Chapter Twenty Five: Home the Final Knock

"Harry…when…how?" Her voice was exactly how he remember filtering through his mind, her green eyes looked alarmed at the newest development, her thin hands gently prodded and hugged herself, checking to see if it was real, if it wasn't just a dream.

Harry smiled softly at the sight of his mother, she looked exactly like she did fourteen years ago, if one looked hard enough they could see some small differences, her skin color was more porcelain than pale, and her hair was more silk than waves; like due to the Veela. From his pocket he pulled out a wand, it was carved from a Willow, filled with a Griffin Feather, one of the few wands that Ollivander had made not from the main three.

"I believe this is yours, Mum." He spoke in a calm voice, he floated her wand across the gap with little effort, wandless magic was still so easy. "It's….it's good to see you."

Lily lightly took her wand, marveling that she could feel the wood warm in her hand, she spread her toes out just enough to feel the cool grass shift. She could feel everything, the wind lightly teasing her skin, the light of the full moon reflecting upon her skin. "Salazar?"

Harry nodded, giving her a small bow of his head "One of my conditions for freeing him momentarily, your protection was worthless with Voldemort baring my blood." He explained as if it was common knowledge.

Lily nodded striding across the grass and standing a foot away "I see you got your fathers looks, but my intelligence." She said with a bright smile, which turned into a frown "At least you've recently been intelligent, you've left a lot to be desired these last few years, kiddo." She had her hands on her hips.

Harry crossed his arms and glared at her "Oh yes, the dumbing down I suffered from the Dursely's and then having to practically relearn everything without very much support while expecting to be some sort of Miracle Child, oh yes no trouble at all." He bit back.

Lily narrowed her eyes, till they almost were almost glowing slits "I know you've only had your mother in your life for all of five minutes." She said darkly, taking another step until she was nose to nose with him "If you talk to me like that again, you will not like what happens. An angry mother will make Bellatrix look like a child throwing a tantrum."

Harry froze with wide mismatched eyes, his mouth a tight line and then he gave the barest of nods.

Lily's eyes stopped glowing instantly, then she grabbed him into a tight hug "That's my boy!" She gave his a kiss on the cheek and then took a step back "I think it is time we checked in on our dearest friends." She then winced in pain, closing an eye.

"Mother? Are you alright?" He asked concern filling his voice, his eyes narrowing.

Lily waved him off, taking a deep breath "Likely a side effect, I am fine, we need to speak with Dumbledore." She said with a small frown, holding her arm out "I will take us."

"You go, I hate apperating." He said stuffing his hands into his pockets "Makes me feel like I'll be sick, I'll be at Hogwarts within a few minutes if I Smoke."

Lily nodded, giving him a final smile and then vanishing with a crack. Harry stood there for a few moments longer, then turned towards the woods "Come out." He spoke in a dangerous voice "It is not nice to spy."

From the shadows a thin woman with a stripped black and white shirt appeared, she had long brown hair that was tied securely in a clip, her bright glowing pink eyes twinkled with curiosity and wonder "You actually managed to revive Lily Potter, I am truly impressive Harry Potter." Her voice was a tad deeper than most women but not by much.

Harry narrowed his eyes, the ring on his finger tightened at the sight of her, he had easily removed the curses and figured it would be best to wear it for now. "Who are you, and how do you know me?" He asked simply, his free hand tightening on the invisible ball of power that was his magic.

The woman gave him what he assumed was a pleasing smile, but he saw through it, his red eye glowing with magical power, she was off. Her being seemed to be hazy in his good eye, like she didn't belong with the rest of the picture. "Call me Jessica, now Harry Potter, my Mother would like to speak with you."

XX~XX~XX~XX~XX

Fleur looked down at the pictures in her hand, most were of Hogwarts castle but a few of them was of her and Harry. It hadn't taken her long to figure the best way to remember the ancient castle and her love, was to keep a portrait of some kind, but she was an awful painter. Gabby however had an idea after all, taking a Muggle camera was inspired. Most of these were after Harry's transformation by Bellatrix's hands, she could recall what he looked like before but still Harry was Harry; so long as Salazar kept his nose where it belonged.

Her door knocked twice, before opening from it her father stood Martian Delacour was a tall and broad man but not bulky or thin in anyway. He had a regal air about him, but this was put aside by the no care slouch of his shoulders; he looked like someone who was to be respected but didn't much care about it.

"Welcome home, sweetheart, how was your stay in England? I hear it was….well Chaotic to put for lack of better words." He said in a deep voice, scratching at his short brown beard, which matched his hair style very well. "I am glad you are safe."

Fleur gave her father a smile before reaching out and giving him a strong hug, one that would likely hurt most normal wizards but father was like Harry; they were made of strong stock. "Yes, I enjoyed my time greatly, I made so many friends." She pulled away, giving him a kiss on his cheek "But regardless I am happy to be home."

Martin sat down on her bed, his keen Sapphire eyes spotting the pictures that sat on her bed "May I?" He asked first before simply taking them, he always respected his girls privacy. At her nod he looked closely at them, flipping through the small pictures of the Castle, the halls, her friends, and then he spotted him. "This is Harry Potter hmm?"

In his eyes the boy was acceptable in the terms of his physical appearance but even he could feel the power that radiated from the young wizard. Martian had worked among the strongest of the Wizards in the world, few could leave a mark of power, and this school boy at the age of fourteen was already doing it; it was worrying.

"Do you love him?" He asked suddenly, his eyes looking sharply at her own "Does he love you?"

Fleur sat looking at another picture for a few moment, before looking up with the same fire in her eyes "Yes." She said that one word with the resolution of the divine.

Martian took a small breath, his eyes closed for a moment "I believe that this young man will change the world….and I aim to help you and him, however, he is a target of the highest regard. He will be looked down on until the end, he will be what they hate, what they fear." He said darkly, his mouth a tight line "But if you love him, and he returns this, I cannot break you apart from him, men like he and I are few." He stood from her bed, walking towards the doorframe "We have all summer to prepare; I will inform your mother and my boss."

Fleur gave him a weak smile, then nodding "Thank you, papa!" She said softly, looking down at her favorite picture, it had him smile in it, they were sitting on the bed, he had just woken up but he was still smiling. It was perfect.

XX~XX~XX~XX~XX

Harry had followed the woman, who was almost faster than he was but had a different form of travel, it was almost like she was silently apperating but he knew this to be impossible. Every time he saw her, he'd smoke to her location, on for her to be gone and around another tree, it was starting to get on his nerves rather quickly.

"I imagine you are taking me to your mother, but do you have to be so….annoying?" He said darkly as he landed, only to her gone once more, her laughter filled his ear.

"Relax Harry Potter, we are almost there, mother has wanted to meet you for so long, just like she wanted me to meet Sirius Black." She said with a bright smile as she was around another tree not too far away "Come, keep up."

Harry narrowed his eyes once more, pulling himself into the smoke form and this time flying higher than average to just follow her as she would vanish and reappear. That was until she appeared at a tree line, and walked towards an ancient looking Elder tree, it was bent and twisted, nothing lived near it, it seemed alone among all the trees.

He landed, already in a walk as his form was collected, his eyes straight and wand in hand, he was prepared for anything that might come at him here "Where is she?" He asked simply as he approached the Elder

Jess gave him a dark smile, knocking three times on the bark of the tree, he noticed a symbol above her hand. It was a triangle, with a circle inside of it and line from the bottom to the tip. It was a symbol that he knew, but he couldn't place it for a moment until he looked down at his ring, the same symbol was within the stone.

As he was musing this, the bark of the tree turned inward and a large dark hole had appeared, from this hole light shined for all of a moment, and then another woman appeared. She was middle aged, he could tell from the grey flecks within her long black hair, her white eyes didn't appear to be of blindness as she looked around, dancing from the stars and the moon, to the grass and finally himself.

"Harry James Potter, the Boy Who Lived, the Keeper of Tom Marvollo Riddle's hidden Horcrux." Her voice was like water, but it also put him on edge, even more so when she began to smile at him "It is nice to meet you once more, after all you're a friend at this point…..I am Death."

Harry paused for all of a moment, then he started to chuckle, this then devolved into full laughter "Death?! The one and only?" He said between bouts, which then started once more "I am not some fo-" He winced in pain as Salazar began screaming bloody murder within his skull.

The woman named Death, had a long bony finger pointed at his scar "While I cannot make a full soul feel much pain, a fragment is so easy to….torture." She said darkly "I have wanted to speak with you for ages, though I rarely find the time."

Harry felt Salazar stop as she lowered her hand, his eyes narrowed at her "What is it you want." He said sharply, his temper flaring as his eyes began to glow in a sickly color.

Death gave a smile, it was simple but it was there "Tom Riddle's Soul."

XX~XX~XX~XX~XX

Albus Dumbledore was an old mage, who had figured he had seen most of what the world could throw his way, and while he was a very open and curious man. The fact that sitting in a chair across from him, was a woman that most would consider dead, who was very much alive and not aged a single day; was deeply…disturbing.

"I thought you said that Harry would be along soon?" He asked in a low voice, his eyes not once leaving hers as she knocked on his office door. It had resulted in the two of them locking eyes and almost cursing each other, but Albus was anything if not observant, little ticks couldn't be faked, let alone the fact that Lily carried her wand across her belt, which she did when she was alive.

Lily who had been inspecting her nails, while also keeping Albus in her view nodded "I did, he's running late, is that usual for him?" She asked curiously.

"Not particularly, unless he has found a worthy distraction, young Harry is often chasing rabbits down holes." He mumbled sagely, his eyes narrowing just a tad, he was now worrying about the boy; as if he didn't have enough on his plate.

Lily gave a long sigh "I swear to the Founders, that boy will give me gray hair." She said pulling at her ends lightly, looking exasperated. "I'm sure you know that I've been with him from the start."

Dumbledore nodded "I had assumed you used the Aspida ritual, while a costly one it has many benefits, largely if the one who seals the spell is a powerful force." He leaned back in his chair, taking his goblet and lightly swirling the amber liquor. "I am most curious as to how you found it."

Lily gave him a dark smile "James and I made a pact, we would do anything and everything within our power to save our son." She explained almost casually, tilting her glass back and savoring the burning sensation that it gave her.

Dumbledore gave the barest of nods, he had figured that she might have tempted James into something such as that, while he could never prove it; a certain sealed bookshelf filtered through his memories. He leaned on his long bony fingers, his eyes still not leaving hers as something appeared on the balcony "Harry, you should really knock next time."

The Potter heir didn't look any different than normal, though his clothing was no longer the school gear and more of the Alternative Muggle tastes. "I apologize for my delay, I left the stove on." He said simply, taking his place across from Albus and next to his mother.

Lily gave him the barest of raised brows, she had come straight here and had to explain to Dumbledore the situation, yet he was just now returning, odd. "What distracted you?" She asked simply, flicking her wand and summoning another teacup.

With a snap of his fingers, the teacup was filled and had floated towards him "I came across a woman in the woods, her mother wished to speak with me, had many words of advice for me." His tone was largely neutral, something that both of them picked up on "Did you know Salazar has gotten weaker?"

Lily winced a little, frowning at her child, knowing where this was leading "Yes, I am dealing with my own…Salazar if you will, though I believe this one calls herself Rose, it will not be an issue for long, the Black Library will no doubt have something to help us." She waved the concern, she had likely had worse anyway.

Harry nodded "Excellent idea, I'm sure that Sirius will have no trouble getting you books, and I am more than able to get books from the Potter vault, though I don't see why you cannot yourself." He said in a contemplative voice.

Albus frowned, his beard drooping a little "No one but us three, and the Black's must know of your return Lily." He said gravely "As far as the Ministry is concerned, Harry is emancipated but will continue to live with Andromeda Tonks-Black."

Lily shrugged "I wasn't going to suggest it regardless, what better way to take the world by surprise than having a powerful, unknown and faceless witch fucking up their program." She gave another dark grin "Besides, I want to spend some time with my son without being chased half way across the world."

Harry nodded "I can imagine that Azkaban would be in my future if they found out what I had done, Necromancy no matter the kind is Outlawed." He said with a sigh, running a hand through his hair "They act like Dark Magic will come and haunt them."

Lily and Albus gave Harry a very long look, almost waiting for it.

"Alright fine, Dark Magic isn't meant to be used by those of weak will or minds." Harry amended "But someone who knows what they are doing, and knows how to avoid the…side effects." He gave himself a pause "If Voldemort has taught me anything, it is important to learn from the past mistakes."

"So no body amplifications." Lily gave her son a warning tone,

"Or Rituals to speak with the dead." Albus added "Or Demonic Summons."

Harry gave them pointed looks "I am no fool, and my name is not Tom Riddle." He spoke bluntly, his features getting dark "As for Demons, binding circles would hold one."

Albus frowned "You would think, but depending on what you've summoned it can easily be broken." He said gripping his leg for a moment "Terrible things happen to those who meddle with Dark forces."

Lily cast her gaze from her son to Albus "Speaking from experience, Old Man?" She asked with her head cocked to the side.

Albus took a deep breath, looking far older than he moments ago "I wasn't always so wise, or so powerful when I was a youth….it has a way of catching up to you." He almost whispered, pinching his brow in pain.

Lily wrung her hands for a moment, likely from nerves "It certainly does…"

Albus looked up in alarm, then narrowed his gaze at the redheaded woman's guilty features "Lily….you didn't."

"Well, I was looking for a way to kill a seventy year old freak with a snake face."

XX~XX~XX~XX~XX

"This is it." Andromeda stood at the door, her arms crossed and shoulder leaned on the doorway "It was our Guest Room." She explained observing the plain white walls "We can paint it, if you want."

Harry glanced over his shoulder as he looked out the large window "No, I do not believe I will be here longer than a few years, I thank you however for the space." He turned around and gave her a short bow "I will not be an issue."

Andromeda gave him a short frown, stepping into the room "Harry, you're family, you'll always be family." She walked over and placed a hand on his shoulder "Even if you don't want it, Ted and I are here for you."

Harry gave a slight nod "Thank you….I wish to put my things away." He said gently, looking at the two trunks to his left "It isn't much but, I would like to get comfortable, before my training resumes." He opened a trunk and it suddenly grew larger, opened larger.

"Do you need a hand?" She asked gently, looking at the Gryffindor Pendant that he was holding. Then frowned when he tossed it to the side carelessly for a tome "You don't like Gryffindor…do you?"

Harry went rigid for a moment, then narrowed his eyes "They beat me, and then kicked me out of the Tower for a full year." He spoke dully "So, no I don't Like Gryffindor." He then picked up a black flag with a snowy white owl, and two daggers crossed on the center "I prefer the Drifters."

Andromeda almost smiled, Sirius had of course informed them all about the Drifters, she thought it was slightly ingenuous, training the students so that when they left Hogwarts; they were ready for the War. However she was also very against making children into Soldiers, but they had to get ready for combat somehow.

Harry however was the exception, he needed to be trained, he needed to be surrounded by those of equal skill and self worth. The Marauders were James' charges, and Harry needed something so different for his own time. The Marauders ended up being absorbed by the Order of Phoenix, the Drifters would stand alone; against the Trinity that was Ministry, The Order and The Death Eaters.

"You wish to proceed with it then?" Andromeda asked very simply "You'll basically become a Hit-Squad."

Harry shrugged his shoulders "I'm already a walking bomb, might as well know what I'm doing with it." He responded simply, still placing small magical items on his dresser and by his bedside. "Besides, it'll be fun." He gave her a smile.

Andromeda smiled back "Well then, get ready for the next level of your training, this time we will be focusing more on the Water side of your Storm, seeing as you can already create your Lightning." She had her hands behind her back, and gave him a nod before twisting and leaving the room.

Harry was silent for a while, before he looked at the doorframe, with a snap of his fingers the door shut. From his pocket he pulled out an object, a small marble with twisting black insides "I did call your foolish Tom, to think that you had corrupted this ring." He let the ring shine once more, he had removed the stone and reset it on a silver band, one that better fit his complexion.

He placed the marble on a stand that rested on a shelf above his bed, next to it was the Diary that Albus had let him keep after asking about it; he had assured the man that he would find all of these Horcruxes and deal with them accordingly. Albus had only asked that when Harry had uncovered the memory, or had found the place, that he would contact the aging warlock for aid.

Harry of course would allow Albus to help him, together they knew more about the Dark Lord than perhaps anyone alive, including the Wizard in question. Under no circumstance would he allow Albus to fall into harm's way however, personal feelings aside; the man was needed for the upcoming war and Harry was only able to push back Voldemort, not triumph over him.

On the same shelve Harry placed what was left of the Slytherin Blade, he couldn't imagine that the old timer would be very happy about him breaking it after using it for only a year. He also hadn't found a use for that Egg yet, it was resting in his trunk under a stasis charm.

'How's it hanging bunk buddy?'

"Shut up Sal." Harry said casually, as he started to put his book collection away.

'Oh come on Bunk Buddy! I'm bored with all this talk of killing that piece of me!'

"I said shut up Salazar." He pushed a little more venom into his voice, and imagined a very, very large Snake in his mind "Enjoy."

'You got me a PET!'

XX~XX~XX~XX~XX~XX

The Bar was loud, the people were annoying, the beer was cheap and the whiskey was laughable; and it smelled of something foul. The brick walls were crumbling, the wooden floors were bent and twisted but it added an atmosphere that couldn't be ignored. The table they sat at was slightly sticky and his chair shifted every time he moved too much.

The woman across from him slammed back her shot, and slapped the glass on the table with a smirk on her features, the glass wasn't alone it had about five brothers. "What's wrong Pads, can't keep up?" She asked with that smirk still on her lips.

Sirius growled and slammed his shot back "I can do this all night, just cause you're younger doesn't mean anything to me Lil." He said with his own roguish smirk "Sides, I've been drinking this swill a lot longer than you."

"Is that so?" She asked with a cocked red brow, and a playful smirk "See, I was told that as I was rotting in the ground, you were rotting in Azkaban." She explained, leaning on the table, a beer in hand "Granted I was also within my Son's mind, but really I feel like we had a similar experience."

Sirius grumbled out a laugh, taking a long draw from his own beer and holding up his hand for another round of shots "Well, you and the Pup damn near gave us a fright, never expected to see you again….any..chan-"

"James didn't have the same protections I did, or the same limitations." Lily informed him simply, leaning back in her chair "He said it was against his morals, I don't believe in such things."

"Morals?"

"The end doesn't always justify the means, but history is written by the victors." She informed him, placing her shots on the tray the barmaid brought their next round on "Thank you."

The blonde nodded, giving Sirius another glance before retreating back to the Bar. Sirius of course spent the next five seconds checking out her ass, before turning back to her "So what was it like, being inside of Harry's mind?"

"He was a tortured, suppressive male." She deadpanned "I don't think I'll look at men the same way, ever again…."

"But women?"

"Sirius take your fucking shot." She snapped, slamming her shot and finishing her beer, she stood up suddenly "I'll be back."

Sirius raised a brow at her antics before taking his shot, and coughing at the burning liquor; luckily Wizards were a little bit tolerable of such things, which was why they had things like Fire-Whiskey. One shot for a Muggle and they wouldn't be able to walk, that was the difference in them.

He ran a hand through his hair, and rubbed his eyes "You know your daughter is very pretty, she just turn 18?" A voice startled him, and it was a young man, who had taken a seat at the empty table next to theirs.

Sirius gave the man a short glance before taking a drink of his beer "She's a little older than that." He said calmly, though his free hand was tapping the tabletop lazily.

"So, why is drinking with her old man? Doesn't she have a nice guy to take her out?"

"Maybe she just likes her Old Man that much, and no, she doesn't nor do I think she wants too." He said narrowing his eyes at the young man, Sirius was a pretty confident in his sexuality to say that the man was reasonably attractive but he wasn't a James or even Remus, he might pass for average.

The kid nodded, a thoughtful expression on his features "So what, just an over protective father?" He asked curiously.

"For your information, my last Boyfriend died." Lily had returned with two more bottles "So fuck off."

"Woah, no need for the hostilities, I'm just trying to be a public servant, a beautiful woman shouldn't drink with her father all alone!" He said quickly, his glass was almost empty, just like his brain.

Sirius started to laugh "I think I told you she doesn't want the company of a nice guy." He explained taking the beer for her hands, and giving her a nod.

"Well, good thing I can be a bad guy too."

"Oh for the love of Merlin." Lily said with a glare "I'm only looking at Women for the time being, Wo-men." She rolled her eyes and waved for another round "You're giving me a headache."

The man gave her a look of disgust, standing suddenly "Your daughter is a bloody freak." He said about to walk away, before Sirius grabbed his wrist "Oye, let me go you fucking-"

"Apologize." He growled, his silver eyes bright and his teeth just slightly extended "Now."

The man pulled his arm out, and spit in Sirius' face "No one tells me what to do! You bloody fag-lover." He snarled, and like magic three of his buddies appeared behind him, likely all university students "Got something to say now?"

Sirius gave a sigh, before standing slowly and rolling his neck "Now, I'm giving you one more chance to apologize to Lily here, before I break your fucking arm." He said slowly, removing his jacket and cracking his knuckles.

"Siri there is only four of them." She said barely looking over her bottle "Try not to hurt them too bad."

Sirius gave her a grin, then a wink "Not to worry, I'll make it quick."

"Bring it on old man!" Someone from the left yelled and pulled out a knife.

Sirius let out a small laugh, before rushing into the heat of things, while Lily just watched on and sipped on her beer. She hoped he didn't get blood stains on her shirt, she loved this shirt.

XX~XX~XX~XX~XX~XX

The room was dark, beside the burning candles near the bed, and the labored breathing of one, it was silent as well. The dark door clicked open, and a man entered before more light shined over him "Severus…" A voice hissed in pain.

The Potions Master gave his current Lord a much detested bow, before examining the wounds once more. The Arm wound was infected with some sort of toxin, along with the other shallow wounds his Lord had suffered it wasn't surprising that he had been called. His fellow Death Eaters knew very little of helping the body, only knowing how to hurt it.

"You should have summoned me sooner, My Lord." He spoke silkily, his fingers barely grazing the burns and cuts "I could have saved you much pain, I can however fix these issues…the arm however."

"What?" Voldemort hissed out through clinched teeth as another wave of heat flashed over him "What about my arm?"

"They were not able to find it, I believe that Potter destroyed it in the battles chaos." Snape informed him, having little fear of being tortured for this news, the arm in question was his Lords casting arm. "Your wand however is a different matter, I have it here." He held out the bone white instrument of death.

"You always come through Severus, how long will the potions take?" He flipped the wand through his left hand, having learned how to cast with it as a precaution, he was Lord Voldemort after all, a hand injury should slow him down…an arm though "I have a spell to fix my arm, it won't be the same but it will be better than nothing, damned Potter Brat."

At that moment Lucius Malfoy strolled into the room, bowing deeply once his Lord's eyes were on him "The men are asking for their orders sir, what should I tell them?" He asked keeping his bow for the answer.

"I want the Werewolves, the Vampires, The Succubus Clans." He snarled out, his eyes narrowing "I want Giants, Shades, Lynches and Imps." He continued after a flash of pain "And I want them yesterday, Lucius, that is what I want!"

Lucius finished his bow "It will be done." And like the that the blonde vanished.

"Severus, when you are done mixing my draughts." Voldemort said slowly "I want to know everything about that brat Potter and Dumbledore's Order of Flaming Birds, do you understand?"

"Perfectly, My Lord."

"Excellent." He snapped his free hand "Now step to it, I want to strike back by the end of the Summer, and it will be against all of them."

Snape paused for a moment at the doorway, his eyes widening just a fraction "My Lord, you couldn't possibly-"

"The Hogwarts Express."

With that the whole mansion was consumed by the laughs of a man whose thirst for revenge might doom the whole world, or at least light his into flames. Severus didn't know which one scared him the most, that he still didn't know which side he should be working for, or that Potter wasn't sounding so crazy anymore.

'Lily, what should I do?'

XX~XX~XX~XX~XX

Hello Hello, so this is the final chapter of the Act I for my Fire Bird story, it has been a long time coming and I know I could do better but I firmly believe that if you force writing you'll be left with shit, and that was some of my middle chapters as you all have read. So the next Act II will be coming out in a few months, I have much to plan and even more to tie up; you know how it is, so I'll leave you with this.

Fleur will return, Lily will be very important in the next Arc, Dumbledore will start treating Harry like a Partner and not as a Tool. Sirius and Bellatrix will of course be around to cause some mayhem. Draco still has some character development to finish up. We're losing all those characters from France, including Gabby for a time.

Harry is now walking in the rays of the sun once more, and is seemingly becoming more and more mortal than he was a few chapters ago. However the Drifters will be coming into play and you will see my vision from that! Do those of you who thought I had just forgotten about Jessica and that little fact!

What did Harry learn from Death exactly? Who knows, maybe it was immortality, not likely but could happen, probably not, find out on the next Arc. The Firebird Act II: Broken Wings.

See you all very soon~ DemonicSlytherin224