Hari leaned against the doorway and watched the Dark Lord rock his son gently with a besotted look on his face. Tom was quietly telling Gasper what he knew about the Potter family.

They had moved into Potter manor once the school year was over so that both he and Hari could learn the Potter family history from the portraits in the family gallery. Tom felt a bit awkward considering he was behind many of the most recent deaths, but he was trying to work past it to ensure Gasper had a firm grasp on his heritage when he got older.

Hari moved into the room and kissed his cheek and her son's before moving to sit by the picture window which looked out over the vast gardens. It was lovely and peaceful here. After the hectic year, she was grateful for the quiet. The quiet wouldn't last long though. Tom had meetings coming up next week and then summer school. They'd have a few weeks afterward then prep for the next school year.

Tomorrow they would leave Gasper safely ensconced at Potter manor with Taffy and the other house elves to watch over him and they would go to Hogwarts to lower wards. They were going to start with detangling the outer wards then address the pressure wards holding the window in the Slytherin common rooms.

William Weasley stood grimly in front of the main cornerstone of Hogwarts' wards. The headmaster was in the wardroom ready to bring down the wards. He would then apparate to the grounds beside Bill. He and Hari were standing by to supply the magical power Bill may need to rework the wards and as first line defense if Greyback decided to attack.

He had a plan for the wards. It was going to take three hours to remove the unnecessary wards and repair the ones remaining. A team of warders was spread out over Hogwarts' grounds. It would take all of them to sort out this clusterfuck and then bring the wards back up. Each warder had two defensive guardians and to everyone's surprise, except Lord and Lady Slytherin, a contingent of fifteen house elves armed to the teeth with silver weapons dipped in basilisk venom. No one was to actually touch them.

The house elves were ordered not to hesitate and to remain invisible. If attackers came at their charges then they were to aim to kill. The house elves were frightened, but determined. The Riddles had not said where they had gotten so much silver, but thankfully it wasn't goblin forged for the most part and the venom could be cleansed off it later so it could be reused.

Hari stood next to Bill with Samira coiled beside her. The huge snake was actually a comfort considering the attack they almost were certain was coming. The wards flashed in warning and Hari called her staff to hand. Five seconds later the wards went down and Tom appeared in a wash of gray smoke to Bill's left.

Bill immediately tapped into the cornerstone pulling up the schematics as did every other warder on the team. Each had a set of wards to work on disassembling. Minutes ticked by as he focused on the delicate work. One by one the redundant wards unraveled and disappeared. Sweat trickled down his face as he poured his magic into the job. Finally, at the three hour mark he lowered his wand with a sigh. "Okay we've finished clearing them up. We break for lunch and to recover some energy then we start repairing and strengthening the remaining wards.

Tom nodded and a small, energy dense meal appeared in front of each group. Tired and nerves on edge, no one felt the need for small talk. Tom refused to sit. He kept pacing and staring out into the forest. He could almost feel them out there.

Lunch finished they took their places and began the intensive prospective of repairing the wards that made Hogwarts the safest place in England next to Gringotts.

The attack came thirty minutes later when they were fully entrenched in their work and getting tired. A wave of half turned werewolves hurtled out of the woods and across the bridge attacking the three sides of the castle that was accessible.

There were frightened 'eeps' from the house elves then, before the wizards could cast the first spell, silver weapons were flying through the air to sink deeply into the assailants' flesh. Howls of agony filled the air as the silver began to burn and poison the werewolves. Weres stumbled and fell as the basilisk venom incapacitated then killed them.

The warders shouted in surprise and began sending stunners and cutting hexes targeting individual werewolves. A few went down, but it didn't make a dent in the sheer number of attackers that Greyback had amassed over the years he had been allowed to operate.

Hari stepped in front of Bill and raised her staff which was glowing brightly. This was the were that had bitten her godfather, that had turned countless children and killed countless adults with sadistic glee. Now he wanted her and Tom and Gasper. Well, he couldn't have them! She twisted her staff and swung it. A wall of fire poured forth and enveloped the werewolves. Bodies fell. Screams rent the air and the stench of burning flesh filled their nostrils making everyone gag.

Tom stared at Hari a second before conjuring his own sweeping line of fire. Hearing shouts of desperation from the warders at the far end near the bridge, Tom apparated to their position. One warder was down and the other along with the house elves were barely maintaining. Tom snarled and flung deadly spells at the attacking weres. Acid coated them and began dissolving flesh and bone; widely cast, high powered bludgeoners broke bones sending them to the ground in agony; organ liquefiers killed several.

Hari appeared next to him and began casting with fierce determination until finally there were no more werewolves standing. She glared at the downed werewolves. This was going to set them back on their goals of acceptance of weres. She saw a few still moving and strode forward.

"Hari, what are you doing?" Tom called out.

"Finishing the job." She snapped. "If they are alive when the aurors arrive, they will want them arrested not put down."

The warders stared at the Riddles when Tom nodded and grimly joined his wife walking through the downed werewolves and sending piercing hexes through their hearts. They gaped when Bill began doing the same.

They had just finished and were returning to the ward line when aurors began appearing with loud cracks of apparation. Madame Bones was in the lead knowing that it was best for her to deal with the Riddles.

"Madame Bones," Tom greeted tiredly.

"Lord Slytherin," Bones sighed looking at the carnage.

Tom ran a hand through his hair causing it to wave and curl wildly. "We were straightening out the wards which are an utter mess when they attacked."

"I thought you said werewolves weren't savage beasts." An auror muttered.

"Greyback." Tom snapped. "This is Greyback's pack."

"Greyback!" Bones yelped turning to look out over the bodies.

"There were so many that we had to use a wall of fire to defend against them."

"Then there isn't proof that this was an attack by Greyback."

Madame Bones turned to glare at her belligerent auror. "Torsen, is there a reason for your obstructionist attitude?"

"No, Madame Bones." He flushed and ducked his head.

Bones stared at him a moment longer before she turned back to the man she was certain was Voldemort. He looked completely unrepentant. "Okay, spread out and search for survivors. Vanish the dead."

"Vanish?"

"Is there a reason to keep a dead werewolf?" She asked Torsen that had questioned her.

"No…no ma'am."

Her eyes narrowed. She was going to have a meeting with her aurors. Some were letting their personal opinions interfere with their work and that was going to change. No matter what they thought of a being the law was the law.

Her aurors spread out and began clearing the area of dead bodies.

"Are they going to find anyone alive?" She asked Lord Slytherin.

"I doubt it."

"Could I get a copy of a memory of the attack?"

"Yes." Tom touched his wand to his temple and drew out a silvery thread and deposited into the vial Madame Bones offered. Bill Weasley and several of the warders gave their memory of the attack as well for corroboration. None of them included the part where they had gone out and finished off the wounded.

She corked it and nodded before joining her aurors in their grisly task.

Tom turned and looked at the shaken warders. "Perhaps we should finish up tomorrow."

"That would leave Hogwarts defenseless." Bill replied shaking his head. "We're used to long hours and working in less than ideal conditions. We'll get at least the basic wards back up then come back tomorrow to deal with the rest."

Tom nodded. "Thank you."

The next day went smoothly as the rested warders did what they were best at – repairing and erecting wards. Hogwarts practically hummed with vitality and security when they were finished. There would be no dark artifacts or disembodied wraiths or trolls or basilisks gaining access to the school now. Violence anywhere and harmful spells outside of classrooms would see the perpetrators immobilized until a teacher released them.

They were all quite pleased with the final result of their hard work and the hefty bonus the Riddles gifted them.

The beginning of August saw the first ever summer introduction course for first years. It was the largest class in a decade – sixty three firsties. The parents were welcome to come with them; muggles receiving a bracelet that allowed them to see Hogwarts with the side benefit of charming them into secrecy on the matter of magic.

A short introduction of what they would be learning during their seven years at the school then a tour involving talking portraits, moving stairs, dorms and the house ghosts had them filled with awe. A filling early supper and the parents portkeyed home while the students were housed in a special summer dorm since they hadn't been sorted yet.

The next day the children began to learn how to write with quills, house elves and wixen special days and traditions. The following days were filled with essay structure, learning to fly, potion preparations, magical transportation, post owls and various other odds and ends as the students questioned the new world they were being introduced to. They ensured they were all given physicals and that they had their inoculations.

Hari stood before the small crowd of eleven/twelve year olds. "Now, you've had a few days to get used to the magical world being odd and exciting." She grinned at the nervous laughter. "You've learned that you can learn to change into an animal if you are devoted and persevere. You've learned about goblins, mer-people, centaurs, etc and how they have their own language. There is a language that people have widely varying opinions on….parseltongue. Parseltongue is a gift one is born with. It cannot be learned. It is the language of serpents."

"Snakes? People can talk to snakes?!"

"Yes. In fact, my husband and I are both parselmouths. My husband's familiar is a very large pit viper which means her venom is poisonous. You will see her about the school and grounds, but she will not harm you unless you attack her, myself, my husband or our child. She is very protective of who she perceives as her family."

Hari paused as many of the children paled and shuffled about nervously. "I am going to call her out here so you can meet her." She paused before calling, "Samira, come meet the new students."

"New young ones. I can quit hiding?"

"Yes. I have explained to them about you so you don't have to hide any longer."

The children screamed and scrambled backwards from the twelve foot reptile.

"Calm down, calm down." Hari snapped. "Did I not just tell you that she wouldn't hurt you?"

The children settled slightly though they still eyed the enormous snake warily.

"Her name is Samira." Hari let her hand slid over the sinuous body as Samira coiled up her slender form slowly. She is the headmaster's familiar; therefore, she is very intelligent. She understands English somewhat so feel free to talk to her when you see her."

"B….but we can't u…under…stand snake." One of the children stuttered.

"Ask her something."

"Ummm….are you going to bite me?"

Samira weaved her head horizontally in a 'no' fashion.

"Do you like kids?" Another asked.

Samira's head bobbed up and down.

"Can…can we pet you?" A brave soul squeaked.

The snake slid off of Hari and slithered across the ground to the child turning longways so her head wasn't facing him. The boy knelt and carefully ran his hand down her. Samira undulated gently under his attention, hissing nonsense as she enjoyed the attention and soon other children were petting her.

Tom, carrying Gasper, joined Hari watching his familiar bask under the attention. "Drama queen," he muttered.

Hari laughed. "Yes, but this is the best way to get them to be at ease around her."

"Alright, that's enough. You all need to go wash up and make sure you are packed since you leave in the morning. We will see you back here September 1st when you'll be sorted and start your magical education. Samira will be here as well." She added as several kids gave her one last pat before hurrying toward the castle.

Tom sighed and slid an arm around Hari's waist. "Two weeks of solitude then the madness begins again."

"Hmmm," she laid her head against his shoulder. "It was worth it though. These kids and those after them will have a firmer foundation from the start."

"Yes. Their parents won't tell our secret either. Slowly we will secure our world."

"Come on, I'm hungry." Hari tugged him into motion and headed for the castle. Two weeks at home before they had to return to the madness of students and staff.