Chapter 32

Percy stood in the hall of representatives, one from every country in magical world, the youngest member there. He watched as the minister of South Africa conversed happily with the president of Australia. Percy took a step further into the room; ready to talk with the people that led countries around the world. However this time it was without the burden that his name had always stood for. He was not a Weasley any longer. He did not have to go through the tortuous exercise, the disgusted smirks and hushed whispers that had always followed the Weasley name.

Percy had disowned himself, mere hours before the ceremony that had bound the Becketts to those that Percy has, or had, a blood connection to. It had been the only way. The only way in which he could save face against a further disgraced family. It was also the only way that Percy could viably maintain his position as Minister. It was not legal to remove him from the position for the mere technicality that his family was bound to another. However, his word would not have been trusted. Harry already had Percy's undying loyalty. He did not need a magically binding contract to prove that.

Therefore, Percy's magic was no longer intertwined with that of the Weasley's, not that Percy had ever displayed many of the traits that were present in his blood line. Protection and regenerative magics were strong in the Weasley line. Percy excelled in neither. He was not about to miss being part of a family that was looked down upon for their blatant disregard of Pureblood customs. As well as their abuse of those that still held them as important.

Having disregarded his own heritage and therefore his position within the inheritance of the Weasley Lordship, Percy had subsequently been able to take up ownership of another line; one that was nearly as ancient as the Weasley line. The Prewetts. It seemed that due to Percy's voluntary abandonment of his name, he was eligible to claim it. The vaults, that had remained untouched since his mother had died, once again had an owner.

Percy smiled slightly. Percival Prewett was ready to face the world. He straightened his back. He was sure that his mother would be proud of him, if she were still here. He remembered her in vague snippets. Her smile, her laugh, her frustration at the twins. Her love. She had always told him to be himself. As long as he was true to who he was, that was all that really mattered. He could still hear his mother's soothing singing and the small giggles that had once been issued from his sister's small, toothless, mouth. Percy was ready to show just how important magical Britain would be in the events of the future.

Harry sighed. He raised his arms above his head and felt as each of the bones in his spine cracked. He stood from his desk. His OWLs were over. Now he could get back to the real hard work. Harry had worked for his OWLs, of course he had, he had appearances to keep up. However, that did not mean that he cared about them. He had more important things to deal with than a set of stupid exams.

The school year was over. The summer was stretching out before him in weeks of opportunity. He made his way from the great hall, where they had been having their exams. Harry could feel the eyes of Ronald Weasley on him as he walked toward the exit. Yet the boy could do nothing. Harry merely turned and raised an eyebrow at him. The boy's eyes quickly looked away. Harry wondered how the young man was still functioning, let along taking his OWLs. Harry still had plans to kill the boy and make it look like an accident. It was merely at the bottom of his list at the moment.

Neville, Theodore and Daphne were three people that Harry was less inclined to murder. The three of them approached him, each giving a small nod. Harry kept walking. The three merely fell in line behind him; chatting about their answers and their possible NEWT choices for next year. Harry was unconcerned with their talk. He was too busy thinking about his next step in his plans and the man that he needed to visit to carry them out.

However as Harry walked toward the common room, he was stopped by another individual whom he would rather not have to talk to; Hermione Granger. Harry wanted to roll his eyes. This girl was such a nightmare.

"Harry" she called. Harry kept on walking. "Harry." He was evidently not fast enough. The girl was right by him. She was talking rapidly about the exam. Neville, Theo and Daphne had all stopped talking. They were only watching the girl. Waiting to see if they needed to take action.

"Well, question seven was obviously a trick one. But I totally answered it correctly. Then there was ten…" Harry zoned her out. The girl was rather irritating, but she didn't cause any direct problems, so Harry let her be, more often than not. He never engaged her in conversation and tended to ignore her existence. That did not make her any less persistent.

During his first year, Harry had managed to mostly dissuade Granger from forming a friendship with him. He was, after all, a mute Slytherin, with very little going for him. However, after the results of the first year exams, Harry had managed to, in a sense, shoot himself in the foot. The girl had come third in the rankings for the year. Before her had been Blaise Zabini who had managed to claim second place. Harry felt anger at the thought of the young man. Those Death Eaters had caused such pain and heartbreak. He was disappointed that he hadn't spent more time in torturing them.

In first place had been Harry. The girl, having had, what she saw as a connection to Harry, had chosen to ask him for advice. Well, more like demand it. However, even if Harry had spoken, the girl would not have let him have a word in. She didn't tend to want to actually listen to the advice that she asked for. Instead it was more like she spoke at Harry. She seemed to think out her ideas at him, to realise herself where she had made a mistake. It was her usual procedure after any exam or if there was anything that she found challenging.

When Harry was not busy, he usually indulged her. She was too loud mouthed and big headed to be allowed anywhere near Harry's inner circle. However it was evident that she felt some connection toward Harry. Harry was not one to dissuade loyalty, no matter what form it took. He was happy, well, not happy, more that it was advantageous, for Harry to let her have her way. When Harry was in total control of this shit hole, it was better to have as many people as possible that saw him in a fond light. Hence the reason that he allowed her inane chatter.

Harry continued on his way toward the Slytherin common room. Granger recognised the path and veered off in her own direction; back to her own common room.

"Bye Harry, have a good summer" she yelled after the young man. Harry didn't even blink. He continued along his path toward his common room without a backward glance. Neville, Theo and Daphne followed behind him.

Harry was under strong wards. Ones so strong that they were carved into the skin of each arm. They had been carved with a ritual knife made from dragon bone. They went from his shoulder to his elbow. The runes enabled utter invisibility; avoidance of detection from any of the senses and any revealing spells that might be cast. Even magical eyes were not able to detect him. The runes were activated through Harry's own magic. It was a rather painful and permanent procedure. However it was worth it for the show that was about to go down.

Strategically placed around the ground floor of the building, were six others, five of them with the same runes carved into their skin. Severus, Lawrence, Cassius, Remus and Zachary all had runes that were near identical to the ones that Harry had. However there was a special stipulation in the runes of the others that were not present in Harry's. It was a ward that enabled Harry to detect the others, no matter if their runes were activated or not.

Additionally Sanguini was present. However his presence was more due to a request from Harry. He also had no wards carves into his skin. Instead he had his own methods of remaining undetected. Vampires had their own ways of doing things, after all. Sanguini would not be intervening unless necessary. Harry had warned him off it. This was his mission. He did not need the help. Sanguini was only there to transport the restrained Dumbledore as well as the others, back to the dungeons of his manor.

Harry stood in the Hogshead. He had separately heard from Remus, Sirius and Severus that Dumbledore was planning to get in contact with his brother today. The order of the Phoenix was still under the impression that all three of them were still to be trusted. Such fools. Dumbledore had gone mostly underground for the past few months, other than the occasional order meeting. Harry finally had a chance to corner him, to get information out of him and if his plans went well, to kill him. Not that Abeforth knew the entire plan. Harry was not sure that the man would be willing to let his brother by killed by a group of young people, some of whom were over one hundred years his junior.

Harry heard a knock on the door. It seemed that the main event had arrived. Harry stood still as he heard the door open. He heard the pleasantries exchanged and then he heard as footsteps entered the room. However the people that entered were not the only people that they were expecting.

Dumbledore was there. That was someone that they were expecting. However along with him were Sirius Black and Kingsley Shaklebolt. That was…rather unfortunate. This was not the time to test out Black's loyalties. The man may have been feeding him information. Yet it was not the same as kidnapping someone. Someone that had once been his headmaster. Someone he had all but sworn loyalty to. It was also not the time for a rather powerful addition, to an already high risk plan. Well, plans ever went the way that you expected. Harry and the others would merely have to work around this.

Harry watched. Abeforth left the door open as he singled for his three guests to sit down on the sofa. Severus entered behind the group, quickly followed by Lawrence. It seemed that the runes were working perfectly. Dumbledore didn't even look up as Lawrence now stood directly behind him. Severus stood on the opposite side of the room, behind Kingsley. The group were already adapting to their situation. Cassius had moved to stand on one side of the doorway of the room, wand ready. Zachary was standing at the other side. Remus should be standing by the front door, if he was doing as planned. Harry was unsure as to Sanguini's location. The man was, in all likelihood, hidden somewhere around the room, messing with people. They all knew he was there, but none of them could see him, not even Harry.

Harry drew out his own wand. All he needed now was the signal.

"Is this really necessary Albus?" Abeforth questioned. "All this security? What do you think I'm going to do?"

"I don't know Abe." Albus' eye still twinkled, even as he questioned his brothers integrity. "No one but you could have written such a leaflet. Although I'm sure that you were not the one that spread it. There's obviously someone that you are on the side of."

"Albus" Abeforth raised an eyebrow "You wound me. I would never hurt you."

There it was. There. The spells fired off quickly, in rapid succession. Five spells hit Dumbledore directly in the chest; three stunners and two body binds. Five more were fired mere seconds after, before any of the occupants of the room even had a chance to react. Three stunners were on Kingsley and two body-binds were on Sirius. The two thudded to the ground; one unconscious, the other immobile. Dumbledore was slumped in his chair. It seemed that the plan was going just as it should.

Harry quickly leaped into action. His wand remained pointed at the stupid old coot. Harry needed to be ready for anything. The man was unpredictable. The man was far more powerful than he looked. Harry was not sure that the three stunners would keep him down for long.

Harry's magic shifted as he let it trickle away from the runes on his skin. He was now visible to the others in the room. Well, the two that were conscious. Abeforth barely acknowledged his existence. He merely sat down on one of the spare seats within the room. He let out a tired sigh. He was far too old for this shit.

Sirius, on the other hand, froze, not that he could move anyway. His eyes were wide and his mouth was slightly agape.

"Harry…?" It was a question. Harry ignored it. He didn't have time for this. Dumbledore was too much of a threat. He needed to secure him. Sirius could be dealt with later. Be that execution or explanation.

Sanguini chose that moment to appear. Harry felt the weight of the man on his shoulder. The vampire's mouth was right by his ear. Harry could feel his breath.

"Oh little Harry, what a mess you have here." the vampire cooed.

Harry harshly jolted his shoulder and used his hand to push the vampire off him.

"So touchy" the vampire sounded jovial. The smirk was teasing.

Harry glared.

"Yeah, yeah, I get it." The vampire's face was now more in a pout. "I'll take him." Sanguini looked nowhere near his thousands of years. In fact, at that moment, he looked around three.

The vampire took a graceful step forward. His hand touched the still unconscious ex-headmaster on the floor of his brother's house.

"See you soon my little Harry."

He was gone.

Harry wanted to curse the vampire. But, he supposed, at least that part had gone to plan. Now to deal with the unwanted addition. It seemed that this man was always going to be a thorn in his side. Now to decide whether to pull it out and crush it underfoot, or attempt something more elegant. Maybe creating a rose from the blood crusted pieces.

The rest of the carefully crafted work, was going on behind him. Kingsley had quickly been removed as were his memories of the whole affair. Abeforth's mind was being, well, altered. He need not have a recollection of this encounter. Harry let his followers do as they should. He moved toward Sirius.

"H-Harry" the man's eyes were wide as he looked up toward the man that he should have treated like a son.

Harry merely raised an eyebrow and looked down on the man. This was not up for debate. There was no conversation to be had here. There was an answer. That was all Harry needed.

Harry stood. He waited. He watched the cogs in the man's brains turn.

"You'll kill him?"

Harry's eyes were blank.

"No, I suppose it doesn't really matter. That's what all this is." Sirius was starting to see it. "It's what we made it."

Harry only looked at him. The man on the floor, the man that should have done better.

"I will." Sirius' head tilted away; dropped to his chest, he averted his gaze. It was the only part of him that could still move. "I'll do it, If you ask me."

Severus was there, by Harry's shoulder. He knew what to do. They all knew what to do. Harry had trained them all well.

Dumbledore still managed to look cheerful, even in the state he was in. His robes and skin were coated in several layers of dirt. His wrists were tightly secured together in magic surpassing cuffs; a vampire speciality. All his rings and jewellery had been removed; you couldn't be too careful. Chains connected him to the wall.

However, even though the man had been there for three days with no food and only a few gulps of water he still had that smile on his face and that twinkle in his eyes as he saw Harry enter the cell. Harry felt like he had done when he was eleven. There was a slight look of disappointment mingled with an overall fondness. Harry hated that look.

The door slammed behind Harry with a clink; Sanguini standing on the other side. The old coot looked up at Harry. He thought that it was just him and his ex-student in the cell with him. He was wrong. There had been at least one member of Harry's circle within the cell over the past three days. Now there were two of them.

Severus stood beside Harry, invisible. At the back of the cell was Cassius, he waved at Harry, sticking out his tongue. Of course his brother would have figured out the alterations that Harry had made to the wards carved into his arms. Harry's face remained stone.

"Good evening, my dear boy," The man sounded far too composed. "If it is in fact evening. I find myself a little lost on the matter."

Harry said nothing.

"Now what exactly can I do for you?" It felt like a school meeting. As though Harry were there to merely ask for a new textbook or change a class. That was certainly not what they were here for. Dumbledore needed to realise the position that he was in.

The cell clattered open. Lawrence walked in, dragging a figure behind him. Harry just hoped that they could both play their parts well enough.

"Mr Carrow" Dumbledore raised an eyebrow, yet he didn't seem too surprised at seeing the young man before him. Harry did, however, catch the flicker of worry that was sent Sirius' way. Harry would have grinned if he had not been a better man. It seemed that they had him.

"Headmaster-" Lawrence paused, tilting his head to the side. "Oh, apologies, Mr Dumbledore." It was a petty jab. Yet it was rather satisfying for the oldest Carrow.

"A pleasure to see you again." Lawrence was grinning viciously.

Lawrence threw Sirius to the floor before him. There was space enough between Black and Dumbledore. Sirius moaned in pain. Harry was sure that the pain was real. Lawrence had really done a number on the man.

Black's eyes were swollen; blue and purple. His clothes were ripped and blood was caked onto the ragged material. His skin was pale and he looked skinnier than he usually did. Voluntary torture, what a treat. Harry couldn't find it in himself to feel sorry for the man. Sirius had left him to fend for himself in much worse conditions. It was the man's time to prove himself.

"Headmaster, I…" Sirius' broken voice was cut off by a well-timed kick. Cassius' foot connected with Black's stomach, forcing the air from his lungs, his breath coming unevenly. He moaned.

"Shut up you piece of shit. You're not here to talk." Lawrence sneered.

Dumbledore had lost some of his twinkle.

"You've heard of a whipping boy right, Mr Dumbledore?" Lawrence asked with an air of mockery. "Well that's what Mr Black here is gonna be" that was said in nearly a growl. "You answer the questions we have, or I torture Mr Black"

"Headmaster, no" Sirius tried. He stretched forward, nearly desperately. Harry had to applaud the man on his acting skills. Another well placed kick quickly halted his progress.

"Now, what do you know about Tom Marvolo Riddle." Dumbledore's eyes widened. Harry was sure that it was mostly in shock.

"Too slow." Lawrence grinned as he shot a red curse from his wand. Sirius screamed, his body writhed in pain, saliva ran down his face.

Harry didn't pay attention to the questioning. That was not what they were really here for. No, they were here for Severus to carry out his work.

Dumbledore's mental shields were already weak. Magical suppressants, as well as food and water deprivation will do that to a person. But the man was good at hiding and memories were hidden below layers and layers of barriers. Even if they were weakened, it was rather labyrinth like. It was far too easy to get lost.

They needed to create an easier route. The best way to do that was with a directed trauma. The questioning would create a direct link with the thoughts. The man would be accessing them, even if it was unintentional. The trauma would weaken the defences that were in place around said memories. The path would be easier to follow. That was all that Severus needed to do.

Harry watched. Severus' face became blank; his eyes were focused, meeting Dumbledore's without the man even knowing. Sirius' body was becoming bloodier, his whimpers becoming quieter.

Severus suddenly reeled back. He blinked. He smiled. They had what they came for.

Harry turned to the cell door, it snapped open. Everyone followed behind him as he left. Sirius was on the verge of unconsciousness. Severus seemed almost drunk with glee. Cassius remained in the cell. Harry would have someone take over from him. The information that was about to follow was sure to be interesting.

"Horcruxes?" Lawrence questioned. "You're sure?"

"Of course I'm sure you imbecile. Who do you think I am? Questioning my methods." Severus spat with a sneer. How dare an upstart youngster question him. He had been doing this before the little shit was old enough to walk.

Harry raised a hand from his seated position; stopping the ensuing fight. Harry then tilted his head in question.

"A Horcruxes is a part of one's soul placed in an object." Harry raised a brow. What a clever little thing Tom had turned out to be. "It requires you to murder an individual with no remorse. The object can be one of your choosing." Severus explained

'What are the Horcruxes?' Harry wrote on the paper connected to those in the room; Severus, Lawrence and Cassius.

Severus answered.

"There are seven." Severus paused, considering his next words. "Two of them are already destroyed. Dumbledore saw to that. He engaged Edward Potter's help in attempting to procure the third. He failed. Severus hesitated. That was not something the man tended to do, especially twice in as many sentences.

"Most of them are objects. The first two a diary and a ring. The third they didn't find was a locket. Dumbledore does not know the others. Well, he knows one."

Harry looked at the man. He was skirting around the subject. How very unusual. Finally Severus said what he had to say.

"The last one is your brother, Edward Potter."

Sirius lay in the infirmary within Sanguini's manor. The place had been equipped at Harry's request and Sirius was currently the only occupant. However he was rather well attended for being such. He was checked on every few hours. Lawrence, Snape and Charlie had been tasked with his care. He had been drugged up on more potions and spells than anyone had any right to be. His healing was rapid and he was nearly fully painless. It helped that Remus was there.

Remus Lupin had been sitting at Sirius' bedside since the man had been brought there around twelve hours ago. Sirius had instantly been knocked out and his wounds seen to. He had not woken up since. However, once the broken fingers had been healed and the fractured wrist set, Remus had tightly taken the swollen hand in his and he had not let go.

He had not let go as potions were spelled into Sirius' stomach. As his face turned from blue, to white, to grey and finally to a healthy shade of pink. As bones cracked and reshaped, as new ones grew after old ones were vanished, he still kept a tight grip on the hand. He wasn't letting go of him again. He had done it once, he had had to. He had Sirius back now. He was not letting go again.

A groan drew Remus from his swirling thoughts. Grey eyes fluttered open and Remus saw the confused look in his best friend's eyes. He smiled.

"Hey Padfoot"

"Hmmm" was the only response he got. The eyelids fluttered and a slight frown of disorientation covered his face.

"Hey now" Remus smiled fondly. "Here, take a drink." He held the glass of water up to Sirius' lips. He used one hand. He was not ready to let go. Sirius brought his free hand up. They guided the cup together.

"Moony?" Sirius' voice was still confused and his eyes blurry.

"Yeah, Padfoot. It's me." Remus smiled.

"Tired Moony" the very drugged up Sirius mumbled.

"Well, then sleep, Sirius" Remus' look was filled with affection.

Sirius shook his head. It was a slow movement and his eyes were filled with a sort of confused determination as he did it. His frown had deepened.

"Missed you Moony." Sirius nodded and squinted.

"I missed you too Padfoot." Remus squeezed his hand.

Sirius tugged at the hand; pulling it closer toward him.

"You should sleep too Moony." The tugging was insistent.

"I'm okay Padfoot."

"No Moony. Get in the bed. Sleep" he was mumbling now "Sleep with me."

Remus felt the words in the pit of his stomach. He had not heard anything like that for so long. This man had not spoken to him like this in years. Not since Harry.

"Moony" Sirius whined.

Maybe this was a chance at a new start. They were together again. Maybe they could be like they had been.

"Moony"

Remus clutched his hand tighter. He got into the bed. He lay down next to Sirius, his chest to Sirius' back. His arm over him. Their hands were still clutched together. The pair were asleep in seconds.

Balthazar sat in his master's lap, curled into a tight ball, seeking the warmth and comfort of Harry's body heat. There were far too many people. Too much noise, too many smells and tastes. Yet Balthazar knew that he could not leave. It was his master's hatching day, after all. That was why he was in his current position. Although that did not mean that he was above complaining. Every time Harry shifted, or a human came to close he would hiss and whine to Harry. That had, several times, resulted in a large rat to shut him up. That was how he was in the near coma from the three rats that he had eaten. He was warm and satisfied. He could ignore the humans. He therefore couldn't find it in him to complain as he was set down in another's lap. A hand was running across his scales. He was falling asleep.

Harry watched the lazy snake as he set him down in Alfie's lap. The boy seemed a little overwhelmed by the noise and the people. Harry couldn't say that he liked it much better. But he was being celebrated. He supposed that there was at least one day a year he could let people indulge themselves. There was a rather a lot to be thankful for after all. At least Alfie seemed a tad more at ease with the snake in his lap.

"Time to open presents little brother." Cassius was grinning wide. He was sitting on the arm of the one seater sofa that Harry had occupied. There was a reason for that. It seemed Cassius was ignoring the unspoken demand for privacy. Cassius reached up to ruffle the boy's hair. Harry glared at his brother. It did nothing to stop him.

Many of the members of the room had been drinking for the last few hours. Those that were of age and a few that weren't. The Warrington's were hosting the gathering, along with Edmund who was looking between his two sons affectionately. It seemed that Cassius was under the influence of a little too much fire whiskey.

There were around twenty people in the room and around half of them had indulged in several drinks. Theo was laying on his back, feet on the sofa, giggling. Remus and Sirius were in a similar position to that of Charlie and Zachery. They were snuggled next to one another, their affection for one another making everyone else in the room want to scowl. Severus was doing just that; standing in the corner of the room, looking rather unsatisfied with the proceedings of the day. Harry had no idea whether the man had been drinking or not.

Percy was there, sitting and talking with the youngest Beckett. Graham and Percy seemed to be having a rather detailed conversation about the complexities of some law or another. Graham may not have an interest in pursuing a career in the ministry, however that did not mean that he was not intelligent enough to understand the concepts. Percy had not been drinking.

Fia, who had been lying by Harry's feet had popped up at the mention of presents. Harry hadn't seen the boy drink, but he did seem a little more hyper than usual. He was sucking at the lolly with vigour and he had a twinkle in his eyes.

"Presents?" Fia's eyes were sparkling. It was as though it was his own birthday. Harry wished it was. Then he could be the one dealing with all this shit. The young firecracker, barefoot as usual, walked over to the table that currently housed the large number of presents that lay there. He picked one up. Here we go, Harry thought.

It seemed endless but it really only took around half an hour. Harry was forced to open presents and put up with the inane drivel that followed as an explanation to the gift. To be fair, the gifts weren't bad and it was rather satisfying to see the effort that had been put into the creation of these gifts. It showed to Harry that the people showed him the respect that he deserved. However, deep down, in a part Harry often told to shut the hell up, Harry knew that it was showing him that they cared and even though he wanted to deny it, he loved that.

Harry opened a variety of gifts ranging from books, potions, from Severus of course, journals, sweets, clothing, weapons and much more. However the best gift of the lot came as an owl fluttered through the window and dropped a newspaper in his lap.

It was a copy of the daily prophet. The publish date for the next morning. The headline was tantalising. A picture of a Dark Mark flashing through the sky and the shocked faces of the auros at the scene played on a loop, backdropped by camera flashes.

'Death Eaters Destroy Dumbledore'

Harry looked at Cassius. Their eyes connected. His brother really did give the best birthday presents.