Chapter 9
To be Whole Again
Last Time
But just like with the Blast Ended Skrewt, Harry wasted no time in impaling it with the similar iron spike, that Harry had used to dispatch off the Skrewt a few minutes ago.
'Ok Harry. This is it. You know what to do and how much to reveal about his abilities.' Harry thought as he closed his eyes and took a deep breath in, before purposefully walking towards the majestic Triwizard cup and latching onto it.
Just as expected, Harry felt the tell tail signs of portkey travel.
Just as Harry's feet hit the ground, he heard a scream.
"STUPEFY!"
The Graveyard, Little Hangleton, 24th June 1995
Harry dropped to the ground, the Portkey in his hand. He hit the ground just in time to see a blast of light coming straight towards him. While he had expected this and could have easily dodged or redirected the immobilization spell away from him, he wanted to make it look genuine, as he did want Tom to be revived once more. It was the only way to truly kill him. And for that, he had to play his part.
The spell impacted Harry and in an instant Harry found himself sitting on the ground. The spell had knocked the wind out of him. A robed figure walked over and shot ropes from his wand and tied Harry to the tombstone, the same one he knew to be the tombstone of Tom's father. Tom Riddle Sr.
"Quickly, Wormtail." Hissed a voice from a distance as the robed figure cowered over, to double-check to see if Harry was properly secured before he moved over.
"All is ready, my lord." Stated Wormtail.
"Then do it, we cannot afford any more delays." Said the voice with a hiss and Wormtail hastened to obey before he picked up an item from the ground.
"Bone of the father, unknowingly given, you will renew your son!" chanted Wormtail, as he had placed the bone into the cauldron, it dropped with a splash.
Harry watched on, while Wormtail had taken away his wand, Harry was a master at wandless magic. He did not need the wand to free himself, and if needed, Wormtail had just tossed it to the side, from where Harry could easily summon it back to him.
Harry watched Wormtail retrieve a dagger from his robes and he lifted it up. Harry watched with a mock shocked expression as the traitor hacked off his own hand. A blood-curdling shriek echoed throughout the graveyard as Wormtail did the deed.
' How the hell did a coward like Wormtail have the balls to do this I have still not been able to figure that out.' Harry genuinely wondered.
"Flesh of the servant willingly given you will revive yo…your master." Said Wormtail in a pained voice as his severed hand dropped into the cauldron. He took a few calming breaths before turning to face Harry and started moving towards him.
While Harry knew that there was no way that the blood would actually be forcibly taken from him. He still needed to put on an act of defiance. Harry tried to kick and wiggle around in his bindings, screaming curse words left, right, and center that no 14-year-old boy should know as Wormtail reached forward, dagger in hand, he sliced Harry's sleeve and made a cut to Harry's forearm that now had blood dripping from the wound.
With his lone shaking hand, Wormtail pulled out a vial and collected Harry's blood flowing down his wound. "Blood of the enemy, forcibly taken. You will resurrect your foe."
' I just wish I have not made Voldy even more powerful than he already was by giving him my blood willingly. Well, he could still be defeated, it would just make it a bit harder, and that would mean more distraction for the real threat out there.' Harry worried about the implications of him giving his blood willingly but made sure to seal the wound Wormtail had inflicted on him. No need to have more blood lost for others to find and use it in some sick ritual.
Wormtail moved towards the cauldron and poured out the blood he had just collected in the vial. Green smoke rose from the cauldron before it seemed to fill the entire area around the cauldron. A couple of moments later, as Harry remembered, a cold chilling voice filled the graveyard.
"Robe me, Wormtail." Hissed Voldemort.
Harry had to practice all his self-control not to start laughing as he heard this and barely stopped the snort from being heard by the other two in the graveyard.
' Thank god the smoke is thick enough to spare me the mental scars I would undoubtedly have gained if I ever saw Tom naked.' Harry thought.
Wormtail staggered forward, as he placed the robe on his master and handed Voldemort his wand. Voldemort looked at his wand, as he turned to face Harry who was tied up to the gravestone. "Harry, we meet once again."
Harry did not really see the need to keep up the act now that the deed was done, he had sabotaged the ritual, in what way he did not know, but it was done. So, he felt no need to keep on screaming and kicking, instead he just stared Voldemort down blankly, like he was utterly bored and would even more readily attend Binn's class than be here.
"You find yourself tied to the tombstone of my late father, a Muggle, common, filthy, not one ounce of magic, but without him, I would not be standing before you today, so he did in fact have one use in death." Commented Voldemort, before he grabbed Wormtail's good arm and touched the dark mark on Wormtail's forearm with his finger. Wormtail shrieked in agony before he fell to the ground and sobbed loudly. "Now, they've all felt it, many will come crawling back, but others will attempt to ignore it. They will pay the ultimate price Harry, much like you will in a matter of moments."
Voldemort missed the most vindictive smirk on Harry's face as he turned his back on Harry because if he had noticed it, he would have been suspicious instantly. But as he did not, Harry just summoned his wand to himself, unknowingly to the other two nearby. While he did not need a wand, he did not want to reveal all his powers to Voldemort… yet.
After a couple of moments, several pops echoed throughout the graveyard as several dozen robed figures appeared around Voldemort, their faces obscured in the white skull-like masks. All instantly went down on their knees as they saw Voldemort in front of them.
' No wonder Tommy never had kids. He was too busy getting grown men on their knees in front of him rather than getting a woman to turn around.' Harry wondered and barely suppressed a laugh at his own joke.
' Gods! I knew something was wrong with the ritual. It misplaced my sense of humor. What the fuck am I thinking of.' Harry made a face of disgust as he thought about Tom having kids.
And while Harry was berating himself, Voldemort was looking at his followers with a humorless expression.
"Master…" said one of the Death Eaters.
"But how?" asked another.
"Welcome my friends. Thirteen years it's been, and yet you stand before me as though it were only yesterday. I confess myself disappointed, not one of you tried to find me." Said Voldemort as his followers leaned in forward, almost sighing in relief when they did not notice any anger in their master's tone and Voldemort stood there, letting them have their moment of respite.
Before the inevitable happened, Voldemort started cursing lethal spells like it was no one's business. Death Eaters went down like flies, taking in the assault and screaming in pain.
Voldemort stopped when his eyes landed on a particular Death Eater with pale blonde hair.
Lucious Malfoy.
And now the blonde was sweating profusely. He was in trouble and he knew it.
"Not even you, Lucious." Voldemort said.
"My Lord. Had I detected any sign or even a whisper of your whereabouts…" Malfoy stammered out as he dropped to his knees in front of Voldemort, before being interrupted.
"There were signs my friend, and more than a few whispers." Voldemort replied, his voice cold and chilling to the bone.
"My Lord, forgive us, we had no idea…" stated a Death Eater, but Voldemort had no time for petty begging for forgiveness.
"Crucio." Said Voldemort lazily as the Death Eater screamed in pain. After only a few seconds of torture, the Death Ester was on the ground, breathing heavily. "Nott, you spinless rodent. To your feet! Let me make one thing perfectly clear to all of you cowards. Your inaction has set my plans back by years. Yet, I am willing to give one last chance to all of you, to prove your worth to me. But let me remind you all. This is the last chance. This country is not short of promising, young, ambitious witches and wizards, that can easily replace each and every one of you. Some might be your own heirs. You might even see your heir's eyes as the last thing you see before you die. Is that clear?"
"Yes, my Lord." Chanted the Death Eaters in unison.
"Good, you all have much to do before you earn my trust and work yourselves up my ranks. Debts must be repaid." Voldemort said coldly. "Wormtail has already repaid some of his debt, have you not Wormtail?"
"Yes… my Lord." Said Wormtail, wincing as he clutched his bloody stump where his hand used to be.
"Though your actions were out of fear rather than loyalty. Lord Voldemort always rewards those who help him. Give me your arm Wormtail." Said Voldemort as he waved his wand and a silvery substance flowed out of it, spinning around before it took the shape of a hand where Wormtail's hand once was.
"It's beautiful, my lord." Said Wormtail happily as he examined his new hand and looked absolutely ecstatic. "Thank you, my lord, it is much more than I deserve, it is wonderful."
"That much we agree on Wormtail." Said Voldemort as he turned to address his followers one by one. While Voldemort kept on rambling, Harry had been busy, he had already freed himself of the ropes and put up an illusion that he was still in fact bound to the tombstone. Harry had used this time to extend his senses and search if Tom's familiar, Nagini was here or not. He was determined to kill her if possible.
As Voldemort's rambling came to an end, Harry finally found out where Nagini was hiding, and he had the perfect way to make it seem like an accident.
"Harry! I'd almost forgotten you were here. Standing on the bones of my father. I'd introduce you but word has it you're almost as famous as me these days. The Boy Who Lived. How lies have fed your legend Harry. Shall I reveal what really happened that night thirteen years ago? Shall I divulge how I truly lost my powers? It was love. You see when dear sweet Lily Potter gave her life for her only son, she provided the ultimate protection. I could not touch you. It was old magic, something I should have foreseen. But no matter, no matter. Things have changed, I can touch you now!" Voldemort said as he put his finger on Harry's scar.
But instead of a scream filled with agony, what he heard shocked and surprised each and everyone present there equally.
"Well, obviously you would have overlooked the protection my mom's love left for me. Yours had to die to get away from you right? And stop touching me! Having grown men on their knees, dreaming of touching a fourteen-year-old boy. You seriously need to get yourself checked out Tommy." Harry replied, letting out a laugh as he let the illusion fade away and appeared to drop to the ground wand in hand.
Voldemort and the other Death Eaters were too shocked at the audacity of Harry that no one even asked who this 'Tommy' was, nor did they wonder about just how Harry got his wand back.
"Do you know how to duel, Tommy boy?" mocked a smirking Harry.
"CRUCIO!" Voldemort screamed out, the red-colored spell racing towards Harry.
"Woah, slow your horses, Tommy. Dint your father ever teach you to bow before a duel? Oh, my bad, I forgot he left you and your mum when you were just born and was a muggle." Harry taunted once more as he dodged the unforgivable.
After that, it was just a barrage of unforgivables as Harry twisted and turned to dodge out of the way of the spells. At one point he was even successful in getting a few of the Death Eaters killed by positioning himself in such a way that the Death Eaters were behind him, and since they were told not to attack, they were stupid enough to stay in the line of fire and were hit whenever Harry dodged a spell, which was every time.
"I grow bored. Time to play." Harry said, his face gaining a smile looking almost evil.
Before Voldemort could fire off any other spell, Harry sent a huge iron spike in his direction. The shock of a fourteen-year-old kid, the golden boy no less using dark magic distracted Voldemort enough that he barely was able to dodge the spike and it just grazed his right thigh.
That angered Voldemort greatly, he was not going to be hit by some child in front of his servants no less.
The anger fuelled his speed and the spells as well, as he started to use spells that were becoming more and more dangerous when he was not able to hit Harry with anything.
"Avada Kedavra!" Harry saw his chance. Even though this was not how he had planned it, he knew this was an opening he could exploit as well, when he saw Nagini slither out from behind a tombstone that she was hiding behind.
Harry summoned Nagini right in the path of the curse. Voldemort's eyes widen dramatically, as he perfectly knew what would happen if the spell hit his familiar, his pet, his Horcrux. Yet he was helpless, not able to do anything as the curse struck true, and hit Nagini head-on. He knew his pet was dead, as he could feel the connection break.
Anger and unbridled rage were evident in Voldemort's eyes. A huge surge of magic made it's way outwards with Tom at the epicenter of it. But while Harry could easily have stopped it from impacting him, he did not. He let it hit him. And as he was standing in front of the Death Eaters, it was very convenient for him that he had landed right besides Wormtail. Now all he had to do was somehow get the cup.
"Accio Triwizard Cup" Harry shouted. And just as the cup was about to reach him. Harry made sure he grabbed a hold of Wormtail.
"NOOO!" Was the shout he heard as he started to feel the tell tail signs of the portkey transportation at work.
Hogwarts Quidditch Pitch, Hogwarts Grounds, 24th June 1995
Susan was worried, no, scratch that, she was downright terrified right now. As was the blonde sitting next to her. And the reason for both the girls to worry was the same.
Their boyfriend.
Harry Potter.
They had left Harry near the champion's tent an hour ago, wishing him the best of luck and giving him a snog for luck as well. Once done, she, Daphne, and their friends made their way to the stands along with her aunt. Amelia Bones, the head of the DMLE.
Harry had asked her to somehow get her aunt here today, in case something happened, and as it turns out something did happen.
Harry was missing.
Harry had entered the maze almost 45 minutes ago, and it was 15 minutes ago that the judges told them that the task was over and they had a winner.
The maze sunk back into the ground, and they could clearly see that Krum, Fleur, and Cedric were still in the Maze, and nowhere near the middle of the maze where the cup was placed. Seeing that, she like the others was overjoyed, as that meant that Harry had won the Triwizard cup. She was hugging her aunt with joy when Daphne had called her out frantically and brought to her notice that Harry was nowhere to be seen and that even the judges looked alarmed.
Seeing that Amelia quickly made her way towards the judges and returned with some news, just to reassure the girls. Her aunt told her that the cup was a portkey and was charmed to bring Harry back to the start of the maze, but while the portkey worked, it had not done as expected, as Harry was nowhere to be seen. Her aunt was currently calling in every Auror available as even the Minister of Magic was on her back.
He did not want to be known as the Minister that lost the Boy Who Lived after all.
' All he cares about is his image and what the public will think of him. I am sure he would not even be here if it wasn't for Harry competing in the tournament. Disgusting.' Susan raged inside her own head as she stared at the human piece of shit walking around, following Dumbledore like a lost puppy.
"He will be fine. I am sure. Even your aunt is here and looking for him." Hannah tried to reassure both the girls. While Daphne did not seem to appear as worried as Susan, she knew Daphne was just as much if not more worried about Harry than her with how tight she was squeezing her hand.
"Stupid tournament! Interschool unity they said. Eternal Glory, they said. They can't even fucking charm a portkey!" Susan raged.
Just as she was about to stand up and start threatening the judges for some answers a pop was heard, and right at the entrance of where the maze used to be two bodies landed in a heap.
She raced towards it as soon as she saw that one of them was Harry. Daphne was right beside her. And even though the Aurors tried to stop them from approaching any further, they just pushed their way in, and the Aurors could not do much as one of them was their boss's ward.
She dropped to her knees just besides Harry, not even giving the other man a glance, but did notice a commotion growing and Aurors converging on the unknown man. But that was not the focus of her attention right now. It was the boy whose head Daphne had taken in her lap and whose hand she was currently holding tightly.
"Are you all right Harry?" Daphne asked, worry clear in her voice.
"Huh, what? Where am I?" Harry asked, he hated that he had to act and lie in front of his girls, but it had to be done. It was a plan that he needed to stick by. He would obviously let them in on the truth of the events of the graveyard in private later. But right now, for everyone else, he needed to put on a show.
"Harry! It's me, Daphne! Don't you remember anything about the Triwizard tournament and the second task?" Daphne asked worriedly, the worry for her boyfriend growing by the second.
"Harry my boy! Thank God you are here! Can you tell us what happened?" a voice said, as the trio turned their heads to see whom the voice belonged to, they noticed that it was Dumbledore and the rest of the judges and Hogwarts staff that had made their way towards them, along with some of the Aurors, the Minister, and Amelia.
Before Harry formulate and come up with a response, Fudge moved over and stood in shock, when he saw the figure on the ground that the Aurors were trying to restrain.
"Merlin's beard. Peter Pettigrew!" Shouted Fudge in horror as he saw the wizard on the ground, as panic went through his head. Perhaps, Harry and his two friends had told the truth that Pettigrew was still alive last year and that Black was innocent. Fudge turned to the person he always ran to when he did not know what to do. "Amelia, bring in your Aurors at once, I want to get this sorted out and Pettigrew arrested as soon as possible."
Hearing this all looked at him like he was stupid before Dumbledore coughed and pointed towards the Aurors that were already trying to restrain Pettigrew and arrest him.
"Umm, yeah. Well…" Fudge stammered and all others looked on with amusement in their eyes, except for two angry young witches, who were not amused at all with this joke of a conversation.
"Can't this wait! He is clearly hurt! He needs to go to the hospital wing." Susan replied sharply.
"Aye Albus. I will take the laddy to Pomfrey. You take care of the situation down here." This time, it was Moody that said this, while moving towards Harry.
Harry knew that the girls would insist on accompanying him, and based on his knowledge of the previous timeline, he would not be able to expose Crouch Jr. if he was indeed forced to take him to the Hospital wing, which he would have to do if the girls accompanied him. So, before Moody could reach him, he reached up and whispered in Daphne's ear. "Trust me Daph. Let me go alone for now. I will tell you everything afterwards."
Daphne frowned as she heard that and looked at Harry questioningly, but nodded nonetheless.
"We will come …" Susan started to say, but was stopped when Daphne caught her arm, and discreetly shook her head. While she was also given the same confused expression Daphne gave to Harry, she just shook her head once more and held onto Susan's arm.
With that Moddy took a firm hold of Harry's shoulder and pulled him through the crowd that was forming around them.
The DADA Classroom, Hogwarts, 24th June 1995
As expected, the fake Moody did not take Harry to the Hospital wing, but to his own office as expected and moved him into a chair, before going back and locking the doors to his office. All the while Harry playing the role brilliantly. He wanted to fake memory loss. He did not want to be the one to announce the return of Voldemort.
"Are you all right Potter?" Moody asked, moving towards Harry and making him look at him.
Harry just nodded back.
"The cup was a portkey. Someone had bewitched it." Harry said, playing the frightened kid's role perfectly, not seeing any reason to fake memory loss in front of the lunatic Death Eater, but acting enough that he would not get caught in case Crouch was questioned under Veritaserum.
"What was it like? What was he like?" Moody asked, the excitement clear as day in his body language. Harry had no idea how he was not caught by Dumbledore or by anyone else long ago if the man failed to keep his emotions under check.
"Who?" Harry asked, acting confused.
"The Dark Lord. What was it like to stand in his presence?" Moody questioned, looking as much the psychopath the actual person under the mark was known to be.
"The Dark Lord? How did Voldemort get into this?" Harry asked, at this time faking his memory loss, as if he did not want to acknowledge the fact, there was a good chance that he would be caught in the crossfire when Crouch was inevitably questioned.
Mad-Eye started shaking, first out of anger at the audacity of the boy to actually say his Master's name from his filthy half-blood mouth, but the shaking suddenly turned into one of another kind. The one Harry associated with the starting of the transformation back into the original form.
While Moody struggled to find another bottle of his, no doubt filled with Polyjuice potion. He asked. "Were the others there? In the graveyard, were the others there?"
"I don't think I said anything about a graveyard Professor." Harry said as he frowned in Moody's direction, while he already knew that this was the fake Moody, this was the first time Harry was experiencing this with a calm mind. In the original timeline, he was distraught and was not thinking straight.
"Marvellous creatures dragons, aren't they? Do you think that miserable oaf would have led you into the woods if I hadn't suggested it? Do you think Neville Longbottom the witless wonder could have provided you with Gillyweed if I hadn't given him the book that led you straight to it? Huh?" Moody questioned, all the while continuing to shake, but no longer looking for another bottle of the Polyjuice potion, but instead was facing Harry and had his hands on the hands of the chair Harry was sitting in.
"You won because I made it so Potter. You ended up in that graveyard tonight because it was meant to be so. And now the deed is done. The blood that runs through these veins of yours runs within the Dark Lord now as well. Imagine how he will reward me when he learns that I have once and for all silenced the Great Harry Potter." Moody said this as he brought his wand up towards Harry.
Suddenly there was a blast heard and the door to Moody's office was torn off of its hinges. Another spell hit Moody and he was thrown against a wall. And in walked Dumbledore, Snape, McGonagall, Fudge, Amelia, and a couple of Aurors.
Dumbledore paid no mind to the others in the room, he picked Moody up by the neck, while looking into his eyes. "Severus…" Dumbledore said with a firm voice.
Snape knew what he had to do. He forcibly opened Moody's mouth and administered some Veritaserum to him. This in turn caused Moody to wriggle around demonically.
"Do you know who I am?" Dumbledore asked, the firm tone still there in his voice, demanding answers.
"Albus Dumbledore." Came the reply from Moody in a neutral tone.
"Are you Alastor Moody? Are you? Dumbledore further questioned.
"No." came the reply, shocking most of the occupants of the room.
"Is he in this room? Is he in this room?!" Dumbledore questioned.
A nod was his only reply and the fake Moody's eye moved towards the chest in the room. Which suddenly now held the attention of most of the occupants.
One of the Auror approached the chest. Opening it after making sure no curses or locks were attached to it. The chest opened, and it contained a series of smaller chests. Once it was completely open, Dumbledore was able to make out the figure of a man down in the pit of the chest.
Alastor Moody.
"Are you all right Alastor?" Dumbledore asked, his voice echoing inside the chest.
"Yeah..." came a faint response.
"Then if the real Moody is in the chest, then who is this one?" Harry asked as he pointed towards the man still under the effects of the truth potion and sitting straight, but still shaking which was odd.
Dumbledore instructed Snape to pick up one of the bottles thrown on the ground. Snape did as instructed and took a sniff after opening the bottle.
"Polyjuice..." Snape stated, as, at the same time, they all saw the fake Moody shake uncontrollably, before the fake wooden stump, and the fake eyeball popped out of its socket. And the body slowly transformed back into its original form. Shocking everyone in the room to the core, as the man saw was the same man that was thought to be dead.
"Barty Crouch Jr." Amelia whispered, yet was heard by all.
Just then, even the effects of Veritaserum started to wear off, which was indicated by the lunatic laughter that was coming from Crouch.
"He is back! He is back! HAHAHA! Now you all will bow down in front of him!" Crouch chanted as he continued laughing lunatically.
"Who is back?" Fudge decided to make his presence known, and tried to ask the crazy Death Eater.
"The greatest Dark Lord in History. Lord Voldemort"
The commotion in the room was soo chaotic, that no one saw or heard Harry snort as he heard the title crouch refer to Voldemort as.
AN
So, that was the chapter.
The Graveyard scene. And yeah, Harry has a bad sense of humor XD.
Harry is currently faking memory loss, he does not want Umbitch and Ministry on his back in 5th year but needed to somehow make the public aware of Voldy's return too.
I know Amelia being there did not make much of a difference, but I wanted her there just in case something popped into my mind while writing the chap.
Yeah, and if you have not already figured it out, Voldy isn't the biggest baddest evil guy in this fic.
Next up, Harry tells Susan and Daphne what really happened in the graveyard.
Some convo between those 3.
Maybe a POV from others more. I feel I have added more than enough POVs for Harry, Susan, and Daphne, and now it's time for some other Non-MCs' turn. So, maybe will do that next.
Sirius's trial might also be next. (I do not like writing court scenes XD)
Let's see what Willingly given blood does. I know it is done a lot, but there is just no other choice, how can Harry unwillingly give the blood if he wants Voldy back I just don't know.
Chapter 10
Hospital Wing, Hogwarts, 25th June 1995
Harry was in the Hospital Wing, and he had collapsed down on the bed. While he was feeling perfectly fine, as he had not battled Voldemort at full power, and still had a considerable amount of energy left in him. And as he was also not hit by any spells, he was neither injured other than the bump on his head and the wound on his forearm. But he saw no advantage in debating about this with his two girlfriends that were persistent about him getting himself checked out.
So, that's why he was here, laid out on a Hospital bed, while Madam Pomfrey went to go get some potions after making sure he was not hurt. While his friends were not allowed to enter the wing, Daphne and Susan had made it abundantly clear that they were not going to leave his side for now.
"Are you all right Harry?" Susan asked for the umpteenth time, worried about Harry, and knew by now that Harry saying that he was fine was never the truth.
"I am f…" Harry said but was interrupted before he could give his standard response.
"If you say you are 'fine' one more time, I just might have to show you why people refer to me as the Ice Queen." Daphne interrupted, she too knowing too well of Harry's habit of saying 'I am fine' when he clearly was not fine.
"All right, I really am feeling fi… healthy… I am feeling healthy." Harry said, correcting himself as he saw both the girls start to glare at him. "But there are some things I want to talk to you both about, that I do not want anyone else to hear, and while we can silence the place, I am not ready to take the risk of anyone hearing."
"What could be so important that you would not be able to tell it to us here? Is this about when you asked me to trust you and let you go alone with the fake Moody?" Daphne questioned, knowing that Harry was serious by the tone of his voice.
"Something related to that. Let's just wait until Madam Pomfrey gives me the clear and we can go to the Chamber." Harry said, not taking the risk of saying the entire name of the place he was referring to, he knew the girls would figure it out.
Unknown, 25th June 1995
In a darkened, dismal room, Voldemort sat. The Dark Lord felt the aftereffects of his duel with Potter and wondered what could have gone wrong. He was the greatest Dark Lord in history, yet he was not able to land a single blow on a fourteen-year-old, school-going boy. And that was not the only thing. He was feeling exhausted, and while he was recently revived and expected to feel exhausted, it should not have been to the extent that he was currently feeling, not to mention the frequent bursts of pain he was also experiencing.
' This had to be that coward Wormtail's fault. He must have botched the ritual somehow.' Voldemort seethed.
Wormtail had gotten himself captured, it would be worthless to try and break him free from the Ministry's custody. Knowing that he could always have Lucious 'persuade' the Minister into having him think that Crouch and Pettigrew were just mentally unbalanced and hence dreamt up a story of him being back from the dead. And adding the Minister's recent habit of silencing anyone who mentioned that he still existed, he was sure that there would be no loose ends from his side. Other than Wormtail's Animagus form, he was useless anyway.
Voldemort did not worry about the Ministry but rather he knew that Potter would have informed Dumbledore of his return and Dumbledore would reform the Order of Phoenix. While few of them had ever had the nerve to do what was necessary, they were still an unnecessary annoyance that ruined a great deal of Voldemort's plans, mostly due to sheer luck and the incompetence of a few of his followers.
"Enter." Said Voldemort coldly at a knock on the door that had brought him out of his thoughts, the door pushed open, before Severus Snape walked inside and knelt down before Voldemort. Voldemort paused, as he looked at Snape for a moment. "To your feet, Severus, I find it interesting that you have decided to show your face now, and not at the moment when I called you during my return."
"My Lord, I would have joined you at once, but it would have raised many questions." Snape said. "I have also acquired information that you may find to be of benefit to you."
"I'll be the judge of that." Voldemort said coldly. "Proceed, Severus, I do not have all day."
"Well to start, Karkaroff ran off like the coward he was. But the interesting thing that happened was that Potter appears to have been suffering from some sort of memory loss, and does not seem to remember anything that might have happened in the Graveyard." Snape said.
' While Pettigrew and Crouch would reveal about my return, the credibility of those statements can be diminished. The main issue would have only been Potter and the fame he has. Him not remembering things will only serve to help keep my return a secret a bit longer.' Voldemort thought while keeping a neutral face, letting Snape know that he would have to give him a lot more to escape his wrath.
"But Pettigrew and Crouch have been caught, and Crouch was questioned under Veritaserum and he has revealed to everyone present about your return, my Lord." Snape continued.
That did not affect Voldemort too much, he was already aware of this possibility and had already come up with a plan to deal with it.
"Dumbledore has started to reform the Order of the Phoenix."
That did not bode well for Voldemort, while the Order could not stop him, it was like the annoying fly that just did not let you rest.
Just then Voldemort suffered from another one of his short bursts of pain and did well to hide it from all of his followers in the room. It wouldn't do to show that he was in pain in front of his followers. But he did need to figure out what was causing this and rectify it as soon as possible.
"While this information is not enough to save you from my wrath. I do have a task for you, which if performed successfully, you might save yourself today." Voldemort said.
"Yes, my Lord. I will do everything in my power to see that the tasks you assign to me are done to the best of my abilities." Snape replied.
"While it is not much of a problem, Wormtail in all his foolishness has somehow botched the ritual. I would like to know what is the cause of it, and find the solution for it as soon as possible." Voldemort said.
"I require a sample of your blood, my Lord." Snape said calmly and Voldemort nodded before he motioned for Snape to do so. Snape conjured a dagger and a glass vial. Voldemort held his arm out, to allow Snape to slice it a bit with the dagger. Several drops of blood splashed into the vial, as Voldemort's arm healed itself, no doubt due to the multiple rituals Voldemort had performed on himself.
Snape looked at the blood, it was still red, but it looked a bit thicker than usual blood, but it might have also been due to the many rituals the Dark Lord had performed. Quickly, Snape corked the vial. "I will return once I have tested the blood, I should be able to complete everything within the next few days."
"Then do it, Severus." Voldemort said.
"Of course, my Lord." Snape said swiftly with a bow.
"Then take your leave, we shall discuss what information you can give to Dumbledore about me during our next meeting." Voldemort said as he waved his hand towards the door. "All of you, leave the room and let me think in peace." With that Snape and the few Death Eaters in the room, turned and left Voldemort alone.
Now alone with his thoughts, what first came to his mind was Nagini, his familiar and one of his Horcrux. Potter had somehow managed to have Voldemort himself kill off Nagini. While one of his Horcrux was now destroyed, 5 more remained.
' Potter could not have known of it. It was a coincidence that he was able to have Nagini killed. But no worries, the remaining 5 should be enough to ensure my immortality.'
Chamber of Secrets, Hogwarts, 25th June 1995
After many scans performed on him by Madam Pomfrey to make sure he was as he said 'fine', they made their way down to the Chamber of Secrets. But before leaving the hospital wing, Harry did get a visit from the Headmaster, where he kept up the ruse of suffering from a memory loss, which was made more believable when Madam Pomfrey informed Dumbledore about the minor injury Harry had sustained on the back of his head.
Once they were seated in Salazar's study, Daphne said, "So, what was so important that you could not tell us out in the open?"
"I do not have any memory loss; I clearly remember what took place after I was portkeyed off after winning the third task of the tournament." Harry revealed, but before he could continue the two girls interrupted him.
"What!? Then why were you faking it?" both asked at the same time.
"I was coming to that." Harry said, with an eye roll, which earned him two slaps on the back of his head.
"Ouch. Bloody women." Harry mumbled, in hopes that the two girls would not have heard him. But if the smirks on their faces were any indication, then they had heard him.
"So, anyways, I think I would need to give the two of you a bit of history, I won't go into detail, but I will tell the two of you enough so you understand." Harry said.
"Okay… I don't like the feeling of this…" Susan said.
"Me neither." Daphne replied.
"So, Sirius Black did not betray my parents." Harry dropped the bomb, which got him the exact response he expected, but that did not mean he did not flinch at the high sound.
"WHAT?"
After rubbing his ears Harry said. "Yeah, he was not the secret keeper, it was Peter Pettigrew, he was the one that sold my family to Voldemort." Harry was very proud of the girls; they did not even flinch when he said Tom's name.
"But… But… That means…" Susan stammered, looking wide-eyed at Harry, much like what Daphne was doing.
"Yeah, Sirius Black is innocent, and my godfather. He was framed and sent to prison without a trial." Harry confirmed what they all were thinking. "And now that I have Pettigrew, Sirius could be freed."
"How do you know this, Harry?" Daphne asked.
"In our third year, I met Sirius and Pettigrew. That's when I learned of everything." Harry said, hesitant to share anything more.
"While we understand that you are still not ready to tell us everything, we will need to know this at one point Harry. If this relationship is to grow, we must be able to trust each other, and while I do trust you, secrets are never good for any relationship. Especially considering the unique relationship we three share." Susan explained, sitting in Harry's lap and hugging him close to her.
"I know Susie. And while I do trust you, I do not want to share all my secrets right now. I will share them, that is for sure, but I just ask you both to be a bit patient." Harry said, hugging Susan back with one hand while bringing Daphne in with the other.
"You have no need to fear our reactions, Harry. We have come to know and understand you soo well that we know that whatever you did in the past, you must have had a reason for doing it." Daphne said softly.
Harry was touched, while he knew and loved the two of them to death, he always had that fear inside him ever since he came back, that maybe… maybe they would not reciprocate his feelings, maybe they would not like him, maybe they would fear him. But hearing them say this put his mind at ease. Though it did not cause him to cease all his worries, it did alleviate some of the worries he had. And thanked god for the wonderful girlfriends he had.
After a few moments of silence and just sitting there in each other's arms, Harry decided to let them in on what really happened after he took the Portkey. He narrated in detail how Pettigrew was there, waiting for his arrival, how he was bound, and how Pettigrew revived his master. How he dueled Voldemort, and how he escaped with Pettigrew coming with him for the ride.
"What?! You faced Voldemort?! But he is supposed to be dead! Are you all right? Maybe we should get Madam Pomfrey to get you checked over once more!" Daphne reacted, frantically checking Harry for injuries, forgetting that Madam Pomfrey had already checked him all over thoroughly, and found nothing except the bump on the back of his head, and a wound on his forearm.
Susan did not utter a word, she was terrified, her wide eyes and pale face proof of the fear she was feeling. She was looking at Harry with fear clear in her eyes, but the fear was not for herself, it was for her boyfriend, it was her boyfriend's safety she was concerned about. She dashed forward and grabbed Harry in a fierce hug, one which Daphne joined in too. Both making sure that Harry was indeed alive and there with them.
Neither let go of Harry, both comforting the other and themselves. All the while Harry rubbed their backs, soothing them. Whispering assurances that he really was here and fine.
Once everything calmed down, Daphne and Susan still were not ready to let go of Harry just yet. The boy they cared so deeply for had just faced off with the most dangerous Dark Lord of all time, and dueled with him one-on-one, so no, they were not ready to let go of him just yet. So, they decided to take up the positions they liked best. Daphne sat down, leaning against a wall for support, Harry laid down, with his head in Daphne's lap while she played with his hair, and Susan took her position on the floor next to Harry, laying her head on Harry's stomach, taking a hold of Harry's hand and placing his arm across her neck and holding onto it.
"One thing I do not understand Harry, is why did you give your blood willingly?" Daphne asked, frowning while looking down into Harry's eyes.
"Wormtail said ' Blood of an enemy forcibly taken' that would mean that for the ritual to be successful, the blood needed to be taken against my will, but if I gave my blood willingly…" Harry trailed off when he saw understanding in Daphne's dark blue eyes as they widened.
"You giving your blood willingly would harm the ritual, it would completely botch it, considering it was one of the main parts of the ritual. But how do you know if it did not enhance the ritual, how do you know that it would not make Voldemort stronger?" Daphne said.
"I did not. Took a chance I guess." Harry replied.
That gained him a flick on his forehead by Daphne. "You and your Griffindorish tendencies! Argh!" Daphne groaned, but all could see the small smile on her lips. This only caused Susan to start laughing. That was typical Harry, going in head first without a plan.
"But why fake memory loss?" This time it was Susan who asked.
But before Harry could answer, it was Daphne that jumped in. "To not gain anyone's attention. We all know that the Minister is dead set on believing that Voldemort is dead, he does not like anything that might harm his position as a Minister. Voldemort returning will for sure put his position in jeopardy. And if Harry had announced that Voldemort was back, Fudge at first would have tried to say that Harry was delusional due to a concussion or something. And if Harry would have continued standing by his statement, that would have gained him the entire Ministry's attention, and that too not in a good way."
This caused Harry to look up at Daphne and stare at her with so much intensity that Daphne had to avert her gaze and both Harry and Susan could see the blush on her cheeks. "What?".
While Susan giggled, Harry smirked before saying. "You know me too well Daph. Ever the Slytherin. Never change." Harry said while pulling Daphne down for a kiss.
"So, yeah, what Daphne said was true. I knew I would be targeted by the media and the Ministry if I let out that Voldemort was back. But I knew that I would have to find a way to somehow let everyone know that he was back without putting myself in the crossfire. So, that is one of the main reasons I asked you two to not come with me when the fake Moddy volunteered to take me to the Hospital wing. I had a suspicion that he might be in on it, as charming the Portkey to take me to the graveyard instead of the maze's entrance could only have been done by an inside man, and considering my history with other DADA professors it was a high probability that it was the DADA professor responsible for this once more." Harry said.
"But how did you know it was someone else in place of Moody?" Susan asked, confused and genuinely curious.
"You know about the Marauders' map, right?" Harry asked. He had shown the map and the invisibility cloak to the girls a long time ago, both were amazed by the workings of the map.
At their nod, Harry continued. "So, I kept on seeing Crouch's name on the map with Moody all the time. So, I started to get suspicious. I did not know why Crouch would be in Moody's office all the time. I mean yeah, Crouch was Moody's old boss. But that does not mean that he would stay there even during the night. So, one day, during our DADA class I opened the map and saw that Moody's name appeared in the Professor's private office, while Crouch's was in the classroom. But the person teaching us appeared to be Moody. That is when I got to know that Crouch was in fact Polyjuiced as Moody, I just did not know that it was Crouch Jr. otherwise I would have let the Aurors know about it immediately."
"So why did you not want us to be there with you? I mean it would have been better if all three of us were there to fight Crouch Jr. in case needed." Susan said.
"If all three of us would have been there, Crouch would have taken Harry to the Hospital wing, because even if he is delusional, he is not stupid to think that he can take on all three of us and win, considering that Harry has also previously knocked out a dragon. And if that would have happened, his true identity might not have been revealed. So, to reveal his identity Harry had to give him a sense of comfort, that he was alone with Harry and he could do whatever he wanted. And that's why Harry asked us not to come with him." Daphne replied, which earned her another one of Harry's searing kisses.
"I am going to have to stop asking these questions now if they only result in you two snogging and me laying here staring at the ceiling!" Susan huffed, a cute pout on her face. This caused both Harry and Daphne to break their kiss and start laughing, while Harry pinched Susan's cheek. That hand was quickly slapped away before Susan retook control of the hand and kissed Harry's palm before placing his arm across her neck once more.
The Headmaster's Office, Hogwarts, 25th June 1995
"So, Voldemort says that the ritual was botched by Peter somehow, was it?" Dumbledore asked as he looked at Snape as the Potions Master sat across from him.
"Yes, Headmaster, the ritual that he returned to power with, was botched in some way. The Dark Lord did not see fit to inform me of the ritual he used though." Snape said. "I have run numerous tests on the blood, it is rather peculiar indeed. The blood is acting like poison. The more it keeps running through the Dark Lord's veins the more it is going to affect him, and that too not in a good way. While currently he might be getting exhausted a bit faster and suffering from short bursts of mild pain, it would over a period of time increase in intensity, and the exhaustion will also increase. It would be a wonder if the Dark Lord even lives past a year."
"Oh, Voldemort will indeed live on, Severus." Dumbledore said cryptically, as he had long since suspected the measures that Lord Voldemort must have taken to cling to life like a parasite. "Dark magic is chaotic in nature, one miscalculation, especially by someone with below average abilities such as Peter Pettigrew can cause havoc."
"The real question now is, can this mistake be cured?" asked Dumbledore.
"Naturally, but if we plan this right, we can alter the potion slightly, where it would slowly speed up the process of the poisoned blood while making the Dark Lord believe that the potion worked." Snape said and Dumbledore shook his head. "Headmaster, with all due respect, this is the perfect chance to eliminate the Dark Lord for good, we must not squander it."
"No Severus, while you will make the potion, you will not per se cure the Dark Lord, but nor will you let the Dark Lord die." Dumbledore said in a stern voice. "While we do not want him cured, we also do not want him dead, as that would be a more dangerous situation for us. I have my reasons Severus, please make sure that you deteriorate the Dark Lord's health as much as you can, all the while making sure that he believes he is being cured, but also make sure he does not die."
"If you wish for me to do so, Headmaster." Snape said in a slightly skeptical voice. "Might I ask why you wish the Dark Lord to remain alive?"
"I have my reasons, Severus, trust me, everything will all work out in the end." Dumbledore said, while he wanted Voldemort at his lowest, he could not afford for him to die. As Dumbledore knew that the Dark Lord would live on due to his Horcruxes, but again in the wraith form, which would be truly difficult to contain and kill. No, the Dark Lord needed to live, but that did not mean he had to be at perfect health. Dumbledore was not going to let this opportunity go to waste, he would squeeze as much out of this situation as he could. "Make the potion and give it to Voldemort, along with the information that I told you to leak to him."
"Of course." Snape said who was still skeptical of Dumbledore's decision but had no choice but to obey Dumbledore. "I will keep you informed if I learn anything else, Headmaster."
"I know you will, Severus." Dumbledore said as Snape walked off. Dumbledore sat down. He had a trial to attend.
Sirius Black was at long last going to get the trial he deserved. While he like many others had originally thought of Sirius as the Potter's betrayer, he was made aware of his follies just last year, but even after holding onto soo many positions of power could not arrange a trial for Sirius. Because if he tried the first question he would have been asked was ' Why? Why after thirteen years of the incident are you asking for a trial? Why now?' and he did not have an answer to this. But now that Peter Pettigrew was caught, he could finally force the Ministry to give Sirius Black a trial.
The only issue he saw was that Sirius would be given the guardianship of Harry Potter.
' While I would have much preferred Harry stay at his Aunt's house at the Dursley's there is nothing I can do about it, I might try to convince Harry and Sirius and persuade them into seeing the benefits, but if it does not work there is not much I can do other than make sure that wherever they decide to live is as protected as I can make it.' Dumbledore thought.
"What are you planning Tom? What are you planning?" Dumbledore wondered.
But that was for later, right now he had a few letters to write. One of them to Sirius Black, requesting him to turn himself in as Peter Pettigrew was caught and he would be getting his long-awaited trail soon.
"The boy is going to be uncontrollable." Dumbledore said as he chuckled thinking of the parties that were no doubt about to happen once Sirius walked free.
The Wizengamot Court Room, Ministry of Magic, 30th June 1995
In the Wizengamot Court Room, a chained Peter Pettigrew sat in one chair, while Sirius Black was seated a few feet besides him. Both were guarded by Ministry Aurors, as the entire Wizengamot, minus Harry Potter who had not reclaimed his seats as of yet, had shown up, nor had he appointed any regent. Fudge walked into the courtroom with Dolores Umbridge closely behind him.
"Very well, today I am here to correct a terrible injustice, it appears that we were mistaken about the events that took place on the second of November, the year 1981." Fudge said. He had made up his mind, he could in no way swipe this under the rug as many had seen Peter Pettigrew alive, and if nothing came off of it, questions would be asked. So, the only way he could play this was by playing the role of a just Minister that was trying to rectify the mistakes done by the previous administration. Add to that, he was also hoping that freeing Sirius Black, might help get an in with the Boy Who Lived. A public endorsement from Harry Potter would cement his position as the Minister in the upcoming elections as well.
"On that day, Sirius Black was believed to have murdered Peter Pettigrew, along with twelve innocent bystanders. It took several hours to clear up what had gone wrong and Mr. Black had been thrown into Azkaban, but based on recent events and going through the paperwork, it was found that Mr. Black had never received a trial due to the chaos during that time. Today, Amelia Bones and I will interrogate both Mr. Pettigrew and Mr. Black, who have been given Veritaserum." Fudge said in a booming voice.
The members of the court had sat, in attention, as Fudge turned to Sirius Black first.
"Were you the Secret Keeper of Lily and James Potter?" asked Fudge.
"No, I was not, we switched to Peter Pettigrew at the last moment." Sirius said.
"And why did you switch to Mr. Pettigrew?" Fudge asked.
"We thought it was the perfect bluff, it would throw everyone off but we never knew Peter was a spy for Voldemort." Sirius said, bluntly as the members of the court, with the exception of Dumbledore and Amelia, flinched.
"Please tell the court what really happened on that unfortunate day in question?" Amelia asked
"I cornered Peter in the alley and he blurted out about how I betrayed Lily and James, before he shot a curse at me, intending to kill me, but when I blocked it by putting up a shield, Peter aimed behind his back and shot a blasting curse in the alleyway." Sirius said. "Several Muggles were killed due to the curse Peter shot, the alleyway was destroyed, and Peter had managed to escape under the guise of a rat, his Animagus form before he made his way into the sewers."
"I must say, I do not recall Mr. Pettigrew registering as an Animagus, his name is not on the Ministry records. Another addition in the growing list of Mr. Pettigrew's crimes." Amelia said.
"I believe that we have learned all we need to know from Sirius Black, let us move on to the interrogation of Mr. Pettigrew." Amelia suggested.
"Were you the Secret Keeper of Lily and James Potter?" asked Fudge, as the audience turned to face Pettigrew.
"Yes. James, Lily, Sirius, and I came up with the idea to have the Secret Keepers switched." Pettigrew said.
"Did you willingly give the location of the Potter family's residence to Voldemort, without any pressure, with your own free will?" Amelia asked, ignoring the audience flinching, her main focus was on the trial. Now that they were righting the wrong, she wanted to make sure that justice was served, and for that, they needed to make sure if Pettigrew willingly betrayed the Potters, or if was he forced or tortured into it.
"The Dark Lord had promised me power and money, how could I have rejected his offer? And for that, I willingly gave up the secret." Pettigrew revealed. Now, this confirmed his crimes, he had willingly betrayed the Potters, and revealed information to the Dark Lord, knowing that it would lead to the death of the Potters.
"Were you a part of the group of followers of Voldemort that called themselves the Death Eaters?" Amelia asked, intending to milk as much out of this as she could.
"Yes, I am a Death Eater." Pettigrew confirmed.
Amelia saw this opening and took it. "Could you name the people that were also Death Eaters and followers of Voldemort?"
"OBJECTION! Not relevant to the trial!" Lucious Malfoy objected.
' Of course, the lap dog would object! Imperious my arse.' Amelia fumed but kept her face neutral, even when the objection was sustained and Pettigrew was asked not to answer the question.
Amelia tried another question. "What happened in the graveyard after Mr. Potter was portkeyed there?"
"You do not have to answer this Mr. Pettigrew! The trial is about what happened on the second of November of 1981, not about the aftermath of the third task of the Triwizard tournament. Please ask questions relevant to the trial at hand Madam Bones." Fudge quickly interrupted, not wanting to hear anything about Voldemort being back.
"But Minister…" Amelia tried once more.
"Please move on Madam Bones." Fudge hissed.
Amelia did not reply, glaring at the minister, but nodded nonetheless. ' You fucking fat piece of shit only wanting to save yourself. I will have to do something about Voldemort myself, a bit discretely.' Amelia thought, before moving on with the trial .
"Did you intend to kill Sirius Black on the day of your escape from that alleyway?" Amelia questioned.
"Yes, it was not premeditated, but rather a spur-of-the-moment thing. I was cornered, but in the end, it turned out better. It allowed me to live and Sirius was framed." Pettigrew said.
All knew that this had turned out to be actually better for Pettigrew. As they knew, that if he had killed Sirius, there would have been an investigation, and even if he would have claimed self-defense, he would have been put under Veritaserum, as he had after all killed the Heir of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black. Framing Sirius Black had indeed turned out better for Pettigrew.
"The evidence is clear. The crimes that Peter Pettigrew committed were wrongly attributed to Sirius Black and it is clear what the members of the Wizengamot must do to ensure that justice is served." Fudge said. "Let's put this matter to a vote now."
"All in favor of imprisoning Peter Pettigrew and clearing Sirius Black of all charges?" Amelia questioned, and as expected nearly every hand in the Wizengamot was raised, going against this would be stupid after hearing all the evidence and would just result in bringing suspicion onto the ones that were against the motion. "All against?"
Not a single hand was raised.
"Sirius Black has been cleared of all charges." Fudge announced as the Aurors administered the antidote to both Sirius and Pettigrew. "A separate hearing date will be announced to decide on the punishment of Mr. Pettigrew for his crimes. Take him out of my sight for now."
"Mr. Black, if you could report to my office, we could start the procedures and discuss your compensation amount, while also giving you your wand back along with the custody of your Godson, Harry Potter, while Lord Potter Black is an emancipated minor, he is still required to have a guardian." Fudge said. "We can even start the process of making you the Lord Black, with the help of the Goblin liaison office."
"While I will visit you in your office to take guardianship of my godson, I will not be taking up the Black Lordship." Sirius said, causing there to be a stunned silence in the courtroom. A man declining to take up the Lordship of his own house was shocking. "My godson, Harry Potter, will be the next Lord Black when he reaches the age of 17. Until then I will be the regent of the Potter and Black family."
While Dumbledore was overjoyed that justice was finally served and the injustice was cleared. He still had one thing weighing heavily on his mind.
The Blood Protection.
When Lily died, the sacrifice created a blood protection based on the power of love. The love she had for Harry. As long as Harry stayed at a blood relative of Lily's place, no harm shall come to him. And while he would like nothing more but to keep Harry at the Dursleys for his own good, it was now not in his hands. The most he could do was try and convince Harry and Sirius.
That was the main reason he was here, currently standing in front of the Minister's office, waiting for Sirius Black to come back. Just then Sirius walked out of the office and was approached by Dumbledore.
"Sirius! It's good to finally see you walk out as a free man." Dumbledore said.
"It is good to be free after so many years Headmaster!" Sirius replied with a large grin on his face, a clear indication of how happy he was.
"It's good to see that justice has finally been served." Dumbledore said. "It is a time for celebration, but also a time to start planning, as you might have read in the letter, I sent you. He is back." That caused Sirius's grin to disappear. Dumbledore had indeed informed him of Voldemort's return and how the Minister was trying his level best to keep it all quiet, not even wanting to see the evidence. He had even gone as far as to have Crouch Jr. sent to Azkaban immediately. All the while allowing the enemy to grow stronger.
"I see Headmaster. What did you want to talk to me about?" Sirius questioned with a serious tone.
"While you must know about the protection around Dursley's house, you should know that it is the safest place for Harry to stay. That is the one place that He can neither enter, nor anyone intending Harry harm. So, while I cannot insist on you sending Harry there, I beg you to think it through before you come to any conclusion." Dumbledore said. While he was not afraid to say Voldemort's name, he did not want to cause any commotion in case someone was hearing in on their conversation.
"Headmaster, while I know that you mean well, I cannot in good conscience send Harry back there against his wishes, while I will talk to him. I will not force him and the decision would be his and his alone." Sirius replied, letting Dumbledore know that it would be Harry who would be deciding on what was supposed to be done.
Dumbledore sighed. "If you are willing to talk to Harry about this, I will not press the issue with Harry, but I do have a favor that I must ask of you."
"What is it, Albus?" Sirius asked.
"Now that your name has been cleared, and you have been given custody of Harry, would I be right in assuming that you will be staying at the Black family home?" Dumbledore asked, and continued on Sirius's nod. "I want to make sure that Harry is as safe as possible, hence would you allow me to cast some protections around the place and add in some security measures? While the protections that were placed around it by your ancestors are quite strong, one can never be too sure."
"I much appreciate you doing this Headmaster." Sirius said, gratefully.
"Think nothing of it my boy, but there is one more favor I must ask of you. Would you allow it to be the temporary headquarters for the Order? Only until we can find a permanent alternative of course. As you know He has returned and we need to set up everything immediately." Dumbledore requested emphasizing the words 'Order' and 'He' to help Sirius understand exactly what he was talking about.
AN
So, that was the chapter.
Harry, Susan, and Daphne talk, some moments, some revelations, and a jealous Susan. XD
As I mentioned previously, some different POVs.
Voldemort, and Dumbledore POVs.
I hope I was able to justify many of the actions the characters took. Many fics lack some of those things, just hope that me trying to justify everything did not cause the chap to be boring.
Then was the Trial, I have read many fics, but most of them forget to ask some questions that are needed like the willingness of Peter, so thought to add that too. I am not too good with court scenes so glance over it if it's too boring XD.
Next up…..