A hundred a fifty years of living a perfect life might seem like a long time, and it usually was, except Harry Peverell thought it was way too short. Why? Because his beautiful wives named Lily and Alice had finally succumbed to old age. He had kept up his own aging as an illusion, because no one would have believed he was immortal.
Harry had figured out he was the Master of Death soon after arriving in this world, so that wasn’t a surprise. It had taken almost 20 years before Lily had noticed he wasn’t aging. After a few tests, and visits to the muggle world for confirmation, he and his two wives knew he was going to outlive the loves of his life, and their children, and their children’s children.
Instead of making Harry suffer like that, the three of them agreed to trick everyone, including their own children, into never questioning his age and started using glamors and illusions to cover up his never changing age. As soon as his wives passed, he would fake his own age related death and move on.
How? He brought out Lily’s ritual paperwork that she had worked on for many years. She had reversed it, so she could successfully send Harry back, and he was both grateful and saddened by it. Grateful that he could return to his old friends and saddened that it was a horrible life to return to. He was not looking forward to it because of the things he would have to do to fix things.
Harry easily recalled the image of the old dilapidated shack where Lily had summoned him inside of and apparated there without a sound. He had learned that as time passed and he grew in age, he also grew in power, which he also kept hidden from everyone, for several reasons.
If they knew he was the most powerful wizard in the world, no one would have left him alone. They would have hounded him for it, either for advice on how to grow stronger themselves or to fight him and prove themselves superior. Harry didn’t want anything like that and kept the breadth of his abilities quiet.
Harry shook those thoughts off and waved his Holly and Phoenix Feather wand at the floor and repaired it, then used his Occlumency to recall the ritual circle Lily had drawn there. He had gathered copies of the required items she had sacrificed when summoning him the first time and also added in several magically charged ward stones.
He could have used his own potent magic to power the ritual, except he didn’t want to feel drained when he made the transition back. With Lily’s notes about the time component being added and how she had worked out that overcharging the ritual with the extra stored energy should shunt him right back to the point he had been summoned, he wasn’t worried about overshooting the mark and arriving at the same relative time as he was in now.
It took a few minutes for Harry to tuck everything away inside his much expanded mokeskin pouch. He no longer had to worry about space or how much the thing could hold. After magically lacing goblin silver through the threads and adding an undetectable expansion charm, he could make the place as large as Newt Scamander’s suitcase if he wanted.
As it was, Harry had millions of galleons, 15 mansions worth of valuables, tens of thousands of books, several enchanted cars, his original invisibility cloak, a massively updated Marauder’s Map of Hogwarts, all of Lily’s magical research, his honorary Minister of Magic badge (that he received after Alice retired and jokingly said he was minister for a day until they elected her replacement), his wands, and the heirloom things he and his wives didn’t leave to the kids.
His potions only took up a small space, as did the supplies, since he limited himself to the most expensive ones first and the rest were stored inside large preservation containers. He would never need any for at least one lifetime and he could replenish them if they ever started running low. Setting aside space to grow them himself was just a waste of space, since buying them was cheaper and less labour intensive in the long run.
Once everything was in place, Harry dropped his glamor and illusion spells. The true form of his 18 year old muscular self was revealed and he no longer looked like a thin and frail old man. His clothes were formfitting and he thought about changing them to his old ratty ones that he had when he first came here, then he shrugged.
It was a split decision to forgo his old look as well, then he really thought about what he needed to do. He sighed and took out a bronze knut from his pocket and transfigured it into a pair of glasses with clear lenses. He put them on and slouched slightly, assuming the Harry Potter role, then used a glamor to make his clothes resemble Dudley’s cast-offs.
He didn’t need a mirror to know he would only pass a quick observation by people and not a full inspection. He wasn’t really worried about that, though. Most of them ignored what he looked like and the situation he would be returning to was anything but calm. He had just defeated the Dark Lord and had disappeared, so it should distract them from looking too closely.
Harry just had to decide if he wanted to have a confrontation right there or would save it for in private later. With another sigh, he stepped into the ritual circle and pointed his wand at the ward stones in the anchor points of the ritual circle. They lit up with magic and then the whole circle glowed as well. The items of value, both personal and rare, burned up in the magic consumption and Harry took the same pose he had when he vanished.
His body froze and he started to dissolve. Since it hurt just as much this time as it did the last time, he didn’t have to fake screaming as he was torn apart again and then shunted back to his original world at the very moment he had been kidnapped.
He had been very tempted to go back sooner, except Lily herself told him that changing anything that stopped Future Harry from being on that particular spot when summoned, would destroy everything, as would meeting himself before he left, ruining two timelines and two worlds.
*
Hermione was shocked as she watched her best friend dissolve away down to his feet with a glowing ritual circle underneath him. Her mind captured the runes and the glowing numbers, her mind trying to figure out what they meant, then they suddenly shifted and she gasped when Harry’s shoes started materializing again.
She felt such relief that it took her a moment to understand that Harry was coming back from wherever the ritual had sent him. It was a very weird coincidence that he would disappear and then reappear at the very moment he left, then she caught her breath. That was what the change meant! There was a time component in the calculations and they adjusted to have him return to when he left!
Harry’s screaming started up again and several of the women around started crying again from the sheer pain he must have been in, then the rest of his head materialized and he stopped screaming, his form unfroze, and he dropped to one knee as he caught himself. He would have collapsed to the floor, otherwise.
“Harry, mate!” Ron exclaimed happily and walked over to him. “What happened?”
Harry held a hand up, clearly asking for help, and Ron grinned and grabbed on and pulled. No one saw the soft glow of Harry’s wand as he violently poked Ron right in the privates.
“YE-AAHH!” Ron yelped and let Harry go and started dancing around as he gripped himself with both hands. “WHATCHA DO THAT FOR?!?”
Harry finished standing with a smile on his face. “Sorry, I didn’t see where my wand was pointing when you hauled me up.”
Hermione’s eyes narrowed at him, because he didn’t sound sorry at all. “Harry!”
Harry turned from looking at Ron with amusement and saw Hermione. She was a mess. Her clothing was dirty and torn, her face had a few scratches and specks of blood on it, and her hair was all over the place. However, she couldn’t have looked more beautiful to his eyes.
After a century and a half with his wives, Harry had fully come to grips with how he had felt about Hermione ever since the end of third year. His upbringing had made his own feelings so muddled that he couldn’t have told you what love was until it was literally shoved in front of his face.
Hermione saw the look of complete and utter love on his face and she blushed. She wasn’t sure why she did, since she had never seen him as anything other than a brother.
“Hermione.” Harry said, his voice full of adoration. It also held a timbre that she hadn’t heard before and she mentally categorized it as sexy before she could stop herself. He started walking towards her and his intention to hug her was clear to everyone in the Great Hall, especially one particular witch that needed to interfere at all costs.
“Harry! You’re okay!” Ginny shouted and ran over to put herself in the way.
Harry’s wand flicked at her, as if swatting a fly, and Ginny tripped and fell flat on her face, only the floor wasn’t flat and her nose and forehead bounced off of some rubble and she skidded a little before coming to a stop a few feet away from him. She was also unconscious.
Everyone’s eyes were wide at what they just saw, then Harry reached Hermione and their eyes went even wider as he carefully reached out, as if he was scared how she was going to react. When Hermione didn’t flinch or try to push his hand away when he touched her shoulder, Harry beamed a smile at her and gently took her into the most intimate hug anyone had ever seen.
A few people turned away to give them privacy, even though it was only a hug. Mrs. Weasley shook off her shock at what just happened to her daughter and she pulled out her wand and marched right over to Harry.
“How DARE you cast dark magic at my little…” Molly started to rant and another wand flick saw her somehow tumble head over heels and then she face-planted right next to Ginny and stayed there.
“I am so very sorry for how I handled everything, Hermione.” Harry whispered into her ear.
Hermione’s face was completely red by this point, because she was not immune to the realization that he was hugging her like she was a long lost lover. She had seen reuniting couples at the airport many times over the years she travelled on vacation and this hug was very similar to them. Her thoughts also went to her traitorous arms, because they had hugged him back automatically and she was sure Harry felt her hardening nipples as they pressed into his surprisingly muscular chest.
Wait, he has a muscular chest? Since when? Hermione asked herself and her confusion let her push the awkward feelings aside. She let him go and stepped back, only to almost fall as she stepped on a piece of broken brick.
Harry’s seeker reflexes saved her from face-planting too and his strong arms lifted her and stood her back on her feet. “Careful there, Hermione. The last thing I want is for my best friend to be hurt.”
Hermione couldn’t stop her blush at his admission and then Ron hobbled by and went to Madam Pomfrey to get checked out. “But…”
“He doesn’t count.” Harry said with a chuckle. “He never did and he knows it. It’s why he’s been so jealous of me all these years.”
Hermione wanted to defend their friend and opened her mouth to do so.
“No, it’s okay. You’re right. I know when I’m going to lose an argument.” Harry said and Hermione was surprised he had agreed with her before she had a chance to argue with him. “You look tired and worn out. Why don’t we head to the dorms and get some rest?”
“But, we should…” Hermione tried to say they should stay.
“We did our part, Hermione. It’s over.” Harry said with a sexy smile. “Let’s get out of the way and let the adults do their jobs.”
Hermione couldn’t argue that they hadn’t done everything they could to end the war and nodded. Harry took her hand and led her across the battlefield the Great Hall had become and out through the large broken doors. She felt sad at seeing them and Harry’s hand let hers go and he hugged her at the waist.
“Don’t worry, Hermione. We can do magic.” Harry said, his voice full of wonder. “Hogwarts will be fixed up before you know it.”
Hermione didn’t doubt his words and nodded.
“Classes will begin in September and you’ll be happy that you can finish out your education as Head Girl and finally graduate like you always wanted.” Harry said and Hermione smiled. “It might be a year late; but, you helped end the war and saved the world. That was a worthy reason to take a year off before writing your NEWTs, wasn’t it?”
“Yes, Harry. It was.” Hermione said and they walked up the stairs together. She didn’t notice the scowl on Ron’s face as he watched them walking up the stairs and he held a chunk of ice on his crotch.
*
Harry felt really bad that he had slipped Hermione one of Lily’s potent purging potions at breakfast. Unlike normal potions, that usually tasted bad to stop people from becoming addicted to them, it tasted normal and she hadn’t noticed when it was put in a glass to be drunk.
It had to be done, even if she was going to hate him after suffering for two and a half hours. At least he knew air freshening charms and had cast them continuously for the both of them, so the smell was only slightly pungent.
“I really hate you, Harry.” Hermione groaned when the time limit finally ended and her body stopped purging all of the potions and trace effects she had been unknowingly suffering under.
“I know, I hate myself for doing it to you, too.” Harry admitted and handed her a large goblet of water under the stall door. “I have cleaning supplies here ready for you and an outfit you can change into. You have to be careful, though. It will be very tender down there and you won’t be able to sit normally for a while.”
Hermione sighed and sipped the water, the coolness making her feel instantly better. “Why did you do it?”
Harry wanted to lie and say it was only a suspicion, then changed his mind. “Because I went through it as well and these were my results.” He said and handed her a piece of paper that had sat in his mokeskin pouch for nearly 15 decades.
Hermione gasped when she saw it and then she devoured the information. “When… how…”
“I’ll tell you everything later. For now, these are your results.” Harry said and slid another piece of paper under the stall door.
“Oh, that son of a bitch!” Hermione shouted angrily.
“Which one?” Harry asked.
“Ron!” Hermione spat. “And Dumbledore! Damn that man.”
“At least one of them is already dead.” Harry said and he heard her take several breaths.
“Yes, he is. His own stupid pride killed him and I couldn’t be happier about that.” Hermione said. “Now… now I… dammit, what the hell am I supposed to do now?” Hermione asked. “I obliviated my existence from my parents, gave them new personalities, and told them to move to another country! How stupid was that?”
“You were trying to save them from a war.” Harry responded weakly.
“No, Harry. I was removing an obstacle that would have stopped us from gallivanting all across Great Britain, because they would have rightly called us stupid if I told them about it!” Hermione almost shouted and then sighed loudly. “Anyone with half a brain would have called us stupid.”
Harry sighed as well. “I think that’s why Dumbledore said to not tell anyone about it. He knew we would be talked out of it if everyone we asked said it was stupid.”
“I doubt the Order of the Phoenix would have, considering how Lupin almost came with us anyway.” Hermione said.
“He was fleeing the prospect of his son being a werewolf instead of embracing fatherhood like a man is supposed to.” Harry told her. “He has always been a coward and he proved it in the end by throwing his life away and abandoning his child with Andromeda. It’s just too bad he took Tonks with him.”
Hermione sighed and slid the empty goblet under the door. “She just gave birth, so yes. She shouldn’t have been here at the castle and fighting. Her magic would have been severely weakened and her health… it was a stupid waste, I agree.”
Harry handed her the cleaning supplies and he stayed quiet as Hermione cleaned herself up and whimpered the whole time. He wanted to go through it with her and listening to all of her little pains was as close as he could get without taking a purging potion as well.
“I’m ready for the clothes.” Hermione said and held her hands out under the stall door.
Harry didn’t even think about pranking her with a cat costume and put an immaculate school uniform into her hands instead. He transfigured a bra and panties to put on top and added a cushioning charm to the inside of the panties, just in case. Hermione pulled the clothes back inside the stall and he didn’t hear any movement.
“Harry.” Hermione said, her voice soft. “Where did you find such… nice underwear?”
Harry blinked his eyes in confusion for a moment and then realized he had transfigured black lacy panties and a see through bra without thinking about it. He had done it so often for his wives that he had done it automatically and handed them over without a second thought.
“Uh… I… I just…” Harry stammered and then figured what he told his wives would save him. “I thought you’d look good in them.”
“And what makes you think I’d let you see me in them?” Hermione asked, a little harshly.
Harry sighed, because he had forgotten she would be irrationally angry after the purge, just like Alice and Lily had been. He also needed to be careful with what he said in response, or he could lose her friendship over something stupid.
“I believe that any girl, no matter who they are, would want to feel pretty after what you went through. It’s not for me, it’s for you.” Harry answered. “I can change them into plain white cotton if you want me to.”
Hermione was silent and didn’t answer as the sound of clothes started rustling, so Harry hoped his words were enough to not anger her further. He also hoped the cushioning spell would make her more comfortable and not feel like he was coddling her. The last thing he needed was to have a smart angry witch casting spells at him.
Harry braced himself as the stall door opened and he looked at her face. Hermione was frowning at him and she looked pissed, so he knew he was only partially successful in calming her down. That made him rethink his chance at starting a relationship with her, especially now after she had all traces of everything ever given to her expunged from her body and brain.
It was clear she was going over everything they went through together over the years and she was having trouble reconciling the truth over what she believed happened. Potions only really explained so much, especially when it came to the extremes of her behavior that they both knew she had reached several times since they had been friends.
“Are you planning on making any more moves on me?” Hermione asked without any preamble.
Harry thought about not answering and knew that was as big of a mistake as telling her the truth about what happened to him. Instead, he said what he thought about her. “I’ve always been terrible with relationships. I was raised by horrible people and never knew what love meant for so long that I missed many chances where I could have been happy, like right after third year when you trusted me with your time turner secret and we saved Buckbeak and Sirius together.”
Hermione lost the frown and kept her face blank.
“Then again in fourth year, I was so caught up in my own misery that when you started pining for Ron after the Yule Ball, I stayed silent and didn’t complain you were ignoring me, your best friend, when you told Ron that he should have asked you instead of saying it to me, the boy who actually liked you.”
Hermione’s blank face changed to show sadness.
“Then in fifth year, I ruined any chance I had with being Cho Chang’s rebound guy by ditching her to meet up with you, which you admonished me for and looked happy about. It was such a mixed signal that I didn’t know what I was supposed to do about it, so I ignored it like usual.” Harry told her. “Then in sixth year…”
“I was a complete bitch to you for nearly the entire year.” Hermione said and the frown was back on her face.
“Yes, and look how that turned out.” Harry said and she glared at him. “You hated me over a stupid book that you should have poured over yourself for its secrets instead of continuously berating me for using. But, the best part? If Ron and I hadn’t fought over the new book that Ron took, he would have been using it and I knew that you wouldn’t have gotten after him for it. At all.”
Hermione’s glare softened and she turned her head slightly to look away.
“Funnily enough, even after learning about us being potioned, because it was surprisingly odd that we both became jealous of the two Weasleys in our lives at the same time, whom just so happened to be dating people in our own dorm rooms at the same time to rub it in our faces, I was sure that you would still be jealous of the berk for picking the airhead over you.”
Hermione blushed and didn’t argue, because she knew it was true. Ron picking Lavender Brown as his first serious girlfriend had been a huge insult to her and she hated it, mostly because Lavender wouldn’t shut up about how nice and dreamy Ron was.
“I know it’s unfair to say these things, because we both know the loyalty, love, distrust, and lust potions screwed the both of us up for so long… but, and this is a huge but… your brilliant mind would have seen through some of it and known you were being influenced. You wouldn’t understand why, only that you were, just like I reacted when around Fleur when she used her allure power on me.”
“You… you could ignore it.” Hermione whispered and looked back at him.
“Yes, I could. And I did.” Harry said and looked into her eyes. “And you didn’t.”
“How… how do you know that?” Hermione asked.
“Everything I’ve said is the truth, and I know it’s true for one simple reason.” Harry said and Hermione didn’t blink as she stared back at him. “You aren’t ranting and raving like you should be about it. You’re surprised, sure. You know who was behind it; but, you’re not excessively angry at him about it.” He saw her finally blink and dropped the bomb. “You’re angry at me for revealing it.”
Hermione sighed and closed the door to the stall. “When did you get so smart?”
Harry gave her a pointed look. “I’ve always been smart, Hermione. I just ignored everything that wasn’t important to my survival.”
That comment made her blush and Hermione looked away again.
“And now, here we are, with so much churning water under the bridge, and I can’t help but wonder if you’ll cross it or will you stay on the safe side?” Harry asked her.
Hermione didn’t say anything as she thought about it. She knew he was asking her if she would leave the safe life ahead of her behind to cross the proverbial bridge to join him on the other side, to venture out into a new life with him, instead of what she was going to settle for before he revealed the truth to her. She let out a soft sigh and looked back at his face.
“Yeah, I thought so.” Harry said and stepped away. “There really is too much unpleasantness between us to really make a go of it.”
“Harry, I… if it was years ago…” Hermione hedged.
“Before you ignored my concerns and berated me for an entire year about Draco not being a Death Eater and a threat to the school, which turned out he was, because he let loose Greyback and a bunch of other dangerous Death Eaters into the school and killed how many of our classmates?” Harry asked and she flinched back. “Imagine what could have happened if you had listened to me.”
Hermione opened her mouth to respond and he held a hand up to stop her.
“Yes, I mean all the time and not just then.” Harry said and dropped his hand and went to the bathroom door. “I wish you well in your life from now on, Hermione Weasley.”
Tears came to Hermione’s eyes at the sound of finality in those words. “H-Harry…”
“Goodbye.” Harry said and left.
The sound of the door closing echoed in the nearly silent bathroom.
*
Harry made it down to the Great Hall unscathed, despite everyone around him whispering about how he defeated the Dark Lord the day before and wanted to talk to their savior. To his relief, the bodies of his friends and classmates had been moved to the hospital wing and part of the rubble had been cleaned up. There was no sign of blood anywhere and he relaxed as he passed through the Entrance Hall and went out the main doors of the castle.
“Oi! Potter!” A whiny voice caught his attention.
Harry stopped walking and turned around to see Draco Malfoy with several Slytherins gathered around him. He wasn’t surprised they were the children of several Death Eaters and he walked over, only to feel surprise as he saw Daphne Greengrass and her sister among them.
“What do you want, Death Eater?” Harry asked.
Draco’s face showed anger. “How dare you accuse…”
Harry sighed and flicked his wand at Draco’s left arm to vanish his sleeve to reveal his Dark Mark. Just like back in the other world, it was a permanent tattoo and only darkened when Voldemort was more powerful. With him dead, the mark had faded back to the way it was when he first died and lost his body.
“Once a Death Eater, always a Death Eater.” Harry said and flicked his wand and all of their left sleeves vanished. “You haven’t stopped believing in your pure blood superiority, or given up your goals to purge the mudbloods from wizarding society, have you?”
Everyone flinched, even Daphne and Astoria, despite them not having the marks on their arms. Everyone else did, though.
“When my father hears about this…” Draco started to say.
“When my father. When my father.” Harry fake whined. “You’ve always been a broken record that needs to be fixed.” He said and several of them had wide eyes as Harry pointed his wand at Draco’s face. “Should I do it now or wait until there are no witnesses around?”
“How dare you threaten the son of a Noble house!” Astoria shouted.
“Noble? Who told you that vicious lie?” Harry asked.
“My betrothed has told me all about the proper wizarding families and…”
Harry looked at her as she kept talking about how great Draco was and how they would raise a family that would continue the wizarding world’s best traditions. “You actually want to marry a murderer and rapist?”
Daphne gasped and Astoria looked horrified.
“How dare you accuse…” Astoria started again.
“The only way to gain the Dark Lord’s mark is to commit rape on a muggle or muggleborn, then murder them.” Harry said, matter of factly. “Only then can you willingly take the mark and it binds to your soul and magic. That’s why, even with him dead, it will never fade. The brand is, and always will be, a part of you.”
The two girls seemed stunned to hear that and looked at the others, only to see guilty faces. Even Pansy Parkinson and Millicent Bulstrode had dark marks on their arms.
“So, Draco. Have you decided? Now or later?” Harry asked.
“You can’t kill him! I love him.” Astoria said and stepped between them.
“Pansy loves him, too. She’s loved him for years and he used her love against her and apparently tossed her aside for you.” Harry said and Pansy blushed.
“That…” Astoria swallowed. “That doesn’t matter. He’s mine now and I can’t let you hurt him.”
“Later it is, Draco.” Harry said and lowered his wand.
Six wands rose and pointed at his face, then Astoria also raised her wand.
“Tori, no.” Daphne said with a sad voice, because that simple move had just pitted her against the man that defeated the Dark Lord.
“What’s going on here?!?” Minerva McGonagall exclaimed as she strode over to them.
“Nothing, professor.” Draco said and motioned for everyone to put their wands down. “Just a little disagreement.”
Astoria didn’t lower hers, though. “Harry said he’s going to come after you later, Draco.”
Minerva held in her sigh and looked at Harry. “Is this true, Mister Potter?”
“Yes, professor. I’m going to hunt down all the Death Eaters to kill them, then I’m going to loot their houses and burn them to the ground, then raid their vaults and piss on their ashes.” Harry admitted, making their faces pale. “Severus Snape proved that the only good Death Eater, is a dead Death Eater.”
Minerva was terrified that her favorite student would say such things so nonchalantly. “Mister Potter, you can’t threaten people like that! You’ll be declared dark and…”
Harry chuckled. “Like I am nearly every year at Hogwarts?”
Minerva’s mouth snapped shut at the interruption.
“I honestly stopped caring what you people thought of me since second year.” Harry continued and saw the consternation on her face. “I’m just following your example, professor. Ignore everyone else and keep doing your job, no matter who comes to you to complain about anything, no matter how important.”
Minerva sighed. “Mister Potter, I don’t know where this hostility is coming from…”
“Of course you don’t. You haven’t once cared what I’ve been going through, even though every year something always happens to me. You ignore it, and me, and go on about your life like nothing is wrong in the world and it fixes itself right up by the end of the year.” Harry said to her and she took a step back from him. “Go back inside the castle and stick your head back into the sand where it belongs, professor. You’ve never done me any favors and I don’t expect you to do me any now.”
Minerva’s heart shattered at the vehemence in the boy’s voice and the hard look in his eyes. She had done her best to protect him over the years and he dared to accuse her of ignoring him.
“You have done nothing to protect me, madam. Nothing.” Harry said and his voice was like ice and it cut through her to the bone. “Whatever thoughts you have floating around your head about the things you’ve done, none of them protected me. I suffered at the hands of everyone, including my fellow Griffindors, and you never once stood up for me or defended me from anything or anyone for the entire time I was inside the castle. Never. Not once.”
Minerva reeled back as if slapped and took another step back.
“When you said our houses would be like our family, I was terrified you were right, and it didn’t take long before I realized you really were right.” Harry spat at her. “You were instrumental in turning them against me, too. 150 points for being out of bed after curfew and then assigning detention after midnight in the Forbidden Forest? You, madam, are the worst hypocrite in the wizarding world.”
Minerva felt her heart shattered at the hatred and venom in his voice.
“How you go to muggleborn students and lie as you tell them how wonderful Hogwarts is and then they get here and the reality sets in. They are second class citizens and won’t ever amount to more than wives, secretaries, or shop clerks, because every job and business is owned or run by pure bloods.” Harry said and then looked back at Astoria. “Not any longer. I’m going to finish the Dark Lord’s work by thinning out the pure bloods and removing the stain they are.”
“WHAT?!?” The teenage Death Eaters gasped.
“Oh? You didn’t know?” Harry said with a cruel smile. “He was a muggle-raised half blood and he hated the pure blood’s fanaticism and used it against them and branded you like cattle. You see, despite how brilliant and powerful he was, the only job he could get after graduation was as a shop clerk in Knockturn Alley. He hated you all for that and he worked for many years to make you all pay.”
They all looked as horrified as Minerva did, even Daphne and Astoria.
“Who cares if I’m declared dark? The people will love me for a while and then realize with Dumbledore and the Dark Lord dead, I’m the only powerful wizard left. I’ll be declared dark anyway, for their own safety of course, and probably sent to Azkaban for whatever crimes they can come up with.” Harry said with a shrug.
None of them argued, because a few of them, especially Draco, had been planning to do just that. Framing someone for murder was as easy as a bit of polyjuice or transfiguration and leaving a witness alive.
“So, I’ll wait until later. As soon as people start whispering about me going bad, and no one being strong enough to oppose me, they’ll turn on me. For the first time in my life, I’ll be happy to step forward and prove them right.” Harry said and stepped back, gave them a little wave, then he disappeared.
Everyone visibly relaxed with him gone and Astoria started crying. Daphne pulled her into a hug and tried to comfort her for choosing Draco over being cautious, then everyone stiffened as a whispered voice drifted around them.
“I’m coming for you.” Harry whispered. “I’m coming for you all.”
Minerva watched as the teenagers panicked and ran for the owlry. She suspected they were going to warn their families that Harry Potter was coming for them, only most of the ones that had been at the castle with Voldemort had already been taken into custody. Their trials would be happening over the next few weeks and all of their homes were pretty much empty of defenders.
“He really can burn them all to the ground without worry.” Minerva said when she realized Harry really did have free reign to do what he wanted. As the savior of the wizarding world, he was just cleaning up the rest of them.
*
Harry implemented the same plans that he, Lily, and Alice had done all those years ago, and they worked just as efficiently as they had the last time. He used another mokeskin bag to loot each of the mansions and houses, found many of the same vault keys, and then raided their vaults for millions of galleons.
Since it happened before the suspects had paid any bribes, all of them were shocked to find they had no money to complete their offers. All of them ended up being sentenced to Azkaban for many years, some even for life, and only a few of the less guilty wives had managed to only be sentenced to a few months in a jail cell for collaborating with their Death Eater husbands.
They would eventually return to their burned down houses and discovered they had nothing else. Even their children were gone and there was no trace of them or what happened to them.
*
Narcissa wished she hadn’t protected Potter when it mattered, because when she was released from her reduced sentence, her mansion was ash and all of her things were gone. She apparated over to the outside of the Greengrass Estate and sighed with relief to see it intact. The betrothal contract between their families was a boon she was counting on, since the dowry was to be handed over after the wedding. She knocked on the door and it opened to show her friend’s sad face.
“What happened?” Narcissa asked.
“We chose the wrong side to support.” Victoria Greengrass said.
“What… wait, do you mean…” Narcissa’s face paled. “Where is my Draco?”
“Dead. As is my Tori.” Victoria said and stepped aside. “Daphne can tell you what happened.”
Narcissa rushed inside and through the receiving area and into the living room. She saw the devastated young woman sitting on the couch and slowed to a walk, then sat on the couch beside her.
“I tried to stop her, to convince her…” Daphne whispered.
“She was as stubborn as you were.” Victoria Greengrass said as she entered the room.
“What happened?” Narcissa asked.
“Potter.” Daphne answered. “He… he really is as powerful as Dumbledore was. He even…” She shook her head. “I’ve never seen such magic before. He riled them up and angered them into rashness, then set them up to meet him in a twisted mockery of the Battle of Hogwarts. He tore through them like they were nothing, and taunted them with how pathetic and weak they were, and mocked them about their proud pure blood heritage.”
“He fought the Dark Lord to a standstill many times.” Victoria said and handed Narcissa a newspaper. It was the Daily Prophet and it chronicled Harry Potter’s exploits and how he did face a powerful opponent and always escaped with his life. He even taunted the Dark Lord as they duelled in the Great Hall before he ended him for good.
“Why?” Narcissa asked as she slumped at the death notices for her only child and his betrothed.
“Because Harry was right. The Dark Lord killed more pure bloods than muggleborns. He wiped out entire families because they refused to bow to him.” Daphne said. “All Harry did was finish his work.”
Narcissa stared at her and didn’t know what to say.
“They declared him a Dark Lord, just like he said they would.” Victoria said and handed her another newspaper. “He’s considered extremely dangerous and is to not be approached. Aurors should be called if he is ever sighted and they will handle his arrest. As soon as they have him in custody, they’ll put him on trial for so many crimes that he’ll be summarily found guilty and given a death sentence.”
Narcissa read the declaration and sighed. “Where is he?”
“Gone.” Daphne said.
“Gone? What do you mean?” Narcissa asked.
“He dissolved all marriage contracts within the Black family, sold all business stocks, liquidated all properties, reclaimed all dowrys given out, called in any and all outstanding loans, sold the Wizengamot seats for both Potter and Black to muggleborns, then he disowned each and every other member of the Black family except himself.” Daphne said and nodded to her mother.
Victoria handed over one more newspaper and Narcissa’s eyes widened at the economy dropping into a recession, which had never happened before, and she read how removing two prominent family accounts from Gringotts had gutted their lending power. That was also how she learned the Malfoys had also lost most of their fortune, since she hadn’t known how that happened until now.
“The Weasleys as well?” Narcissa asked, surprised.
“Apparently, two of them had a hand in destroying most of the bank and releasing a guard dragon. Once they fined them, it came out how Mrs. Weasley had potioned her husband to get his attention, then potioned a girl for her youngest son and a famous boy for her daughter.” Victoria informed her.
“Line theft is an automatic ten year sentence in Azkaban for normal people.” Daphne said. “It raises by ten years for every level of the family affected. Since the Black family is Ancient and Noble, and he’s the only remaining Black…”
Narcissa sighed. “They’re all in prison?”
“No, they were all kissed by Dementors.” Victoria said, sadly. “Even the muggleborn.”
“What? Why?” Narcissa asked, surprised.
“She chose to stay with the Weasels after Harry told her the truth.” Daphne answered. “She shared their lives and she shared their punishment.”
“Because she chose to go along with the crime, she gave her tacit approval.” Narcissa said. “The stupid bint.”
“Yes, it was quite the scandal and we haven’t seen or heard from Harry Potter since.” Victoria said.
“Then…” Narcissa looked around at the mansion and back at her friend. “…why?”
“My first daughter was smart and stayed out of it. My husband however…”
Narcissa sighed. She knew the man wouldn’t let his little girl suffer whatever Potter had planned and had to step in to protect her.
“You are welcome to stay here, even if you are a convict.” Victoria said with a smile.
Narcissa nodded. “I’m glad I refused to accept the mark.”
“As you should be.” Daphne said and shivered. “I still can’t understand why Pansy…”
“Because some people just have darkness in them that they need to let out, no matter what.” Victoria said and sat beside her daughter to hug her.
“Don’t try to understand it, dear. You won’t be better off if you do.” Narcissa said, because her own sister had succumbed to the darkness and was fully mad long before she was sent to prison. She had come out much worse for it and then died at the Dark Lord’s side.
“I’ll have a room prepared for you, Cissy.” Victoria said and let her daughter go before she stood. “Try to relax, have some tea, and try to decide where you want to go from here.”
Narcissa nodded and watched her friend leave the room.
“He won’t, you know.” Daphne whispered.
“Won’t what?” Narcissa asked. She didn’t need to ask who the young woman meant.
“Come for you. You would be dead already if he was.” Daphne whispered.
Narcissa looked at her face and nodded. The truth was on her face and was easily seen. “Do you know…”
“Gone. He’s gone.” Daphne said and sat back on the couch. “The last time I saw him, he… he said… there was nothing left for him here. He had no reason to stay, even if he ignored the Ministry trying to have him arrested and killed.”
“Then… could he be waiting for everyone to forget?”
Daphne huffed and crossed her arms. “He could have easily made everyone forget he exists. He chose not to, because… in his words… we aren’t worth the effort to worry about anymore.”
Narcissa felt her heart skip a beat at hearing that. They weren’t worthy for him to bother with. She fell silent and sat there as she thought about the beaten and battered boy she had met in the Forbidden Forest. Why did him saying she was unworthy of his attention make her feel so bad? He was just a boy and… her thoughts stopped and she sighed.
Harry Potter was no boy. He was the Man-Who-Conquered and the newest Dark Lord. He deserved respect and… her thoughts stopped again. Why was she letting herself fall into the same argument she had with following Voldemort? He was an insane wizard that wanted to end the muggleborns and the muggles from destroying their pure blood society, except it was a lie and he destroyed it anyway.
Victoria returned and led her to her new room. It was nice and large, fitting for Narcissa’s own self worth, and she bathed, changed into borrowed sleep clothing, and climbed into bed. She fell asleep with an unknown future ahead of her and thoughts of what kind of Dark Lord Harry Potter would have become if he stayed.
*
Harry Peverell had looked for and found the same old abandoned farmhouse and smiled at it still existing. It gave him hope that it would also exist where he was going. He had taken Lily’s original notes on the ritual, ones he fully understood after decades of studying, and he left everything the same, except for the destination coordinates.
He didn’t want to go back to the same world had had left and already fixed, in case him travelling there undid what had already happened, or caused the collapse of the reality for having two Harrys appearing there.
He changed a single digit when he recreated the ritual circle and knew it would set him to be sent to the next reality over from the last one and set the charged ward stones into place, added in the appropriate items and ingredients to be sacrificed in the right spots, then activated it.
Just like the last two times, he was frozen in place and screamed in pain, then he dissolved from his head down to his feet and disappeared.
Harry screamed as he reformed in the brightly lit living room of a shocked muggle family, whom stared at him as he formed between the couch and their television set. Surprisingly, none of them screamed like he was and he stopped as soon as the transfer was complete and the pain ended. He dropped to one knee and caught himself before he face-planted, took several deep breaths, and sighed.
“Did Captain Kirk send you here? Are you from the Enterprise?” A young brown haired boy asked and his eyes and voice were full of wonder and awe.
Harry glanced behind where he knelt and saw an episode of Star Trek was on the telly. He turned back to smile at the boy. “I’m sorry, I can’t divulge important Starfleet information to a civilian.”
The boy’s face lit up with a huge smile.
Harry stood and looked at the man, woman, and teenage girl that also sat on the couch.
“That looked like it hurt.” The dirty blonde haired girl said and squinted her eyes at him. “You’re not really from the telly, are you?”
“I’m sorry, the federation has a strict non-interference policy with mug… normal people.” Harry said, correcting himself just in time. None of them caught his slip. “Please stay quiet about what you saw.” He said and slightly waved his wand at them and gave them the compulsion to not talk about it. “Both I and Captain Kirk would appreciate it.”
“I knew it was real!” The young boy exclaimed.
Harry made a motion with his finger to his lips in a clear sign to be quiet. “I have a mission to complete, so have a good evening.”
None of them stopped him from leaving the house, even if the two adults had odd expressions on their faces. A brief brush with Legilimency let Harry know they knew what they just saw was not what they thought it was, so his compulsion to not speak about it was already the best thing he could have done.
Once he was outside, Harry apparated to Charring Cross Road to an alley beside the Leaky Cauldron. He put on some outer robes to cover his muggle type clothing and entered the crowded tavern. He nodded to a young Tom the Barman as he passed and went out the backdoor, tapped the right sequence on the bricks to open the wall, and entered Diagon Alley. He needed to see what the state of the bank was in and that would give him another clue as to the date and the time.
Harry was pretty sure he arrived at or near the same time as he had when Lily summoned him, meaning it should be the summer after Lily’s sixth year at Hogwarts. If it was, then the bank should have several desks available that were not there in the future and their services were only available to those that knew about them beforehand.
He entered and saw the inheritance desk and the name registry desk, with the new accounts and accounts recoverable the next two desks. All four of them were not there back in his original world, so he walked over to the inheritance desk and asked for privacy. Like before, he was granted it and brought inside a small office, performed the inheritance ritual, and the goblin sucked in a sharp breath.
Before Harry could ask what was wrong, the goblin slammed his hand down on a hidden rune matrix and sirens started wailing. He sighed as a large group of armored goblins tromped into the office and surrounded him.
“What is the cause of raising the alarm, Inheritance Manager Snarltooth?” A goblin’s voice said from the doorway and Harry turned to look. He saw a well dressed goblin and he looked fairly old.
“This person’s inheritance test proves he shouldn’t exist and his magic does not match the known samples.” Snarltooth said and stood, then picked up the family tree that appeared on the parchment and carried it over to him.
“How does it prove…” The goblin stopped himself as he read it. “I see.” He said and handed the paper back and looked at Harry. “Interloper, you will be held captive until such time the Ministry of Magic can take you into custody for violating our sovereign territory to plunder our treasures.”
Harry sighed at them overreacting to his presence and slowly stood.
“REMAIN SEATED!” One of the armored goblins yelled and lunged forward with his weapon drawn. Whether or not he meant to attack, didn’t matter.
Harry saw it as an attack and his wand appeared in his hand instantly. He flicked it and the goblin was instantly flayed, his armor dropped to the floor in hundreds of pieces, and the skinless body fell to the floor in a puddle of green blood.
“I only wanted to confirm my name with the bank.” Harry said and all the goblins tensed. “Establishing my identity with an inheritance test, showing you I wasn’t lying when I told my story, was apparently the wrong thing to do.”
“You have murdered one of our own on our own soil. If you were of this world, we would raze the surface of all wizardkind for the insult.” The goblin said, clearly angry. “The Department of Mysteries deals with travellers like you that come here to wreck everything.”
“The DoM deals with them?” Harry asked and thought for a moment. “You mean disposes of them.”
The goblin looked down at his dead guard and back at Harry’s face. “Yes, and there is the best reason for them to do so.”
Harry gave the other guards a glance and then looked at the well dressed goblin. “I have gold…”
“No amount of it can erase the insult of spilling our blood!” The goblin growled.
“Fine.” Harry said and he waved his wand and all of the guards turned inside out instantly and dropped to the floor in puddles of blood. “I’m sorry you can’t be reasoned with.”
“Wait!” The younger goblin shouted as Harry poked his wand towards him and he silently exploded.
The older goblin wiped the blood off of his face and realized that he may have made a terrible mistake. He still felt insulted that his people’s blood had been spilled as if it meant nothing, then his eyes locked onto the young man that still stood in front of the desk. He saw his own death, as well as all of his people, because of his mistake.
“If you just make us vanish, no one will know it was you.” The well dressed goblin said to try and mitigate the damage he had done.
“I’m sorry, that lie won’t work.” Harry said and pointed to the inheritance desk. “I know as soon as blood is willingly given for the test, you add it to your wards as identification. With the alarm raised, no matter the reason, there will be hundreds of goblins waiting for me as soon as I step out through the door of this office.”
The older goblin sighed. “At least it’s quick.”
“It would have been if I didn’t have to fight my way out of the bank.” Harry said and cast a cutting curse on his neck. The goblin gurgled and clung to his neck as his lifeblood seeped out. “I feel really bad about this. I do.” He said and walked by the bodies, stopped, then went back to the desk and opened the top drawer and pulled out a set of keys. “I can’t stay here anyway, so I might as well help myself.”
The older goblin dropped to his knees as Harry picked up a goblin’s hand. He felt it generate their body’s innate magic and cursed himself for not treating him like a valued customer and then turned on him when it was time. As it was, no one at the Ministry would know it was a dimensional traveller that had killed them all and robbed the bank.
By the time Harry Peverell had pilfered everything in the bank, which needed another mokeskin pouch for the tens of millions of gold galleons, tens of thousands of silver sickles, and hundreds of thousands of bronze knuts. There were also several thousand dead goblin warriors and all of their armor and weapons were melted down and formed into large square metal plates.
Harry gathered them and went back up to the top level, after clearing out the deepest vaults, and saw the bank itself was empty. It was also fairly late at night, or very early in the morning, so it was understandable that it was easy to usher out the few clients still there when the alarm went up. He really did feel bad that he couldn’t negotiate, even if it was the goblins that had instigated it, and he left the bank and locked the doors.
With luck, he would have a few days where no one would discover the disappearance of the entire goblin race and all the money in the bank. Without luck, they were already hunting for him and could find him at any time. Harry chuckled at that and walked down Diagon Alley towards the Leaky Cauldron.
He sat and had breakfast, read the complimentary Daily Prophet, and laughed at seeing Headmaster Thomas Riddle being brought up on charges of line theft and getting a pureblood pregnant. That the woman was Andromeda and the family was the Black family, made it all the funnier. This was not a world he needed to stay in any longer than necessary.
After eating, he paid Tom a handful of galleons, shocking the young man, and left out the muggle entrance. When he was far enough away, he apparated to the little park down the road from where Lily Evans lived and went to her house. Surprisingly, neither she nor Petunia were there. A little Legilimency let him see that their mother wasn’t able to get pregnant.
As a last check, Harry apparated to Godric’s Hollow and there was no cottage. A look around the small village also showed the Dumbledore house was missing as well. He just so happened to pass by the church while searching and felt like he should enter. That was where he found Fleamont and Euphemia Potter’s graves. They had caught Dragon Pox years before they were supposed to and never had James Potter at all.
“I guess that freaked the goblin out, since I was apparently born from dead people.” Harry said and looked around.
He found Albus Dumbledore’s grave and it was next to his mother’s. Beside that was Grindelwald’s and Bathilda Bagshot’s. When the lovers had their fight as teenagers, Arianna Dumbledore had been spared and they were not. She had grown up whole and healthy, had a happy life, a husband, and several kids.
The details of this place were twisted and Harry didn’t see much point in staying around. The life he thought he would be finding by coming here, wasn’t one that he actually wanted. Instead of trying to go back to that farmhouse, Harry spent some time apparating around until he found a secluded spot near Hogsmeade and the Forbidden Forest.
He had to check and see if Hagrid existed, since Tom Riddle didn’t become Voldemort. Did that change Hagrid’s life if there was no conflict with the Dark Lord? A quick broom flight into the grounds showed no hut and no pumpkin patch. There were also many greenhouses and the Forbidden Forest had been culled back to make room.
Hogsmeade was twice the size it was supposed to be and there were a lot more witches and wizards out and around. Apparently, no dark lord meant a whole lot of things had changed, especially the population. With nothing else to check, Harry flew back to where the Shrieking Shack was in two different worlds and didn’t exist here.
Some transfigured wood had a proper platform for him to use and Harry protected it from being seen and found, then set up the ritual again. He didn’t bother using the reciprocal of the one used to get there, though. He wasn’t going back there, no matter what, and used it with only a minor change to the Arithmancy equation to shift the dimensional coordinates once more to the next one over.
The thing was, if he kept using this new one, with the time gradient so far in the past, he was guaranteed to end up in worlds that his local counterpart didn’t already exist in. It was the best way to make sure his anchor point was secured and he would never have to worry about being lost or going back to the worlds he had already visited.
Harry set the ward stones into place and activated the ritual once more. The pain always had him scream and he forgot to silence himself beforehand. He dissolved and disappeared, then the ritual circle’s glow faded away right after he did.
*
In the next world, Grindelwald had won. It was the utilitarian utopia he wanted and everyone was brainwashed into believing it was the best version of the world. Both the muggles and the magicals worked together in various jobs and it was so uniform and strict that as soon as Harry had tried to walk down Diagon Alley, he was accosted for not fitting in and reported.
Another fight ended with hundreds of people dead, many businesses destroyed, and Gringotts closed. At least this time it wasn’t Harry’s fault. They hid as soon as spells started flying around. Unlike other goblins, these ones were complete cowards and avoided every argument and fight.
Harry managed to get away without anyone following him and he returned to the same spot he had appeared. The hill needed a little work and he used the ritual to return to his anchored reality and sat down and thought about how many times he was going to have to travel to find a world he wanted to stay in. Was finding another one that was similar to his own, too much to ask?
*
Apparently, it was. The next world, the magical population was all merpeople who had adapted to living on the surface. The next one was completely barren with nothing larger than a cockroach there. On and on it went, tens of worlds, then nearly a hundred were explored and rejected, with each one more outrageous and unbelievable than the last.
Then, to Harry’s utter surprise, he finally stumbled across a nearly perfect world. It was almost identical to the one Lily Evans had summoned him to, except after a short investigation, he discovered that this Lily had an identical twin sister named Rose instead of an older sister named Petunia. Since he wasn’t an idiot like James Potter, whom had professed love for Lily just after meeting her, he chose to do the smart thing.
Harry walked over to the house and knocked, glad that it was about noon on a Saturday. The door opened and a bubbly redhead stood there staring at him with a smile and a kind of confused look on her face. Harry was a little stunned that she looked identical to the woman he loved for so many years and the two of them stared at each other for several seconds.
An identical bubbly redhead almost flounced over to the open door. “Who was at the… oh, helllloooo there, handsome! Who are you?” She asked, her voice a little husky.
The first redhead blushed from embarrassment. “Rose!”
Her intervention managed to knock Harry out of his shock and he smiled warmly at the both of them. “I’m terribly sorry for just showing up like this.” He said and let them hear his sincerity. “I was just passing by and thought I felt someone with magic nearby.”
“Really?” Lily asked, her eyes brighter than a moment before. “I thought only someone old like Headmaster Dumbledore or Professor McGonagall could feel other people with magic.”
Harry didn’t let that comment bother him, even if he really was quite old. “Anyone can learn how to sense magic eventually, as long as they’re open to the different sensations.” He said and held a hand out to her. “I’m Harry Peverell. I only just arrived in the area and thought I should ask someone local for some help.”
“Then you came to the right place.” Rose said and stepped around her sister as she took Harry’s offered hand and shook it. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m Rose Evans and that’s Lily.”
“Rose!” Lily said and tried to glare at her.
Rose let Harry’s hand go and stepped back. “I’m not letting some sexy stranger touch you before I check him out first, sis.” She said and gave Lily a quick hug. “He didn’t grab me or tried to kidnap me, so now it’s safe to touch him.”
Lily sighed and shoved her sister’s shoulder, whom laughed and walked towards the kitchen. “I’m sorry about her.” She said and looked a little nervous, then she held her hand out for Harry to shake. “Her self appointed job of protecting me sometimes goes a little too far.”
Harry took her hand and thought about teasing her, then chose to keep it light as he shook it and then let it go. “You really can’t blame her for wanting to keep her smarter and prettier twin safe.”
“OI!” Rose gasped from the kitchen and someone else laughed, which proved they were both listening.
Lily blushed and tried to hold her own laugh in. Harry grinned at her and she let out a soft chuckle. Lily stepped back and waved him inside with a soft whisper telling him to come in. Harry whispered a thank you and stepped by her and she shut the door. The two of them went through the living room and into the kitchen to where Rose was helping her mother make lunch.
“I didn’t mean to intrude…” Harry started to say.
Their mother waved his comment away. “It’s only tossed salad and sandwiches. Adding another bowl is as easy as Lily getting one from the cupboard.”
“Oh! I’ll do that!” Rose said and practically hopped over to the cupboard and grabbed a small salad bowl and added it to the row, which she quickly filled with greens, tomato slices, and added some salad dressing on top.
“Have a seat, it’s almost ready.” Their mother said and motioned towards the kitchen table.
“Thank you.” Harry said and sat where Lily pointed, so he could avoid sitting in someone else’s seat.
Lily sat down right next to him and gave him a searching look. “Do I know you from somewhere? You kind of look familiar.”
Since his Lily had loved the bad boy look, the same one he had after he had first arrived in her world and needed medical attention to his head and the healers had to cut most of his hair off, he had kept it cropped short ever since. Harry suspected this Lily might like the look, too.
“I just have that kind of face.” Harry said with a shrug. Without the Potter hair that looked like a messy bird’s nest, there was no way she would make the connection between him and James Potter.
“Rose tells me you know about magic?” Their mother asked and set out everyone’s plates of sandwiches and Rose set out everyone’s bowls of salad. Their father entered and sat down without even mentioning Harry being there.
“I do.” Harry said and regaled them with what he knew and had learned while being homeschooled. He didn’t have any legal school records, magical or muggle, because his family was reclusive. Since he was the last of his family and was also of age, he came out of hiding and wanted to make friends and experience what school was like for himself.
That made both Rose and Lily mention Hogwarts and how it was the best school in Great Britain.
“Then I should register at Hogwarts for this year?” Harry asked them.
“I’m sorry, Harry. You missed the cut-off date for that.” Rose said and bit into her sandwich.
“By how long?” Harry asked.
“A few days.” Lily answered.
Harry sighed and picked at his salad. “I wonder if I can get an appeal or something. I really did only just arrive here.”
Rose looked at Lily and she looked right back. They had a silent conversation and then nodded at the same time.
“Give us an hour to write a letter to our favorite professor before you lose hope.” Rose said.
Harry perked up. “Really? You’ll help me?”
Both young women nodded and he beamed a smile at the both of them as he ate the last of his lunch with enthusiasm. When the food was gone, Harry also mentioned he was looking for a room to rent and wondered if they knew of anything nearby. It would only be for the remainder of the summer and then he could live on his own again.
Rose mentioned the spare room and both parents were going to refuse, mostly because they didn’t really know him. It wasn’t until Harry told them that he would be paying the going rate in galleons and not British pounds that they realized they could gain much more value for their money if they used those galleons for their children’s school supplies instead of converting muggle money.
The two young women quickly ran off to write their letters to send off to Minerva McGonagall to ask her for a favor. They needed their new friend to be registered for the upcoming year and they would guarantee that he would be added into the Griffindor dorms, since there was no one more Griffindorish than Harry Peverell.
As those two letters winged their way to Hogwarts, Harry sent off copies of his paperwork that he exchanged with Auror Amelia Bones, to get him officially registered in this Ministry of Magic’s files as a legal adult. Even though they were from a different world, paperwork was paperwork. Also, the official signatures on them were so scribbled, he doubted anyone would question them.
By early evening, when Minerva McGonagall’s hasty reply came to confirm that yes, she did add him to the next year’s attendance roll, Harry Peverell was already listed a legal adult in the wizarding world and was allowed to do magic at his registered address, that just so happened to be where two other witches named Lily and Rose lived.
The pair of excited girls practically begged Harry to erect the wards and spells he mentioned to protect their parents and to muddle the magical signatures around the property. Harry was glad to do so, just so Lily and Rose could do all the magic spells they were never allowed to do in front of their parents during the summers.
Needless to say, Lily, Rose, and their parents were very grateful for the legal loophole Harry had provided for them, thanks to him registering their address as a known wizarding home. The first thing Harry did was protect the home, with fire freezing charms, detection wards, and protection and aversion wards.
The next few things he taught the girls were the necessary household spells and general cleaning and repairing charms they could use every day, which earned him a kiss on each cheek from the twins. Their parents were even more impressed by the lessons and how their daughters quickly picked up the new spells and put them to immediate use.
The house they lived in was changed almost overnight into the cleanest and most well cared for house in the neighborhood. Everything inside and outside was fixed and looked like new, even the faded wallpaper, the siding, the mailbox, and all of their clothes. All four members of the Evans Family were very happy to have someone like Harry drop into their lives.
The next week ended with a Diagon Alley day for school shopping and they all went, wearing appropriate robes to hide that they were muggles and muggle-raised. It had been the first time that any of them had gone there with no one glaring at them or commenting about how they didn’t belong there. The change was significant and both Lily and Rose promised to always dress appropriately when it was necessary, as did her parents.
The rest of the summer break passed by without incident as the three friends grew closer. Even with Severus Snape living nearby, there were no problems. He had apparently not been able to make friends with Lily as a child this time, thanks to her always having a best friend, that was also her twin sister, with her constantly. They were practically inseparable and neither would let the other be coerced into abandoning their other half.
The best part about that? James Potter suffered the same fate early on, too. Despite his early infatuation with Lily in their first year at Hogwarts, her constantly having her twin sister at her side to protect her, had eventually turned the boy off from trying to win Lily as a prize. Rose’s whispered explanation to Harry that it was actually her wand that had protected Lily from him, made Harry quietly laugh.
It soon came the day to go back to school and the trio arrived early at Kings Cross Station for the train ride to Hogwarts. Both Lily and Rose loved that they had learned to make their own shrunken trunks and then added undetectable expansion charms to their pockets and their handbags. It let them keep their most needed possessions on themselves and they would never have to make several trips a day back to their dorm room to exchange their books for different classes.
They crossed onto Platform Nine and Three Quarters from the muggle side and boarded the train with plenty of time to spare. They chose a compartment near the middle of the train so that their friends and dorm mates could easily find them.
The compartment filled up after only ten minutes and both Lily and Rose talked animatedly with the other three girls after a quick introduction to him. The surprising thing was that Alice had been sorted into Hufflepuff this time and was only acquaintances with Lily and Rose, since they only shared two classes together.
On the other hand, Marleen MacKinnon was dating Sirius openly instead of occasionally sneaking away when it was convenient, which brought the conversation around to the remaining two Marauders.
Harry listened with a bit of sadness as he heard that Remus had been put to death last year for killing Peter Pettigrew after the plump boy had failed to transform into an animal in time when Remus became a werewolf. This also exposed the secret that James Potter and Sirius Black were animagus, which they were both penalized for, with several months of detention and hefty fines.
As purebloods with rich families, they paid easily and also gained notoriety for being the youngest animagi registered. Funnily enough, Sirius was on good terms with his mother and she had been delighted that his form was a magical beast called a Grim.
“She even called him a true Black! Can you believe it?” Marlene asked with a laugh.
“Old Walburga? Really?” Dorcas Meadows asked.
“It was amazing and Sirius couldn’t stop talking about it for a week!” Marlene said, proudly.
Mary MacDonald laughed. “He was talking about himself? There’s a surprise.”
Marlene smacked her friend’s arm and they both kept laughing.
“He has calmed down a lot since then.” Rose commented. “You’ve definitely been a good influence on him, Marlene.”
Marlene blushed a little at the praise. “Th-thanks.”
“I wish I had a guy like that to influence.” Mary said, her voice full of innuendo as she looked over at Harry.
“Oh, no you don’t!” Rose exclaimed and hopped up from her seat and sat across Harry’s lap. “Get your own hottie, Mary. He’s ours!”
Marlene, Mary, and Dorcas froze as they looked from her to a brightly blushing Lily.
“Rose, we only discussed this last night.” Lily said and turned to give Harry a very shy look. “We haven’t even asked Harry if he’s okay with that.”
Harry had been a little stunned at the sudden confession, so he hadn’t reacted at first. Now he put an arm around Rose’s waist and reached out to Lily with his free hand. “I would be more than honored if you allowed me to court you both.”
Lily grasped his hand and he pulled her over to his side. He let her hand go and put that arm over her shoulders, hugging her in close. Rose beamed a smile at them both.
“You… that…” Marlene shook her head. “Nope, I’m not going there.”
Rose let out a snort and a laugh. “Pot meet kettle!”
All the girls laughed, well used to muggle terms and their meanings.
Harry gave her a questioning look.
“She was going to say it’s too soon, we only just met you.” Rose answered the unasked question.
“She started dating Sirius as soon as he ditched all the pranking.” Lily added.
“I did not!” Marlene said, a little stiffly. “I made him suffer for two whole days first.”
That earned another round of laughter from the girls and then they started chattering on about the upcoming sorting and who would get the majority of students. Harry barely listened because Lily was rubbing her hand up and down his inner thigh, under Rose’s legs, so no one could see it. Rose on the other hand, had her fingers slowly rubbing his scalp and would give him an occasional scratch with her nails.
Needless to say, both Rose and Lily felt him grow hard under their ministrations. The three of them had identical smiles on their faces for the entire trip to Hogwarts.
*
Unlike last time, Harry was allowed to sit with his friends until the last of the first years were sorted, then his name was called. A hush fell over most of the students at the ancient family name and the headmaster gave him a very intense stare as he approached the stool. Harry ignored it, like he always did.
Harry didn’t bother changing the stool into a normal chair and plunked down onto it with his knees tucked up to his chest. Most of the students and a few of the teachers laughed at how ridiculous he looked and Minerva couldn’t stop a small smile from appearing on her face as she placed the hat on his head.
The hat was quiet for several moments. You’ve been through a lot, Mister Peverell.
Harry mentally shrugged at not being called Potter anymore, since he had been Peverell for a very long time. I have and it’s taken a very long time to find my way here.
I know. The hat responded and an image flashed through Harry’s mind about Lily and her identical twin Rose holding him. Perhaps this world will be good enough to finally allow you to rest.
Harry perked up at that. What? Why do you say that?
When you take me off, look over at the Slytherin table and browse their thoughts. The hat said. In the meantime, I’ve made your paramours wait long enough for my decision to be nervous.
Harry barely held in the snort of laughter that caused.
The hat chuckled. Again, since I trust my own decision, I won’t doubt my many counterparts you’ve encountered. They were right as well, especially now, that you would have done well in Slytherin. The hat thought to him with amusement. “Better be… Griffindor!”
“Yes!” Both Lily and Rose exclaimed and jumped to their feet to hug each other.
Harry pretended to groan as he stood up from such an awkward position and Minerva smiled at him as she accepted the hat back. Harry nodded at her and he very slowly turned away from her towards the Slytherin table to do as the hat suggested. He let his powerful wandless Legilimency spell sweep over them and hid his shock as he walked over to the Griffindor table.
“Congratulations.” Rose said and gave him a very sexy look before she hugged him, then handed him to Lily to hug. Neither of them noticed Harry was barely responsive to their touch.
Harry sat down with them on either side of him as his thoughts struggled with what he had seen… or hadn’t seen… in the minds of the school house that produced the most death eaters. None of them had been exposed to anything at all that could be classed as dark or evil magic from death eaters or Voldemort.
It was the one thing he had always tried to take care of when he travelled. He stopped Voldemort’s rise when he could, or his influence if he was a spirit, or put him down if he was alive and well. This time, it was the first time he had seen no signs of any kind that Voldemort existed. He didn’t have a big bad wizard to fight and he felt a little lost.
Harry needed most of the meal to come to grips with the fact he wasn’t actually needed to save the world from a looming threat. At no other point in his life had he not had to fight against something. It was… it really was kind of freeing… and the hat’s words floated through his mind and Harry had to smile. He actually could rest and let the world take care of itself, once and for all.
So, that was what he did. Harry let all his anxiety and worry fade about having to deal with Voldemort or any other dark wizards. Without all that weight on his shoulders, he was happier than ever and both Rose and Lily noticed the change in him and his attitude. They fell for him even faster than they thought was possible and the three of them were ecstatic about it.
With Harry as a source of knowledge, they burned through all of the seventh year’s coursework like it was nothing. Since the three of them were at the top of their year by Yule, everyone started going to them for help. Luckily, Albus Dumbledore had kept a polite distance and only observed as he kept his crooked nose out of things.
That worked well for Harry, because he was an old hand at teaching and imparting knowledge. He taught them all everything they needed to excel well past NEWT levels, both in the written and the practical exams. It was also the first time in history that the entire seventh year class had all achieved Outstandings on all of their exams, even the Slytherins.
Harry, Rose, and Lily had instilled in their uncredited students a passion for learning and for enjoying themselves as they learned about magic, which was something that none of them realized they had been lacking. This turned out to be a good thing, since a good portion of them went on to become Aurors, healers, potioneers, and masters in their chosen fields.
It made the world so much better than it had been before and everyone benefited from that, especially their children. None of them grew up knowing fear, or thought Slytherins were evil because of the color tie they wore when at school. It was a great time to be alive and Harry loved it just as much as he loved his two wives and their six children.
After he lived a very long life with his new family, seeing his great grandchildren go off to Hogwarts one last time, he and his two wives returned to their homes and climbed into bed. He kissed Rose first, as was her right, then he kissed Lily. Neither their wrinkles nor grey hair stopped him from loving them any less than he always had.
“I love you both… so much.” Harry whispered as he laid down between them.
“We love… you, too.” They both wheezed back.
“This… was a good life.” Harry barely breathed as he felt his strength leave him.
What seemed like a moment later, all three of them appeared in the white space that was considered limbo, between the land of the living and the next great adventure.
“This is our train.” Harry said and pointed as King’s Cross Station formed around them. He wasn’t sure why his Master of Death powers let him come here and he didn’t question it. Why would he? He was finally getting his fondest wish after all this time. Spending eternity with the women he loved.
A train car appeared with all of their family and friends onboard. Lily and Rose let out yells of joy as the doors opened and they ran over to hug their long dead parents. Harry walked over and didn’t feel left out, because the family he had built for himself meant everything to him. He was brought into the hug and he went with Lily and Rose onto the train car before it slowly disappeared from sight.
