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Chapter 8

Jumps

Taking turns, Harry and Draco had told Fred and George everything about what was really going on in the Wizarding World. The twins were shocked, but when confronted with the evidence and based on observations they'd made were able to accept the truth of the matter. They did have a few questions however.

"Harry," asked Fred, "what did that book you got say would happen to Sirius?"

Harry sighted. "It was a lot less informative than I'd thought it would be. For one thing, it's the personal diary of the inventor of the veil, and as such is an absolute bitch to read. So far, the only thing I know for sure is that Sirius isn't dead, and the only reason I'm not trying to rescue him is because it says he's in absolutely no danger."

"Not to mention that he's been there for over a year. He can wait a bit longer," said Draco. "Besides, getting to the veil will take more planning than just barging into the Ministry and demanding to be taken to the Department of Mysteries."

George looked thoughtful. "Alright, but Harry, you never explained what happened the night your parents died. Why was Voldemort at your house, and why did he cast the Killing Curse?"

Harry sighed. "When I was born, Bumblefuck began plotting my death. That night, he was coming to put his plan into action. He got to the house and managed to overpower and kill my dad. Then he went after my mum. Tom felt my dad's death because of the connection the mark gives him to his followers. He showed up in time to see Dumbledore kill my mum, and in a fit of rage, cast the Killing Curse at the old fucker. Unfortunately, Dumbledore held me up at the last minute.

"Seeing where the curse was heading, Tom pulled it back on himself, and the backlash was what caused him to lose his body."

Draco took over. "Dumbledore saw an opportunity and he took it. Voldemort was gone, and he knew that he could use Harry if he ever returned. Before anyone could even begin to process what had happened, he began to paint Harry as a savior. He changed a lot of people's memories that night and in the days following. The only people whose minds he didn't tamper with were those who are so completely convinced that Dumbledore can do no wrong that they would never think to question any decision that he makes."

"But," said Fred, "surely even Dumbledore couldn't have that much power. He couldn't have changed that many people's memories, especially that drastically."

"Well," said Harry, "he did have help. Plus, he only changed parts of memories. For example, there was some animosity between my dad and uncle Sev; at least until they found out that my mum was Sev's half sister. And my dad and his friends really did call themselves the Marauders, and they really were the pranking kings of the school. The main thing that Dumbledore changed in people's minds was what house they were in, and their allegiances in the war."

"What about your parents' friends?" asked George.

"Well, Remus and Pettigrew were easy to control because Remus's condition makes his natural mental shields almost non-existent, and Pettigrew is so weak he's practically a squib. The only potential problem was Sirius, and so Dumbledore arranged for him to go to Azkaban. As for my mom's friends, none of them were the type of people that would have ever been believed over the supposed paragon of light.

"Right from the start he made sure that I was influenced in the way he wanted. My first contact in the wizarding world was Hagrid, one of Dumbledore's most loyal sheep. Then, he made damn sure that I'd meet and befriend your brother, someone whose entire family has been in Gryffindor for generations, pureblooded but not prejudiced, except against Slytherins. He was quite literally my first friend, at least that I remember."

"But, how'd he know you'd meet Ron on the train?" asked Fred.

"If you recall, your mother was very vocal about the station being filled with muggles. She also asked what the platform number was. Obviously this was meant to get my attention, as Hagrid had left before telling me how to get on the fucking train. Just told me not to be late. Asshole," replied Harry.

"Calm down Harry," said Draco. "We agreed that Hagrid probably doesn't know any better, and only knows that Dumbledore was the one who kept him out of Azkaban all those years ago. He'd do anything for that twinkling bastard."

Harry sighed. "I know, but I'll be talking to him when school starts again. Whether or not I'll trust him will depend on his answers to my questions."

Draco looked up as a clock on the wall chimed. "Fred, George, if you don't mind, Harry and I have to be going now. It was nice to meet you under more pleasant circumstances than were presented to us in school."

"Same here,-"

"Malfoy old chap."

"You two come visit anytime-"

"And don't forget to let us know-"

"When you take your revenge on little Ginniekins."

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When Harry and Draco returned to Malfoy Manor, they went directly to their suite of rooms. After the stress of the day, their newly formed bond was demanding their attention, and they could put it off no longer.

Some time later, they emerged looking much calmer, despite their disheveled appearances. They slowly made their way to the dining hall, taking the time to simply enjoy one another's company. When they finally arrived, Severus and Voldemort were waiting for them with slightly strangled looks on their faces. Severus looked up as the pair walked in, and in an overly calm voice said,

"If you think that you won't be able to remember to put up silencing wards when you need them, then for the love of Merlin, anchor some permanent ones."

Harry and Draco looked startled for a moment, before they glanced at each other and burst out laughing. In fact, it took almost five minutes for them to finally compose themselves.

When they were finally able to stand upright once more, Voldemort spoke up. "Your personal activities aside, I have some news for you Harry."

Harry glanced at him before taking a seat at the table, Draco dropping (very gracefully of course!) into the chair beside his. "Alright," he said, "what's going on?"

"I've been looking into some of the different schemes of the headmaster's and I stumbled across something that may be of interest to you. Hidden not far from Hogwarts is a small house that has been in use for a little over a year now. Generally, this wouldn't catch my attention, but the wards around the property caught my eye. They monitor all magic, bar anyone but the headmaster from entering, and more specifically, track the movements of a transformed animagus. This interested me because this kind of ward is very uncommon, as it only works when an animagus is in their animal form, and doesn't do anything at all except show you where they are. Also, I should point out that though the house itself is small, there is an extensive underground area chock full of traps, leading to one small room in the middle. All in all, the house is ideal for keeping an animagus prisoner."

Harry sat in stunned silence. He didn't even dare think too hard about what Voldemort had said. If he thought about it too much, he might get his hopes up, and he didn't think that he could bear to have them dashed once again. He looked up at Voldemort and Severus and simply said, "I'd like my training to include breaking wards." With that, he stood and left, a shocked Draco following soon after.

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Sirius looked up, confused. He'd heard a noise, but he knew that Dumbledore wasn't meant to come back for a while yet. He began to get worried, wondering if the miserable old man was coming to finally get rid of him.

He stood slowly, not wanting to be caught completely off guard. Footsteps came closer but they made no sense to him. They were quiet and slow, almost unsure. Not knowing what to expect, Sirius changed into Padfoot, hoping that the dog would be better able to handle whoever this was.

The footsteps stopped at the door. For a while, nothing seemed to happen. Then, the door began glowing a soft green. Quite suddenly, the door crumbled into ash, forming a thick cloud which obscured the doorway for a moment.

At first, nothing happened, until, "Merlin, Harry, did you at least get rid of the alarm before you made the heavily warded door disintegrate?"

"Actually Draco, yes, I did. Geez, have a little faith in uncle Sev's teachings. After all, you're there learning with me."

Padfoot whined. Was this some new trick of Dumbledore's? he still couldn't see, and the ash was blocking his sense of smell also. He didn't know what to do, so he stayed in place, uncertainty in his stance.

Harry and Draco entered the cell and looked around. It was bare, with some rags in one corner and a charmed bucked in the other. However, only Draco saw these things, as Harry had eyes only for the large black dog in the middle of the room. He took a step forward, hardly daring to hope.

"Sirius?"

That was all it seemed to take for the dog. It launched itself at Harry, pinning him to the floor and licking his face all over.

Harry was laughing and crying. After all this time, he had his godfather back. He could hardly believe it. It was literally a dream come true.

After a moment, Draco cleared his throat. "Much as I hate to interrupt, we need to get out of here."

At his words both Harry and Padfoot stilled. They got up, Sirius transforming. He was grinning like an idiot, but suddenly he became serious. "Harry, there are some things you need to know about-"

Harry interrupted him. "I know Sirius. Draco showed me the truth and I've had some good long talks with Tom and uncle Sev."

Sirius was beyond relieved. His pup knew the truth, and was no longer under the thumb of the headmaster.

While they had been occupied, Draco had taken something out of his pocket. He handed it to Harry, who enlarged it. There was now a life sized replica of Sirius lying on the floor.

Sirius was confused. "Are you going to make it look as though I died? Because I think that Dumbledore will notice the difference between a doll and a corpse."

Harry grinned and passed his hand over the doll. Green fire surrounded it for a moment, before sinking in.

"Sirius," he said, "allow me to introduce you to your simulacrum. He can do anything you can, and his magical signature is an exact match to yours. His job is to annoy the hell out of Bumblefuck."

Sirius gaped at Harry. "You made an actual simulacrum?! That's supposed to be impossible!"

Harry grinned again. "Sirius, everything is impossible, until it's not."

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Time Jump (September 1)

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Dumbledore was worried. It seemed as though he had constantly been in this state of mind since Harry had disappeared from his relatives' house. Ever since the incident in Diagon Alley and the confrontation between him and his two "friends," not a single bit of information could be gathered about the boy-who-lived. This, combined with the aggravation that the mutt was giving him was beginning to wear on the aged headmaster.

Now, Hogwarts was starting again, all the children in the hall for the sorting and the feast, and there was still no sign of the boy. The young Malfoy was in attendance however, and Dumbledore hoped that this meant that Harry had broken ties with the blonde.

Finally the sorting was done and it was time for him to act like nothing was amiss, though a clever observer (of which there were far more than he could have guessed) could see the tension in his stance as he stood to address the students.

"Welcome, welcome students to another year at Hogwarts. Now that the sorting is through-"

Dumbledore was interrupted by the doors of the Great Hall being slammed open. There stood a figure, hooded and cloaked. The person walked forward slowly until it reached the center of the Hall. Once there, pale hands reached up to pull back the hood. Many students gasped, some in shock, others in surprise, and still others in fear.

"Excuse me headmaster, but I believe there is one other sorting to get through. Mine." The hall was silent, waiting for Dumbledore's reaction.

"Harry my boy, re-sortings are not allowed. One's house in one's home for their entire stay at Hogwarts."

"Wrong headmaster," Harry said calmly (for it was indeed Harry Potter), "If a student feels that they were wrongly placed and has the support of one member of each house, that student may be allowed a re-sorting, pending acceptance from the new house."

At this, four students stood up. Draco Malfoy for Slytherin, Terry Boot for Ravenclaw, Ernie Macmillan for Hufflepuff, and to everyone's surprise, Neville Longbottom for Gryffindor. The four made their way to where Harry stood and faced the headmaster. Harry smirked.

"You see headmaster, I have support from the four houses and I believe that my original sorting was mistaken. You have no choice."

Dumbledore sighed. "Fine Harry, if this is truly what you want. Just remember, if you aren't accepted by your new house, you will no longer be recognized as a Hogwarts student."

Harry moved to the stool at the front of the Hall and placed the hat on his head.

Aha. I wondered when we'd meet again Mr. Potter, said the hat. I knew one day that this would come, but you were so stubborn.

I know. However now I am aware of the truth and it's time for them to know as well. I think we both know where I truly belong.

Indeed. It is time for you to be with your bondmate in your true home in, "Slytherin!"

The hall was silent after the hat's declaration. Harry stood off the stool and turned to Draco. Formally, he asked, "Does the noble house of Slytherin accept me as a new student in its ranks?"

Draco, following the same ancient formalities turned to his house. "A student has petitioned to be accepted into our house. Shall we welcome him as our newest brother?"

For a moment no one moved. Then, in an uncharacteristic show of emotion, the entire Slytherin house exploded in cheers. The rest of the school looked on in shock as the normally composed and poised students acted, for once, like teenagers. When the noise died down, Draco turned toward the head table.

"Severus Snape, as head of Slytherin house you have witnessed your students' welcome. Do you accept this new student into your tutelage?"

Dumbledore remained calm. He believed that Severus would deny Harry a place in Slytherin based on the mutual dislike bordering on hatred between the two. He was, therefore, shocked when Snape stood up and calmly stated,

"He is accepted. Welcome to Slytherin Harry Potter."

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A/N: Alright, I hope you guys liked this chapter, cause it definitely kicked my ass a few times. I swear to fucking god, my muse quit halfway through the damn thing. If it weren't for the bursts of inspiration I got in class a little while ago, I don't know what I would have done. I'm sorry you guys had to wait so long again, and hopefully it won't take so long for the next chappie.

Thanks to everyone who reviewed, it means a lot to me to hear that you guys really enjoy the story.

XD