus now we have the added benefit of Sebastian and his daughter staying on school grounds. It will make for easier access. If Lily can't get pregnant within the next year we will just have to dispose of James and get her hired here. That woman was always particularly good at making men fall in love with her."
Yes, Albus thought, that was what they would do. If he could get Lily between the two men, she could split them up. He could arrange for Lily to marry Sebastian, have a child, get rid of the one he already had of course, then kill off Sebastian, and they would have access to even more money and power. It would all work out, after all, he was Albus Dumbledore, greatest wizard since Merlin, if not greater.
Junior Technologies
After leaving Hogwarts Severus went back to Peverell Manor. James was having a particularly hard time with the idea that in 2 months their son would be going to school. It was different for Severus, because he knew that he would be there too, but James wouldn't be able to see Hadrian every day like he was used to.
Deciding to give the two of them some time alone, he convinced Remus and Sirius to take the girls and do a little shopping before heading over to the Malfoy's so the girls could have a play date. As they wandered around Remus had suggested that they go and see Arthur. As James owned the company they were able to floo directly into the offices. They were then quickly directed to his office.
Remus went in first, leaving the girls out in the hall with Sev and Sirius. "Hello Arthur."
Arthur spun away from the design board he had been staring at trying to figure out where he was going wrong with his latest creation. "Remus, what brings you by?"
"Just figured we'd stop by and say hello."
"We?"
Remus called out to the others and they all came in. Sirius had been wearing a glamour since he didn't want to have to deal with being hounded by people, ever since Pettigrew's trial the press had made him out to be some tragically damaged hero, but now that he was among friends he dropped it.
"Sirius. It is so good to see you my old friend. And these must be the delightful little ones Bill mentioned. And Severus, it's wonderful to see you too." Arthur was so pleased to see Sirius.
Severus smiled at the gentle man. "Arthur allow me to introduce you to my daughter Kali Prince-Peverell, and Ariadne and Cassiopeia Lupin-Black."
Arthur was surprised at the introductions. He had expected the twins, but he hadn't realized that Severus had gotten married and had a daughter. Looking at the girl he could instantly see the similarities to him though. "Hello little ladies. I have heard you know my sons Bill and Charlie."
"You're Bill and Charlies daddy?" One of the twins asked.
"We like them." The other twin added.
"They're fun." Kali finished.
Arthur smiled as he chuckled. They seemed to have their own version of twin speak that he was used to from his own twins."Yes I am. I'm glad you liked them."
The next half hour was spent talking about things. And Arthur got to learn just how much like his own set of trouble making twins these three little girls were. He was also glad that he only had the one daughter when he saw the power of the three puppy dog pouts working together when Severus had told them that they couldn't go and play in one of the experimentation rooms. He knew that there was no way he would have been able to resist looks like that, but thankfully Ginny had never mastered that look.
Peverell Manor - July 21, 2001
Hadrian had just arrived for breakfast when an owl flew in the window carrying a letter and went directly to him. He knew what this was. It was his Hogwarts letter.
He remembered most of what had happened during his first year, and the major events for the years after that, but he didn't remember everything. Things like what they did in classes was fuzzy, but he was more than prepared for class after all the lessons he had gotten over the years.
One major benefit that they had was that the DCW had taken over doing the home visits the year before. That meant that no one at the school knew that he wasn't on Private Drive yet.
All the adults held their breaths when he opened the letter after it had been scanned for spells. The girls instantly broken down in tears, they had been told that their big brother was going to be starting school and they were devastated that he was leaving them.
"Why are you all holding your breath, we all know I got in?" Hadrian asked.
James laughed and rolled his eyes at his son before he took the letter to read over it. He had Hadrian quickly fill out the course selection list before he wrote out his acceptance before sending it off.
Hadrian, Draco, and Neville had all agreed that they were going to take comparative religion, english, physical education, and french along with the core classes, which now included the muggle/wizard studies class and magical theory. It was a full schedule, but the french class would only take a few months, and they thought the rest of them were important.
As much as he didn't want to leave his family, he was excited for school. It wouldn't be like last time. He was going to be able to trust those around him. He also felt something pulling at him that was making him excited.
The Burrow
Molly took Rons Hogwarts letter and let out a watery sigh. Her little baby Ronnikins was going to have to leave her soon. She hated having to let him go, he was still so young.
Opening the letter she grabbed a quill and filled out the acceptance letter. Her precious baby wasn't going to need any of those extra classes, he was going to be busy enough making friends with Harry Potter. Plus she didn't want him near any of those dark wizards that would take those classes.
Hearing a cheer, she looked up to see Arthur and the twins congratulating Percy as he held a prefect badge. She knew when the time came, her precious Ronnie would have one of those too.
Granger House - July 22, 2001
Hermione Granger was doing her best not to roll her eyes at the woman sitting in the sitting room. She hated having to pretend that she was one of those stupid uninformed students. This woman had been sent by the ministry to inform her that she was a witch and explain things to her. It was so annoying. After all, she had been studying magic for over a year now.
But she knew the role she had to play. She had to play the role of stupid little muggleborn, but soon enough she would be able to show everyone how much better she was.
When her mother told the babbling woman that they would prefer to go to Diagon Alley on their own she almost sighed in relief. The last thing she wanted to do was spend an entire afternoon with this woman. Professor McGonagall had told her all about these people. They kidnapped kids from their parents if they didn't like them, she wasn't about to let these people get control over her.
It was a stupid idea. If a kid's parents hit them, they had to have a reason. Maybe the kid was just bad, or stupid. Children needed to learn, and it wasn't fair to take them away just because they don't like being punished, no one liked to be punished. She couldn't wait to start fixing the backwards magical world.
Looking over the course list, she selected the courses she had already decided to take. She wasn't going to take the comparative religion class, she already knew which religion was the correct one. Instead she would take french, latin, and german, for languages, she already knew french, but it would just give her an extra bump in grades. She would also be taking english, but she wasn't about to waste her time with more phys-ed.
Diagon Alley - July 30, 2001
Hadrian was happily walking down the alley. He was using his metamorphmagus abilities, making him look like a dirty blond with brown eyes, so no one was paying attention to him. His fathers, uncles, and sisters were all with him. Sirius, like him, also looked different, but it was because he was under glamours.
They had already gotten his books from River Run, and his clothes from Morning Dew. They had specifically chosen the Morning Dew shop for his robes because they added extras. Madam Mulkin's just had the standard robes. But Hadrian wanted to make sure that there was a hood on his cloak. He had found when he had been wearing a hoody a few months earlier, that Nemesis loved climbing into the hood. She could sleep or just relax in there and stay close to him. The Morning Dew shop also added growth charms, and spells to regulate the temperature.
Nem was still tiny so it wasn't an issue. Hadrian had also been startled when she had first started to speak. Remus had explained that as their bond got stronger they would be more and more connected. He was starting to hear her thoughts, as she was starting to hear his.
Today was all about the wands. Neville and Draco were planning on meeting him at Ollivander's. Hadrian couldn't wait to get his wand again.
Walking in, Garrick Ollivander greeted them all. Hadrian knew that he could trust this man, he had never betrayed him in his past life, so he allowed himself to return to his original features.
Neville was the first up. It only took three tries to find his wand. English oak, 10 1/2'' with a mane hair of a young unicorn. Ollivander explained that english oak wands willingly align themselves with those of strength, courage, and fidelity.
Next up was Draco. It took a bit longer to find his wand, but they did. Yew, 12 1/4'' with the heart string of a Peruvian vipertooth. They were told that although yew wands had a bad reputation they were found in the hands of heroes just as often as villains, and those that held them often times were fierce protectors.
Hadrian chose to go last because he knew that it would take a while to find his wand. Like in his first life he tried wand after wand, but none of them worked. Eventually Ollivander went and picked up his old holly and phoenix feather wand. Reaching out Hadrian picked up the wand, expecting the warm buzz that he remembered, but that wasn't what he felt.
Instead of warmth, the wand felt like ice. Then everything started to shake and a large crack formed in the front window. Ollivander jumped forward and snatched the wand from his hand. At first Hadrian was confused, but then it started to make more sense. The last time he had chosen his wand he was layered in potions and compulsions and carrying the soul of a dark lord. It made sense that he would get the brother wand of the man whose soul was in his head. Besides, the brother to the holly wand had been destroyed months before, so he wasn't going to need that particular wand again.
After almost an hour everyone was ready to give up when Ollivander admitted defeat and said that he was going to have to make a custom wand. He took Hadrian into the back room that was lined with closed boxes. Hadrian was to run his hand over the top of the boxes, and just let his magic feel. He was then to bring all the boxes that pulled at him to Ollivander and he would go from there.
Hadrian walked around the room. Every now and then he would feel his magic pull and he would pick up the box. In the end he handed Ollivander seven boxes. He sorted four boxes in to two pairs and said that his magic had told him that they were supposed to go together. Ollivander went into a small room to work. He said that it would take about an hour so Hadrian should go for ice cream or something while he worked.
They were all on their way to Fortescue's for some ice cream, after Hadrian reapplied his look, when Hadrian froze. He had just caught sight of Eeylops Owl Emporium. Hedwig. She was there, Sitting in a cage just outside the shop. Her amber eyes staring at him. Hadrian walked over to her, reaching in the cage he stroked her feathers. Telling her how beautiful and amazing she was the entire time. He remembered how much Hedwig had loved to be praised.
One of the shop assistants came running out, ready to warn the young boy away when he noticed the snowy owl was letting him pet her. He was surprised, that bird hated everyone. James quickly arranged to buy the owl. He remembered reading in Hadrian's journals how much he had loved and missed his beloved snowy owl.
They all sat and ate ice cream while they waited. Hedwig preening under all the praise she was getting from everyone, while enjoying the different treats the girls were not so stealthily sneaking her. The adults all discussed Severus's new contract.
Like Severus had known was going to happen, Ragnock managed to get him a great contract. He would be teaching first year, and fifth through seventh years. This would automatically cut out almost half of the marking he had had to do before, making it even easier would be that he would have a lab assistant to assist. He would also only have to do weekend rounds one weekend per month and one night of night rounds every other week. He also wouldn't be doing all the brewing or ingredient collecting for the school, and any that he did do would be compensated. Then there was also that he was going to be co-heads of Slytherin with Aurora. Plus, He, James, and Kali would have one of the houses, they had already made plans so that Remus, Sirius, and the twins could come over for some nights, and that both the Malfoy's and the Longbottom's would have access so they could bring the kids over to visit.
Eventually the time was up and they went back to the wand shop.
Again, they all went in together, everyone wanted to see Hadrian's wand. They were all surprised to see how pale and excited Ollivander was. Though, when he told them about the wand they were stunned. Lifting the lid of the top of the box he held it out to Hadrian.
"Thirteen inches exactly. Handle made of redwood, redwood wands are seen as lucky because those that carry them often find their way out of difficult situations, but it's really because they only choose wizards that have the ability to land on their feet and make the right choices, this particular piece was stained with indigo, one of the oldest known dyes. The shaft is made of silver fir. Wands made of fir are known a survivors wands, they select people that are strong minded.
The first of the two cores in this wand is unicorn tail hair that has been bathed in basilisk venom, the perfect balance of light and dark. The unicorn hair is twined with a strand of thestral hair that has been bathed in phoenix tears, the perfect balance of life and death. It is finished off with a brilliant cut royal blue-green sapphire to store and concentrate power.
This wand is perfectly balanced in every way. In all my life I have never even heard of a wand like this, and I don't think I ever will again. I warn you now Mr. Potter, never let another take this wand. In any hand other than yours this wand will rain destruction in our world."
Everyone was stunned as they looked at the wand in the box. The shaft was a silvery white, Hadrian could make out a few runes that were in the grain of the wood. The handle was a rich dark blue, almost black, and wrapped around the shaft in a winged design. The sapphire sparkled at the very end of the handle.
Reaching down, Hadrian picked up the wand. His magic sang as soon as he touched it. The entire room started to shimmer with a golden light and everyone felt the heat and joy. Nemesis popped her head up out of Hadrian's hood, laying her head on his shoulder, looking down at the wand, she started to purr contentedly.
The wand ended up costing over 100 galleons, but it was worth it. Hadrian and the boys all also got wrist holsters that were equipped with a spring release, like the aurors holsters. With a flick of their hand, their wands would shoot out into their hands, once they dropped the wand it would shoot back into the holster. They had the holsters keyed to their wands so that they would automatically return there no matter what happened, it would stop their wands from getting stolen.
Going home that night Hadrian was happy. He had Hedwig back, and he had an amazing wand.
Hogwarts, Headmasters Office - July 31, 2001
"ALBUS! ALBUS!" Minerva shouted as she came into the office. She was in a complete state of panic.
"Minerva." Albus was shocked by her behaviour. "What is so wrong that it has gotten you into this state? Did you get the stone? Did Harry see you get it?"
"Yes I got the stone, but Harry didn't see anything, because he wasn't there."
"Why wasn't he with you. I told you to make sure that he went with you down to the vault."
"No, Albus. He wasn't at Private Drive."
"WHAT?" Albus was furious, that couldn't be. He had given the Dursley's very strict instructions on what to do with the boy to train him properly. He also had Figg watching the house.
"He wasn't there Albus. The Dursley family sold the house last year. I spoke to the new people living in their house. They told me that apparently the families nephew had run away. The neighbours started looking closer at the family and realized that they had been abusing the boy. The entire neighbourhood was in an uproar about it.
Their own son was taken by the government and placed with a cousin of his fathers. From what they told me, he is currently living on a military base in Germany, and doing quite well. Vernon lost his job last year so they had to sell the house and move in with his sister. I tracked them down, Petunia wouldn't even speak to me other than to yell at me that we ruined her life by forcing them to take the boy in.
The sister, Marge, told me that Vernon's currently in the hospital after having a third heart attack, the muggle healers have absolutely know idea how he even survived." Off in a different dimension the entity known as Death smiled, he wasn't about to let the whale of a man that hurt his young master off that easy, he still had a punishment to live with.
"Why didn't Arabella tell us?" Dumbledore demanded.
"Because she was taken to a muggle sanitarium a week before the Dursley's moved. I went to try and speak to her, but they have her on so many drugs I couldn't get a sensible word out of her, she just kept going on about Tibbles and Mr. Fluffers. Albus, you don't think Sirius has the boy, do you?"
"No, no. He wouldn't have the boy. He's been out of the country for years now. And the boy must have only gone missing after Arabella was taken away, if he had disappeared before that she would have noticed and informed us. No, the boy is most likely living on the streets somewhere. This could actually work in our favour. A street kid will be even more desperate for approval."
"If you're sure Albus." Minerva wasn't so sure, nothing was going right anymore. Placing the stone on the desk, she left.
Albus sat back in his chair to think. He had originally sent Minerva to check on the boy and introduce herself to him, he would have preferred to send Hagrid, but the big oaf still hadn't returned from that nature preserve. He knew that the DCW would have already been to see the boy, but he needed someone to ensure that he was properly doused with potions and layered with compulsions that would force him to Gryffindor.
Now the boy was missing. Getting up, he went to check the monitors he had linked to the boys magical signature so long ago, why hadn't they let him know what was going on with the boy? Feeling the magic on them he froze.
Looking a little closer he knew exactly what had happened. He must have broken these during one of his rages. When he had repaired them, his magical signature had over written the boys. He had been monitoring himself for years. In a fit of rage he once again destroyed the little devices, but he didn't bother to repair them this time.
Instead he went and picked up the stone. He was going to have to rework his plans, again. He couldn't have the DCW getting involved with the boy after all, so he would need to find a new place to put him.
He didn't notice as Phineas Black slip from his frame with a smile on his face. The old fool still hadn't learned to never underestimate a Black.
Gringotts - August 1, 2001
Hadrian walked into the bank with his fathers, once again using his abilities to look like someone else. Nodding to the goblin guards they went back to Ragnocks office. Once in the office Hadrian released the magic that was holding his features in a different look.. It was time to get Hadrian his heir rings, and to take those conquest rights test.
After a few long conversations, they had decided that they were going to allow Dumbledore to know just where he had been living, he would figure it out anyway, so they would do it on their terms. But, naturally, they wanted to do it in a shocking way to get the best reaction out of Dumbledore and his followers. They were going to do this by having Hadrian hyphenate his last name. It only took a few quick signatures for Hadrian Potter to become Hadrian Potter-Black. Severus had already promised to show all the others the memory of when Hadrian's name was read out during the sorting.
"Welcome back to the bank youngling." Ragnock smiled at the youngling.
Kali slipped from her fathers arms and ran over to Ragnock and hugged him. No one was surprised anymore by the fact that Ragnock hugged her back. Kali, the twins and Lyra had managed to charm everyone, even the goblins. Both Vessra and Cora absolutely adored them.
"We are here to get his heir rings and see about those conquest titles." Severus said, snagging Kali before she could go wandering off in the bank, he knew she wouldn't be in any danger, but he also didn't want to have to deal with the chaos she could cause with an armed platoon of goblins backing her up.
It was relatively easy, to claim his heirships, all Hadrian had to do was put the heir rings on to see if they accepted him. He had already decided that he was going to pass some of the titles off to his sisters once they were 11. The Black, Peverell, Prince, Gryffindor, and Ravenclaw heir rings all accepted him easily. The Potter lordship ring resized to fit him as soon as he touched it, the family magic was eager to accept him as it's lord.
Then it came time for the conquest test for the LeFey and Slytherin Lordships.
"You will just have to put the rings on. They will test you and your magic. You will feel it pulling on your magic, just be careful not to push back too hard, or you could lose yourself to them." Ragnock told him. He wasn't about to admit it, but he was a little worried for the youngling.
Hadrian nodded. He decided to start with the Slytherin ring. As soon as it was on his finger he felt the magic thicken and tighten around him, like a snake was squeezing him. He could feel it examining every inch of his core. He caught flashes of him speaking to snakes, both in this life and his last. Eventually the flashes stopped, and he felt the magic around him relax. Going from smothering to comforting in an instant. The ring resized on his finger. One down, one to go.
Reaching out, he picked up the LeFey ring and slid it on his finger, next to the Slytherin ring. Like had happened with the last test, the magic tightened around him. Rather than seeing himself talking to snakes he caught sight of different times he was being abused, and the times he fought back. Eventually the world around him went black.
When he opened his eyes he was sitting in near complete darkness, like he was in a void. The only things around him was a beautiful woman sitting at a small table and watching him. He quickly summed her up, knowing exactly who she was when he saw the ring on her hand. "Lady LeFey, it is an honour to make your acquaintance." He kissed the air above her hand. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Lord Potter-Slytherin, Heir Black-Prince-Peverell-Gryffindor-Ravenclaw."
"You do not claim yourself as lord or heir to my house?" She held his gaze for a moment before she finally gestured for him to sit next to her. Hadrian was glad that Narcissa had insisted that he learn proper etiquette.
"I did not wish to presume. Only you could grant me one of those titles."
"You are a charmer, aren't you?" She gave him a frosty smile. Taking a deep breath she let out a sigh. "I will admit, I have never been fond of men. In my time they saw me as no better than a possession. I was hated and feared because I dared to question things. That, and I was born with a dark core, and occasionally killed those that annoyed me." She slightly shrugged her shoulder like it was inconsequential. "But you… You interest me. You are like no other man that I have met. Like me you have been used and abused. And like me, you have fought tooth and nail to survive. And you have succeeded in a most unique way.
Under normal circumstances I would never allow a man to become lord of my house, but those of my blood are now gone. If I deny you, my line dies."
Morgana LeFey was silent for a few moments as she examined the young boy in front of her, she made up her mind. "I shall allow you to be the lord of my house on one condition. You shall pass the title to your first born daughter when she comes of age at 17."
"It shall be done my Lady." Hadrian said.
Suddenly the darkness was replace with light, and he found himself laying in the healing wing of the bank. His entire family was around him along with their friends. Neville and Draco were sitting down at the bottom of his bed, all of the little ones were curled up on the bed around him. His fathers and uncles were sitting in chairs around him, along with the Malfoy's and Longbottom's. Even Vessra, Cora, and Ragnock were there.
It was Kali that noticed he was awake first. "Hadrian, you're awake. Don't do that to me again." She went from happy to angry in an instant and glared at him for scaring her.
Everyone was up in an instant. Everyone was talking at the same time, but he was able to use what they said to figure out what had happened. He had passed out in the office, his heart had stopped for a few minutes, and he had been unconscious for over an hour.
"Everyone. Calm down. I'm sorry I scared you. I'm just fine. It was a part of the test." Hadrian lifted his left hand up to show them the LeFey ring on his finger, next to the Slytherin ring.
"What happened, pup?" Sirius asked, fear still in his voice.
"My mind was taken to some sort of void where I met with Morgana LeFey. We talked for a bit and she agreed to allow me to be the lord of her house, so long as I pass the title on to my first born daughter when she comes of age."
Everyone just stared at him. He knew that he sounded slightly crazy, but they should be used to weird things happening around him.
It had taken well over three more hours before anyone would let him out of the hospital bed. But, eventually he managed to convince everyone everything was fine, but he did still notice all the adults were watching every move he made.
Diagon Alley - August 18, 2001
Molly and Arthur were leading Ron and Ginny through Diagon Alley. Arthur had already taken the older boys to get their things from the other alleys. He really didn't understand why Molly was insisting they do Ron's shopping here, most of the stores were ridiculously over priced, not to the same extent as Celestial Alley, but close. Other than a wand, they could get better quality supplies at a cheaper price elsewhere.
Ron was currently going on about his new hazel and unicorn hair wand. Arthur was glad that he was so excited, school would do the boy good. They were just on their way out of the bookstore when Ron saw the owls.
"I want my owl now." Ron demanded.
"Ron." Arthur had checked Ron's account the day before, he only had 4 knuts of his allowance left. "Did you save up the money?" He knew the answer, but he wanted Ron to learn a lesson from this.
"Of course he did Arthur." Molly said in a sanctimonious voice. She had been secretly buying Ron all the treats he wanted to make sure that he didn't have to spend his own money.
"You might want to check his bank book Molly." Arthur told her.
Molly pulled Ron's bank book out of his pocket and looked. She was shocked. The money was all gone. There was line after line of totals from the candy store. All of them time stamped as whenever she had taken him grocery shopping with her. He must have snuck off and bought candy while she hadn't been paying attention. "Ronald Weasley! Just what did you do?"
"What, mum? Come on, I want my owl, lets go." Ron was annoyed, what was taking them so long? He wanted his owl, why couldn't his parents just go and buy it for him, he would pay them back later.
"No Ronald. I told you last year, and reminded you every month when your allowance went into your account. If you wanted an owl you would need to save up the money and buy it yourself, like your brothers did. Instead, you spent all your money on candy and treats, so you can't afford to buy yourself an owl. Now, we have everything, so it's time to go." Arthur took no joy in having to tell Ron no, but the boy needed to learn, and so did Ginny.
"But muuuuummmm. Tell dad, you have to get me an owl. I want one." Ron whined.
Molly was stuck. She knew she wanted to get her baby boy an owl, but Arthur would never let her get away with it. "Now Arthur, surely we can get Ronnie an owl, he will just pay us back after."
"No Molly. He has had an entire year to save up, and has only managed to save a few knuts, at the rate he saves money he would be over a hundred long before he payed us back. I take no joy in saying no, but he needs to learn the value of money. It doesn't just appear. When he gets older he is going to have to get a job and earn it, unless you want him sponging off you for the rest of his life. He needs to learn the value of saving up for what he wants, and that actions have consequences. He can try saving up next year. I know he won't be getting an allowance while he's at school, but he still does get some money. If he saves his Christmas and birthday money, plus what he gets over the summer he will have more than enough to buy an owl next year." Arthur started moving them towards the floo.
Molly hated having to tell Ron no, but there was nothing else she could do. She had already done what she could by buying him every thing he wanted with the account Albus set up for him.
The Burrow
When they arrived home both Ron and Ginny were in the middle of temper tantrums. Ron, because he hadn't gotten an owl, and Ginny, because she had wanted a new dress but they had left before she could find one she liked.
Percy and the twins looked up from the course books they were going over in the living room to see the melt downs. They grabbed their things and started to head up to their rooms. There was no way they wanted to be in the same room as even one of those two throwing a fit, two was worse, both of them just made everything worse because they would try to out do one another.
"Boys, where are you going?" Molly asked. She had been trying to get back into playing her role as mother to the older boys.
"To our rooms," one of the twins said.
"There's no way," the other added.
"We want to stay here,"
"And listen to those two,"
"Whine about how tough,"
"Their lives are."
"I agree with the twins." Percy said. "It was almost cute when they were toddlers, now it's just getting pathetic."
With that, they all ran up the stairs, hearing the woman that called herself their mother shout at them as they went.
"Enough Molly." Arthur was trying not to laugh at what Percy had just said. He couldn't agree more. "They are right. I don't know what we did wrong with these two, but they act like overgrown babies whenever they don't get what they want."
"I'm not a baby." Ron nearly shouted at his father. "If you won't get me an owl, than I want a broom."
"Me too." Ginny said, folding her arms and getting ready to make sure she got her way.
"Well, Arthur. You can't say they have to save up for them on their own, we bought Charlie, Fred, and George brooms." Molly said. There, maybe this will make her babies happy.
"Yes we did." Arthur told her. "We bought them brooms after they made their house quidditch teams. So, once Ron and Ginny make their house teams, we will get them brooms. But not before. I will also point out, they haven't even attended flying lessons yet. If they have been up on brooms without proper training and supervision then we are going to have to have another discussion about safety and rules. Until then, I have a report for work to work on."
Molly growled in the back of her throat as Arthur left. She was really starting to hate that man. Now she was going to have to spend the next few hours consoling her poor babies.