FicWad

Okay, I started this a day after the last posting, so hopefully it will be up in the next week. I know, a record. Well, I did that once, but that was when I had a 3,000 word minimum. I think that it is safe to say that I surpass that by quite a bit on a semi regular basis. Anyway, lets get to the goods.
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Last Time...
"Good. In a week I want you to take the inner circle and raid Azkaban. If possible, take the fortress under your control, if not, free all of my supporters and kill those who won't or are too far gone to join me." He commanded. Riddle opened his palm as if to receive something and Snape's necklace glided into his hands.
"I will be keeping this. It will ensure that it is never destroyed for any reason." 'And to ensure your loyalty.' Voldemort thought to himself. Snape nodded weakly knowing that he could not go against his lord. "You are dismissed." He told his servant. Snape bowed low and left. He locked the door and put up a silencing ward and laughed. A high pitched laugh so disturbing and plainly evil in nature that it would give anyone alive who heard it nightmares, and had on occasion. Instead it cracked the skin of the two dead people lying in a heap near the wall.
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Chapter 14: Go
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"What du ya want?" Seraph asked groggily. Being woken up by excitable house elves was not something he wanted to happen on a regular basis.
"Master Sereaph wanted us to wake hims up early for his training." Winky said in a hesitant voice, as if she expected him to punish her at any moment. Seraph groaned. He hated mornings. Late nights he could deal with, tiredness could be battled with the right state of mind, and pepper up potion. He thanked Winky and told her he wanted breakfast in 15 minutes. She left with a snap of her fingers and he got dressed. Fifteen minutes later found Seraph enjoying a rather large breakfast that had him more awake then he could remember. Whatever Winky was doing to the food was a good thing. After breakfast he sat and wondered what he should do first. He needed a plan, what to do when, and hopefully he could stick to it. Whatever he drew up though, there were two things that he needed to learn first. Occlumency and Legilimencey as well as the Animagus transformation.
After he gained proficient skill in the art of Occlumency then he could begin everything else. The Animagus potion might take nearly three days to brew, but it would not be extremely difficult to make. At least not for him. He was confident in the potions affinity he had been given. Once he took the Animagus potion, he would prepare for his first ritual. His schedule went something like this:
6:00 a.m. - 6:15 a.m. Wake up/Breakfast
6:15 a.m. - 8:00 a.m. Running/Weight Training
8:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. Occlumency/Legilimencey
10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Ritual Study
12:00 p.m. - 12:30 p.m. Lunch
12:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. Potion Study/ Transfiguration (Conjuration, animation)/Charms
4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. Rune/Language study
5:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. Creation
6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. Weapons Training/Stealth Training
8:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m. Gift Training
Setting the schedule aside, he went in search of Cheleb and took him into the quidditch pitch. The grim was content to play with the brooms -his brooms- again, but chased after Seraph after he saw that he was running. Seraph had always known that he was malnourished, and therefore a bit on the less healthy side, but by the way he was always able to evade Dudders, well more precisely Dud's fists, you could tell that he was in better shape then some. Going to Hogwarts seemed to make him lose his unnatural speed and stamina, though he retained his reflexes, it seemed to him as he began wheezing on his second lap around the pitch in a dead sprint. When an hour had passed he had sprinted three laps and jogged two more, nothing to scoff at, but he knew he needed to be better. No matter how fast he ran, he saw someone running faster, longer, and with more ease then himself. And it pissed him off. So he ran, and ran, until he could barely maintain a walk.
The weight equipment had been placed on a section where stands had been and now stood towards the pitch. He made it there soaking wet and out of breath. Dobby popped into existence and gave him a water to drink. Well more then water, but he did not know what it was. He thanked the elf and felt very refreshed. The book had told him good techniques to use and which machines to use and when. He knew that in a few weeks he would have to change up his workout schedule so that his muscles did not get used to the workout along with what stretches to do. He began with the bench press with Dobby as his spotter, then some back machines, free weights and finally leg machines. Like with his running, he saw people better. They lifted more, faster, easier. And it really pissed him off. He threw his anger into the weights, his pain was theirs, his triumph was their struggle. He limped out of the pitch and collapsed in the hallway, barely able to stand. Dobby once again gave him something to drink and he felt better. What ever they were giving him was really helping.
Ten minutes later he felt refreshed with minimal stiffness. He knew that the people he saw weren't real, just part of his mind. Figments of an imagination forced to deal with never being good enough for his caretakers. But he was grateful for them now. They pushed him, and he realized that they always had. And now he was going to push back. He smirked as he decided to call the pitch the 'Ghost Room' as long as he lived there.
Once again he found himself inside his trunk searching for a book. This time 'Black's Guide to Mind Shrouding and Infiltration: Occlumency and Legilimencey' Stepping out of the trunk he found a nice chair in his study and began reading.
Occlumency is the art of protecting ones mind from the art of Legilimencey, the art of intruding a mind. To learn on is to learn the other, the master level of the arts is not to make sure one cannot read your thoughts or read others, but to protect your thoughts in such a way that the intruder believes that they were successful or retrieve information without alerting the other party and being able to distinguish what is real and what is not. If you are reading this book then you are not only a Black, but a grim speaker. The knowledge of the guild is of the utmost secrecy. Make sure that it stays that way.
The first step in protecting your mind is to order your mind. You must know it better then anyone; it is your mind after all. Each system is unique to the individual. I'm dead by the time you are reading this, so telling my technique will not hurt anything. I use the stars. Every constellation makes up a subject, whether knowledge, emotions, or other random memories. Each star is a sub group, specific knowledge and emotions and memories. Inside each star there are more and more sub groups until the space is filled up. The space is in your mind, which is only limited by how much space you think is there, so think of it as infinite.
To be able to order your mind you must be in a state of deep relaxation, able to go into a trance so to speak. The easiest way is to concentrate on finding your core. Breathe in and out, thinking only of your magic. What it feels like, what your wand feels like, the ebb and flow of powerful casting. Follow that feeling. If you can follow it far enough, you will reach your core. Core size varies, as does it shape. Some may be perfectly round, but most are not. The shape of the core does not matter, but the size does. The larger the core, the more magic can be held in it. There are ways to increase your core size, by ritual (which I cover in one of my many Ritual books), as well as naturally, though the initial ritual must be done first (I suppose that means that it is not natural then, but it is something you are doing after the ritual, you just need the push to be able to do it on your own). It is at this point if you are looking for your Animagus form it will become apparent to you. Depending on how connected your animal is to you, you may see it in the core or like me, at may be outside the core, like a guardian. Once there you will notice lines connecting your magical core to various things, your arms, legs, the most should be concentrated between your arms and your mind. These pathways can be manipulated like the core can after the ritual to increase the amount of magic able to get to a body part at a time, as well as creating new pathways. Newly created pathways will be very painful, but the benefits outweigh the minor discomfort. But I digress. Follow the pathway to your mind.
Remember how it looks, as we will be changing it. The visual representation of your mind will show you how open to attack you are. Once your mind is properly ordered, we will begin the protection. You will find that your mind will be disordered, but connected. You must go through each and every memory and categorize them. How, as I have said before, it is up to you, but it must be done. The benefits of a well organized mind are enormous. Retain information better and be able to recall things from a specific memory, as if you had just learned it. You will be able to keep your emotions in check and possible learn how to turn off pain. That is something dangerous and should never be fully turned off. Dulled pain is useful in battle, but not being able to feel a spear in you will dampen your life expectancy. I must stress the danger of an unorganized mind, as well as the danger of an unprotected organized mind. Frequent and brutal attacks may reduce your natural resistance. This is an art form, no matter the use, there is a certain form that must be followed or you are doomed to failure. Do not believe yourself better then you are. People who are more magically powered have a higher natural defense, and therefore are naturally better in protecting their minds.
Once you have organized you mind, you are ready to begin the next step; protection. The original masters of the arts, the brothers Occlu and Legil intended it to be a way to communicate without speaking. When it was discovered that one could find information, it became a favorite tool of interrogators and thieves. The brothers got together again and discovered a way to block the mind intrusion. The fist mind shields were crude, nothing more then tall walls. The Legilimens had to get stronger to find the same information that was easily reachable before. Walls became castles and Legilimens would lay siege. Castles became taller, stronger, with moats and other obstacles to get in the way. Guardians were posted to help get rid of unwanted attackers and the magic 'will' to push intruders out of the mind was discovered. Legilimens became stronger, but also more subtle, slipping in quietly and quickly to reach what they desired. False memories were created, and attackers learned how to distinguish. Many have incorporated the art of 'Warding' into their minds and can be alerted to any presence not their own in their mind. As time progressed, some gave up the castle method for simple spheres with many layers, gaining better protection, but loosing their guardians. The arts have not progressed any further since then. Castles, guards, spheres and will. Or that is what any book will tell you.
I am a master of shadows. Why would I want to build a gigantic castle or a floating ball? Why let them know exactly where to go? Why let them see at all? No castles, no guards, no spheres. Shadow. What an attacker cannot see, he cannot find. Order you mind and cast it in shadow. The stars that I have ordered my mind into are high above the shadow, but still invisible to any attackers. It is this technique, 'Mind Shrouding' for which I named this book. Intruders can be let in, and with nothing to stop them, they will believe you vulnerable. They will wonder around aimlessly until they realize that they cannot find anything and give up. While they are on their futile mission, you can be searching through their minds. While the process of protecting your mind may be difficult, this method makes it very easy. Once you have completed these steps, refer back to the book on Legilimencey. You may be surprised at how easy it is to find information once you have navigated your own mind and know how to look.

Seraph sat the book down and cursed Snape in his mind. The bastard had purposely taught him incorrectly. There was nothing he could do about it though, at least not at the moment. Later, he would make his life hell, but now he would just think of the many interesting ways to hurt the man. He read over the information again and sat down cross-legged on the floor leaning against the wall. He got settled and began to breathe in and out, thinking only of his magic. After nearly two hours he had almost fallen asleep with nothing to show for it. He then got his wand out and began to levitate or summon and banish things, concentrating on how the magic felt to him. He could have hit himself when after the fifth pillow he banished he felt it. It was what he felt when he first picked up his new wand. It was the comforting warmth at his finger tips but at the same time a cold and refreshing breeze that seemed to clear any weariness he had away. He set his wand down and tried to recapture that feeling. After a few minutes, he felt it in his wand hand. He made sure that he had a good grip on the feeling before going any further. Confident that he would not lose it, he followed the feeling up his arm, to his shoulders and finally his core. He had gone painfully slow as to keep the connection and it had taken nearly an hour to reach his core.
He was amazed at what he saw once he found it. It was a fairly large silver ball that seemed to project black bolts of lightning and fire. The lightning converged at some places and created black flames that licked the glowing silver ball. Silvery glowing veins seemed to connect body parts to his core like the book said, the most going to his mind and his arm. Some floated freely though, as if they should be connected but were severed at one point and never reconnected. On one side, if a sphere can have a side, there was a very large lightning bolt shaped crack that seemed to have been recently healed, though it left a deep scar.
'Must be the remnants of my link to Voldemort' Seraph though. 'I wonder if this changes anything...'
Suddenly a booming bark could be heard. Out of nowhere a huge dog came out, back hunched and fur spiked, not unlike a cat, though this dog had no reason to try and make itself look bigger. It was a grim, quite a bit larger then Cheleb, but a grim nonetheless. More specifically it was the same grim that shared the space on his back. A huge Rot. The dog's growls sent vibrations through the air, and while Seraph was not technically standing on anything he still felt off balanced by it. The Grim's silver and green eyes flashed and he looked ready to pounce before Seraph stopped him.
"Calm your self." He told the still growling animal. The grim only smirked. Well it was more like the same feral grin that he and Cheleb had, only it was a bit more threatening. A bit, like saying that the Cruciatus curse is going to sting.
"Wondered when you would show up." It said.
"How long have you been waiting?"
"Since you chose your path. I was awoken then. Oh we are going to raise some hell." This time Seraph smirked. He liked him already.
"What will happen to you once I do the transformation?" Seraph asked.
"My magic joins your core, and I join your mind. We are the same, just separated at the moment. It is the nature of the gift. I am a grim, and you will become one. You are human, and I will become one. It's win win and all." The grim said. Seraph grinned and nodded. He bid his alter ego farewell and followed the highest concentration of veins to his mind. What he saw did not make him happy. At all. The book had mentioned ones natural defenses. Well, his lay in ruins, strewn all over the vast plain that was in his mind. The ironic part of it was that his natural mind defenses were his first prison, his cupboard. It seems that the Dursley's treatment of him went deeper then the products of his imagination. Snape had done this, but something good may have come out of it. His mind was free from the cupboard now. He could start it over. He took a look around his mind. Stormy clouds hung overhead with silver and green bolts of lightning that flashed before a tremendous booming sound. The rain was torrential, but refreshing. To the casual observer one would think that the scene was depressing, but it was not to him. When he was little, he always enjoyed the huge thunderstorms. They scared Dudley shitless for one reason, but for another, it refreshed everything. They were a source of comfort, not fear. It did not surprise him that his mindscape resembled the worst storm that he had ever seen.
He found his thoughts and memories floating aimlessly about, sometimes bumping into each other, seemingly connected but not at the same time. This would take a while. As his natural defense was a cupboard, his memories naturally took the shape of cleaning products and tools. That was the first thing that had to change. As he looked through each memory he changed them into little silver balls. The first sorting was very basic, memories and emotions. He had no idea how long it took to do it but he was able to place his memories in one pile and emotions in another pile. He soon discovered that every memory was attached to an emotion, which was inconvenient in the process of properly sorting them. He knew that he needed to categorize his emotions so that he could use them when casting spells, so he could not leave them attached. So he took a bit of the emotion and stuck it to the memory, leaving an imprint of the emotion on it. The emotion was just as strong within the memory, but now the emotion that fueled it was being kept somewhere else. He had just finished that when he was disturbed.
"Master Sereaph, sir. You needs to eat." Winky told him in a stern tone quiet unlike her usual bashful self.
"Yeah sure, I could eat." Seraph said a bit taken aback from the diminutive house elf acting like Molly Weasley. "What time is it anyway?" He asked.
"It is being 8:00 p.m., Master Sereaph. Yous has been sitting there for a long time. I wanted to make you eat lunch, but Dobby said that you was busy. You were projecting your aura earlier, it broke that wall, I think." Winky informed him. So he had been at it for what? Ten hours? And he just managed to sort out memories from emotions. Seraph sighed; this would take a while longer. He ate the full meal that Winky had made for him and pulled out the book on Animagi he had gotten.
The book was very basic, no more or less then was needed; instructions and the potion instructions. There was also a warning that while owning the in the time of its creation was not illegal, a friend had told him it would be in years to come, so it you were following the guide, it was the users fault if they were caught. All you had to do was find you animal, if you had one. Most wizards and witches past a certain level of power (not very much) had a animal or a 'totem' that represented part of their personality or heritage. When a transformation took place, you gained a bit of the animal, a bird Animagus reported having better eyesight, a cat Animagus gained some of its grace, dog Animagus usually gained a barking laugh and growled when angered. Sometimes personality traits were gained, a Hippogriph Animagus reported to become much more proud. You found your animal by looking into your core. He already had and knew now for sure what it was, so he read on. Next you had to brew the potion. It would take nearly a day and a half to brew, but you only had to stir every eight hours or so and add an ingredient before stirring, so it was not extremely difficult. The ingredients were harder to get then the making, well that was true if you did no know where to go anyway. Once the potion had to be taken within thirty seconds after the brewing time had been finished for the maximum effect. Maximum effect just meant less painful, not any less effective, which is why you could by ready made potions. Three drops of blood had to be added by the user right before drinking. The user would slip into a trance (if it was brewed correctly) and be forced to transform. Once they had initially transformed, it would become less painful and easier to accomplish until it became second nature. He would begin the potion tomorrow while he was sorting his mind. He would make sure that Dobby or Winky would warn him before he had to stir or add something. He put the small book down and crashed into his bed.
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Neville Longbottom was slightly confused. He had just received a letter from the Headmaster inviting his grandmother and himself to stay at a safe house. His grandmother had received a letter as well, asking if it would be okay for him to stay with some friends for the rest of the summer, and she was welcome, but not required, to stay as well. The Longbottom Matriarch was a little apprehensive; she had not spoken to Albus Dumbledore, on good terms, for quite a few years. She felt that he could have better protected her son and his wife. But, she would ultimately leave the decision with Neville. She was so proud of what he had done. So much like his father, though she had cuffed him quiet a few times for being such an idiot. She was proud nonetheless.
"Do you wish to stay with your friends, Neville?" She asked.
"I don't know. I wasn't really friends with them, just Harry and Luna, maybe Ginny too. Ron and Hermione were kind of indifferent towards me. They betrayed him, I know it. I don't want any part of them. I just can't believe that he's gone. He lives through everything life can throw at him and he trips up on crossing the street. Its' not right, and it's not fair." Neville said strongly, shocking his grandmother
"I will go though, if nothing more then so I can know what is going on. Hopefully I can work at the Weasley twin's new shop and not have to deal too much with them." He informed his grandmother.
"Very well. I won't be joining you though. Someone needs to keep up with the garden and I feel confident in our wards. They were set up by your great-great grandfather and Theodore Potter you know. Two more powerful warders you could not find in that age. When will you want to leave?"
"Soon, I'll get my stuff together and leave. The Headmaster's letter is a portkey that will take me when I say the password."
"I want to see you before you go, Neville. There is something that I want to give you." Neville nodded and left to get his trunk together. Half an hour later he was ready to go.
"Gram?" He called out.
"In here, Neville." His grandmother called from the sitting room.
"You are growing up so fast, Neville. You look so much like your father. You've made me very proud, and I think that it is time that you received your birthright." Neville had blushed under the rare praise from his grandmother but became confused as she continued. "Do you know the history of the Longbottom's?"
"I know that we've always been Herboligists, it's a natural gift for us. Some have also been potions masters as well, but none in the last three generations. Father was the first Auror in the family. Our motto comes out to mean something about retribution against those who wrong us and loyalty to blood and clan. The family symbol is a sword covered in Devil's Snare. That's about it." Neville finished a bit less certain then he had started.
"Yes, but there is more. Had your father been alive he would be the one to tell you. It is true that the majority of our family has always been Herboligists, but it is more then that. The first Longbottom gained his name from growing a perfect long bottomed leaf that was used for smoking. His father did not have the name; we're not sure what his father's name was actually. The green thumb gift was imparted into our blood by the Guild. The part of our motto does not mean clan, but guild. We no longer remember the actual name of the Guild, but we know that they were a thieves and assassin's guild that did some mercenary work. They also had a thirst for knowledge and creation. They created many of the illegal rituals that are in existence today as well as developing many spells and stealth gifts. We Longbottoms created many plants and special ingredients for the guild. It is one of the reasons we have so much wealth." She explained slowly.
Neville was a bit shocked at the revelation. Of all the things that his grandmother could have told him, that would not have even entered into his mind. He nodded slowly, processing the fact that his ancestors had been Herboligist mercenaries. It wasn't too far a stretch, he supposed, it was the Dark Ages after all, but it was odd to know that your blood was the way it was because of a ritual done to the first of your line.
"I am telling you this so that if you ever feel the blood call, you will know what it means."
"And what does it mean?"
"That the guild has been reinstated, the blood pact your ancestor agreed to is being tested, and that you are being called in. It has been over two thousand years since the last calling, and the guild was disbanded several years later, but should you feel the call, you will have to go. Your blood demands no less." Neville nodded. "I also wanted to give you this. I feel that it is time you were given you chance to make your mark upon the world." The old lady reached into her sleeve and pulled out a small dark green box and handed it to Neville. He hesitated for a moment, but finally opened the box. It was a ring. The ring, the families ring. His head shifted to hers sharply, making a popping noise.
"Yes?" Neville asked.
"Yes." Mrs. Longbottom assured. Neville hugged his grandmother strongly, which she returned in a rare show of emotion. "Once you put that on you will become the Head of the Longbottom family. You will become a legal adult in the eyes of the Ministry, all the rights and responsibilities, you know the rest. You are also able to perform magic now legally. If you wish, you can live wherever you want to, though I would suggest somewhere heavily warded. There are a few properties you can stay at if you want."
"Thanks Gram. I'll be careful, I promise." He told her.
"And be sure to buy a wand soon. And keep in mind Ollivander's is not the only place to go." She told him cryptically. He took the ring out of the box and placed it on his finger. The ring glowed and he felt something slip and break inside of him as the ring resized itself to him before the emerald Devil's Snare seemed to tighten around the onyx sword more closely and the sword gained a much sharper look. Neville nodded and said the password and disappeared from Longbottom Manor.
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"Neville! How are you?" Hermione asked loudly, drawing the attention of the room.
"Not bad." He said slowly.
"Hey mate, good to see you." Ron said excitedly. Neville looked at him oddly but responded in kind, trying to figure out exactly what was going on.
"Hi, Neville." Ginny said somberly, not looking up from the place on the wall she was staring at.
"So, you staying for the summer?" Ron asked.
"Yeah, I thought that I should. Keep up with what's going on and all..." He trailed off as Ginny sniffed loudly.
"Don't mind her; she's just sad about something." Ron said as he walked towards his chess set. Neville could not believe this.
"Come on Neville, I'll show you to your room." Ginny said as she finally moved. He was taken to a small but very nice room with a window that overlooked the street below.
"They make me sick, you know." Ginny said suddenly.
"No, I don't." Neville said, having an idea of what she was talking about.
"They practically killed him themselves. All they had to do was bring him in. But no, my brother had to be an idiot and pick a fight. Everything would have worked out, and I would have my Harry right now. It's all their fault, Ron and Dumbledore's..." She trailed off, still looking at the wall and walked out of the room. 'What the hell is going on here?' He thought to himself. He stayed in the room for a few minutes and decided that he could brave them for a little while. He got into a chess match with Ron but could not concentrate and had the most spectacular loss he could remember. He ran into the Weasley twins a few hours later and cornered them.
"Oy, Fred, it's our favorite Guinea Pig." George told his brother.
"Looks like it." Fred responded.
"Now what exactly-"
"Does it want?"
"A job." Neville told them simply.
"A job? Your loaded aint you?"
"What do you need a job for?"
"I don't think that I can stay here all the time, just can't." Neville said.
"If our company is that bad-" George started.
"You should try working somewhere else." Fred finished.
"Not your company I want to avoid." Neville told them softly. Fred and George shared a look. They each took an arm and dragged him into an empty room.
"Step into our office, Neville. Now specifically, whose company would you rather avoid?" Fred asked.
"Some of the star Order members, or our dear siblings and our resident bookworm?" George asked.
"The latter." Neville said softly, hoping that they would not get mad and claim retribution.
"My, my. I think that we can help you out here Nev. George, get Remus and Tonks. I think it was about time we had that meeting with our benefactor." George nodded and went to find the aforementioned people.
"Have you spoken to the Headmaster yet, Nev?" Fred asked.
"No, why?"
"Probably better if we got to you before he does. Remus and Tonks will explain. We might even be able to meet a special guest in a couple of days.
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Seraph was once again woken up by a bouncing Dobby on his bed. He groaned and got up, wondering why wizards did not have alarm clocks and vowed to find the equivalent. A few minutes later he was dressed for his workout and began eating the wonderful breakfast that Winky had prepared. Cheleb joined him in his run for a little while before becoming bored and playing with his broomsticks. He was right beside him, running. Seraph looked up and saw him run right passed.
'Come on, can't do any better then that?' It taunted. Seraph huffed and ran faster. His legs were stiff, his heart pounded, and his forehead burned. But he did not feel any of that. He saw the ghost running in front of him, just in front of him, egging him on, and he ran faster, if nothing more then to beat the shit out of the ghost. He sprinted a few miles and jogged the last few laps until he practically collapsed and was forced to stop by Dobby. The elf looked at him worriedly and gave him two glasses of water. After he caught his breath he thanked Dobby and stretched again and started on the weight machines, making sure he did not work the same muscles he had worked the day before. The ghost was here too, just as bad as the day before. Always stronger, always more rested, always talking. When he was done with his workout not even Dobby's water could get rid of the stiffness in his arms and chest.
He found the soap taps for the bathtub/pond. The soap and hot water actually fell and mixed with the water below from the waterfall. He swam around for a while, trying to work out the stiffness in his body in the hot water. He soon left the pond and found one of the potions rooms. He took out the Animagus kit and laid the ingredients and included instructions. Instructions that clashed with the ones that he was given from Gryffindor's guide. He felt slightly dizzy when comparing the two and realized that the newer potion would be much more painful and not allow the animal to give many of its traits or abilities. The Ministry must have gotten rid of the majority of correct potion directions and put out this one. If you can't get rid or a problem, modify it. It would take less time this way though. Seraph shook his head in disgust and began boiling the water that Dobby provided him.
One ounce finely chopped Bellsprout to be stirred in clockwise. One stir for each pinch. Add powdered Ginger, but do not stir. Let boil exactly eight hours. Potion should be opaque.
Essence of Nordok to be mixed on slowly as potion moves in a counterclockwise motion from three anticlockwise motions. Add Gamie hair and Mutted Doneover spleen (chopped) to potion and let simmer for eight hours. Potion will boil loudly once and turn a muddy brown.
Powdered Griffin tooth to be dusted along top of potion as Crime Tongue is added whole to potion. Stir three times anticlockwise and tap the side of the cauldron once with a golden spoon. A sharp ringing tone will be heard and the potion will turn an acid green. Let lightly simmer for seven hours.
Turn heat off and place potion in a silver goblet. Drip three drops of blood and gently swirl. Drink immediately and focus on your animal. If you have not found your animal, you will find it now. Just in a more painful way.
He began the potion and told Dobby to rouse him before it was time to do the next step. He sat with his back to the wall in the same place he had the day before, the wall had cracked in a way to hold him there once he sat down. Delving into his core again and quickly followed the veins to his mind. It was much easier this time, he noted. He decided to completely categorize his emotions first. He liked the idea of using his memories and emotions as stars and constellations, so he did it that way.
The constellation to hold his emotions would be Boötes, the Bear Guard. He separated the emotions by the strongest; anger, sadness, fear, shame, happiness, hatred, and love. There were many more, but they were felt to a less extent and would be placed in a miscellaneous star. He would sort the pile and then put them into a larger star once he had finished sorting them. As he went through anger, he found that they felt colder the more powerful it was. He recognized the feelings from when he was stuck at the Dursley's and during potions classes.
Hatred was next, and it felt ice cold. So much so that it scared him slightly. These were feelings associated with Voldemort and Bellatrix. The sadness he felt was deep and tormented and he wanted to stop from the pain. The fear that he went through next was blinding, as it seemed to come from nowhere, but he managed to sort it too. Shame made him feel worthless and he got through them quickly. He was glad that he had finished happiness for last. He was not sure what caused the emotions, but he had never felt better. Love was a strong emotion, but there was too little of it and he placed it with the other lesser emotions in one star.
Once all the emotions had been sorted out, he concentrated on large bottomless silver balls, his stars, and placed the emotions carefully inside, the lesser of a category first, finishing with the strongest. After he completed that, he gathered them all together and floated up to the sky, past the rain and the clouds, past everything. He was not sure how he did it, but it was his mind, so he could do what he wanted. He arranged the balls in the correct formation and left them floating there. Once back on the 'ground' he willed the clouds to lessen and the sky to darken as he made the large silver balls hanging suspended in the air shine with an inner silvery glow. Satisfied for now, he was getting ready to exit his mind when he was shaken by Dobby.
"Master Sareaph must be tending his potion now." Dobby informed him.
"Thanks Dobby. Tell me, have you ever known a house elf to take an Animagus potion?" Seraph asked as he began adding the next ingredient and stirring. Dobby's face paled.
"No's master sir. No house elf would steal his master's potion!" Dobby said, almost sounding insulted.
"What if they were made to drink it, would it work the same? Would it hurt them?" Seraph asked. Perhaps he had a bit of his ancestor in him, the need to tinker with the unknown. What would a house elf turn into anyway?
"I don't know, Master Sareaph. None of the ingredients is poisoness to us, so I suppose it would work." Dobby said uncertainly.
"I'll have some extra when I'm finished making this, it will be painful, but you can take some with me when I'm finished. Winky too, if she wants. Dobby seemed to think about it for a moment before he nodded.
"I will try it, Master Sareaph, if you says it is okay for me too. I will ask Winky if she wants to as well." Dobby said and popped out. 'This will certainly be interesting.' He thought. He felt something deep inside him give out a bark like laugh before he was made to eat a small lunch to appease Winky, who had decided that she wanted no part with the potion. Once he finished eating his lunch/dinner he sat down again to sort his memories.
The constellation that he wanted to hold his memories would be Orion. The memories were separated by categories and sub categories, then more and more sub categories. The first 11 years of his life were separated by year, then by knowledge, experience, etc until everything from that time had a place and an order. The emotions that were imprinted were just as strong as the actual emotions and he felt physically sick by the time Dobby shook him out of his trance to tend the potion again. Dobby gave him some more of his special water and he felt better. He went to the potion and sprinkled the Griffin tooth over the top of the potion and dropped the tongue into the center. He stirred three times and hit the side of the cauldron with the required spoon. The sharp noise that was desired rang out and the potion turned into a bright acid green concoction. Winky provided another meal for him and he felt refreshed and very full. He found that while sorting his memories and emotions was tiring, being in his mind and core seemed to give him more energy; he figured this was what was wanted in meditation. He could actually do this instead of sleep and feel fine, which is what he planned to do as he needed to take the potion in seven hours.
He once again found himself inside his mind. The memories past his 11th birthday would be separated by knowledge and experiences as well as other categories but in a more acute range. Knowledge was separated by subject, sometimes lesson, spell, use, incantation, ingredient, rune, number, etc. Everything that he had ever learned inside and outside of Hogwarts was in here. As he sorted through everything it was as if he was learning it over again, and he was surprised at how much he had learned but had not paid attention to. One such thing was an alarm charm. You simply did a wand movement and concentrated on what time you wanted to wake up. The wand would vibrate or sound when the time was up. He managed to go through a good majority of his knowledge when he was woken up by Dobby.
"It's time." Was all the elf said seriously. Seraph nodded and went to the potion. It was simmering lightly and he turned the heat off and poured the potion in to two silver goblets that Dobby had found. Dobby handed him a small silver knife, holding one himself. Seraph cut his finger and watched as the specified amount of blood dripped into the goblet and the elf did the same.
"Cheers." Seraph said in toast before he down the potion. It wasn't that bad tasting actually. Maybe it was because he brewed it and not Snape, or tongue overpowered the other ingredients taste wise. He concentrated on the animal that he had seen by his core and let the potion go to work. The first thing that he noticed was that he did not feel a lot of discomfort. The second was that the hair on his head was getting shorter while the hair on his arms was getting longer. And darker. And thicker, and there was more of it. He fell to his knees as his legs gave out on him and let out a muffled growlish yell as he hit his face on the ground. Only his face was in the process of becoming a muzzle. The arms that he was using to support himself once he fell gave out on him too and he lay on his stomach as he watched them shorten change colour.
He wasn't too sure where his clothes or his wand had gone too but he was now naked and completely covered with short fur. He felt his back muscles enlarge and tighten, his now four legs flex taught. They felt like they were coiled, just waiting to pounce on something. A nubby little tail sprouted behind him and he felt it wag in anticipation. His ears lengthened and he noticed he could hear the bones in his body snapping and reshaping, organs being moved to different locations, and Dobby's transformation. His teeth reshaped themselves and began to lengthen and become dangerously sharp. His tongue lengthened and it lolled out of his mouth before he could catch it but left it there for a moment as he panted. He shook his head suddenly and his ears flopped around. He felt movement within himself that was not physical. The grim by his core barked in joy as it joined his mind and magic joined his core. He gave a very frightening smirk, as the two minds joined together.
He knew why the grims were created now. He knew how they were created, and it made more sense to him now why he felt like a predator and why Cheleb always looked like a cat ready to pounce when he felt threatened or was trying to protect him. Grims were magically bred and enhanced animals. They wanted a strong, stealthy, and protective animal that could think for itself. The Black Panther, Kodiak bear, and large breed dogs were bred through rituals. Once the desired animal was created, they enhanced them. They were given a slight scanning ability, greater endurance, strength and speed as well as making them smarter. The final ritual allowed them to shadow walk, but something went wrong, and grims were forced to stay partially in the shadow realm. They found this to be blessing in disguise as it increased just about everything in the grims. Grimtongue was developed and they became the perfect companions for the Guild. The firs Black was the only person able to transform into a grim through blood rituals. Many others tried the same thing but failed, ending up turning into large black dogs instead. Through the years their successors were able to change into more and more magical animals.
His eyes were the last thing to change. It was like the vision he got when looking for magic, but there was more. Shadow was shadow, but it wasn't dark. It was hard to describe, but he knew it was exactly as it should be. Everything had a sharp edge to it though, which reminded him of the shadow realm and he remembered that grims were in both realms at once. He noticed a few feet away there was an image of a silver and scarlet spark and a light afterimage of Dobby popping in that was slowly fading away. 'Must be what Cheleb meant when he said that you could follow the magic.' He thought.
He was glad that his sight allowed him to see colour, unlike the absolute grayscale that was the shadow realm. He feared for a moment that he would be doomed to see in shades of black and grey as a grim. He turned around and found that Dobby was finishing his own transformation. He thought it ironic that Dobby had turned into a dog as well, until he remembered Dobby saying something about the bonding changing their magic to be more like the families. The small hyperactive elf had turned into a small and hyperactive dog. He was a Miniature Pinscher of all things, a dark green, almost black, Miniature Pinscher with silver markings around his small muzzle and paws. He let out a barking laugh as Dobby the Pinscher chased his nubby tail around. The sound startled the small dog and it yipped and ran behind a couch.
"Come out, Dobby, I won't hurt you." He reassured the frightened elf, puppy, thing.
"I can understand you, Master Seraph. You are a big doggy. Bigger then your Cheleb puppy even!" He barked in a high pitched, well, bark. 'And speak better apparently.' Seraph thought to himself.
"Why don't you go and show Winky?" Seraph suggested. Dobby nodded his head and wagged his tail happily at the thought. The dog seemed to have a look of intense concentration before Seraph noticed a light silver and scarlet glow around him and Dobby popped with a small bark of victory and was gone.
'Well, I didn't know that could happen. Of course a few hours ago I did not know that elves could become Animagus. I wonder what the Ministry would say about this.' Seraph thought to himself as he began to move towards the door. The same walking through water feeling that he had felt in the shadow realm was present now. Like the atmosphere was denser, but did not hinder movements. He reveled in the feeling and knew why Cheleb loved to run around. He gathered himself and jumped down a flight of steps to the second level. Now Cheleb may be a puppy, but he is still a large dog, easily a couple hundred pounds. Seraph was much older and his form showed it. He was a full sized grim, probably slightly larger then a bear. Had he weighed himself, he would come out to be nearly 1,200 pounds of muscle, flesh and bone. 1,200 pounds does not take a 15 foot fall very well. But Seraph did. He hit the ground with barely a depression in the thick carpet and made hardly a sound as he took another leap and landed outside of the 'Ghost Room'. He squeezed through the large doors and growled loudly, shaking the poles at either side of the room.
Cheleb was awake instantly. He saw the other grim and tried to match the growl, but sadly, was not able to. This was his territory though. No one else was going to take what was his and his master's. He confronted the bear sized dog and hunched his shoulders and spiked his fur, trying to match the aggressors size, but was not able to do that either.
"You looking for a fight, pup?" It asked him patronizingly. Cheleb growled and bared his teeth. The larger dog just smirked at him and Cheleb snapped his jaws a couple of times in warning. The larger dog hunched a bit and his short fur seemed to spike near his back, making him look more feral. His head was lower to the ground, ready pounce as he gave a growl that sent tremors through the soil, making loose stones jump a bit and Cheleb backed up without consciously doing so.
"Still want to fight, pup?" It asked him again. The larger dog was making him mad. He knew that he could not win in a fight, but he wasn't going to give up. Cheleb charged and leapt into the air faster then most people would be able to see. But Seraph saw, and jumped out of the way. Cheleb landed in a roll and Seraph was on him in a flash, his huge jaws wrapped around the smaller animal's neck. Cheleb whimpered in sadness at his defeat and fear.
"We'll have to work on that. I don't want you to ever give up, but make sure that the prize is worth it. Back down when you have to. And know you can win before taking someone head on." Seraph told him. The smaller grim looked him in the eyes in confusion as he let him up.
"Why... Master Seraph! How are you a grim?" Cheleb asked in confusion.
"Animagus, ability to turn into an animal if you have enough power. I did it just a few minutes ago." He explained. He was about to continue when he felt extremely tired and collapsed, changing back into human form as he hit the ground, and this time, 1,200 pounds made a hell of a sound.
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"Has that bitch contacted you yet, Draco?" An extremely pissed of Lucius Malfoy asked his son. Well, he did not appear pissed of. He looked mildly disgruntled, but Draco knew better. Malfoy's did not show their emotions like most people and were allowed only two types of anger; irritation, which comprised of everything but the second type of anger, Rage. Draco watched as his father paced his study, muttering cursed under his breath.
"That 'bitch' is my mother, and no, she has not." Draco said. His father had barely been out of Azkaban before he had gone back to the Dark Lord to drain their coffers. He missed the week being home with his father away, hiding out in the Dark Lord's headquarters. It had been, peaceful, he supposed.
"Do not take that tone with me, boy! Crucio!" The elder Malfoy hissed. That crackling scarlet spiral associated with pain hit him directly in his chest and he fell to his knees. He had been under the curse enough to know that his father must be much more angered then he thought. He was able to keep from screaming by biting his tongue and cheek, but that only lasted a few moments before he let out a scream, spitting blood out at the same time. The blood splattered across Lucius' silver robes.
"You worthless excuse for an heir! Expulsum!" Lucius shouted as he let up on the torture curse. The spell hit Draco in the shoulder and a bone cracked as he was sent flipping back into the wall and landed nearly upright, but fell against the wall and slide down.
"Do you think the Dark Lord will go easy on you for disrespect? Do you think that I will allow you to besmirch the name of 'Malfoy'? You will learn, boy. And as soon as I find that whore you will use what I have taught you against her." He said, glee evident in his eyes at the very thought. Draco thought that he saw his father shudder in ecstasy before he felt like he was going to get sick and looked away. Father or not, he was not going to allow him hurt his mother, and while he had fantasized sometimes about using the torture curse once or twice, using it on his mother was the last thing he would want.
"Get up." Lucius commanded. Draco did as he was asked, not with a small with amount of difficulty, looking into his father's eyes with as much hatred as he had in his soul. Draco's silver eyes flashed brightly once and Lucius smirked.
"Already learning." He said. "I think that you will take to your lessons well. Take this." He said as he threw a small box at his son who caught it despite the pain in his arm.
"As you know, I am not exactly welcomed by the Ministry in certain circles after the Attack there. One such place is Diagon Alley, and therefore Gringotts. I need to be able to access the Malfoy vault to get the funds that the Dark Lord requires. You, however, do not have such complications at the moment. That is the Malfoy Family Ring. With it you will be able to access the vault without any difficulties. You are to use a bottomless bag and transfer half of the funds into it and bring it back promptly. With that ring you become the Head of the Family and a legal adult, allowed to use magic should you need to outside of the Manor. I need not mention that I am placing more trust in you then I have given anyone, ever. Should you fail I will kill you myself. Better yet, I will bring you to the Dark Lord so that he may kill you." Lucius threatened.
Draco nodded and opened the box. Inside was an intricately designed silver and sapphire ring. A silver Augury stood in sharp relief against a sapphire serpent held in its talons. He looked at the ring reverently for a moment before he put it on. The silver bird opened its wings as if to take off and the serpent moved to rest on the larger bird's neck. The blue serpent reared itself back, as if getting ready to strike anyone who came close. It glowed and it resized to fit him and the he felt the familiar feeling of a tracking ward fell off of him.
"I need to dress the part, don't I?" He smirked at his father who agreed and sent him to change into something befitting a Malfoy Lord. Draco left for his room and gathered his trunk. He dumped out the Hogwarts robes and a few miscellaneous useless objects leaving only some advanced school books Severus had given him before the end of school that he was to study. Something called Occlumency and Legilimencey along with some dark arts books. He grabbed some robes until he filled it up and opened the second compartment and put in some more useful items, the hand of glory and his father's invisibility cloak as well some other questionable paraphernalia.
He had been taught the basics of apparition but had not made a trip further then a few hundred yards, so he would have to take a portkey to a warded section of the bathroom in the Leaky Cauldron. Warded or not, it was always filthy as no one had cleaned it in the last fifty years since his grandfather had warded it to be used as a portkey point. The portkey, a necklace holding a stylized 'M' pendant was always kept next to the front door. Just passed the room that held all of the more then questionable artifacts under the floor. Draco smirked. If what his mother did pissed his father off, then he would be in a towering rage compared. He stepped into the room and pulled up the carpet, not fearing his father entering as there were numerous warning wards around the perimeter that would close the door if it was open automatically, and the fact that he had seen some random man and woman being taken to his father's room. Draco shuddered at the implications and his stomach turned the breakfast he had eaten not too long ago.
There were a number of artifacts dating from before the Dark Ages held here. Things that would give you nightmares from hearing about. There were also numerous 'light' artifacts that the Malfoy's had collected or stolen to keep from the enemy. The original notes on the Fidelius Charm with 'Potter' emblazoned on the top as well as a large cup that held the Hufflepuff crest on it was a couple of things being held like that. There were things that the Dark Lord himself had ordered his father to keep, like that diary that Potter had destroyed and some notes on soul magic. He grabbed it all and put it in the one full sized room that was in his trunk. Once the cellar was cleaned out, he used the special feature on the side and shrunk and pocketed it. He made it to the Grand Entranceway without incident and grabbed the portkey.
'There are plenty of other properties I can stay at. As the Head I can take him out of the wards and he won't be able to get me. I have to find mother.' He thought as he placed the necklace around his neck. 'Most Merlin damned Gryffindorish thing I've ever done.' He cursed himself as he said the activation phrase.
"Cauldron."
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Fred and George had pulled through and Dumbledore had allowed Neville to work part time at their shop. Neville scoffed at that. The Headmaster had allowed him to leave the house for a few hours a day to work. The twins knew that he was now the Head of his family but they had not proclaimed it to anyone and Dumbledore had not noticed. He had spoken with the twins and Remus and this crazy lady named Tonks that he thought he recognized from the Ministry battle, as well as the real Mad-eye Moody. They explained what had transpired the last few weeks and they made him sick. While his grandmother had always said she had her reasons for not trusting Dumbledore, he had always respected, nay, admired the man. To find out that he was invited to be befriended by Ron and Hermione and become the Headmaster's new 'tool' as Moody had put it. They were members of the Order and knew that Dumbledore wanted to have him trained up a bit, as well as some other plans that no one knew about. He gained a new disgust when he was told of Ron and Hermione's part in Harry's death in detail.
The usual meek boy seemed to gain a confidence in his demeanor as he thought of what he would like to do to the two. Just, anger, and his brown eyes flashed a lighter shade, making them look like dark fire for a moment, before he was told to calm down. That helped, not. He did calm down considerably, though his confusion rose greatly in response as he took in the implications of Professor Remus' words. Harry may not be dead after all? But everyone else seemed to think otherwise, the Headmaster included. He was told that they were going to meet up with a mutual friend to see about it as soon as possible, hopefully parallel to the time he would be working.
Today was that day; he was supposed to be working for about four hours. Instead they would head to the contact; he was not told where and was sure that the twins did not know either. Remus (he had been told numerous times to call him that, old habits die hard and all) and Tonks were going for his 'protection' as Dumbledore had said it.
"You ready?" Remus asked.
"Yeah, the Cauldron, right?" Neville asked. Remus shook his head.
"Moody said that there was a faster way there. Address is 'Vulcan's Armory, Knocturn Alley'. Say it quietly." Remus told him as he placed a local area silencing ward up quickly. "Yes, Knocturn, now go through after Tonks." The older man told him before he could ask the question. Tonks went through first to make sure it was okay. If she jumped back through within thirty seconds, it wasn't safe. He went through next and walked out of the fire with little difficulty. It was hard to remember that you had to keep your feet firmly planted and not move until you stopped spinning, same thing with portkey use. The room was leathery with bits of metal, swords, shields, and other protective things littered the walls and tables. The flames that lit up the room were an odd yellow and green and gave the room a slightly creepy feel. He nearly jumped when he saw a full sized dragon head attached to a wall. Fred and George made it through as well as Remus and finally Moody.
"Oi! Old man, get your arse out here!" Moody shouted, not exactly the epitome of suspicion that he usually was. A crash was heard from the back as well as a curse or two. Neville wondered how old someone had to be to be old compared to Moody, who had gone to school maybe twenty years after Dumbledore. He got his answer quickly enough.
"My, my. If it isn't little Alastor! You know, boy, your getting on in age yourself. You finally come for a replacement? That thing must be rotted through by now. Got just the thing. Tell me who your friends are first though. I can't remember the last time I had so many people in my shop at a time." The man said, his eyes seeming to be made of fire dancing over the small crowd he had in front of him.
"This here is Fred and George Weasley, you may want to talk to them later about a shop they have in the Alley." Moody started.
"What, not going to check to make sure he is who he says he is Mad-eye?" Fred asked. He was hit by a double eye stare for his comment.
"The only way someone could impersonate him might be by poly-juice, this assuming they can get close enough. If they were to drink that potion they would die."
"Why?" George asked.
"No one save a few could handle his age. They would die." Moody said. The Weasleys nodded, not quite sure how to take that, but not wanting to make another comment for a change.
"Next we have Longbottom."
"Longbottom... I met ya father once. Came in here to contract some of my supplies a few years back. Met a few ancestors of yours too. Keep yer skills up, boy. I've got a feeling that you're going to be contracted soon. Sooner then soon maybe." The old man told him cryptically. The others gave the man, including Moody, and odd look, but Neville paled a few shades and the Old man laughed.
"Nothing to fear boy, if you're here you would have joined anyway I think. You're going to have some pull now. Where were you Alastor?"
"Right... Next we have Tonks-"
"Another Black. Keep seeing them lately. You'll feel it too when it calls." Was all he said.
"And Remus Lupin." Moody finished.
"Ah, a Lycanthrope. Don't be surprised. You shy away from my silver and your eyes say a lot of your condition. When were you bitten?" He asked.
"When I was a child, a monster known as Greyback." Remus said softly, a note of distinct disgust in his tone.
"Sorry to say I knew the man before he turned monster. Hell of a fighter. He accepted his condition almost as soon as it happened to him, and never looked back. His family turned on him though and it drove him mad, sad really, but that is the world we live in. You fight it, and it is killing you slowly, eating you from the inside. You should embrace it. As a fighter it is a gift, as a teacher it can be enlightening, as a pacifist it can be a release. Embrace the wolf and it will help you. How old do you think Fenrir is?" The fire eyed man asked.
"Fifty maybe? He bit me almost thirty five years ago." Remus said.
"Fenrir Greyback is over three hundred years old. As werewolf standards go, he is now an elder and has a lot of clout among the packs. If he concentrated more on his abilities instead of turning as many people he could he might have become a full Lycan by now. Instead the natural strength that a werewolf has passed into his human form as well, making him the strongest werewolf, transformed or not, in the world at the moment."
"What's a 'Lycan'?" Neville heard Tonks ask.
"A werewolf who has surpassed the simple transformation once a month and has embraced their wolf, becoming part of it, and it a part of you. It is not unlike a full Animagus transformation. Once this happens they can turn into their wolf at any time." He finished. "Sorry, I'm Vulcan by the way, resident Black's Smith here. You'll want to know about yer friend I suppose. I'll see if he is available." Vulcan said. He threw in a powder that was in a pot that had more dust on it then Neville had ever seen before. The man reached into it and pulled out a fine black powder. He threw it into the fire and the flames turned a bright silver and black.
"Black Alley, Master's Keep." He shouted into the hearth. To all those present he seemed to growl at the flames. Remus could almost make out what he said though, like hearing English spoken by someone with a horrible accent.
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Seraph was awoken this time not by an elf but an echoing growl around the room. He got out of bed groggily and wondered how he had got there when he did not remember going to bed.
"You there, young master? Some friends of yours wish to see you." He heard clearly. He shook his head, that could only be Vulcan. 'Vulcan speaks Grimtongue?' Seraph thought as he gave a big yawn, and let out a growl as he stretched his back.
"Yeah, I'm here Vulcan. Give me five minutes." He heard a confirmation and the connection close. He grabbed a pair of pants and a sleeveless shirt he used for working out as well as his wands and their holsters and his cloak and boots. He told Dobby that he would be leaving for a while and to tell Cheleb too if he asked. He did not notice that his body was no longer lithe like it was, nor did he notice that the air around him felt slightly thicker, or the ease and speed in which he moved. He decided to keep his cloak off for the time being and jumped through the fire as he threw some powder down.
"Who the hell are you?" Was the demand as soon as he walked out of the large fire place as if it were a door.
"I'm me, who are you?" He asked.
"You first." The shifty eyed man said.
"A bit childish of you, isn't it Moody? A sort of am not, are too type feel. Who do you think that I am?" Seraph asked with a grin.
"You know who I am so I think you were about to tell us, boy." Moody growled. Seraph gave out a bark like laugh that made Remus take a second look at the person before him.
"Fred, George, good to see you both. I haven't checked out the shop yet. Tonks, glad your doing okay. Ask if you need anything. Neville, not expected but certainly welcome, good to see you too. I have the perfect place to get you a new wand. Remus," Seraph said as the man smiled and pulled him into a hug which shocked most present. "Good to see you. Sorry I did not get back with you sooner."
"No harm done, H-Seraph." Remus said. Seraph smiled.
"So what brings you to my neck of the woods?" He asked.
"I'm sorry," Neville interrupted. "But who are you? And how do you know so much about us?"
"Me? Names Seraph Black and we've known each other for a few years. Sorry about dragging you to the Ministry by the way." Understanding dawned on Neville then, as it did the rest of them.
"Harry? They said you were alive, but you don't look like Harry. Or sound like him." Neville said.
"True, that's because I'm not Harry. Harry Potter is indeed dead. Well, as dead as never being alive can be anyway. Harry Potter never existed technically, just me. Long story short, I'm a Black by blood, Potter, among others, by magic. My appearance was part of a charm my mother developed. I'm surprised that she didn't go into Ravenclaw, actually. I just hope I don't find out that she had some of her blood." Seraph said, confusing others further.
"You look like Sirius, mate. Major player he was as I hear it." Fred said and George wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.
"You didn't look like this the last time though, I mean you looked like Harry for sure, but you did not have all those yummy muscles. Or the tattoos." Tonks said, and Remus growled a bit. Tonks laughed and reassured Remus by kissing him deeply.
Seraph finally took stock of his appearance and was a bit shocked to see that Tonks was right. Even after his workout the day before he had little more then stringy muscles covering his arms. Now they were large and clearly defined, something you would expect with your typical Rugby player, if only a bit smaller. He flexed his arms in amazement and picked up one of Vulcan's random long swords sitting on a table. The must have been nearly twenty pounds, but it felt light to him, too light to do much damage, actually. He took the tip and the handle each in a hand and bent, and the metal complied, if a bit reluctantly. The crowd in front of him looked to be amazed, but Vulcan looked like he wanted to be smug but also offended at having one of his swords used for such an act.
"Couldn't do that yesterday." He said quietly to himself. He put the sword back on the table and finally noticed the pressure around him and the push he associated with being a grim and the shadow realm. "No way..." They heard him mutter. It seemed that just about everything from his grim form had transferred to his human form. Except... No it was just the room. He now had a constant scan on, a little less powerful then the one that happened when he was a grim but he was able to the magic around things. He had not noticed because the leathers and swords did not give off a heavy magical residue.
"What did you do, Seraph? Nothing illegal, I hope." Remus said, a bit of a smile showing through.
"No more then Dad and the rest did, though I plan on doing more then making a motorcycle fly." Seraph said with his slightly feral grin, reminding Remus who his father was.
"You must have been close to it then." Vulcan commented, making Neville and the Weasleys and Tonks too, very confused. Moody had a vague idea of what the boy had done and knew that it could only help.
"Full." Seraph said and he smirked at Moody's intake of breath.
"You know, if you were going to talk in code we could leave." Fred said, his twin nodding in agreement. Neville could not help but agree as well.
"There are several degrees of Animagus transformation." Seraph began. "I was gifted with a full one by an ancestor of mine when I had my 'Right of Passage' as a Black, among other things. I just took the potion yesterday. I had been passed out since the transformation ended late last night, maybe early this morning." He explained.
"So what are you?" George asked.
"Yeah and how can we be one too?" Fred continued.
"We can't have you getting all the birds,"
"It would break our rep,"
"Something were not prepared,"
"To accept at the moment." Fred finished.
"I'll be right behind you." Neville was heard saying, and Seraph thought it uncharacteristic of him to make a comment like that but was glad he felt he fit in here.
"You might be able to, Longbottom. It's been long enough; we may see an increase in magical Animagus this generation." Vulcan said off handedly. Seraph looked at him oddly.
"There something I should know about?" He asked.
"Nothing you wouldn't have figured out on your own soon enough, but since you ask, your friend may be joining that little club you were thinking of restarting. He seems at ease here, but I'm not sure he feels the same at where they are staying. Needs to learn Occlumency too." Vulcan told him. Seraph gave Neville a hard look over before he commented next.
"Herboligist?" Seraph asked, still looking at Neville who jumped a bit at the word.
"Right in one, young master Black."
"Could use one of those, not sure I like my apothecary for more then the special ingredients found there. I understand that He had difficulties finding both potion masters and Herboligists. Made some problems for the Weasley's a few thousand years down the road." Seraph said, making the twins wonder what he was talking about.
"You found the texts then, good. Glad that gift helped you read them, though you would have naturally been able to understand it, eventually. But yes, he had trouble keeping potions masters after the original left, so he looked towards his Herboligists to pick up the slack. Those damn gnomes were the most bloody annoying things he ever made." The old man said, thinking back to days long past.
"Garden gnomes?" Fred asked.
"Someone created Garden gnomes?" George asked in disbelief.
"Yeah, to act as Herboligists while the real ones were brewing. Didn't work out though." Seraph said pensively. Vulcan gave a hearty laugh at that.
"You are going to restart the Gui-" Neville had started but was cut off.
"Yes, and don't say it." Seraph said.
"When?" The boy asked.
"Not sure, but soon, I think. How warded is this place, Vulcan?" Seraph asked.
"Second only to your Alley." Vulcan assured him. Seraph nodded and looked thoughtful for a moment.
"What's been happening?" He asked finally, and was told. He could not believe that Dumbledore had tried to find another pawn so fast, and was disgusted at the lengths that Weasel and Granger would go to please the old man. He was interested in the Orders reaction to his death and was pained to find out that there weren't that many people who cared about his death. He shook his head as they finished.
"Old man never stops. Okay Nev, you have two options here. You can come with me and train for the war that is about to erupt, or you can stay with Dumbles and the Overcooked Turkeys. The old man won't let you learn anything that he deems 'dark' or unnecessary. I plan on learning everything and anything that will help me in the war, not to mention that Dumbles would forcefully object to what I plan on doing this summer, the Ministry would too, I imagine. Unless you object to it, you will be joining me later anyway; I'm offering you a head start. Think about that for a minute." Seraph told him.
"Vulcan, how many of those dummies do you have waiting for programming lying around?"
"Depends on how real ya want 'em." Vulcan said.
"Like the last one."
"I've got maybe four of them in the back, just finished. Knew you would be needing them. Fixed that little blood problem too. They are all programmed for spell and physical combat. They react to the skill you show. A punch and a kick will allow it to gauge your strength and can be set to just above your level. It knows quite a few spells, but you have to have a good grasp of Legilimencey to implant more. I had a breakthrough when I found out about this muggle invention, Computers? Well, all you have to do is duplicate your memory and place it in the box inside its mind via Legilimencey. Very useful. I've given it all the memories I have of my combat training, so it can actually teach you instead of just sparring. The voice has been a bit of a problem though, real low so you have to strain to hear it." Vulcan said proudly.
"Good, I'll take them. Dobby!" He shouted at no one. Suddenly a small dark green dog popped into existence. Once it saw Seraph, it turned back into Dobby to the surprise of everyone but Seraph.
"There are some dummies in the back; can you take them to the Alley for me?" Seraph asked. Dobby said he would and left.
"What the bloody-"
"Hell was that?"
"That? Dobby, you've probably met him if you visit the Hogwarts kitchens for any stretch of time." Seraph said offhandedly. Vulcan sighed.
"Not again." He said softly. Seraph explained what had happened and was given some strange looks before the others shook their heads.
"I'll go with you, Har-Seraph. That's going to take some getting used to. I'm not sure I could pretend to be happy there, or deal with Ron and Hermione much longer. Ginny seems to really miss you, in a twisted sort of way though." Neville told him, to which Seraph gave a rue laugh.
"Yeah, probably blames Ron or Dumbledore for my death right?" He asked, and Neville nodded. "I think Dumbledore started thinking that he needed a more permanent way to control me so he was going to bind me to Ginny. Had he done that, I would have to listen to whatever Ginny told me to do, which would be whatever Dumbledore told her to tell me." Seraph told them.
"How do you know that, Seraph? I mean, I don't doubt you or anything, but how?" Remus asked.
"Bit of deduction and I can see auras a bit. I don't think he wanted to control Granger, but she did the same to her for Weasley. You can see it in the very outside, their aura will take on the same color as the binder." Everyone looked surprised and disgusted about this news, but the twins were livid.
"When we get our hands-"
"On that little... thing, he's going-"
"To be in a world of hurt."
"Be subtle about it though you two. You don't want Dumbles on your case. And leave Granger alone for the moment, I think its nothing more then she deserves at the moment." Seraph said without remorse. The twins nodded in agreement.
"Vulcan, think you can outfit them for me? I'd say pants, vest, boots, and wand holsters. If you guys suddenly showed up wearing dragon hid cloaks someone might thing something was up. I'll pay you when they get finished." Seraph told the leather worker.
"No need. Now who's first?" Vulcan asked. Though there were many objections, most loudly from Remus and the Weasley twins about charity, and Neville who insisted on paying for it himself, they were all measured up. Seraph decided that Remus and Neville needed cloaks like his as well, Remus because besides the obvious protection, they were good cloaks and he needed one, and Neville because he was going to be training with Seraph, as well as walking around Knocturn without a wand for a bit. The fitting took a little over an hour and a short amount later they were ready to leave.
"I'll see if I can't make a mail pouch like the Goblins have once I understand runes a bit better. If I can't, I'll buy a couple and send you one. We can communicate much easier and faster that way." Seraph told Remus before he bid everyone farewell.
"Where are we going, Seraph?" Neville asked as they left the shop and he got his first good look at the infamous Knocturn Alley.
"Wand. Ollivander's isn't the only place to go to get a wand." Seraph told him.
"My Gram said the same thing." Neville said as they traversed the alley with their hoods up and obscuring features activated. They were given a wide berth in the alley anywhere they went and Neville was glad that they had left the main alley after a while. Seraph stopped and pointed to a small sign that read Dexter's before he walked in.
"Who is it that does disturb my keep?" asked a wizened voice from a back room.
"One who wishes to do business with the keeper." Seraph replied, wondering if he would have to go through this every time he came here.
"Ah, the young Black returns, with a friend who already needs to be in need of a wand. Who are you, 'friend'?" The man asked Neville.
"N-neville Longbottom." Neville said, cursing himself for sounding scared.
"Longbottom, eh? Met Janice once upon a time, quite a looker back in the day. She'd be your grandmother, yes? Got her second wand a little bit after they became illegal. Good wand that was. Your friend here seems to favor the exotic though, one of the best wands I've created yet. Well come on then, I just finished with a customer so all my stuff is still out." Dexter told him. He explained the process and left Neville to his own devices.
"Black, that customer I mentioned, I think you might be interested in his identity." Dexter said as he motioned Seraph to come closer. "The young Malfoy came in a few minutes to collect a new wand, seems he wanted to shed himself of a lot of things today, even broke his old wand in half and said something about his father's tracking charms. He carried the family ring of the Malfoy's, so his father has made him the head of the family." Dexter continued.
"Lucius can no longer be seen in public, can he? So he makes Draco the head so he can do business for him. Not sure I have that much confidence in him." Seraph said.
"No, you shouldn't. Boys mind isn't as open as some but his aura can be read like a book. He's scared, real scared. I'd say he skipped out on his father today and is panicking now that he's out. I think he may run to the slums, he was asking about an inn down there."
"What in?" Seraph asked.
"Vesta's, I think. Why, you know the place?" Dexter asked.
"Never been there, but I know someone who is, I just wonder how he knows. Where is it anyway, I've got a standing appointment." Seraph asked, watching as Neville selected his final ingredient.
"Go a couple blocks up, three to the right, one to the left and take the stairs down. If you've never been down there, don't act surprised. The roof is about a hundred feet up and there are two hags to a corner. Don't take the Bliss Tonic, it's highly addictive and you'll be robbed blind once you do. The inn is straight ahead, you can't miss it as it's the only clean thing around." Dexter told him as Neville came over with his selections.
"Lets see, olive and walnut, not often we see a dual wooded wand. I say olive for the handle and walnut stem. Abraxan tail hair and Gytrash blood. Solid combination. I say excellent for earth based magic. Come back in an hour or so to pick it up." Dexter said. Neville and Seraph walked around Knocturn Alley for a bit and grabbed a bite at the same restaurant Seraph and Cheleb had eaten at. An hour later they returned for the wand and Neville was not disappointed. Bright amber sparks and a silver whip-like vine extended from the wand. Neville paid and they left quickly in their search for Vesta's Inn. It took nearly an hour to navigate the short way even with the hesitant glances that were sent their way. No less then four hags had practically tried to jump Seraph and the pair had been offered Bliss Tonic several times before one ratty looking man was picked up by his collar and thrown into a wall by Seraph. Dexter had not been kidding when he said that they would not be able to miss the place. A bright silver sign proclaimed the 'Luna Argentum' for all to see.
"Let's go." Seraph told Neville. Neville nodded and followed Seraph through the bright doors.
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I had to end the chapter. As you can see, the confrontation between Narcissa and Seraph is coming up. This chapter probably would have gone on for another 4,000 words, but I don't want an 18,000 some word chapter. As it stands, this was exactly 14,756 words. Making this the longest chapter in the story thus far, also pushing it to the 100,000 word mark if my math is right. It amazes me that I, someone who had no plan on having a long story, has a story that has reached 100,000. Well, enough of that. What did you guys and gals think? Hope you all enjoyed the Animagus transformation, as well as Dobby's. That had to be the single most random thing that I've thrown into this story and it may even have some possibilities.
Okay, what should Neville's Animagus form be. Full or not? I've got some more questions, but I'll ask in another chapter.
Hoped you like, remember to review.