Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

By Skill Not Force

Prologue I: Harry's Wondrous World

Godric's Hollow-October 31, 1991-Lord Voldemort

Tom Marvolo Riddle, the Dark Lord Voldemort watched as that thrice-cursed James Potter passed the boy into his mother's arms and threw his wand onto the couch. Now was the time to strike! The gate creaked as he pushed it open, but Potter paid it no heed, assuming he even heard it. Only when he reached the threshold did Potter notice he was there. The fool attempted to face him, him without a wand! He was dispatched quickly, and without much effort. Voldemort headed upstairs, and easily opened the door, despite the mudblood's attempts to prevent it. Now, to attempt to keep his promise to Severus. "Move aside, girl."

"If you want Harry, you'll have to kill me first," she demanded.

Evans had as much spunk and defiance as he remembered. It really was too bad that his plan didn't allow for muggleborns in the Empire. "Stand aside! One of my faithful has asked for your life, but I must end the threat to my rule!"

"I'm not moving, Voldemort!"

"Stand aside! This is my last warning: move, or die!"

"Then kill me, because I'm not moving!" she insisted.

"Fine then! Avada Kedavra!" And with that, Lily Potter nee Evans died. Lord Voldemort took a few steps so he was now facing the toddler in the crib. "So, you're the one prophesied to defeat me, eh? Well, the prophecy ends tonight. Avada Kedavra!" But because Lily Potter had studied the old magics and cast one spell in particular, her death bought life for Harry, and the Killing Curse rebounded on Voldemort. However, as he had also studied old magics, and split his soul, Voldemort lived on. Instead, one of his anchors, a soul piece kept inside an ancient cup, died in his place, and Voldemort was reduced to a mere spirit instead.

London-September 1, 2002-Harry Potter

Harry Potter stared around himself, hardly believing that it was real. He was actually standing on Platform 9 3/4! For the past month, Harry had been half-convinced that everything, from the letters up to his friend Draco Malfoy were all part of a very elaborate dream. Yet all around him were other witches and wizards preparing for a year at Hogwarts. He didn't see the distinctive platinum-blond hair of Draco, but he was certain that he'd find his friend on the train.

Sure enough, as soon as he got inside the train (with the help of Fred and George Weasley, a pair of twins) he heard a voice call out "Harry!" He turned, and was quickly embraced by his blond friend. "How are you doing?"

"Great, now that I'm here. I can still hardly believe it's real."

"Believe it, Harry. Now come on, let's find a compartment."

The two friends did so, and Draco continued Harry's lessons on the magical world that he had started that summer over letters. However, they were interrupted when a redhead their own age burst in. "Are you really Harry Potter? I'm Ron Weasley." He seemed friendly to Harry, if enthusiastic and had a bad case of hero-worship. That is, until he laid eyes on Draco. "Great, a Malfoy. What are you doing with him, Harry? Everyone knows that you can't trust a Malfoy, they're all Dark Wizards. He's nothing but a junior Death Eater, an evil Slytherin. Some wizarding families are better than others, and you obviously need help to know which to associate with. I can help you there," Weasley finished, offering his hand to Harry.

Harry just glared at the ginger boy. Here, they could have been friends, but insulting Draco? The git of a ginger just insulted a boy he probably didn't even know, Harry's first friend, someone who actually wanted to be his friend before finding out his name! And now he thought that Harry would turn his back on Draco for him? "Not a chance, Weasel, I can make my own decisions, thank you very much." And with that, Harry threw one of the few hexes he knew, Ferunculus (a boils hex,) at Weasley, throwing the other boy out of the compartment.

Draco stared at Harry in shock. "You know you didn't have to do that, right Harry?"

"Maybe, but you're my friend, Draco, my first friend, and friends look out for each other. Besides, he was bad-mouthing you just because of your family, and I won't stand for that. Hell, I won't stand for anyone bad-mouthing you, period. I might even insist on becoming a Slytherin just to make him mad, because I am not going to the same House as him." They sat in silence for a minute, Draco in complete shock at Harry's statement, before Harry asked a question. "Draco, what is a Death Eater?"

Draco sighed, really wishing that Harry hadn't asked that. "Harry, a Death Eater is one of You-Know-Who's followers, and while I'm ashamed to admit it, you deserve to know the truth. In a way, Weasley was right, I am a junior Death Eater, my father used to be one."

"WHAT?!"

"Harry, you need to understand something. The Dark Lord . . . he was extremely charismatic, popular, and had some very good ideas. But delving as deep as he did into the Dark Arts, it changed him and he became a complete madman, and it was the madman that killed your parents and tried to kill you. Also, by that time, to leave was death, so those who wanted out couldn't leave. Harry, when you or your parents killed him, you saved more than you know, you saved those who didn't want to be Death Eaters anymore, including my parents."

Draco was so clearly sincere, his voice so impassioned that Harry nearly forgot why he was even mad in the first place. "Thanks for explaining that, Draco."

"So . . . we're still friends?"

"Always, Draco, always."

"You realize that most people won't be happy about this, right? They'll think that I'm turning you Dark, especially if you're sorted into Slytherin."

"Draco my friend, I've stopped listening to what others think of me long ago. Back in the Muggle world, I'm considered to be a dangerous freak, an incurable criminal. If our world thinks the same, well, to hell with them. I'm actually kind of looking forward to Slytherin."

Slytherin First Year Dorms, Hogwarts-December 21, 2002-Draco Malfoy

"Draco, wake up! You're never going to believe this!" Harry shouted at his roommate and best friend.

"Harry, you know Snape wouldn't approve of a Slytherin acting like this. What'll he do to you?" Draco groaned. Harry had always been more of a morning person than him. He had hoped that, with a lack of classes, (and the fact that both of them had finished their homework,) Harry would have been glad for a chance to sleep in, now that it was the holidays. But no, Harry simply had too much energy and spent much of his free time exploring the castle. And now he was going to get both of them in trouble because of what he'd found.

"Believe me, Draco, if Snape knew what I'd found, it would put a smile even on his face. And if your father knew, why, he'd lavish me with gifts that I don't want. I'm going to be the envy of every Slytherin in the castle!"

That statement got Draco's attention. There were very few things that could cause Harry's stature to rise more than it already had in Slytherin House, what with him being the Boy-Who-Lived, youngest Seeker in a century, and a Parselmouth. (That last they'd accidentally discovered when a runespoor accidentally wandered into Hogwarts. Luckily, only Slytherins were there to notice that incident, and by the end of the day, every Slytherin had known about Harry's gift.) Draco's extreme curiosity, his one weakness, made him decide to follow, despite wanting to sleep in. But when Harry led him to a haunted girl's loo, Draco started to question his friend's sanity. "Umm, Harry, what are we doing here?"

"You're going to just love this, Draco," Harry said as he went up to the sink. "Watch this. Heyshahassa," the brunette hissed at the sink. Then to the shock and amazement of the pureblood, the sink sank into the floor, revealing a large pipe that was at least ten feet wide.

"A large pipe, what's so amazing about that?"

"It's not the pipe, it's what's at the bottom that's impressive. Now, do you want to slide, or climb down?"

Draco laughed and jumped down the pipe. Once he was down, he looked around, but saw only hundreds of different little animal skeletons, and what looked like a large cave. "What's so impressive here, Harry? I thought there was something impressive down here."

Harry came down a set of stairs and said "Keep walking, Draco. Trust me, you won't be disappointed."

Confused, Draco kept walking, wincing at the sound of crunching bones beneath his feet. He'd only been walking five minutes when he froze in fear. "Ha-Ha-Harry, what is that?" he stammered, pointing at a large, poisonous green skin.

"That is a snakeskin, Draco. I thought you would know that."

"Well obviously it's a snakeskin, but what kind of snake shed that? It's enormous!"

"Eithne said that she's a basilisk," Harry said, sounding almost excited about it!

"A basilisk?! You're taking me to meet a bloody basilisk?! Are you mad?"

"Nope, besides, Eithne isn't just any basilisk. She's Salazar's own basilisk."

That last sentence brought Draco up short. "Salazar's basilisk? As in Salazar Slytherin's basilisk?"

"Who else?"

"You're taking me to Salazar Slytherin's basilisk? You're taking me to Salazar Slytherin's Chamber of Secrets?"

"It's my Chamber of Secrets now, but yeah, it was built by Salazar Slytherin. Heyshahassa," Harry hissed again, this time at a stone door with four snakes carved into it, all of them with emeralds for eyes. After he hissed, a fifth snake slithered around a circle, making the original four retract, and the door opened. Before them was a large, impressive chamber with the bust of an old man with an enormous beard. On either side of the walkway were enormous snake statues.

"Harry, this is . . . this is amazing! But where is this Eithne?" Harry just gave his blond friend a wicked smirk and hissed again, this time much longer than any had heard him before. The bust opened it's mouth and an enormous snake slithered out of it. Draco gazed at the basilisk, speculating. "Has she laid any eggs yet?"

Eithne hissed something and Harry gave a grin. "Not only has she laid eggs, but she intends to let me have one. Hey, did you know that basilisks can lay fertile eggs whenever they wish, and that those eggs can lay for centuries, if their parent wishes?"

"How is that possible?" Draco asked as they headed deeper into the Chamber of Secrets and towards Eithne's nest.

"Apparently they reproduce asexually, they don't need a mate to reproduce."

"Now where's the fun in that?" Draco asked, while Harry picked an egg the same colours as their House crest.

Night of Wednesday-Thursday, May 28-29, 2003-Draco

Harry and Draco finally managed to enter the final chamber protecting the Philosopher's Stone, only to find Quirinius Quirrell, standing in front of the Mirror of Erised. "I knew it."

"Mr Malfoy? Well now, this is a surprise. I expected Potter, but not you. But then again, you two always were clever students, truly deserving of the high scores I gave you in the final, and far too close to each other. But . . . you two are far too clever, and I cannot allow you to interfere tonight." And with a snap of his fingers, the two boys were bound with ropes that seemed to come from nowhere.

Despite the burning in his scar, Harry couldn't help but be impressed. "Wordless, wandless conjuring and binding? You have help, don't you? Your 'friend' is who made you beg a few days ago, isn't it?"

"As I said, far too clever for your own good, Mr Potter."

"And Snape was on to you the whole time, that's why he went to the Cerberus on Halloween, and why he confronted you after Harry's second Quidditch match."

"Yes he was, Mr Malfoy," said Quirrell idly, walking around the mirror to look at the back. "Halloween was a complete and total bloody disaster. Not only did I not get a chance to see the defences, but the dog didn't even manage to bite Snape's leg off and you killed my troll! Why did you even save that mudblood know-it-all anyway?"

Harry and Draco shared a grin. "Draco asked me that same question, and I'll tell you what I told him. Hermione reminds me of what I've heard about my mum: talented, smart, muggleborn, Gryffindor, and teased for it. I won't allow anyone to hurt her. Now, what about Snape? Is he working with you?"

"Not a chance. He managed to save your life during your first match by muttering a little counter-curse. I'd have still managed it if it weren't for that mudblood. After the match, he was trying to find out how far I'd got. As you guessed, he suspected me all along. Tried to frighten me — as though he could, when I had the Dark Lord on my side…"

"The Dark Lord is here?!" Draco asked in a shrill voice, now on the edge of panic.

"He is with me wherever I go," said Quirrell quietly. "Now, how do I work this mirror? Is the Stone inside? Must I break the mirror? Help me, master!"

To Harry and Draco's sudden horror, a voice answered, and the voice seemed to come from Quirrell himself. "Ussse the boy... Ussse the boy..." It was a low, dry voice, dusty like a snake's hiss.

"Yes, that could work," Quirrell said, and he levitated Harry over, not even giving him the chance to refuse. "Now, tell me, what do you see?" He saw his reflection, pale but determined at first. But a moment later, the reflection smiled at him. It put its hand into its pocket and pulled out a blood-red stone. It winked and put the Stone back in its pocket — and as it did so, Harry felt something heavy drop into his real pocket. Somehow — incredibly —he'd gotten the Stone. "Well? What do you see?"

Harry blanked his mind, and thought of a believable lie. "I'm standing over the corpse of a wizard, it's Voldemort! I've destroyed Voldemort and achieved vengeance for my family."

"Oh, get out of the way, Potter! At least I see the Stone when I look at it!"

Harry fell to the ground, but luckily, the fall knocked his wand loose, and it rolled into his hand. Gripping his wand, Harry decided to try out one of the Parselmagic spells that the duo had found in a book from the Chamber. "Hanaysa," he whispered, and the ropes fell from around him, and to his surprise, Draco.

Harry immediately got up to check on Draco, but he froze halfway there when the raspy voice spoke again. "He lies . . . he lies."

"Potter, tell me the truth! What did you see?" Quirrell shouted.

"Never, you bastard!" Harry shouted back.

"Let me ssspeak to him, faccce to faccce," the voice said again.

"Master, you are not strong enough yet."

"I have strength enough . . . for thisss." Frozen by curiosity, Harry watched as Quirrell unwrapped his turban, only to reveal a second face on the back of his head! The second face was bone-pale with the thinnest nose Harry had ever seen, only barely more than slits, and blood-red eyes, truly the face of evil. "Harry Potter, we meet again. You see what I've become? See what I must do to survive? Live off another as a mere parasite. Unicorn blood has sustained me for these past nine months, but it cannot give me a body of my own. However, there is something that can. Something that, conveniently enough, lies in your pocket. Why suffer a horrific death when you can join me and live? And Draco, your father already serves me, why not you as well?

"Never!" Harry shouted, while Draco shouted out "Not a chance!"

"Bravery. Your parents had it too, Harry. Your father put up a courageous fight, but your mother need not have died, she was trying to protect you. Speaking of them, tell me, Harry, would you like to see your mother and father again? Together, we can bring them back. All I ask is for something in return."

"You want this?" Harry asked, pulling the Stone out of his pocket. "Sorry, but you can't have it! Harayssa!" he hissed out. And with a burst of teal light, the only Philosopher's Stone in existence was destroyed.

"NO! Kill him!" Quirrell flew at Harry and grabbed his throat, planning on choking him, but his hand started smoking. Quirrell pulled back in horror as his hand turned to dust. "What is this magic?!"

"Fool! Curse him!" Quirrell raised his wand to do just that, but Harry quickly disarmed him with his favourite spell, Expelliarmus, and then raced up to him and grabbed his face, all despite the pain that threatened to split his forehead in two. Quirrell eventually pulled back in pain, and to the two boy's shock, Quirrell turned to stone, which then cracked, turned to dust, and then collapsed, leaving only his cloak behind.

Harry quickly turned away to release Draco, and the other Slytherin asked "How did you do that, Harry?"

"Don't ask me, all I did was touch him."

"Hmm, something for your girlfriend to research this sum-Harry, look out!" Harry turned, only to see Voldemort's wraith rising from Quirrell's ashes and rush towards him. Harry dodged to the side, but the wraith still passed through him, and Harry collapsed, his magical core completely exhausted. Draco attempted to rouse him every way he knew, but Harry remained unconscious, so he levitated his friend out of the room and, once he had reunited with the others, and the three of them took Harry to the Hospital Wing. However, he received a surprise when he made it to the chess room, in the form of Headmaster Dumbledore. "You see this, Headmaster? This is what happens when you put your other duties above that of this school! No wonder my father wants you sacked!" Dumbledore just stared after the Malfoy heir in shock as the blonde rushed past him.

Chambers of Secrets, Hogwarts-May 15, 2004-Harry

More than six months after the bastard thief commandeered his basilisk, Harry finally had Tom Marvolo Riddle right where he wanted him: inside the Chamber of Secrets. Six months of fear and mistrust, six months of worrying that Hermione might be next and he could do nothing to stop it. Five months of being hated and reviled after his gift was publicly revealed at the duelling club, five months of worrying that the next attack from the Gryffindors or the Hufflepuffs would be fatal. Four months of his baby basilisk, Medusa being threatened for no reason. Harry had known from the beginning that this false claimant was Voldemort, and that he would need to steal the life from a student in order to truly return, and so, taking a cue from the sea creature every Slytherin learned about in their first week, he waited. Harry bided his time, saving his strength and learning every single duelling spell he could, preparing for just this moment.

And now the moment was here. Not only had Voldemort, aka Tom Riddle petrified HIS Hermione, he had also abducted the sister of his archrival Ron Weasley. And to truly hurt him, Marv had also kidnapped Draco! Harry went down to the Chamber, and prepared himself for the worst.

Inside, Harry found Ginny lying on the ground, unconscious with that damnable Dark diary lying on her belly. Next to her, bound and gagged was Draco, and a ghostly, young Marv standing over him. "Hello, Voldemort, how nice to see you. But I'm afraid that you're going to leave, very soon."

"You're not surprised to see me here?" Riddle asked, completely in shock.

"I am a Slytherin, and I realized what that diary of yours was as soon as I found it. Really, Marv, dabbling in soul magic at your age? A Horcrux? You truly are a psychopath. Besides, Voldemort isn't that impressive of an anagram."

"You're too smart to live. But first, who are you?"

"And here I though you were smart, Marv. You killed my parents to get to me, and as a result, I became the most famous orphan in Albion, and you little more than a parasite. I am Harry James Potter, Boy-Who-Lived, Scion to House Potter and I am Lord Slytherin," he finished with a hiss. Instantly, the Chamber shuddered, the ancient Parselmagic shifted, and a silver ring appeared on Harry's middle finger.

"Good, then you will die, Potter, just as soon as I find something out."

"Don't tell him anything, Harry!" Draco called out, having finally managed to remove the gag.

"Thanks for the advice, but I doubt telling this bastard son of a Muggle and a near-Squib will hurt anything. What do you want to know, Marv?"

"How is it that you, a skinny boy with no extraordinary magical talent, managed to defeat the greatest wizard of all time? How did you escape with nothing but a scar while Lord Voldemort was reduced to a mere shade? And how did you claim the title of Lord Slytherin?"

"Well now, that is an interesting story," Harry said, leaning up against one of the serpent statues, completely calm and at ease. "You see, once I heard that House Slytherin was the only house in Albion that speaks Parseltongue, I became confused. When I spoke Parseltongue, no one could understand me, so I obviously couldn't have inherited the ability from my dad. James was a pureblood, so if I'd inherited it from him, all the other purebloods should have understood me. So, I wrote to Gringotts. As it turns out, the Evans family is descended from a Squib grandson of Salazar Slytherin. And it seems as I'm a more worthy descendant than you. When did you discover this place, anyway?"

"At the end of my fifth year, why?"

"And you started attacking Muggleborns the next year, until Dippet threatened to close the school. When you heard that, you framed Hagrid and sent our ancestors beauty back to sleep. You must have been desperate to frame him. Any fool should have realized that he, a Hufflepuff half-breed, couldn't be the Heir of Slytherin," Harry said, mocking him. "I found this place last year, as Draco can confirm." Riddle stared in shock and confusion, especially after Draco told the tale of how Harry had brought him down there that Christmas. "As to how I beat you, no one knows anything, except for the fact that my mother didn't have to die, and you killed her because she wouldn't move away from me."

"Hmm, maybe I was a fool. Sacrificial protection is extremely powerful blood magic. Maybe there is nothing special about you, but I doubt it. You must have noticed how similar we are. Both half-bloods, orphans raised by Muggles. Both sorted into Slytherin and Slytherin by blood, probably two of the only Parselmouths to have come here since Salazar himself. We even look something alike. Why not join me?"

Harry stared at him in shock and confusion before bursting out in laughter. "You killed my parents, tortured Draco's, petrified my Hermione, you'd kill all the Muggleborns, why should I support you, bastard? No, I will kill you, Voldemort, and all who are still loyal to you. I will bring honour back to the name of Slytherin, I swear it." With that oath, a bright light flashed, and when it disappeared a weapon lay at Harry's feet. "Wicked," Harry said as he picked it up. It looked like a fusion of a spear and an axe with a small spike at the base, and the blades of the topmost weapons were far larger than the average blade of either. And to make it even more 'wicked,' there was a large, thick hammer opposite the axe blade. The shaft of the weapon was a beautiful, emerald green, and all four of the weapons were a perfect, unblemished silver colour.

"That is definitely a wicked glaive, Harry. Use it!" Draco told his friend.

Harry agreed, but first hissed to Eithne, bringing her out, and having her drop some venom onto the blade. "Now you die, Marv," Harry said, as he swung the glaive at the apparition's neck. Instantly, Tom Riddle fell, and the apparition was destroyed in a burst of flames. To make certain that he couldn't return again, Harry then drove the point of the glaive into the diary, and it also burst into flames, destroying it forever.

Slytherin Second Year Dorms, Hogwarts-May 22, 2004-Harry

A week after he had destroyed the apparition/Horcrux of Tom Riddle (as Harry had confirmed the diary being,) he and Draco were now digging into the mysterious glaive, which Harry was currently keeping in his trunk. Due to the danger of the basilisk venom which was now infused in the blade, Harry was also keeping it in a case Lucius had made for it, once Harry and Draco had a duplicate made so he could get the right size. Both were certain that the blade was connected to Salazar Slytherin in some way, but they had yet to find out how.

"Harry, I've found it!" Draco finally proclaimed. He set down an enormous book with the title The History of the Great Warlocks of Albion and Their Weapons-From the Fall of Rome to the Norman Invasion. "Read here," Draco said, pointing at a particular section.

It read: Sheara was the famous glaive, or poleaxe of Salazar Slytherin. Not only did he enchant it, as most warlocks did, but he worked to make it the most dangerous blade in history. Lord Slytherin used the famous practices of the Damascus blacksmiths to make it stronger and sharper, and the Goblin-style in order for it to infuse it with anything that made the blade stronger, and invulnerable. But there was one other way that Lord Slytherin knew of to make it truly the most dangerous weapon in history. He went to Kilgarrah, one of the last of the Great Dragons, and convinced him to breathe his fire onto Sheara. With that last enchantment, the glaive gained the ability to destroy the magical beings believed immortal, including the reanimated dead. Later, to make certain that the blade could never be turned against him, he enchanted it so that only the rightful Lord Slytherin could wield the blade. To make certain that none could mistake the glaive for any other, the shaft of the blade was as green as emeralds, and the blades looked as if they were made of silver, to match the colours of his sigil and the crest of his Hogwarts house. Also, to this day, rumours have persisted that suggest that not only did Salazar use the greatest smithing secrets to make the blade, but also the rare, expensive and nigh on indestructible metal known as mithril.

"The glaive of Salazar Slytherin himself!" Harry whispered reverently.

"And made of mithril as well, there's no topping that! What does the name mean? I'm assuming that it's a word in Parseltongue?" Draco asked.

"Defend, my friend. Sheara means defend," Harry explained.

Wizengamot, Ministry of Magic, London-February 15, 2005-Lucius Malfoy

Lucius Malfoy was relieved. After months of debate, Umbridge's werewolf law had finally been beaten, and he had been given permission to write his own, one that was far kinder to the werewolves than the under-secretary's law. "Now that that is done, do any of you have other business to be brought before the Wizengamot?" Dumbledore asked, the weekends being one of the few times that he was able to perform his duties as Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot.

Lucius smirked, that was the perfect opening. "I move for a Vote of No Confidence in Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore as Chief Warlock."

"On what grounds?" Robert Wood demanded.

Lucius had expected an objection, especially from someone who was solidly in Dumbledore's camp, like Wood was. "For many reasons, all of them surrounding a single person. And that single person is important enough to all of us that the level of mistreatment given to him by Dumbledore will ensure that most of you will agree with me."

"Who?" Septimus Weasley asked.

"Scion Harry James Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived," Lucius said. Immediately, Dumbledore paled, and Lucius knew that the centenarian was worried about what he had learned. "As many of you know, I have become Harry's unofficial guardian ever since my son, Draco, became his best friend-"

"The Wizengamot will not make your guardianship of Harry official, if that's what you hope to accomplish, Lord Malfoy," Dumbledore said.

"Actually, if you are removed as Chief Warlock, I'm certain that I won't be Harry's guardian, and neither will the Muggles you placed him with," Lucius finished. At that one word, the entire Wizengamot started whispering-why had the Boy-Who-Lived gone to Muggles? "The first reason to remove you is your actions following the deaths of the Potters. Within hours of their death, you sealed the Potters wills so tightly that not even Harry can view them, and he knows this."

"How does he know?" Augusta Longbottom asked.

"Because Harry tried to look at the wills this past summer, not long after his birthday, Dowager Longbottom. Following the sealing of the Potter's wills, our esteemed Chief Warlock then placed Harry in the home of his only Muggle relatives, the sister of Lady Lily Evans Potter and her family. Based on what Harry has told my family and I, there could hardly have been a worse choice, as the Dursley's are the worst sort of Muggles. While they know that our world exists, they hate us as much as Uther Pendragon did, and would beat our saviour whenever he used some accidental magic." Lucius paused there so that the Wizengamot could absorb the fact that the most famous person in the magical world had been abused by his Muggle relatives. There were few crimes more hated in the magical world than child abuse.

After a couple of minutes of the muttering, Lucius started again. "Then we come to the matter of extreme incompetence when it comes to your handling of Hogwarts in recent years. You stole the Philosopher's Stone from Nicolas Flamel and placed it in Hogwarts to set up a trap for He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, a trap which not only failed, but put innocent students, our children and grandchildren at risk! When a forest troll got inside the Hogwarts dungeon, you deliberately sent half the students straight towards it!" The muttering started again, louder and far more dangerous than it ever had. "It was only due to the quick thinking and actions of Harry, a mere first year that you managed to avert those disasters. Last year, a basilisk roamed the halls of Hogwarts, petrifying nearly a dozen beings and spirits and you did nothing to stop it! Again, it was only due to the cunning actions of Harry that Hogwarts is open this year!"

Dolores Umbridge spoke up at those accusations. "Hem hem. Lord Malfoy, so silly of me, but you make it sound like You-Know-Who is still alive. Foolishness, I know, as you must know that he is dead."

"Unfortunately he is not, Madame Umbridge. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named truly deserves the title of Dark Lord, as he has delved deeper into the Dark Arts than many of his predecessors. He has even delved into the most forbidden of Dark Arts to ensure his immortality: Soul Magic. It was because of an item enchanted using Soul Magic that the basilisk roamed Hogwarts last year. Fortunately Harry managed to utterly destroy it," Lucius explained. "Now, getting back to the Vote of No Confidence, I have saved the worst for last." The muttering began again, what could be worse than child abuse?

"We elected Dumbledore because we believed he would be best to ensure justice was done in the Wizengamot after decades of corruption. However, under his administration, we have seen a kind of corruption that should have never been seen. Again, this corruption surrounds Harry Potter and those close to him, in this case, his godfather, Lord Sirius Black." Another commotion broke out, but this time Lucius stopped it. "I know many of you believe him guilty of betraying the Potters and the grisly murders of thirteen people, but that is the core of the moral corruption that has occurred under Dumbledore!

"Thirteen years ago, after Sirius Black was arrested, Barty Crouch Sr. threw Black into Azkaban without a trial! Sirius had already inherited the title of Lord Black, yet he was still thrown to the Dementors without a trial! To make things worse, the order was countersigned by Dumbledore!" That accusation shut everyone up, while Dumbledore attempted to rise and stop Lucius. "Sit down, Dumbledore! Now, only last week, Fudge ordered the Dementors to Kiss Lord Black on sight, and again, the order was countersigned by Dumbledore! Do we as a nation now execute our citizens, our nobility without so much as a trial?"

"How do you know there was no trial?" Amelia Bones asked.

"Quite simple, Madame Bones. As I said, I've become Harry's unofficial guardian, and he has come to see me as an uncle-like figure, so he came to me to ask about Lord Black's supposed crimes. When I told him what we as a country believed to be the truth, Harry asked what his motives were for betraying Lord Potter. I have to admit that I was curious about that myself, so I looked for the transcripts of the trial. I went to nearly everyone in the DMLE short of you and discovered nothing related to a trial. The only things I found were the report on his arrest and the order to have Lord Black thrown into Azkaban. With this knowledge, I move for a Vote of No Confidence in Chief Warlock Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore."

Instantly the Wizengamot chambers were filled with the roars of arguments, until the chant started. "VOTE NOW! VOTE NOW!" Eventually the deathly pale Dumbledore called for a vote, and when the vote was counted, less than half a dozen of Dumbledore's most fervent supporters voted to keep him as Chief Warlock. Lucius grinned, that was another win for him in this most dangerous of games. In the break following the fateful vote, Lucius quietly slipped into Amelia Bones' office and offered his services as a spy inside the Death Eater ranks for the DMLE, when Voldemort returned.

Chapter Text

By Skill Not Force

Prologue II: I Will Not Bow

 

 

422nd Quidditch World Cup, Dover-August 2, 2005-Draco Malfoy

 

"Can you believe we're really here?" Harry asked excitedly. Draco just grinned at his best friend, glad to see him acting his age again. After the revelations of the previous year, Harry had been extremely tense, even after Sirius' trial. Before the trial, it had been a tenseness born of a desire for revenge, which quickly led to him becoming the most dangerous duellist in Slytherin, and probably the entire school. After the trial it was born of worry and fear of his own godfather, one that would only fade after Harry got to know his godfather, something that Draco was only too happy to help his friend with. “This is going to be great!” Harry said, bringing Draco back to the present.

“Yes, it is Mr Potter. Now, would you mind if I talk to my son alone?” Lucius said. Harry gave a quick nod and ran off to find Hermione, who had been invited by the infamous jokesters of Gryffindor, the Weasley Twins. Lucius then poured two glasses of wine, and offered one to Draco. Draco looked to his father in shock and confusion, he had never been offered wine before. “Drink up, you deserve it after this last year. I must say that I was shocked, but pleased when you asked to learn how to manage our businesses and accounts, Draco.”

Taking a sip of the wine, and finding he liked the taste, he explained to his father. “Harry has told me what happens to some Muggles when they come into large amounts of money. Because they don’t know how to manage it, they become paupers just as quickly as they became rich. I don’t want that to happen to me, I want to be able to not only manage my money, but make it work for me, to grow and multiply.”

“You are making me very proud, Draco, especially as it seems to me that you’ve found the love of your life already.” Draco looked at his father in confusion. “Harry Potter,” Lucius explained.

Draco gaped at him before bursting into laughter. “Me and Harry? Father, trust me when I say we’re both straight. And you have clearly never heard Harry talk about or seen him with Hermione Granger.” Lucius raised his eyebrow, so Draco explained. “Watch him with her and you’ll understand the difference between the love we share and the love they share. Trust me, father, you’ll see that our love is just a stronger version of the love you share with Uncle Xeno.”

“If you insist, Draco. Now, about your dreams of making money work for you, here’s some ideas . . .”

 

---

 

By the end of the World Cup, Draco knew his father now believed him about Harry. There was no way that one could watch those two together and not understand that they were madly in love with each other, especially after Harry’s complete lack of reaction to the Veela thanks to Hermione. Draco had just told Harry about his dad’s thoughts about their relationship when Lucius burst in their room. “Boys, get out and run for the woods.”

“Father, what’s going on?”

“Some of my old . . . compatriots went and got drunk and are causing a riot. Now run, and watch out for your friends, especially Miss Granger. They’d love to get their hands on her.” With that last warning, he ran out to join those trying to stop the Death Eaters.

Draco quickly grabbed his wand and was about to leave when he realized that Harry wasn’t behind him. “Harry, come on! We need to get out of here! What’s taking so long?”

“I can’t find my wand, Draco! I know I had it when we left for the match but it’s gone!”

Draco was worried. If there was one thing that he had managed to impress on Harry, it was to have your wand on you at all times. “We’ll find it later, now let’s go!”

As soon as they left the tent, they saw Sirius and Lucius outside, running towards the commotion. Sirius quickly spotted them and said “Boys, get to the woods, now! Leave the fight to us!” Together, the two friends ran through the campsite, but were forced apart when they encountered the panicked mob.

After a few minutes, Draco had safely made it to the woods, where someone was waiting for him. “So, Malfoy, why aren’t you celebrating with your parents?” There, not ten feet away stood Ron Weasley, Draco and Harry’s number one enemy at Hogwarts, as he had been since that fateful day on the train nearly three years ago. The quintessential Gryffindor, claiming to be solidly Light, hated all Slytherins, no matter what, the first to proclaim Harry Dark for anything he did, and a Muggle-lover. In short, he was everything that both Harry and Draco despised.

“And just what do you think we’d be celebrating, Weasel?” Draco asked, using a nickname he knew Weasley hated. Then he noticed who was near Weasley: a particular muggleborn Gryffindor that was easily identified by her bushy brown hair. “Hermione? What are you doing with him? Why didn’t you come to the game with us?” Draco was shocked to see her anywhere near Weasel, especially as he had been the reason her life had been threatened by the troll nearly three years ago.

“Well, I’d have gone with you, if you’d asked first, Draco. But the twins asked on the train ride home. Hey, where’s Harry? I thought he’d be with you?”

“What are you talking about? Of course he’s with-” But when Draco turned around, Harry wasn’t there. “NO! Hermione, would you come with me to find him?” Without a second of hesitation, Hermione joined him, and they started calling out for Harry while retracing Draco’s steps. By the time they returned to the campgrounds where the riot had started, it was deserted, and felt more like a graveyard, especially with the mists and skeletons of tents covering the ground.

Then, from the midst of the graveyard, near where they finally found Harry (who had been knocked unconscious by the crowd,) someone called out “MORSMORDE!” And with that, a giant green skull with a snake coming out of it’s mouth appeared. As soon as the symbol was completed, 20 POPs sounded, and Harry pulled his friends down just as they all sounded out “Stupefy!”

“STOP! That’s my son there, you blithering idiots!” Lucius’ voice called out. “I thought I told you to stay in the woods,” he reprimanded them, while hugging Draco close.

“Which of you conjured it?” Barty Crouch Sr demanded, waving his wand in front of them. “Which of you conjured the Dark Mark?!”

“It wasn’t us!” Draco insisted.

“Do not lie! You were caught at the scene of the crime!”

To Draco’s shock Harry stepped in front of Crouch and nearly lost his temper with him. “You dare accuse us of conjuring the Dark Mark? Do you know who I am?! I lost my parents to that bastard, and have sworn myself to his destruction, no matter the cost! Hermione here is a muggleborn for Merlin’s sake, she’d be high on Voldemort’s hit list! Draco here, I trust with my life, and have on several occasions! So find yourselves some other scapegoat, Crouch, and leave my friends and family out of it! If I hear so much as a hint of you accusing me, my friends, or Sirius of such things ever again, I’ll destroy you, do you understand?” Reluctantly, Crouch backed down, and they departed in peace after summoning Harry’s wand from Crouch’s house-elf.

 

Hogwarts Great Hall-October 31, 2005-Hermione

 

For once, Hermione sat with all her friends, Slytherin and Gryffindor alike, as they watched and waited for the Goblet of Fire to make its choice of champions known in the dim room. She was perfectly happy tonight, partly because her friends were all beside her, and partly because she knew that this year, Harry would have nothing to worry about except getting good grades. With the age-line guarding the Goblet, and Harry promising that he wasn’t interested, he was finally safe from any misadventures for a year. In First Year, there was the threat against the Philosopher’s Stone (which they all believed was a set-up,) Second Year had the Chamber of Secrets reopened, and last year the ‘threat’ from Sirius and the very real threat of the Dementors.

As they watched, Viktor Krum was chosen from Durmstrang, Fleur Delacour for Beauxbatons, and finally Cedric Diggory from Hogwarts. “Excellent!” Dumbledore called out to the assembled students. “We now have our three champions. But in the end, only one will go down in history. Only one will hoist this chalice of champions, this vessel of victory, the Tri-Wizard Cup!” But the celebration was cut short, as first Snape, then others noticed that the Goblet wasn’t done spitting names, and Hermione had a bad feeling about whose name was about to come out.

Sure enough, it was Harry’s name that the Goblet shot out, and as soon as the commotion died down, Hermione, Neville Longbottom, the Weasley Twins, Draco and Daphne Greengrass ran to their most common meeting room: the Room of Requirement. Harry had discovered it quite by accident in their Second Year while escaping a mob of Gryffindors, and ever since the four friends had used it as their HQ and meeting place. Turning to her friends, Hermione asked, “So, do any of you actually believe that Harry put his name in the Goblet?”

The others all turned and looked at each other, before Fred spoke up. “I almost wish he had put his name in, Hermione. But it’s obvious he didn’t, and that means Riddle is behind this.”

“You’re right, Fred. If Harry had simply gotten past the age-line, then his name would have replaced Cedric’s, not come out in addition to it,” Draco stated. “But right now we have two things to do. First, we need to assure Harry that we stand with him. Second, we need to work together in order to find out the tasks and help Harry survive them. There is no way that Riddle wants Harry to survive the Tournament, so we need to do everything we can to make certain he does.”

“And what about the rest of the school? They’ll certainly see him as a cheater,” George asked.

“That’s a secondary concern,” Daphne said. “We can argue with them for a week and some will still refuse to believe that Harry is innocent. We need to focus on what we can do. If we can convince others, good. If not, then so be it.”

 

Tournament Arena, Hogwarts Grounds-November 27, 2005-Harry

 

Harry watched the other champions paced nervously while he sat as cool as the breeze that blew that day. They were probably nervous about their own strategies to take on the dragons. Personally, Harry couldn’t be more secure. All he had to do was keep the dragon busy, while Medusa took care of the rest. Then he heard a whispered “Harry? Are you there?”

Thankful he was sitting next to the wall of the tent, Harry whispered back “Yeah, I’m here. What is it?”

“How are you feeling? Nervous?”

Harry laughed at that. “Hermione, have you ever known a Slytherin to be nervous. I’m fine, I promise. And when I say fine, I mean by your definition of fine.” To prove it, he pulled her into the tent and gave her a hug. “Hermione, lately I’ve been thinking about the things we’ve been through, and I don’t know if I’d be alive if it wasn’t for you. I also want to say that I’m sorry-”

“Sorry for what, Harry? What could you possibly need to apologize to me for?”

“For ignoring you and your troubles, for asking so much from you and giving so little. It’s so rare that I can be there for you, but you’re always there for me. And I want to make it up to you, I want to be there for you whenever you need me.”

“Harry, if you’re talking about what happened in First Year before we became friends, forget about it. You don’t owe me anything. You’ve helped me lose my selfish pride in being so intelligent and taught me that there’s more to life than my books, and I love you for it.”

“Maybe I don’t owe you, but I still want to be there for you from now on,” Harry replied. “Hermione, would you do me the honour of being my girlfriend?”

To say that Hermione was mad would be an understatement. “If you think that I’ll be your girlfriend just because you feel guilty, you have another thing coming, Harry James Potter-Slytherin!”

“What?! NO, it’s not like that, Hermione! Remember how I avoided you for a few days last week? I had to take a little time to work out my feelings, if I simply felt that I owed you or if I truly loved you, the way my parents loved each other. Do you know what I realized?” Hermione shook her head in the universal sign for ‘no.’ “I realized that I’ve been in love with you since at least Second Year. It was out of a desire for vengeance for what Riddle did to you that I destroyed him, not for anything else.”

“But Draco-”

“Draco is my best friend and brother in all but blood, that’s all. It’s you that I truly love, Hermione. Will you do me the honour of being my girlfriend?” As an answer, she pulled him into a hug and gave him a kiss full on the lips, which was caught by Rita Skeeter, a reporter that Harry absolutely hated. Fortunately, she was sent out of the tent by Dumbledore and the rest of the Tournament officials, (though Dumbledore also kicked Hermione out!)

Crouch then gathered the champions and, holding a bag, bid each of them to pick something out of it. As it turned out, the bag held miniature dragons, each with a number around it’s neck. Fleur picked out the Welsh Green, Krum got the Chinese Fireball, Diggory the Swedish Short-snout, and Harry grabbed the worst of the lot-the Hungarian Horntail. “These represent four very real dragons,” Crouch explained. “Each of which has been given a golden egg to protect amongst its’ own. Your objective is simple: collect the golden egg without damaging the real eggs. This you must do, for each egg contains a clue, without which you cannot hope to proceed to the next task. Any questions?”

Cedric was the first to be sent out, then Fleur, and finally Krum. Harry knew why they’d been ordered that way: the Short-snout was the least difficult and dangerous of the dragons, while his own Horntail was the worst, the Tournament organizers wanted to put on a show, so they worked their way up to the most dangerous dragon. Finally, it was his turn, but when they went out, Harry only saw the nest, where was the dragon? “Back and to the right!” Medusa hissed out, and Harry quickly moved out of the way. He quickly found a large rock to hide behind and set Medusa on the ground. “Now, like we planned, swallow the fake egg, and only the fake, understand?” Harry hissed to her.

“I know, just make certain that the mother serpent of fire and air doesn’t notice me,” Medusa replied, and she slithered away. Harry grinned at his little basilisk and fired a Reducto near the Horntail. The dragon roared fiercely before launching a wave of fire at him, which Harry countered with a whispered “Aqua Erecto,” a water shield that had originally been created to deal with Fiendfyre. For about three minutes, the two exchanged fire, while, unnoticed by the dragon or the crowd, Medusa slithered up to the nest and swallowed the golden egg.

“What is Mr Potter doing?” Ludo Bagman asked. “He has done nothing to move so much as an inch closer to the egg.” Yet as he said that, Medusa returned to Harry, and with a quick “Sachessa,” the dragon fell to the ground, stunned, Harry bent down to allow Medusa to wrap herself around his arm, and the two calmly walked back to safety.

Inside the tent, Crouch stormed towards Harry, demanding to know why he left before he completed the task. “But Mr Crouch, I have completed my task. Medusa here is carrying the golden egg.”

“You were not permitted to use pets in the task, Mr Potter!”

“Medusa is not a pet, Mr Crouch, she is my familiar! And I made certain that familiars can be used in the Tournament when I was researching the past Tournaments.”

“Harry, may I ask what kind of snake she is?” Dumbledore asked.

“I’m surprised you don’t recognize her species, Professor. She’s a basilisk.” At that, the entire room burst into a storm of noise as all nine people in the tent started shouting. Within seconds, both Harry and Medusa were getting headaches from the shouts, so Harry quickly hissed out “Silassa,” and the room went silent. Merlin, he loved Parselmagic! “Now, one at a time, I am going to let you speak again. Now, Sassessi,” he hissed, pointing his wand at Crouch.

“Breeding basilisks is a crime punishable by a year in Azkaban! I demand that you tell me where you got it!”

“Crouch, unless you have a way to imprison a man that’s been dead for fifteen hundred years, or if you intend on punishing an animal for what it does naturally, you cannot prosecute this. Eithne was hatched by my ancestor, Salazar Slytherin, and Medusa is her daughter.”

Dumbledore was next to be unsilenced. “Where did you learn those spells, Mr Potter? Many of those were Auror level or Dark spells.”

“Most of them I learned from Professor Moody when he learned that I intend to become a battlemage at the least, the rest from either Draco, Mrs Malfoy or Sirius. Now, any more questions?” They all shook their heads. “Good, then we can move on to the scores and next task.”

 

Hogwarts Quidditch Pitch-May 27, 2006-Harry

 

The four champions and their families walked onto the Quidditch Pitch to the cheers of the crowd, the Hogwarts band playing their March. Dumbledore muttered "Sonorous," and his magically magnified voice echoed into the stands. "Ladies and gentlemen, the third and final task of the Tri-wizard Tournament is about to begin! Let me remind you how the points currently stand. In first place, with ninety points - Mr. Harry Potter! In second place, with eighty-five points - Mr Cedric Diggory, both of Hogwarts School!" The cheers and applause sent birds from the Forbidden Forest fluttering into the darkening sky. "In second place, with eighty points - Mr. Viktor Krum, of Durmstrang Institute!" More applause. "And in third place – Miss Fleur Delacour, of Beauxbatons Academy! Now, earlier today, Professor Moody placed the Tri-Wizard Cup deep within the maze. Only he knows it's exact location. The champions will enter the maze in the order of their points. The first person to touch the Cup will be portkeyed back here, and will be declared the winner!

"The professors and Ministry Aurors will be patrolling the border of the maze. Should at any point a contestant wish to withdraw from the task, he or she need only send up red sparks with their wands." Then, cancelling the spell, he gathered the champions together. "Inside the maze, Hagrid has placed many dangerous creatures, but that's not the worst of it. You see, people change in the maze. Oh, find the Cup if you can, but be very wary, you could just lose yourselves along the way." Then he announced the beginning of the task, and like before, Filch fired off the canon just as Dumbledore started the countdown, and so the Final Task began.

As soon as Harry had gotten out of sight of the starting circle, he cast Hermione's Point Me charm, and started off in the direction of the Cup. For a long time, Harry found nothing, not even a flobberworm. This wasn't to say that the maze wasn't challenging, as it would often shift, and Harry had to keep moving, or be swallowed by the walls. Eventually, after all the other Champions had entered the maze, he finally encountered trouble in the form of an easily conquered Confundus Mist. Then he heard Fleur scream from somewhere ahead of him, and when he found her, she was being pulled into the hedges, so he quickly sent up some red sparks before the maze changed shape again.

Just as he was leaving the area though, he found Krum, who immediately pulled his wand on the British celebrity. But as fast as the Bulgarian was, Harry was faster, and he fired off a Parseltongue body-bind before Krum could do anything. Once again, Harry fired off the red sparks before moving on, smirking. Now the Cup was guaranteed to belong to Hogwarts, but Harry wasn't satisfied with that, no Slytherin would be. He wanted the win for himself.

Unfortunately for him, he hit a snag on his way to the win: a sphinx. "You are very near your goal. The quickest way is past me," she said.

"And you're not going to just let me past, are you?" She just smiled and shook her head. "Very well, ask your riddle."

"Ah, but to continue, you must answer three riddles."

"Just ask them, blast you!"

"My, you do have a temper, don't you. Very well, here is your first riddle:

I never was, am always to be

No one ever saw me, nor ever will

And yet I am the confidence of all

Who live and breathe on this terrestrial ball."

Harry grinned at that. "That is almost too easy. What else is always to be but the future?"

The sphinx just moved on to the next riddle.

"If you break me,
I do not stop working.
If you touch me,
I may be snared.
If you lose me,
Nothing will matter.
What am I?"

This question had Harry stumped for a few minutes. But with a touch of inspiration realized "What could it be, but your heart?"

Again, the sphinx just moved on to the next riddle.

"The man who builds it doesn’t want it,

The man who wants it doesn’t use it,

The man who uses it doesn’t know he has it,

And never will.

What is it?"

Again the young Slytherin lord was stumped, but again the answer came to him. "What man could use something and not know it, but a dead man? And what does he use other than a coffin or tomb?"

"Well done, young one. You may now pass." Harry then rushed past, and spotted the Cup just beyond. The maze started changing again, and Harry ran, desperate for the win. But as he ran, he noticed that the shifting maze was actually being caused by something moving towards him. When the path crossed his, Harry was shocked to see an Acromantula charging towards him. Without even thinking, he silently cast a spell that Tom's diary had taught him: Arania Exumai, and the giant spider was killed, flying back and landing with a crack. To his surprise, he heard someone, probably Diggory, call out in pain, leaving him clear to take the Cup. As soon as he did, he felt the familiar sensation of being hooked behind his navel as he was portkeyed . . .

. . . to a graveyard?! “What the bloody hell is going on here?” Harry asked himself. Just then, he spotted the one person in all the world that he hated more than Voldemort. “Pettigrew!” he growled out, sounding more like Sirius than normal. The damned traitor was walking towards him with some kind of bundle in his arms. Well, this time he wasn’t going to get away! Quickly and silently, Harry cast the one spell he knew would both stop the rat and hurt him, the burning dart curse: Ardeo.

Unfortunately for him, Pettigrew managed to dodge the curse, and a voice coming from the bundle said “Stop him from casting again!” With a speed Harry didn’t know the rat had, he had bound Harry in chains against a statue of Death. Then, to add insult to injury, Pettigrew snapped his wand!

“You had already doomed yourself by running, Pettigrew, but I was going to give you the mercy of a quick death. By the time I’m through with you, you’ll be begging for death!” Harry swore.

“Oh, shut up Potter!” Pettigrew snarled as dropped the bundle into a cauldron full of a potion. Then he pointed his wand at a tomb, pulled a bone out of it, and sent it to join the potion, all the while chanting “Bone of the father, unknowingly given, you will renew your son.” Oddly, the next thing he did was switch wand hands and chanted “Flesh of the servant, willingly sacrificed, you will revive your master.” The reason he switched became obvious as he cut off his own hand to let it fall into the potion. Then he a knife and started carving into the skin of Harry’s left arm, just above his wrist. The rat then collected some of the blood onto his knife, chanting “Blood of the enemy, forcibly taken, you will resurrect your foe.” As he turned the knife so the blood flowed into the potion, he said “The Dark Lord will rise again!”

And so he did, the one ugly baby shape quickly taking on the form of an adult human with red eyes and without hair or nose, and the smoke coalesced into a robe in only 30 seconds. A minute after that, he called his other Death Eaters, who immediately apparated there. As he berated them and monlogued, Harry started to plan. He still had a weapon, as he constantly carried Sheara with him and had been training with both Draco and Neville in the use of their ancestral weapons in duels, both with and without magic. It had been a pleasant surprise to find that Sheara could act as a wand if necessary, so Harry had two advantages that Tom didn’t know about, and that gave him the advantage.

Finally, Voldemort finished his monologue and turned towards Harry. “Now, it’s time for you to die, Harry Potter. I’m going to destroy you. After tonight, no one will ever again question my power. After tonight, if they speak of you, they’ll only speak of how you begged for death. And I, being a merciful lord, obliged.”

“Good luck with that, I intend to survive this little encounter, Tom.” Then, with a quick and silent Abrecap benda, the chains shattered, allowing Harry to unshrink the box containing Sheara, which immediately fell to the ground, opening on its own and shooting Sheara up to a height that allowed Harry to catch it. “Now, let’s start with you, you damned rat!” He quickly swung the poleaxe around once, charging it with magic, and on the second time around, released it. The magic flew out in an ever-expanding wedge, until it hit Pettigrew, where it immediately sliced an arm off and then continued on to destroy the cauldron used in the ritual.

Voldemort stared in shock at what his nemesis had done. “Impressive, Harry. Do you mind if I take a look at that weapon if I swear that neither I nor my followers will harm you while I have it, and that I will return it?” Harry briefly considered it, then, realizing that Riddle could possibly tell him more about their ancestor’s weapon. Tom studied the weapon for several minutes before announcing his findings. “This is the most impressive enchanted weapon I have ever seen! Good English oak enchanted to be unbreakable, goblin-forged, Damascus style mithril blades, with basilisk venom absorbed into the spear point and axe. And enchanted so that only a certain family can use it at all. I’m impressed, Harry. I had no idea Hogwarts had started teaching such techniques, or is it just for you? I may have to raise my opinion of Dumbledore,” he finished as he handed it back.

Harry started laughing. “You actually think I enchanted Sheara? Tom old boy, you are really overestimating my abilities! Uncle Lucius, have you been telling tales? No, no, I found this, and am currently one of only two people able to use it, so far as I know.”

Despite his shock at the title Harry gave his right hand man, Voldemort was intrigued. “And who is the other, Harry?”

Harry just grinned, and slashed the poleaxe at Macnair while hissing out “Sachera!” The black spell shot out from the spear point and hit the executioner for the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures, and the man fell dead. Then he turned to the traitor, and hissed out “Searassa!” and the rat fell to the ground, screaming in pain. “Good enough for you, Tom?”

Voldemort stared in shock at Harry and what he had done (and was still doing, as Wormtail still shook and screamed in pain.) “Good enough, he asks?! I say we would welcome you into our family, Harry. Join me, join us, and you would be welcome amongst us as no one else will.”

Harry just started laughing. “Join you? Like hell I will! I will not bow to a psychopath with delusions of grandeur, especially one who is responsible for all the pain my family has suffered!”

“So be it, Potter. Crucio!” Instantly he was filled with the worst pain he had ever known: his bones were on fire, his head splitting even worse than his old scar pains, it was bad enough that he almost wanted to die if it would end the pain. Then the pain ended as abruptly as it had started. “Just a short pause there. That hurt, didn’t it, Harry? You don’t want me to do that again, do you?” But Harry didn’t answer, he just grabbed Sheara and, using it as a staff, stood back up, defiance shining in his eyes. “I asked whether you want me to do that again, so answer me! Imperio!”

The peaceful bliss of the Imperious Curse flowed over Harry, but if there was one thing Harry had going for him, it was an indomitable will. “I have told you once, and I’ll tell you again: I will not bow to you, Tom!”

“What does it take to break you?! I swear, you will bow to me and to death before this war is through!”

“Then let’s set the world to burn, Tom, because I’m going to kill you. Exosso!” Voldemort moved out of the way of the curse, but what he hadn’t known was that he wasn’t even the target, as the white curse immediately hit Pettigrew, who had gotten up while Harry was under the Cruciatus. Instantly the black flames of the bone-eating curse started their work, and Pettigrew started screaming in pain again. The Death Eaters scattered as Harry swung Sheara again, and hit Voldemort with a Celtic killing curse. But as Voldemort was newly reborn, it only destroyed his latest soul anchor-his pet serpent: Nagini. With the Death Eaters scattered, and Voldemort reeling from the loss of his Horcrux, Harry ran for the Tri-Wizard Cup and was instantly portkeyed to the entrance of the maze. He had one thing to say: “He’s back, Voldemort is back!”

 

Chapter Playlist:

 

1. Quidditch World Cup
2. Dark Mark
3. Goblet of Fire
4. Still There for Me-Corbin Bleu
5. Golden Egg
6. Hogwarts March
7. Maze
8. Voldemort
9. I Will Not Bow-Breaking Benjamin

Chapter Text

 

By Skill Not Force

Prologue III: Things I Do For Love

 

　

King's Landing, Crownlands-The 155th Year after The Conquest (AC)

 

Aegon Targaryen, Third of His Name, King of the Andals and the First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms and Protector of the realm was watching the last dragon of his family, a small green female. It was dying, and there was nothing that could be done to save it. Personally speaking, he couldn’t care less, as his uncle’s dragon had devoured the king’s mother. Aegon III had hated dragons ever since. As the last dragon died, Aegon smiled. He would forever be known as Aegon Dragonsbane.

 

Far to the north, in the Lands of Always Winter, the death of the last dragon woke something that had slept for nearly eight millennium. The Great Other, king of the race the humans knew as the Others, or more commonly as the White Walkers, rose and with a great cry, declared the beginning of a new phase of their war on all creatures with warm blood, and the preparations for a new Long Night, one that would never end. And nothing, not even the Starks or the Night’s Watch would stop him and his Children.

 

The Haunted Forest-Beyond the Wall-252 AC-Brynden

 

Brynden Rivers of House Targaryen, the 982nd Lord Commander of the Night's Watch was riding north of the Wall with a group of Rangers when he spotted a flash of movement. After letting the senior Ranger know what he was doing, he followed it, convinced he had spotted a Wildling. Several times he came close to catching the Wildling, but each time, he/she escaped. "You're a clever one, this could take a while," Brynden whispered to himself. As he went deeper and deeper into the forest, he decided to hide his Valyrian steel sword, Blackfyre. Finding a suitable stone, Brynden stabbed Blackfyre into the stone, and pulled out his castle-forged sword. He was eventually led into a small cleft in the hillside with weirwood trees on either side of the cleft. Inside, he found his ‘Wildling,’ along with a host of others of his species, all of whom were the size of children, yet looked like old men. “What are you?” he asked

“The giants call us ‘little squirrel people,’ in your tongue, we call ourselves ‘those who sing the song of the earth,’ while your people, the race of men, call us ‘the children of the forest,’” his wildling answered.

“I thought you were myths,” Brynden replied.

“No, just long forgotten, and now, our father wishes to meet you.”

“Your father? But some of you look so old, how can you have one father, let alone one that's alive?”

“He is the father of our races,” a female replied. “The first of us, the great one, our king. Come, sit on the weirwood and you will be prepared to meet him.”

Confused, Brynden sat on what appeared to be a throne made of the weirwood trees, and once he had, he spotted the being that must be the father the daughter of the forest had mentioned. He was as tall as a human, but with dark skin, armour that shifted in colour with every step, and eyes that were an inhuman shade of blue. He spoke in a strange language, one that he was certain that no man could even attempt to duplicate. As he spoke, the Great Father walked up to the weirwood throne, put his ice-cold hand on Brynden’s head, and then manipulated the wierwood roots to pierce his head and come out through the eye he had lost in the battle of the Redgrass Field. Brynden gasped in shock, but as the Great Father’s power flowed through him, he understood. They existed to keep the balance in nature: only death paid for life, and only the freezing cold could balance out the fire of dragons. The Long Night was coming again, and Brynden Bloodraven, the last greenseer grinned at the idea that he would help bring it about. Slowly, the weirwood throne grew around him, and he knew it was to keep the balance: only a cripple could fly through the weirwood faces and see the past, present and future. And as his smile grew, his eye turned as red as blood.

 

Harrenhal, the Riverlands-278 AC-the Year of the False Spring, Rhaegar

 

Prince Rhaegar Targaryen, heir to the Iron Throne was taking a sip of summer wine when he saw her. She was tall and lithe, with brown hair, eyes like stones, and a face like a wolf. “Who is that?” Rhaegar asked Ser Barristan Selmy, a member of his father’s Kingsguard and one of the men he would be riding against in the tourney.

Selmy took one look at the woman before answering. “Ah, that would be Lyanna Stark of Winterfell. She is the betrothed of Robert Baratheon. Those three next to her are her brothers, Brandon, Eddard and Benjen Stark. Why, milord?”

“Because I intend to marry her.”

Barristan stared at the prince. “But milord, you are already married. To divorce Lady Elia could cause Dorne to revolt, possibly even rebel, especially with the way your father has acted since his capture. Many pardons, my prince.”

“Don’t apologize; I hear what people are saying about my father. The Mad King they call him these days. My father seems to prove the old saying about our family.”

“What saying, milord?”

Rhaegar smiled and explained. “They say that when a Targaryen is born, the gods take a coin and flip it to decide if the child is destined for greatness, or madness. It seems that for me, they decided I was destined for a madness born of love. I will ask her favour today, and make her the Queen of Love and Beauty for this Tourney. Besides, who says I have to divorce Elia?"

 

And so he did. The next day, before his first joust, Rhaegar rode up to the Starks and asked for Lyanna’s favour, which she surprisingly gave-a necklace of blue winter roses, and with the favour, and over a week of jousting, Rhaegar conquered the field and gave the northern lady the crown and title of Queen of Love and Beauty over his wife. And every night after the day's fighting was done, Rhaegar and Lyanna met and talked, and Lyanna quickly fell for the young dragon prince. His love for her grew even more fierce when Lyanna disguised herself as a boy and trounced three knights in order to avenge a young crannogman who had been beaten by the knights' squires. When his father, Aerys II demanded that Rhaegar find out who the Knight of the Laughing Tree was out of fear that the knight was an enemy, Rhaegar simply sought out Lyanna. "Greetings, Ser Knight of the Laughing Tree," Rhaegar said.

"How did you know it was me?" Lyanna demanded.

"My lady wolf, who but a Northerner would use a sigil of a heart tree? Besides, with your strong feelings on the matter, how could I not know which Northerner it was? I was quite proud of you, my lady."

Lyanna laughed. "You remind me of my brother, Ned. It seems that only the two of you truly know me."

"And what of your betrothed?"

"Robert Baratheon? He sees me as a living trophy, someone to look pretty on his arm and act like some weak Southern lady who looks to her husband for strength. Even if by some tragedy I did marry him, I couldn't even trust him to stay faithful to me! He's already gotten himself at least one bastard girl in the Eyrie, and Ned tells me that he lies with as many women as he can persuade, or he visits whores! He's a drunken lecher, and I hate him! I wish there were some way I could escape, but Brandon and Father keep telling me it's my duty to do so."

Rhaegar sighed, his melancholy returning. "I know exactly how you feel, Lyanna. I felt the same way when I was forced to marry Elia. I always wanted a strong queen, one with a fire to match any dragon, and Elia is not that woman. Now I have found her, and it’s not a fire I find, but the passion of ice.” They chatted for a few more minutes, before Rhaegar returned to his father and announced that he had only found the mystery knight’s shield.

 

On the return journey, Rhaegar pulled his wife aside and told her the truth. “Elia, I’m sorry, but you should know that I've fallen for someone else, and I intend to marry her.”

Understanding came to her eyes. "It's that Stark woman, isn't it? You saw her and fell in love with her. That's why you named her Queen of Love and Beauty, isn't it?" The look in his eyes was answer enough for her. “Very well, but I want you to make certain that the Spider doesn’t find out about this, and our children remain in the line of succession.”

“Of course they will, Elia. Rhaenys and Aegon will always be my eldest children, and you will always be my first wife and a friend to House Targaryen. But we both know that our marriage is not based on love, but was just another move in the game of thrones that our parents play. It was simply a way to strengthen Dorne's allegiance to the Iron Throne and insult Lord Tywin."

The couple spoke little more for the rest of the trip back home, and a few months later, Rhaegar started the long trip to Winterfell, and quietly convinced Lyanna to come south with him.

 

Summerhall, Stormlands-Year 279 A.C.-Lyanna

 

“My prince, why did you bring me here? When you invited me, I expected to be brought to King’s Landing,” Lyanna Stark said. “In fact, why did you invite me at all?”

“Please, call me Rhaegar. And King’s Landing is not safe for anyone anymore. My father’s fear and paranoia have made it dangerous for everyone, even me. As to why here, well, it’s one of my favourite places in the Seven Kingdoms, and where I was born. And to answer you last question of why I invited you milady, I have fallen for you. I love you, Lyanna, and I wish to marry you.”

Lyanna stared at him, completely agape at his proclamation, before bursting out in laughter. “Rhaegar, that’s impossible! Surely you must know that Baelor the Blessed forbade all marriages involving more than two people! The only way you could marry me is if-”

“-If I divorced Elia first? Maybe for most, but we both know that the Targaryens don't always listen to the rules. Lyanna, I love you, and I know you love me. Let me prove myself to you in a way that Robert never could.” Lyanna almost broke there, but she was a Stark, she could last longer before giving in to the demands of her heart.

 

Three months later, Rhaegar finally bent down on one knee, pulled out a ring and asked her “Lyanna of House Stark, when I came to Harrenhal for the tournament, I only hoped to find a woman to use in order to fulfill a prophecy, but when I saw you, that fled from my mind. I love you more than my life, any ideas I had of the future, or my crown. If you asked me to leave King’s Landing for good and move to Winterfell, I would if it meant I could stay with you. Will you marry me?”

Lyanna looked down at the prince and, after making him wait for a minute finally answered “Yes, my beloved dragon, I will.” Rhaegar was so pleased that when he stood up, he picked her up and twirled her around, laughing with joy.

 

Lord Harroway's Town, The Riverlands-Year 279 AC-Eddard

 

"Brandon, wait!" Eddard 'Ned' Stark called out to his brother.  "What do you think you're doing?

"I am going to force that damned dragon prince to give our sister back, what do you think?" Brandon replied while saddling his horse.

"But how can you be certain that she was kidnapped?  She seemed to enjoy his attentions at Harrenhal last year.  Besides, do you know what will happen if you go charging up to the Red Keep demanding even a duel with the prince?"

"I will get our sister back, that's what will happen.  And how could she have possibly gone of her own free will?  She knows that she's betrothed to Robert!"

"And she completely despises being told what to do, you know that!  The wolf's blood is strong in her, stronger than it is in any of us.  And what's worse, she despises Robert, and with good reason."

"Oh, to the seven hells with you and your theories about her!  She knows her duty, and she'll be happy to do that!  Now I am going to get her back, or die trying!" Bran shouted at his brother before riding south to the capitol.

"That's what I'm afraid of, Brandon.  That you, and many others will die for the sake of our sister," Ned whispered.  He knew that Aerys would never let such a threat against any member of his family stand.  And after Brandon died, their father would probably be next, followed quickly by threats against himself and Robert.  And that threat would be enough to fan the flame of civil war.

 

Summerhall, Stormlands-Year 279 A.C.-Rhaegar

 

One week after Rhaegar's proposal, the couple went out to the last weirwood in the South and the septon of Wyl, who had been brought to Summerhall just for this purpose. “In the sight of the Seven and the Old Gods, I hearby seal these two souls, binding them as one, for eternity. Look upon one another and say the words."

Turning towards each other, Rhaegar and Lyanna spoke in unison. "Father, Smith, Warrior, Mother, Maiden, Crone, Stranger. I am hers and she is mine/I am his and he is mine. From this day, to the end of my days." They kissed, and the septon pronounced them husband and wife. Only three members of the Kingsguard were witnesses: Gerold Hightower, Arthur Dayne, and Oswell Whent.

The newly married couple spent the next week making love.

But their happiness was not to last. Only two months after their wedding (during which, Lyanna believed she became pregnant, though she did not tell her husband,) Rhaegar received a raven from King’s Landing. “What’s wrong, my dragon?”

Rhaegar’s face fell as he turned to his wife. “Your father and elder brother are dead, and it’s my fault. Ser Barristan wrote the whole story, if you wish to hear it."

"I am a Stark of Winterfell; of course I wish to hear it."

"Very well, my love," Rhaegar consented, and he started to read the letter. "Your father's insanity and paranoia has reached a whole new level, my prince. Last month, Brandon Stark, Jeffory Mallister, Kyle Royce and Elbert Arryn came to the Red Keep calling for you to come out and die. The king heard them and arrested them all for treason and called for their fathers to come to King’s Landing to answer the charge, and ransom them. During the so-called ‘trial,’ all of them claimed to have come so that they could bring you to justice for kidnapping Lyanna Stark. But the king wouldn’t listen and executed them all, father and son alike.

Lord Rickard demanded a trial by combat, and Aerys agreed. Unfortunately, the king’s madness made Lord Stark fight an impossible duel. Aerys named fire as the Targaryen champion, and the alchemist Rossart brought wildfire of all things to burn him to death. His son was bound and made to watch, while told that if he could free himself, both he and Rickard would go free. A sword was placed just out of reach of Brandon Stark. However, as Brandon was bound around the neck using a certain Tyroshi device, he strangled himself trying to get free. We of the court and Kingsguard could do nothing but watch in horror. Following the executions, your father demanded that Lord Arryn hand over Eddard Stark and Robert Baratheon. I have no doubt that when this news reaches the North and the Vale that the war we have so feared shall begin.”

Lyanna cried out when she heard the full story, then fainted. Rhaegar caught her, but he couldn't blame her, his father had been extremely vicious and unforgiving. And it was his fault that they were dead, and they were going to war because of him and Lyanna. They spent a final night together before Rhaegar left for King's Landing. There he ordered Ser Arthur Dayne, Ser Oswell Whent and Ser Gerold Hightower to take Lyanna to the Tower of Joy and defend her with their lives.

 

The Trident, Red Fork, Riverlands-Year 280 A.C.-Rhaegar

 

Six months and five battles later, and three months since Rhaegar had seen his beloved, pregnant wife and Rhaegar with 40,000 men was now facing the most dangerous man in the rebellion: Robert Baratheon, Lyanna's former betrothed and best friend to her middle brother, Lord Eddard 'Ned' Stark and their 35,000 strong battle-hardened army. When Baratheon laid eyes on him, he roared out "Targaryen!" and charged him.

"Lord Baratheon, wait!" Rhaegar called out, but the young stag was lost in fury and he was forced to defend himself. The fight lasted for a good half-hour, with Rhaegar landing several blows on Baratheon. Unfortunately for the young dragon, a sword was no match for a war hammer, and his blade shattered. “Robert, I yield!” he cried out, but Baratheon’s rage was too great, and he swung the hammer against Rhaegar’s chest, crushing it instantly. The rubies that made up the three-headed dragon crest on Rhaegar’s breastplate all fell out, scattering to the river, giving it a new name: the Ruby Fork.

After the battle was done, Ned found Rhaegar lying in the river, barely alive. “Where is my sister, dragon?” he growled out, sounding very much like the direwolf that was the sigil of his house.

“Tower . . . of . . . Joy, in . . . Dorne. Take . . . take this, please,” Rhaegar gasped out, handing Ned a small book. With his last breath, he whispered out “Lyanna,” and was no more. Due to Robert’s wounds and his insistence that Ser Barristan be treated first made it so that Ned Stark would have to go ahead. But before he left, Ned secretly gave orders to Martyn Cassel to take his body and burn it according to Targaryen traditions and keep the ashes safe until his return.

 

King's Landing, Crownlands, Year 280 A.C.-Eddard

 

Only a few days later, Ned rode into King’s Landing, only to find that 10,000 men owing allegiance to the Lannisters of Casterly Rock had taken the capitol only an hour earlier, but in that hour, horrors had been committed. Homes had been looted and burned, scores of innocents killed, countless women raped. When he reached the Red Keep, and found young Jaime Lannister of the Kingsguard was sitting on the Iron Throne. “I was wondering who would be first to come here,” he said, blood dripping from his gilded sword. A single look revealed that Aerys of House Targaryen, Second of his name, King of the Andals, Rhoynar and First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms and Protector of the Realm was dead, his body lying at the foot of the Iron Throne. The cause of death was obvious, the man's head was at the feet of Ned’s horse. Jaime stood up and took off his helmet. “So,” Jaime continued, “are you going to claim the throne, or no?”

“No, that’s for Robert, I don’t want it. Never have, never will. I only came here to kill the king. Now that I see that the city is ours and Aerys is dead, I need to find my sister. Goodbye, Kingslayer,” Ned hissed, giving the young knight the title he would be known by for the rest of his life.

"Well, have no fear. I was only keeping it warm for one of you. It's not a very comfortable seat, I'm afraid."

"Wait, what about the queen, and the rest of the Targaryens?"

"Queen Rhaella and Prince Viserys were spirited away to Dragonstone. As for the others, ask the Mountain there," Jaime answered, pointing to the largest man Eddard had ever seen.

"They're all dead, Lord Stark," Ser Gregor Clegane answered. "Had a bit of fun with the Martell girl before I killed her though." Ned was furious at that, and when Robert came to the city to claim the throne, he demanded that his friend punish the Lannisters for their crimes. Robert refused, saying that there was no crime, that because it was 'dragon-spawn,' he applauded it. Ned left in a fury to relieve the siege of Storm's End and eventually, the Tower of Joy in Dorne. As he left, the Baratheon sigil was changed from a black stag on a gold field to a crowned stag.

 

Tower of Joy, Dorne-Year 280 A.C.-Eddard

 

Of the six men that had come with Ned to the Tower of Joy to find his sister, only Howland Reed of Greywater Watch had survived the duel against the three men of Aerys' Kingsguard. During the duel, the Tower had caught fire, and now Ned and Howland were looking for Lyanna amidst the smoke and confusion of the Tower. They eventually found her in a small room, lying on a bed of blood, another, older woman standing next to her. "What happened?" Ned demanded.

"She's haemorrhaging, milord, the baby was too strong," the woman said.

"Baby?" Ned said in shock, turning to the woman. She was holding a newborn boy, one with hair as white as snow and had only recently been born. As she rubbed him in salt and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, he realized that she was a midwife.

"Ned?" Lyanna asked. "Is that you?"

"Yes, Lya, it's me," Ned replied, bending down to take her hand.

"Promise me that you'll watch after him for me, Ned, would you? Promise me, Ned."

"I promise. Lya, I promise. What shall I call him?"

"His name is . . . Aemon Targaryen.”

“Targaryen?”

“He is Rhaegar’s legitimate son. Promise me that . . . you’ll protect him for me. And promise me . . . that you’ll bury me in Winterfell, beside our brother and fathers. Promise me, Ned.”

As she asked, Ned was reminded of something that Stannis Baratheon had once told him in one of the few meetings he had with his best friend's younger brother. "The Tully's have realized the three main driving forces for anyone," he said. "Family, duty and honour. Everyone must choose which they value most, and some day, so will you."

In that moment, Ned made his choice. “I promise, Lya,” he said. Lyanna smiled and breathed her last. Standing up and turning to the midwife he asked “What’s your name?”

“Wylla, milord. I was your sister’s midwife, and I was also going to act as a nursemaid for little Aemon as well as the child of my Lady Dayne of Starfell.”

“Wylla, I wish to honour my sister’s final wish, but for that, I need to lie about the boy’s heritage, and dishonour myself,” Ned said, not even cringing at the idea. Before today, he had never dishonoured himself in any way, but to protect his family, he’d do anything.

“How are you going to protect him by dishonouring yourself, milord?” Wylla asked while Aemon moved to feed off her milk.

“I’m going to claim him as my bastard son, Jon Snow, and if you’re willing, you will be the woman I claim as his mother.”

“I’m willing, milord, but what about him? What are you going to tell him?”

“I’ll keep the truth from him until he comes of age, then I’ll tell him everything.” Wylla nodded, and Ned smiled down at his sister. “The things I do for love,” and the three of them left the Tower of Joy. Ned pulled the tower down and used it’s stones to make a burial mound for the dead. Then the three of them, Ned, Wylla and Jon Snow went north, bringing Lyanna’s body with them in a casket of wine to preserve the body. Along the way, Wylla bought several bottles of black dye and used it to dye young Aemon's hair black, in order that the lie of him being Jon Snow would be believed.

 

They made a brief stop in King's Landing, if only to let Robert know. "What happened?" King Robert I demanded.

"Lyanna is dead, Your Grace. I'm taking her back to Winterfell."

Robert froze at the statement, and it had nothing to do with Ned's cold tone. "Lyanna . . . is dead?" He bowed his head and wept for several minutes before looking up and noticing the baby in his arms.

"Yes, your Grace, my sister is dead. The boy is my blood, Jon Snow." Only one person reacted to the statement 'my blood,' and that was the only survivor of the Kingsguard other than the Kingslayer-Ser Barristan. Soon after, the two men were able to work out their issues over the fall of King’s Landing, and Jon Arryn convinced Robert to take Cersei Lannister to wife.

A week later, during the wedding feast, Ser Barristan came to Ned in secret. “The boy, Jon, he isn’t your son, is he? He’s Rhaegar and your sister’s son.”

“I am not surprised that you figured it out, Ser Barristan. Yes, he is Prince Aemon Targaryen, and I would appreciate it if you kept the truth a secret.”

“Of course, my lord, I will protect his Grace with my life.” Ned smiled at the knight, and quietly slipped out of King’s Landing with Jon and Wylla, and headed north to Winterfell. Once there, he hired a stonecarver to make a likeness of Lyanna for her tomb, and a dragon to contain the ashes of Rhaegar.

 

 

Chapter Playlist:

 

1. An Ancient Enemy (Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey)
2. The Children (Game of Thrones S4)
3. Clash of Kings Main Title
4. The Tournament Begins (Merlin S1)
5. Game of Thrones
6. I Am Hers, She Is Mine
7. Dark Wings, Dark Words
8. The Battle (Master & Commander)
9. Things I Do For Love
10. New King (Thor)

Chapter Text

By Skill Not Force

Prologue IV: The Sirius Deception

 

　

Hogwarts Library-November 8, 2006-Harry

 

“For the last time, Draco, the answer is no. There is no way I am going to lead a DADA club. Only our closest friends would even want to learn from me. I’m a stark-raving mad, attention-seeking loon/future Dark Lord, remember?” Harry said. From the moment, he had returned from the graveyard, Hogwarts, and indeed, all of England had split. Most sided with Fudge in his claims that Voldemort had not returned. A handful knew he had returned, and welcomed it, while the other handful knew and vowed to fight him to their last breath.

That summer had been hell for Harry and his already sullied reputation. Fudge had strong-armed the Daily Prophet to do a smear campaign against Harry and Dumbledore, while Dumbledore did nothing but keep secrets from Harry. Harry had already figured out that the war was going to be basically between him and Tom, but Dumbledore refused to let Harry in on any of his plans. Then, when the booklist for their year had come in, Draco immediately identified the DADA book as good enough for only toilet paper and starting fires, and started pressuring Harry to start up a Defence club. The one bright spot in his summer was that he had met and introduced his young cousin, Mark Evans to magic. To make things even better, Mark was revealed to be a Parselmouth and Harry quickly named him the Heir of Slytherin.

When they arrived at Hogwarts, Mark was instantly sorted into Slytherin, but then it was revealed that Dolores Umbridge (a Ministry toady, literally,) had taken the post of Defence professor. She made it clear from the beginning that she was there to change things at Hogwarts, and to keep Harry from telling others that Voldemort was back. And to make things worse, she was the worst teacher alive, only allowing them to read their books, never allowing them to even pull their wands out. After that came the oppressive Educational Decrees, each one chipping away at the Hogwarts that all had come to love.

“Now how do you know that’s what I was going to say?” Draco asked.

“Because you always ask me that whenever we’re alone, Draco,” Harry responded. “And before you ask why I won’t, I’ll give you several reasons. First, it is doubtful that anyone outside our circle of friends would join, if only because much of the school despises me. Second, Umbridge would immediately shut us down if we did have such a group, and she would probably expel us for even having the group. Third, if I did agree, I’d want to train them as an army to defend Hogwarts and Hogsmeade, and how many do you think would agree to that?”

“Probably more than you think, Harry, but actually-” Draco was quickly cut off when Hermione kissed Harry on the cheek. “-I was going to say Hermione was on her way here.”

“Well, why didn’t you say so earlier?” Harry asked before giving the love of his life a full kiss. When they pulled apart, Harry asked, “Was there a reason you came over here, or did you just miss me?”

“I was hoping to get some studying in together, and talk to you about an idea I had.”

“Oh, what idea?”

“Studying first, love, then fun.” A few hours (and many kisses) later, it was nearing curfew and the trio were getting ready to leave when Hermione turned to Harry. “So, about my idea . . . Harry, we aren’t leaning a thing in DADA. We need a proper teacher, someone who knows both sides of the Dark Arts. Would you mind teaching the group if I found enough people?” she finished with a kiss.

“Sure, I’ll do it,” Harry agreed with a second kiss. It wasn’t until him and Draco arrived back at their dorm that he realized what he’d done. Turning to his best friend, he asked, “Did you have anything to do with that?”

“What, Hermione asking you to the Defence group? I wish I had thought of it. Wait a minute, I did, and if I had known just how much she had you wrapped around her little finger, I might have asked her. However, you had already denied me, your self-proclaimed best and most loyal friend, every single time I brought up the need for practical defence lessons this year. How was I to know that Hermione had more sway with you than me?”

Harry just gave the ‘duh’ look. “Draco, a love interest always beats the best friend in the influence department. That’s one of the top ten Slytherin rules, you should know that.”

 

Room of Requirement, Hogwarts-November 13, 2006-Harry

 

Harry had been shocked to discover just how many people had decided to join their little rebellion. When he arrived at the Hog’s Head with Draco and Hermione the following Saturday, he found twenty already there, and another thirty came later. If it weren’t for his anti-eavesdropping spell (one that Snape had taught most Slytherins,) he was certain that Umbridge would have learned about their group. In any case, she learned something as she had immediately banned all school groups, even the Chess and Gobstones Clubs! But the group had decided to meet anyway, and were now gathered in the Room of Requirement. Many of the members were Gryffindors and the light or neutral Slytherins, but there were a fair number of representatives from the other two Houses.

“Well, I’m glad to see that you all found this place easily enough. Now, I want to know if there’s anyone that will object to me teaching this group.” Harry asked. None spoke up or raised a hand. “Good, now how many of you are here only for DADA lessons so you can pass your tests?” That got a response, even if it was only the shuffling of feet and uneasy looks. “Come on now, I won’t boot you out if you’re only here for your tests. I want to know so I know who’s here for what.” About a third of the people there raised their hands. “Thanks for your honesty. Mione, have them sign the first parchment, everyone else signs the second.”

“Why two parchments, Harry?” Susan Bones asked. She was one of the ones that not only believed him about Voldemort’s returned, but also was there for more than her tests.

“The second parchment is for those who are willing to help me fight Voldemort and his Death Eaters when the time comes. If you want to switch parchments, that is fine, but I am certain that Hogwarts will need all of us soon. We will soon be responsible for the defence of Hogwarts against enemies both inside and outside the walls. Also, for everyone willing who’s signed the second parchment, I’m going to be teaching you certain Darker duelling spells than you’re used to, but no more than you’re comfortable with,” Harry finished.

“And why should we take lessons from you when you’re going to be turning us Dark?” Ron Weasley demanded.

Harry glared at his rival. “First off, you clearly weren’t listening, Weasel, as I said I’d only teach the spells that you were comfortable with. Second, I only said that I would teach you Darker spells than you were used to. Hogwarts teaches us spells that the Ministry labels Dark in First Year.”

“No, they don’t!” a number of students denied.

“I’ll prove it then. Weasley, what do you say to a duel between you and me, and the only limit is that we can only use Light or neutral spells. What do you say?”

“Done!”

“Susan, you’ll be the neutral judge. Draco, after we’re done, what do you say to a little show as to what we can do?”

“Sure thing,” they both said.

Quickly the two rivals lined up, bowed and raised their wands. Ron started with a spell he thought would end the duel before Harry could cast a single spell. “Petrificus totalus!”

And he was right, in a way. Harry dodged the spell just as Susan said “Disqualified!”

“What?! But that’s a spell that Firsties know!”

“And it is also labelled the Body-Bind Curse, Ron, and even jinxes are labelled Dark by the Ministry.”

“How do you know?” Mark Evans (how the bloody hell did he get here?) asked.

“Because my auntie is the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. I’ve probably forgotten more about the law than most people know, period. Now, Harry, why don’t we think up a name for the group before we go on to your duel?”

Harry grinned at his redheaded friend. “Because there’s no need to. Dumbledore has his Order of the Phoenix, you will be my Order of the Round Table, if no one has any objections?”

“Ah nuts, I was hoping to call it Dumbledore’s Army, since that’s what the Ministry fears,” Ginny Weasley said.

“And if Umbitch finds out about this, Dumbledore will be forced to leave the castle at best,” Draco pointed out. “As much as I don’t like the man, he’s a far better headmaster than that toad would be.” Everyone had to agree with that, and moved on to the second duel.

The duel between Draco and Harry not only showed their skill, but also how well they knew each other. They fought fiercely, but with a grace that approached a dance, and never once hit each other. Spell after spell flew by, each one hitting not their target, but dummies that the Room had provided, and everyone there was shocked at what the spells were doing, and their closest friends knew that those weren’t even their most powerful spells, or their most dangerous. But eventually Draco began to tire, and Harry took him down with a simple disarming charm. Everyone cheered and were eager to start learning the spells.

 

Hogwarts-June 1, 2007-Hermione

 

Throughout the persecutions of the next few months, the Order of the Round Table stood firm and were never discovered, though they fought Umbridge at every turn. Unfortunately, the study group had gone and taken Ginny’s advice and named themselves Dumbledore’s Army, and on a day they had been practicing on their own, they had been caught, and Dumbledore was fired with Umbridge named the new headmistress. Then came today, a terrible day when Harry saw a vision of Voldemort holding Sirius captive in the Department of Mysteries. Now her and Harry were leading Umbridge deep into the Dark Forest in an attempt to get rid of her after making her believe that some weapon of Dumbledore’s was deep in the forest. “Hermione my love, are you sure that we’re going the right way?” Harry asked.

Hermione gave him an odd look, and he just shut up. Hermione grinned, there were times that it was extremely useful that Harry was wrapped around her little finger, though she did wonder why he seemed so nervous. Eventually, with all the noise the trio were making, they attracted the attention she had been seeking, a good dozen centaurs appeared in front of them, and all of them were quite angry. Fortunately Umbridge was a complete fool and gave orders to the centaurs, even worse, she insulted them by calling them half-breeds. Then, after carrying her off, the three remaining centaurs turned their attention on Harry and Hermione. “They are young, and we do not attack foals,” one of them said.

“They brought her here, Ronan. And they are not so young, this one nears manhood,” Bane countered.

Hermione moved to answer but before she could, Harry jumped in! “Many pardons, great lords of the forest, but we knew that she was an enemy of yours, and as she is an enemy of ours, knew that you would help us, and in so doing help yourselves. In truth, I believed that we would encounter the Acromantula before encountering you.”

“He speaks honestly, and with great respect, why not let him go? We have all read the heavens, this youth has much work to do to rid this land of the evil that pollutes it,” the third and final centaur stated. The trio then conversed in their own language before running off into the forest.

“I guess that means we can go?” Hermione asked.

“Yeah, and we had better hurry. We need to be in place for my plan to work, and soon. How are we supposed to get to London?”

“We’ll have to fly, won’t we?” Luna Lovegood asked. Luna was an odd girl, always talking about odd creatures that Harry had never heard of before, but he liked her, especially as she was one of the only Ravenclaws to join the Round Table.

“And what are we going to ride, Luna? Blibbering Humdingers?” Neville asked. Neville had gone beyond being a mere student in the Round Table to becoming one of it’s leaders, and Hermione was fairly certain that he was interested in Luna.

“No, silly. They don’t fly, we’ll need to ask the Thestrals. Hagrid says they’re very intelligent, and that they’re very good at finding places their rider is looking for,” Luna suggested. Fortunately, within minutes, Thestrals came flying in (though Hermione couldn’t see them,) and the group of four friends and one unwelcome tag-along flew off. (Draco and Daphne would have gone with them, but neither wanted to risk having to fight Lucius and commit the terrible crime of kinslaying, while Ginny seemed determined to follow Harry no matter what.)

 

A few hours later, Hermione knew that Draco would be glad to have stayed at Hogwarts, as Lucius was the leader of the Death Eaters in the Hall of Prophecies. The four friends battled the Death Eaters, and battled hard, but not one of the Death Eaters had yet to fall, although, that may be because they were facing the twelve best Death Eaters. Spell after spell was cast as they ran, but none on either side were hit . . . until they arrived in the room with the arch. As they entered, Neville finally landed a hit, slicing Bellatrix Lestrange with a flaying curse before finishing her off with a cutting curse to the throat. MacNair was the next to fall to one of Harry’s slicing curse, followed quickly by Rookwood to her own wand.

Then, just as it seemed that the Death Eaters would be able to recover, the Order of the Phoenix arrived, and immediately joined the fight. Hermione assumed that with their arrival, the remaining Death Eaters would quickly fall, but instead they rallied and started fighting back even harder than before. Rabastan and Rudolphus double-teamed against Sirius, and Dolohov took on Mad-Eye. The two Orders quickly joined the fight, but it was clear that the Death Eaters had gained a second wind.

And that second wind was helping them turn the tide. Within five minutes, Ginny (who shouldn’t have been there anyway,) was hit by a Sectumsempra, Kingsley took a Reducto to the knee, and most shocking of all, Mad-Eye Moody was killed! But the most devastating thing was yet to come. Harry had teamed up with his godfather to battle the Lestranges, but even with all their skill and power, they were unable to stop every spell, and Sirius was hit by a knock-back jinx. Normally that wouldn't have been so bad, except that Harry and Sirius had been standing in front of the mystery arch, and when Sirius was knocked into the arch, he didn't come out the other side.

Harry was the first to realize what had happened, and would have run after Sirius if it weren’t for Remus’ quick action. “Let me go! I need to save him!”

“It’s too late, Harry, he’s gone. There’s nothing anyone can do,” Remus told him.

Hermione could tell that that statement caused something in Harry to snap, and caused him to turn in the direction that the childish hex had come from. Somehow he instantly identified the caster as “DOLOHOV!” The Azkaban escapee’s eyes widened as he realized just how much hot water he’d landed himself in, and ran. Harry quickly broke Remus’ grip on him and chased him, with Hermione following right behind. Oddly enough, Harry didn’t realize Hermione was behind him until they were in the elevator to the main floor. “What are you doing here?” he demanded.

If she didn’t know that he was, in a way, grieving for his godfather (and only parental figure he’d ever really known,) she might have been shocked at his anger. As it was, she simply smiled at him and said “Where you go, I go Harry. I’ll stand by you no matter what, even if it’s against Voldemort.” Harry grinned at her and gave her a short, passionate kiss just as the bell rang, letting them know they had arrived.

Harry and Hermione quickly spotted Dolohov running for the flues in the Atrium and Harry quickly raised his wand and hit him with a Parseltongue curse: “Searassa!” The Death Eater quickly fell to the torture curse, but while he was tortured, Voldemort arrived. Hermione quickly finished off Dolohov with a Lemures Maxima, leaving Harry free to turn his wand on Voldemort. “Tom, what a surprise. I never expected you to come yourself! This is an honour.”

“Enough with the pleasantries, Potter and give me the prophecy.” A prophecy?! That’s what they had risked their lives for, what Sirius and Ginny had died for? A bloody prophecy, and one that had apparently been given by their fraud of a former Divination teacher Trelawney and given to Dumbledore?

Harry just grinned at the demand. “Hmm, how about no. If you want it, you’re going to have to take it from me. Astrice!” That was the last spoken word as the two started duelling right there in the atrium. Spell after spell was cast, and Hermione was shocked to see the incredible magic that each used. Harry even pulled off spells that she hadn’t heard of, including animating that stupid Fountain of Magical Brethren. If she didn’t know better, she’d have sworn that the duellers were perfectly matched in knowledge and power, and there might not be a clear winner if someone didn’t interfere soon. And despite the fact that the duel had drawn quite a crowd, including Minister Fudge, no one did. She would have, but her damned Gryffindor sense of honour prevented her from doing just that.

Fortunately, someone showed up that did interfere just by showing up, and Voldemort immediately recognized the magical signature. And that was when he made his first mistake: he turned to face his oldest nemesis “Dumbledore!”

Harry took the time to cast one more verbal spell: “Svelt!” Everyone watched as the old curse hit Voldemort, and the Dark Lord . . . fell to the ground! Many knew that there was no way that should have happened, as the curse destroyed the body, yet Voldemort not only remained whole, but also stood back up. What none of them knew was that, like the previous times that Voldemort survived when he should have died, magic took it’s price and a soul anchor-one hidden inside Hogwarts itself was cleansed.

Fortunately for them, Voldemort seemed to finally realize that they had an audience and immediately fled. After that, both Dumbledore and Harry promised to explain what had happened to Fudge and Madame Bones, but after Harry got some sleep. Hermione couldn’t blame them, she was nearly dead on her feet, and she hadn’t been fighting as much as Harry had.

 

The next day, after everyone had gotten some sleep, Hermione found Harry sitting alone on the banks of the Black Loch and nearly in tears. Okay, so she knew that simply because she knew him so well. If anyone besides one of Harry’s close friends had seen him, they’d have seen only the infamous mask that all Slytherins wore in order to hide their feelings. But she did know him, and she knew it probably had something to do with what happened at the Ministry. “Harry, are you alright?”

“It’s my fault.” Hermione raised an eyebrow at him. What could he possibly mean by that? “It’s my fault that they’re dead. I knew that it was a trap and that Sirius wasn’t there and I went there anyways because I wanted to know what the prophecy said. Sirius had given me an enchanted mirror just before we started Fourth Year, and I called him after I had the vision. We plotted to set this up so that we could capture some Death Eaters and try to force Riddle to show himself to the Ministry, and now Sirius and Ginny are dead because of me!”

Hermione shocked both Harry and herself by slapping him before she started to reason with him. “Harry James Potter! You listen and listen good! Your plan was a good one, and completely successful! We captured all the Death Eaters, the Ministry and Daily Prophet have both admitted that you were right about his return. Yes, we have lost Sirius, Mad-Eye and Ginny, but this is a war Harry, and there are casualties. What was that Churchill quote you told me: ‘Success cannot be guaranteed. There are no safe battles’? You knew that you’d be going to fight the Death Eaters, did you really think there wouldn’t be consequences or casualties? Of course not, and there are going to be far more before he dies

Rubbing the cheek where she slapped him, he grinned at her. “Thank you, Hermione. I’m just really worried about the future, especially Draco’s.”

“What do you mean?”

“Hermione, how do you think Tom will react to discovering that Lucius was captured? He’s going to be furious, and with him living at Malfoy Manor, Draco’s going to be in danger as soon as he comes home, and there is no way to save Aunt Cissy from him. Before summer ends, Draco’s going to be Marked and given some impossible task, or he’s going to be dead. I just don’t know what to do, Mione, he’s my brother in every way but blood, and I don’t want to lose him!”

Hermione gave her boyfriend a hug and told him “I’m not sure what we can do to help him, but we’ll do whatever we can. You’ve lost too much of your family as it is, Harry, and I don’t want you to lose any more.”

Chapter Text

Room of Requirement, Hogwarts-February 17, 2007-Draco

 

Unfortunately, Harry’s prediction about Draco’s fate proved to be all too accurate. As soon as he arrived, Draco was forced to take the Dark Mark and was then given two tasks. The first task was to find a way for the Death Eaters to breach the Hogwarts wards. The second, and far more important task was to kill Albus Dumbledore. And to make things worse, the Dark Lord had threatened to kill his parents if he didn’t obey, and so, Draco was stuck.

Luckily for Draco, Harry was very supportive, and wanted the headmaster dead for his own reasons, even to the point of poisoning his cursed sherbet lemons, which had certainly doomed Dumbledore, even if he weren’t suffering from the Withering Curse. Even now, Harry was attempting to help him fix the Vanishing Cabinet, although his idea of helping was going through the random books of the Room of Hidden Things looking for a book to help. With anybody else, Draco would say it was impossible, but having been Harry’s best friend for nearly six years, Draco knew better. Harry made it a habit to do things that were believed to be impossible. Merlin, they’d already found Rowena Ravenclaw’s lost diadem in here, and that was without even looking for it!

And as always, his faith in his best friend was rewarded. “Draco, you are never going to believe what I just found!”

“Try me, cousin,” Draco said with a laugh. Technically Harry was his second cousin once removed, but Harry had been so happy to find out that they were related that Draco had just continued calling him ‘cousin’.

“Very well, cousin, but you asked for it. The title of this book is Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Vanishing Cabinets. How’s that for help?”

Draco gaped at his best friend. Sure, he knew that Harry had ridiculously good luck, but this was nearly unbelievable, even for him! “Harry, give me that book! That might actually have the answers I need!”

Well, Harry gave it to him, sort of. But instead of giving him the book, he made a copy and gave the copy to Draco, who immediately started going over it to find the information he need. He had just found it when Harry shouted out “Draco, I’ve found something incredibly interesting!” Then, with just that for a warning, he started reading a passage from the book. “Vanishing cabinets are one of the most incredible pieces of magic ever deliberately invented, but even they have been the catalysts for even more amazing pieces of magic. Due to the accidental damage of the runic structure on one vanishing cabinet, it has been discovered that the cabinets have the ability to send someone or something to another reality. However, this can be an incredibly dangerous action to take, as some realities are radically dangerous, and others have no magic.

“For the realities without magic, one must quickly build and enchant a vanishing cabinet, otherwise the traveller will be stuck there for the rest of his life as a squib, for his magic will slowly dissipate, even faster if he uses magic. If a realm used to have magic, then the traveller will keep his magic, but his children will not have magic until magic returns. However, in both realms magical traits that belong to a family (like parseltongue for House Slytherin) will remain in the family, even if magic is never created or returns. What do you think of that?”

“Sounds like a great back up plan if we can’t stop the Dark Lord, or if the Ministry decides to arrest you for no good reason,” Draco had to admit. “Now, let’s get to work on this thing, otherwise there’s no way I’m going to live, and you won’t have a chance to run if necessary.” Harry had to agree with that and the two quickly started examining the runes on the cabinet.

 

Tilly Whim Caves, Dorset-May 9, 2007-Harry

 

Harry marvelled at Tom’s ingenuity at creating the second cave, and at Dumbledore’s lack of observation skills. How did he not notice the snake carved into the wall? True, the blood part was crude, but seeing as how it was connected to Tom’s school days, he doubted that Tom could have done better at the time, no matter how much of a genius he was, there were some things that just couldn’t be done when one was still in school, or only recently graduated. What impressed Harry even more though, was the boat that Tom had placed in the . . . would it be proper to call it a lake? In any case, it reminded him of the legends of Charon the Ferryman who carried people across the River Styx to the Greek underworld. How did Tom enchant it so that it would come when called? And what else was in the lake?

Once on the island, (and absolutely disgusted by the thought of actual inferi being in the lake,) Harry again wondered at the foolishness of Dumbledore. Why didn’t he just think of simply dumping the potion, or putting it into another container? Oh well, at least Dumbledore wasn’t asking him to drink it, just force Dumbledore to drink it. And with the reaction from the first drink, Harry had to bite his lip to keep from laughing. The Draught of Despair? How brilliant! Even if the person drinking the draught managed to finish it, they’d still feel a desperate need for water, allowing the inferi to kill them! Harry silently congratulated his fellow Parselmouth as he forced Dumbledore to drink the potion, just waiting for the final drops to be given, and secretly revelling in the obvious emotional pain that the headmaster was going through.

When Dumbledore finally finished, and Harry had fished the locket out of the basin, he leaned in to the old man. “You know, I’ve been waiting for this day for six years now. Ever since I learned about magic and the truth about my parents deaths, I’ve dreamt of the day that I could have my vengeance against the ones responsible for me being sent to the Dursleys. Pettigrew has paid his price, thanks to you I’ll be able to make Tom pay, but now, it’s your turn.” Dumbledore’s eyes widened in fear at Harry’s words. “Oh, don’t worry Professor, I’m not going to kill you. No, I’m a Slytherin, I believe the punishment should fit the crime. You dropped me off at the Dursleys and left me to rot, well, so am I. You are going to die here, but not by my hand. But before I go . . . expelliarmus!” And with that, Dumbledore’s wand flew into Harry’s hand. “Sorry about that, but first, you left me no way to escape, so why should I? Second, I know what wand this is, old man, and there is no way I’m letting anyone else take this. Goodbye, Albus Dumbledore. When I’m through, no one will ever remember you with fond memories again.” And with that, Harry apparated out of the cave, and back to Hogwarts, while Dumbledore was dragged into the lake by hundreds of inferi.

 

The Burrow, Devon-July 31, 2007-Draco

 

Draco watched with amusement as Harry paced in the living room, waiting for evening. He couldn’t think of a single time that his best friend had been so nervous, even when he was preparing for his warlock test two weeks earlier. Ah, now that had been a day of change! After acquiring the locket from the cave, the group of friends were naturally quite upset that it was a fake, replaced by one RAB. Fortunately, thanks to Draco’s knowledge of the Death Eaters, and his own family, they were able to identify the thief as Sirius’ late brother, Regulus. Unfortunately, the thief Mundungus Fletcher had stolen the locket and sold it, to Umbridge of all people! Yet Harry’s luck held true as, right after he passed his warlock test, who should he run into but Umbridge, and on her neck was Slytherin’s locket. Harry managed to quickly claim it and cleanse it, making it three soul pieces destroyed, two to find. As it was, their only hope lay in Draco now, and the hope that Tom would spill something when he returned. In any case, Draco’s return would result in a great victory either way, thanks to Harry’s most devious plan yet.

Ah, but today would have no impact on the war, today was all about Harry and Hermione. They had celebrated Harry’s birthday that morning, and now they were preparing for a double wedding, one side of which had been seen coming for six years now. Bill and Fleur were getting married, and in thanks to Harry for bringing them together, had agreed to a double wedding so Harry could finally marry Hermione.

One hour later, and they were finally reciting their vows. Harry turned to Hermione and recited his. “Hermione, from the moment I first saw you, I knew you were special. Though you had read about what made me famous, you were interested only in the boy behind the legend. You have been by my side every step of the way, through the good times and the bad, no matter how dangerous it was, or what people thought of me. I am yours, just as you are mine.”

Hermione then recited her vows as Harry placed the wedding ring on her finger. “Harry, you were my first, and without a doubt, my best friend ever. Where others saw a buck-toothed know-it-all, you saw a beautiful girl just trying to learn as much about this new world she had been thrust into. You have never mocked me or my causes, only giving me your love and support, or gently correcting my misconceptions.” The three friends all smiled as they remembered the short-lived SPEW. “Despite the fact that you could have had anyone in our world, you chose me. I am yours, as you are mine.”

“If there is anyone who has reason that these two should not be bonded, let him speak now, or forever hold their peace,” the officiator announced. After two minutes of silence, he then turned to the couple. “Then, in view of these witnesses, I now pronounce you man and wife, bonded by love, magic and law. You may . . .” He never finished as Harry pulled Hermione into his arms for a kiss filled with his love and passion for his new bride. After the wedding feast ended, and the bedding ceremony had started, Draco apparated out in order to make their last preparation for their greatest strike against the Death Eaters. Meanwhile, as Harry and Hermione consummated their love for each other, Harry’s time as one of Tom Riddle’s Horcruxes finally ended as their love destroyed the soul piece marked by hatred and the darkest of the dark arts.

 

12 Grimmauld Place, London-August 7, 2007-Severus

 

As Severus stepped out of the Flue, he felt terribly conflicted. On the one hand, several of the Order members were his friends and he had his promise to Lily to think about, not to mention Harry was one of his snakes. On the other hand, he had his loyalty to the Dark Lord and his absolute hatred of Potter and certain other Order members. Well, for now he had no choice but to follow up on Draco’s information. As the other Death Eaters exited the Flue, he made his plan. “Yaxley, Macnair, Rowle, you take the top floor. Selwyn, Nott, Mulciber, fourth floor. Jugson, Crabbe, Goyle, third. Lestranges, first floor. Carrow, Rookwood, Avery with me.” Despite the fact that they had come during what Draco had claimed was an Order meeting called by Potter, Severus knew that he’d have to clear the entire house to be sure they found everyone. However, due to the fact that an Order meeting would be going on, he had the largest group in order to take them on.

But something was wrong. Despite Draco’s insistence that Potter still trusted him, the entire house was silent. Then when they entered the dining room that served as the Order’s meeting room, he knew: this had been a set-up. Either Potter knew that Draco would leave to tell the Dark Lord about the meeting and moved it, or there never was a meeting, and this was all a trap, and they were left with the question of whether or not Draco was on their side or not.

“Snape! We found the elf!” Rudolphus called out. Curious to see what the elf knew, the Death Eaters all gathered on the first floor. When they had, Rudolphus started interrogating the elf. “What’s going on here, elf? Where’s you master and the Order?”

“Nasty Master Potter and his filthy friends are gone! They set up wizard wards to let wizards in but never out! We are all going to die!”

“What is that supposed to mean?” Amycus asked.

“Everyone, spread out, search the entire building for anything that you don’t recognize!” Snape ordered. Within minutes, everyone had found strange bundles that they couldn’t move no matter how they tried, and no spell could identify them. Finally Yaxley found something else and brought it before Snape. Recognizing it as a recording ball, Snape activated it.

Every Death Eater watched as Harry Potter rose from the memory ball and taunted them for the last time. “Hello, Professor Snape. Yes, I knew it would be you to lead the Death Eaters here, who else could? I always wondered what side you were truly on, but now it doesn’t really matter, does it? You were willing to lead Death Eaters here to slaughter me, my friends and allies, not to mention my family. Well, you’ve lost. Grimmauld has been abandoned for the past two weeks, ever since Neville, Hermione, Draco and I finished emptying it of everything of value, and placing bombs throughout the building. Oh yes, Draco knew, he knew everything. What you need to know is that Draco has been loyal to me since First Year, and always will be. Now, ever since you Flued in, or Apparated in, or even just walked in the front door, the bombs have been preparing to go off, and they will kill you and whoever else you brought with you. Oh, and before you try to escape, don’t. You can’t, because I have set Parselmagic wards all over the house. You can’t leave, no matter how or what you try. So long, Snape. I’d say it’s been great knowing you, but that would be a lie. Mischief managed.”

Instantly, the Death Eaters all tried to escape, but they couldn’t. And when the bombs started going off, they knew they were doomed. Though they didn’t know how, Potter had managed to bottle Fiendfyre and placed it in the bombs. In a last ditch attempt to escape, six of the Death Eaters gathered together to assault the door, and the rest scattered to try other avenues, but nothing worked, nothing! “Damn you, Potter!” Snape yelled as the last bomb went off, killing all of them instantly.

 

12 Grimmauld Place, London-August 7, 2007-Kingsley

 

The Aurors arrived within an hour of the destruction of 12 Grimmauld, just as the Muggle police arrived. They immediately noticed the oddly dressed men and women and one of them went up to the man who was obviously in charge and asked “Who are you, and what are you doing here?”

“Kingsley Shacklebolt, MI5. We have reason to believe that this was an attack by Al Qaeda, if not one of the IRA splinter groups still operating. Do you mind if we check?”

The policeman shook his head and allowed him through. “I should warn you though, Shacklebolt, the building’s pretty unstable. I don’t know how much you’ll find, or how safe it will be.” Shacklebolt nodded, though he doubted they’d need to worry, after all, how much of a threat could a destroyed building be when one had magic?

As the Aurors entered the building, Kingsley wasn’t too surprised to find out that they discovered many house-elf skulls, but when they announced a complete skeleton, Kingsley was shocked. Kreacher was dead now too? Were there any other casualties, and if so, who? And what had caused Grimmauld Place to be destroyed?

Soon they had some of the answers. Fifteen others dead, fourteen of them were known Death Eaters, and several of them were Inner Circle. And why was Yaxley here? “Kingsley! We found it,” Banks called out. Following the voice to his youngest Auror, he found him in what used to be the dining room. “This is what caused the explosion, or rather, ones similar to it,” Banks started, showing him a bright green package with runes along the sides. “Inside is a mixture of Greek fire, along with a timer connected to a set of runes that were set to react to a specific magical signature, probably why this one didn’t go off. On the outside of the package is an ancient Norse spell that made the Greek fire even more dangerous, truly the work of a genius.”

“Any clue who made it?” he asked. Normally he’d have asked Tonks, as she was a genius when it came to magical signatures, but she was out on her last day of maternity leave.

“I’m not completely certain, sir, but I think it was Potter. You see these runes? They’re not in any language I’ve even heard of, and I was acknowledged as one of the top linguists in the Academy. The only thing I can think of is that it’s written Parseltongue.”

“Very well, let’s get out of here. We don’t need the muggles wondering why we’re not worried about this place.” They had nearly made it to the door when a rumble was heard from somewhere above them, and Kingsley knew no more, as he was buried beneath the rubble, one of the pieces piercing his heart, killing him instantly.

 

Malfoy Manor, Wiltshire-August 8, 2007-Lord Voldemort

 

Voldemort was shocked when his spy inside the Auror ranks reported what had happened at Grimmauld. What had been planned as an ambush to destroy Potter and the Order of the Phoenix had turned out to be a trap! Fifteen of his most loyal Death Eaters killed, and not so much as one Order member dead, unless one counted Shacklebolt’s death! It was a complete disaster, and with Yaxley’s death, he would have to come up with a new plan for the takeover of the Ministry. But what? As he could not have an Imperioused Minister in control, he would have to manipulate things so that someone at least sympathetic to their cause. “Lucius, who is the most sympathetic, high-ranking member of the Ministry towards our cause?”

“Dolores Umbridge, my lord. I am certain that had Yaxley survived and your original plan gone ahead, then she would have had an even higher ranking than she does now. It would not be hard to remove those standing between her and the head office, and she is not Marked,” Lucius explained.

“Good, make a plan to place her in office as quickly as possible. This war has taken a turn against us ever since Potter took control,” Voldemort replied. Salazar, Potter had already destroyed all his Horcruxes without damaging most of the vessels! Not even Potter’s most trusted friend knew how they had been cleansed. Speaking of whom . . . “Draco, what has brought you before us? I certainly did not call you.”

“No, my lord, however, I was sent a message for you. Harry has sent you a challenge. He challenges you to a final duel near Hogwarts, just you and him, with our allies and representatives of the Ministry watching. It would be a duel to the death, winner take all. What do you wish for me to reply, my lord?” the Malfoy heir asked.

Voldemort had to think about this. A chance to end the war now, with no more casualties, and a chance to kill Potter, but at the risk of his own life. What to do, what to do? “Does Potter state when the duel is to take place, should I agree?”

“No, my lord, he leaves that up to you.”

Hmm, then he could have his Death Eaters take the Ministry while he killed Potter. “Very well, tell Potter that I accept, and will have you send a date when I have decided on one.” He then turned back to the elder Malfoy and started discussing plans to take the Ministry.

 

Hogwarts grounds, Scotland-August 23, 2007-Harry

 

This was it, the day that Harry had been waiting and training for ever since he learned the truth of his history. The last person responsible for his twelve years in hell was finally going to pay. He watched as Voldemort came up to him, and the two bowed to each other. Then, with three Ministry employees, several Death Eaters and Hogwarts teachers watching (from behind wards specifically set up for the duel,) the two archenemies cast their first spells, and the duel had begun.

In the Ministry of Magic, Remus Lupin was visiting his wife, Nymphadora Tonks, when out of nowhere, spells started flying. Arthur Weasley was the first to fall to the surprise attack, followed closely by Sturgis Podmore. Remus and Dora quickly pulled their wands, and duelled the attackers, even managing to take two of them out, but there were too many of them, and they were killed, holding each other’s hands, united in death.

As the duel continued, the witnesses all agreed that it was the greatest duel they had ever seen. Each brought their unique talents, knowledge and skill to bear, and while Voldemort brought sixty years of experience with him, it was easy to understand why everyone called Harry ‘the Chosen One.’ He had truly earned the title of warlock-a title given to only the greatest wielders of DA/DADA, and Harry was proving that in this duel.

Rufus Scrimgeour turned to the reporter and replied, “No, I do not feel as though I need to be at the duel. I have every confidence that Harry Potter will win the duel and end the reign of Voldemort forever. As such, I have ordered the Auror department to arrest any and all Death Eaters with the exception of Draco Malfoy and-”

But the media never heard the second exception, as a Death Eater had apparated behind him and killed him with a quick Cutting Curse to the neck, instantly decapitating him.

Finally, after two hours of duelling, Voldemort began to tire, and Harry seized his chance. With a whispered “Sachera!” he finally hit his nemesis, and Tom Marvolo Riddle, the Dark Lord Voldemort, finally fell to the ground, dead. Draco and Hermione were the first people to run up and congratulate him, while Harry just collapsed in their arms. His long quest for revenge was finally done. He could finally live a normal life with his best friend, and the love of his life.

Chapter Text

Slytherin Manor, The Fens, Lincolnshire, England-August 11, 2013-Harry

Harry woke with a smile on his face. Six years had passed since he had defeated Voldemort, and things couldn't be going any better. Looking back, there were barely any things he'd have changed. His last year at Hogwarts was the first peaceful year he'd ever had, made even better by the fact that he and Hermione had become the Head Boy and Girl, the one dark spot in the year being that Umbridge had become Minister of Magic. Him and Draco had remained good friends, and he had been Draco's best man when he finally married Daphne Greengrass right after graduation. The newest Malfoy couple had moved into Malfoy Manor, while Harry, Hermione, and his godson Edward 'Teddy' Remus Lupin had moved into Slytherin Manor, as had his cousin, Mark Evans. Then, two years ago, another person joined them in Slytherin Manor: Harry's newborn son, James Sirius Potter. Harry couldn't have been happier when he learned that Hermione was pregnant, finally he had his greatest desire: a family.

Following his graduation, Harry became the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher and Hermione the Transfiguration teacher after McGonagall's promotion to Headmistress. In Harry's spare time, he took up the Black and Potter seats in the Wizengamot, and, allied with Draco, Neville and their other friends, Harry went to work tearing down the laws that lead to the fracturing that let Voldemort nearly win twice, while strengthening the ones protecting them from the Muggle world. As a result, a muggleborn was now the teacher of a revamped Muggle Studies, which was now required for all purebloods, while Draco taught Wizarding Studies, a new class which was required for all muggle-raised students in order to teach them what they needed to know in order to live in and understand their new world. And whenever he had a spare moment, he had written a six-part autobiography focusing on what happened during the Second Blood War, an autobiography that revealed many of the terrible secrets he had learned about Dumbledore, and what he had done. The series had become an instant best seller as the world had been desperate to learn the truth about their saviour. (It was also written to end the rumours that he and Draco either had been or were currently lovers. Merlin, but that one experimental kiss in their second year had been enough for him!)

He had just finished making breakfast (the elves had been convinced to let him make one meal a day,) when he saw it: a raven coming for the window. "Bugger!"

"What is it, Harry? Why is there a raven coming here?" Hermione asked.

"Remember Rita Skeeter? Well, back in Fourth Year I discovered how she kept getting such good stories, and I made a deal with her. If she warned me about negative stories that were being printed against me with a raven, I'd keep her secret and give her interviews, so long as she only printed what I wanted her to. Now, let's see what disparaging comments the Prophet has for me today, shall we?" They didn't have to wait long, as the article was the key story for the day: Minister Accuses Saviour of Being an Upcoming Dark Lord!

Mark, who had just come into the dining room, asked just one question: "That again? Can't they come up with any new accusations? They've been using that one since Hogwarts!"

Then an owl came flying in, this one being an official Ministry owl. Harry opened it and had to clamp down on his occlumency shields to avoid destroying the letter. "The accusations just became more official. I have to meet the Wizengamot to face charges by Saturday. Mark, flue Draco, I think we need to put our contingency plan into play."

Five minutes later, Draco's head was in the flue, listening to Harry. "Draco, have Daphne start selling off your properties, all except for the main manors in France and England, Hermione will be doing the same for the Potter properties. I need you to return to Hogwarts and start modifying the cabinet so we can travel to other realities."

"Why don't we sell everything, Harry?" Draco asked.

"Because both of our families have produced squibs, and I'm going to use my influence with the goblins to have them test every single muggleborn to see if they are descendants of squibs. One day the Potter, Black and Malfoy names will mean something again, the only question is when."

Courtroom 12, Ministry of Magic, London-August 17, 2013-Harry

"Judicial hearing into offences committed by one Harry James Potter, Lord of Houses Potter and Slytherin. Interrogators: Dolores Jane Umbridge, Minister of Magic; Pius Thicknesse, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement; Peregrinus Selwyn, Chief Warlock. Court Scribe, Percival Ignatius Weasley. Now, would you tell us what this is about, Madame Minister?" Lord Selwyn asked.

"It is quite simple, Lord Selwyn. It is my belief that ever since Mr Potter returned to our world, he has been nothing but a threat and an agitator, seeking to destabilize our world so that he can gain control of it," Umbridge declared in that annoying voice of hers.

"First, it is Lord Potter-Slytherin, Minister. Second, what possible evidence could you have of my guilt?" Harry demanded.

"Your own autobiography!" Umbridge declared. And with that, she opened her farce of a trial, taking one small part of his history after another out of context and painting him as the darkest wizard since Salazar himself. She took everything, from the fact that Voldemort had attempted to steal the Philosopher's Stone on the day he returned to the magical world to the fact that he was teaching DADA like Voldemort had wanted to do. She even used the fact that he was related to Salazar against him! And due to the fact that she barely let him get a word in edgewise, (and the fact that none of his allies were in the courtroom,) the Wizengamot was quickly turning against him. "In short, ladies and gentlewizards, the darkness in Lord Potter is as plain as the scar on his face. He was born in a time of grief and raised hated by his guardians. The moment he returned to us, he asked for trouble by investigating a forbidden corridor at Hogwarts. Tom Riddle told us the same tale and we raised him up, fortunately, we are not so blind anymore. He has already raised a coalition of like minded wizards to change our government to suit his own purposes! We must end this threat before it ends our way of life!"

Harry could see where this was going, so he spoke up. "This pointless debate is ending now. You don't want me around, fine! I give up! I am sick and tired of how you treat me, first as a saviour, then a bloody pariah!"

"Good, that makes things easy. Aurors, arrest him," Umbridge ordered.

"I think you misunderstood me, Umbitch. I have no intention of going to Azkaban, so I shall go into voluntary exile, I and my entire family. I wonder how long it will take before the public demands your head for this. The only regret I have is that I will never know what happened to you. Goodbye, and good riddance!" And with that, Harry Potter flipped them the finger and apparated out of the courtroom.

Room of Requirement, Hogwarts, Scotland-August 18, 2013-Draco

"Are you certain that it's safe for me and Daphne to use, Draco?" Hermione asked.

"Hermione, would I risk Daphne or my child's health under any circumstances? Believe me, the vanishing cabinets are perfectly safe for anyone of any age to use. Merlin, even muggles could use them if they knew what one was!" Draco said as he double-checked the ward scheme to make certain they matched the diagram. "Alright, we're ready to go. Time for you to say your goodbyes."

Draco watched as the others said goodbye to their friends, and he almost felt jealous of them. Harry and Hermione had the Twins, Neville and Mark, while Daphne was saying goodbye to Mark's girlfriend, her sister Astoria. Then again, why should he be jealous? They were all leaving something or someone behind, while the only thing he was leaving behind was a dark history and a bad reputation. Once the others had finished their goodbyes, everyone picked up their trunks (which held everything they owned,) walked into the cabinet and closed the door. What they could not know was that they would never again lay eyes on England or their friends.

Once the door was closed, they saw an enormous room full of doors covered in symbols. Hermione eventually deduced that they were different writing systems when she recognized one of them as a language she called sindarin. Knowing that, they immediately split up, looking for doors in English. Surprisingly, it was six-year old Teddy who found the first door in English. "I found one! I don't recognize one of the words, but it reads 'The realms of the seven kingdoms of Westeros and the free cities of Essos.'" Everyone was so happy that they immediately went through the door, uncaring of what kind of world they would be entering, or what the possible consequences would be.

Chapter Playlist:

Dark Wings, Dark Words

Malfoy's Mission

Umbridge Spoils a Beautiful Morning

One of Us (Lion King 2)

A New Beginning

Chapter Text

Chapter III: The Kraken's War

The Twins, Riverlands, 286 A.L.-Harry

"Alright James, what do you know about our House?" Harry asked his eldest son, who had just celebrated his birthday a week ago.

"Our House was born in a land called England or Albion about 1500 years ago by Salazar Slytherin and came here under your leadership about six years ago. Within a month of our arrival, you massacred the previous Lord of the Twins and his family for oath-breaking, breaking the guest-right and attempted murder. King Robert made you pay a fine of one million dragons for vigilantism and line-ending, and after an extra 'gift' of 500,000 dragons, we became the Lords of the Twins. Our sigil is a silver serpent on a green field, and our words are 'By Skill Not Force.' It is also rumoured amongst the common people that we have magic, though I do not know if that is true," James finished.

Harry smiled at his son, who could have easily passed as a clone of his namesake, though he certainly had his mother's mind. "All true, including the magic, though you will not have it until magic is reborn in this land. However, you did miss one key trait, the key trait of our House that determines who will be the next Lord Slytherin."

"I did?" James asked in surprise.

"Yes, a trait so tied to our family that everyone in England knew that one who had it was a member of our family. That trait is known as Parseltongue, the ability to speak to snakes."

"We really can talk to snakes?" James asked. His little brother, Albus had claimed that he had conversations with snakes several times before, but James had always dismissed the claims, much as he dismissed the claims of the Reeds to be able to see the future with green dreams, or the existence of the Children of the Forest and the Others. Then again, Albus was only five, so James expected him to still believe in fairy tales and the songs.

"Yes, but as you have yet to display the trait, we need to learn if you do. Otherwise, I'm sorry but you cannot be my heir as Lord Slytherin," Harry stated.

"And how do we find out?" James asked, already knowing Albus would be the next Lord Slytherin if he couldn't speak it.

"I brought a snake with me, one that is perfectly safe to be around," Harry explained. He brought out the garter snake and told it "My other son is here, would you try and speak to him?"

"Dad, stop," James said with a whisper. Though he was eight now, he was on the verge of tears, something he hadn't done since he was four. "Dad, I couldn't understand you just now! What's going to happen to me?"

Harry pulled James in for a hug. "You will always be my son, James, this just means that you can't inherit the Twins. But I swear to you that I will find something for you."

Before Harry could comfort James any more, eleven year old Edward 'Teddy' Lupin came running into the room. "Uncle Harry! The Greyjoys have just burned the Lannister fleet at anchor! We're at war!"

Harry just groaned. "I've already been through a war, isn't that enough for one lifetime? James, go tell Maester Johann to call the banners. Teddy, you're going to come with me. I think it's time that I start teaching you how to lead, and prepare you to leave us."

"Leave, Uncle Harry? Do you not want me anymore?" Teddy asked, his normally turquoise hair turning white in fear, absolutely terrified of the prospect.

"You will always be part of the family, Teddy, and I will always want you. But you're going to be an adult soon, and I was thinking of finding a way for you to support yourself, and a family," Harry explained with a smile.

---

A week later and the soldiers that owed loyalty to the Twins had assembled and arrived at Seagard, a castle specifically built to defend against the invasions of the Ironborn. Harry had made certain to become friends with the Mallisters in case of such an invasion, though he had hoped and prayed that it would never happen. In order to facilitate the closer relationship, Harry had expanded the Westerosi road system, connecting the Twins to not only Seagard, but also Oldstones, Fairmarket and Riverrun in the Riverlands, as well as Banefort, The Crag, Ashemark and Casterly Rock in the Westerlands. With the expanded road system, Harry's soldiers had managed to reach Seagard in half the time they normally would have, and as such, Harry and Jason Mallister had been able to prepare a more effective defence, and train the soldiers to better standards.

It was a good thing too, because only ten days after their arrival at Seagard, the bells in the Booming Tower started ringing: the Ironborn had arrived. It would be the first time that Harry used Salazar Slytherin's glaive as a weapon since arriving in Westeros, and he was fairly nervous. That is, until the Ironborn came charging at him. The first one bore a squid on his breastplate, and Harry quickly smashed it in with the hammer before stabbing him in the throat. With his first kill behind him, Harry was quick to get into battle mode again, and between his spells and the actual triple threat of Sheara, Harry was quickly eliminating the Ironborn soldiers.

Unfortunately, nothing could save him from a misstep, and Harry fell to the ground, with Sheara knocked away from him, making him easy prey for any of the raiders that noticed he was still alive. And one was quick to do just that, a tall man in solid black armour, outside of the gold kraken on his chest, and the golden kraken helm he wore. "Stay away from my uncle!" a familiar voice cried out. Harry was so shocked that he turned towards his godson and watched as he picked up Sheara and stabbed the man through the back of his knee.

The Ironborn cried out in pain as the basilisk venom started surging through his veins. "You bastard!" he cried out as the venom hit his heart.

"Don't you dare insult my godson," Harry stated, as he cut off the man's hands, feet, and, once he was dead, his head as well.

"He killed our prince! Avenge Rodrick!" the cry went out, and all of a sudden, every Ironborn surged towards Harry and Teddy. The two looked at each other, nodded, and prepared for the onslaught, as the focus of the enemy turned from the Booming Tower towards them. Teddy was quick to grab a small sword, perfect for his naturally short stature, as well as a bow, quiver full of arrows, and one of the fallen raider's shields. Harry's own first action was to hit the ground with the butt end of Sheara, setting off a silent Coracis shifting the landscape in order to make it so that fewer of the Ironborn could attack them at once, thus nullifying their numerical advantage.

The Ironborn either ignored the change in landscape, or didn't care, because outside of a fearful cry of "Sorcery!" they showed no reaction outside of rage, and continued to charge at the two. Harry's curses and Teddy's bow kept them at bay for a while, but eventually they managed to get close enough that Harry and Teddy had to start using their melee weapons. By then, the narrow corridor was filled with dead bodies in various levels of dismemberment. But eventually, even the fierce Ironborn couldn't cope with their losses and were forced to retreat back to their ships . . . or rather, would have if their ships were still intact. While Harry and Teddy had kept the Ironborn busy, the Mallister men had destroyed their ships, allowing the Seagard and Twins soldiers to utterly destroy the invaders.

Pyke, Iron Islands, 286 A.L.-Harry

"You had to do what?!" Harry exclaimed three months later.

"You heard me, Harry. I had to destroy the Dreadfort with Fiendfyre and reburn the ashes. The evil of the Boltons lingered there far too deeply to stay there. We've moved across the river just to be on the safe side," Draco explained. Within weeks of moving into his new castle, the Malfoys had become extremely agitated with each other and their new servants, something that had never happened before, and their children had become extremely ill, to the point of death. Draco, being the most attuned to sensing magic, had quickly discovered the problem lay in the castle itself and taken the appropriate measures, including evacuating the smallfolk from the castle, though not before building new homes for them. The scary thing was that he did have to reburn the ashes of the Dreadfort, a measure the Ministry had only used in the most extreme circumstances, when the Dark Magic that had infiltrated the building was so terrible that if they didn't reburn it, then the evil of the magic or acts would have continued lingering and affecting those living in the area. The only other building in recent memory to have been reburned was the former Riddle Manor.

"My lords, it is not the time to catch up, we are about to start the battle," Lord Stark stated. In the months that had followed the destruction of the Lannister fleet and the attack on Seagard, King Robert had gathered the lords to invade the Iron Islands and end the rebellion. This had caused a little tension between Harry and Lord Stark, due to his deception and the Massacre at the Twins, but things were slowly improving, partly due to Harry's part in saving Seagard, and partly due to his obvious friendship with Draco, whom Ned trusted without reservation.

"Ah, leave off them, Ned! They're clearly good friends, and when was the last time they saw each other?" Robert Baratheon countered. "Now come on, we haven't seen each other since I was crowned! We need to catch up." And with that, the king dragged his childhood friend off to the side.

"He has a point, Draco, we should see each other more often," Harry stated once he got over his shock at seeing the king. Though it hadn't been three years since he saw the king, Robert had already gained a good two stone of fat. What kind of life was he living at the court? All he had ever heard of the man was from Ned, and all of it was good. Ned Stark had described a man with a lust for life that showed itself in every way possible, including one for women. Robert's lust for women was becoming so infamous that it was starting to rival that of Aegon IV the Unworthy, and it was making Harry glad that Westeros didn't approve of female warriors.

"Yeah, we should. Hey, how about this: I heard of a Westerosi tradition among the nobles where one lord hosts a child of another, so how about we let Ned raise our heirs? We can check up on them every few months so that we stay close to them and each other. What do you say?"

Harry's eyes lit up at the suggestion. "That's brilliant! But do you think the girls will go for it? You know how they are about the kids, and Scorpius and Albus are still pretty young."

"Well, that's why we'll tell them now, but wait a few years before actually doing it, and to make things even better for them, we'll bring them home for a couple months every year. Do you think Hermione will go for it?"

"Uncle Harry!" Teddy called out before Harry could respond. The preteen had almost been knighted for his actions at Seagard, but it was decided against due to his youth. "The army is ready to attack! We need to prepare our troops for the attack."

"Thanks Teddy, we'll be ready," Harry said before turning back to his oldest friend. "You know, if we spin this as being like Hogwarts, then the girls will be far more willing to let them go. Have them go to Winterfell when they turn 11 and come home every few months."

Draco grinned at the idea. "And to make it so we can meet up, we can go to Winterfell to pick them up! Brilliant, Harry! By the way, is it true that there was magic used at the Battle of Seagard?" he asked with a glint in his eyes; one that suggested he already knew the answer.

Harry just gave him his infamous smirk in response before turning to follow his godson. Looking out at Pyke, he could see the still smoking ruins of Lordsport, burned by the Lannisters when they arrived on Pyke. Militarily it was a good idea, as Greyjoy's men had been using the town as cover to harass Harry and Mallister's men, who had been busy attacking Castle Botley. Now though, the whole strength of Westeros had arrived, there were men from as far north as Last Hearth, and as far south as the Arbor. The failure of the Greyjoys was assured, the only question left was if any of them would be smart enough to surrender, or if they were too proud to do so. To make matters worse for the Ironborn, Pyke had been under bombardment by the many trebuchets and catapults that the Riverlanders had built in the three months they had been on the island. Harry doubted there was a tree left on the island, which meant it would be that much harder for the pirates to rebuild their fleet.

Now, the last towers on Pyke had been destroyed, and thanks to the fleet, they had a clear path from the gatehouse of Pyke to the Sea Tower, which was three seastacks out from the Great Keep, and connected to the other parts of the castle only by the clichéd swinging, wooden bridges. Really, Harry thought, why would anyone want a castle with those, especially here? They were just asking for death by falling when storms hit. Harry doubted that even Gryffindors would be foolish enough to build a castle like that! Then again, that kind of sounded like something that the Twins would do.

Harry startled at the thought. That was the first time he had really thought of his friends from England since arriving in Westeros. He started wondering how things were going for them when suddenly, Teddy called out "They've breached the gatehouse!"

Harry turned to his men and shouted "That's it, let's finish this!" And with that, the army started charging through the breach, with the priest Thoros of Myr and Jorah Mormont of Bear Island taking the lead. Fortunately, with as large an army as Robert had brought, Pyke fell quickly. Though the army had to split up to search and secure every room, and had to deal with archers defending the bridges between the keeps, their enormous numbers worked to Robert's advantage. Even with the constant division, the continual reinforcements from the camp ensured that no Ironborn would be missed. Finally, the army reached Balon Greyjoy, who seemed determined to win or die. "You may take my head, but you cannot name me traitor," he claimed. "No Greyjoy ever swore fealty to a Baratheon."

"No, your family just swore fealty to the Iron Throne, I checked," Harry stated. Upon his decision to claim the Twins, he had decided to look into the fealty oaths every lord owed, just to be on the safe side. Each of the barons were sworn to counts, and each count was sworn to a duke, even if they were all simply called lords. The Lord of the Twins was a count, and the eight dukes of the regions, the Starks of the North for example, were all sworn to the Iron Throne under their original oaths to the Targaryens, and now to the Baratheons.

"And now you will swear to me, or lose that stubborn head of yours," Robert growled out. Balon bent the knee and swore his allegiance to Robert. "Now, how to make certain you won't rebel again?"

"Your Grace," Draco said, "back home, there is a tradition amongst the rulers when they were in this situation. Whenever there was a rebellion, they take a hostage from the rebels in order to ensure they won't rebel again. I would suggest you follow the principle, and take the eldest child from the great families of the Iron Islands. After all, Greyjoy wasn't alone in the rebellion. According to the traditions of the Iron Islands, a king must be chosen by a council in order to ensure they pick the strongest among them."

"Great idea, Malfoy! Ned, you can take the Greyjoy's boy, I'll figure out what to do with the rest later," Robert stated. "Now, let's get off this rock before winter arrives!" Ned agreed, silently wondering how he would explain this to Catelyn.

Winterfell, The North, 290 AL-Eddard

Fortunately for Ned, not only had he beaten the winter snows home, but Cat took Theon's arrival quite well, as did Robb. Actually, Robb took his arrival best, quickly becoming close to the older boy, almost to the point of neglecting Jon. Fortunately, Jon had become close with Ned's newest child, Arya, who already showed signs of being Lyanna reborn. Fortunately Draco wasn't having the same problem, as he had placed his hostage, the eldest son of Lord Wyk with his new smallfolk: Wildlings brought from north of the Wall. Ned had to shake his head at the thought. Who would willingly bring them south of the Wall besides his Justice of the North? And just to make Ned's home all the more crowded, young Albus Slytherin and Scorpius Malfoy had become his wards. But as the gods seemed intent on keeping everything in balance, the two boys had become close friends with both Jon and Robb, though neither liked Theon much.

However, neither of the boys were there when he had returned from White Harbor after chasing Ser Jorah Mormont there. The lord turned slaver had escaped, and the boys were back at their homes for a few months. Ned was now reading in the godswood when Cat walked in and found him. "Reading again? One would think you aspired to be a maester when you were young, Ned."

"What makes you think I didn't?" Ned joked. "The middle of three sons, and I always did love to read more than fight, I think a Maester's life would have suited me." Then he sighed at his family's fates. "Ah, but it was not my destiny, and I couldn't be happier, Cat."

"I could almost agree with that, Ned, except for one thing." Ned raised an eyebrow in question. "Tell us when."

"Tell you when ... what, Cat?"

"Tell me and Jon when you will tell us the truth about his mother, Ned. He came to me today asking if I knew who his mother was."

"Jon came to you?" Ned asked in shock. Though he hated it, everyone in Winterfell knew of the bad feelings between Jon and Cat.

"Yes, after Theon taunted him about it, again."

Ned sighed. The rivalry between the two boys was starting to become a problem, even more so than the relationship between Jon and Cat. "Then you're right, I have kept this secret too long. Jon's nameday is next month, I'll tell you then, I promise, Cat."

"Thank you, Ned," she said, looking happier than Ned had ever seen her.

A few hours later, Ned called Jon to his solar. Jon looked almost afraid that he had been called by Ned. "Jon, I want you to do something for me. I want you to stop dyeing your hair until after your nameday."

"But Father, you told me to make certain I always dyed my hair."

"I know, Jon, but I do have a reason for it. And I will explain on your nameday, I promise."

---

One month later, on his tenth nameday, Jon preformed his morning ablutions, and when he finished, looked at his reflection in the water. After a month without using the dyes in his hair, he barely recognized himself, though the only thing truly different was that his hair was nearly as white as Lord Black's. But combining that with the fact that his eyes seemed to have changed colour and Jon would almost swear that ... eh, it didn't matter. Both Theon and Robb stared in shock, and Theon even managed to joke about him going grey in his old age. Jon just smiled and joked back, "If I'm old, Greyjoy, what does that make you?"

Theon gaped at him before bursting out in laughter. "Good one, Jon! I'm proud of you," he said with the largest smile any had seen on his face since he arrived at Winterfell. Jon on the other hand just stared at the kraken, that had been the first time that Theon called him by his first name.

"Jon, come here," Eddard called out. "I need to talk to you, in private." Robb looked at him in confusion, while Jon just shrugged. He had no idea why their father would want to talk to him in private. "Wait, Robb, you should probably hear this as well." Now all three of the boys were confused, but what could Jon and Robb do but obey? Theon figured it had to be some Stark family thing and let them be.

To Jon's surprise, his father led them into the Stark catacombs, where Lady Stark was waiting for them. "Robb too, Ned?" she asked.

"He's our heir and next in line to become Lord of Winterfell, he deserves to know. Besides, the boys think of each other as brothers, Robb would have almost certainly found out soon anyways." The two boys looked at each other in shock. What did he mean they thought of each other as brothers? Weren't they brothers, if only half-brothers? "Well boys, I'm sure you're wondering why I called you both here," their father began. "Jon, Cat here told me that you actually asked her if she knew who your mother was last month, is that true?" Jon simply nodded. "Well, that you actually went to her made me realize that I've held on to this secret long enough, and probably too long. The answer to your past, Jon, is down here, in the last place anyone would think to look." He then turned to his wife and son. "The secret behind Jon's birth is now treason, and should Robert find out, he will certainly kill myself, Jon and anyone else who knows the truth. If either of you don't want to know and be as guilty of treason, you can go back." None of the three left, so he continued. Slowly he led them through the catacombs, passing by the Kings of the North and the trio considered what they had been told so far. "Now boys, what do you know about how Robert came to be king?"

"Because of the Mad King Aerys, and his son Rhaegar. Aerys had become increasingly insane ever since his capture by House Darklyn, then Rhaegar kidnapped Aunt Lyanna, Robert's betrothed. Grandfather Rickard and Uncle Brandon went to King's Landing to get her back, and were killed for it, so Robert went to war to get her back. Robert killed Rhaegar and became king, but when you finally found Aunt Lyanna, she was dead," Robb summarized.

"Very good, Robb, but that's not entirely true." The other Starks looked at each other in confusion before turning to their patriarch. "Rhaegar did not kidnap my sister, she ran away with him, and a few months later, married him."

"But what does this have to do with my mother?" Jon asked.

"Everything, my boy. I must confess now that I have lied to almost everyone for the past thirteen years. I dishonoured myself in order to keep a promise I made to Lyanna, a promise to keep you safe. And it was in an attempt to keep that promise, and my own wedding vows that I told that lie. If you were younger, you would not have been mature enough to know to keep it a secret. And Cat, if you knew the truth, and it came out, you would be killed right alongside me."

"Why would your sister ask you to keep him safe?" Lady Catelyn asked. "And why is the secret a treasonous one?"

"As I said before, I've lived a lie for thirteen years. The truth is Cat, I have kept only two promises in my life. The first was that I would be true to you, and love only you, Cat. The second was to keep Jon safe. Cat, the only children I have are yours."

"WHAT?!" Catelyn and Jon cried out in confusion. "Then where did I come from?" Jon demanded.

Robb's eyes widened in realization. "Isn't it obvious? You're not my brother, you're my cousin." Turning to his father he asked "That's it, isn't it? Jon's the son of Aunt Lyanna and Prince Rhaegar, isn't he? That's why it's treason just for him to be alive, and why you asked us about how Robert came to be king."

"Yes, he is, Robb," Ned said as they stopped in front of the last occupied niche in the catacombs. "Both of your parents are here, Jon."

"Is that even my real name? Is this my actual nameday?"

"As far as I know, yes, this is your actual nameday. You were only newly born when I found you and your mother. As for your name, I did change it into something that's passable for any family really, but truly believable for one of my children. Your real name though is one you have claimed before." The two boys looked at him with unbridled curiosity. "Remember the game where you would call out names of famous knights that you would play as?  You would often claim the knight that my sister named you for."

Jon thought for a while, then he remembered the knight, his favourite kingsguard: "Aemon," he whispered. "My name is Aemon Targaryen." Robb pulled his cousin into a hug as the young dragon prince came to accept his heritage.

Cat whispered to Ned. "Why, Ned? Why didn't you ever tell me? I can understand why not when we were first married, but what about after?"

"I think it could be put down to fear. Not fear of you," he was quick to explain, "but rather, fear of breaking my promise. Fear for Jon, or rather, Aemon, and what could happen if someone found out about him, especially Robert. Also, as I said, it could be lethal to you if you knew the truth and Robert found out."

"Then, why is it you don't wish to speak of Ashara Dayne, Ned? I'd assumed it was because of Jo-Aemon I mean," Cat demanded.

"If you insist, my lady, I'll tell you, but I fear it will only cause you more pain. Ashara was nothing more than a close friend and confidante to me. She was the only one that knew that I'd fallen in love with my brother's betrothed and she with my brother. That night at Harrenhal, Bran slept with Ashara. When Brandon's daughter was stillborn, she could not take the grief of losing both them and her brother, and threw herself off the cliff. I have always loved you, Cat, and none other. Why do you think I insisted on not following through on the bedding ritual?" With that, Cat threw herself in her husband's arms and wept.

Chapter Text

So, I've been doing some rereading of some of my favorite stories recently, and I've made a decision. I'm sorry, but I've realized that A Song of Ice and Fire/Game of Thrones is too complex a story for me to write fanfics for that I would be satisfied with. As such, I'm abandoning most of my stories in the fandom, while sharing my notes so you can see where I was planning on going with each of them.

278-Tourney at Harrenhal, Birth of Tyrion Lannister

279-Winter ends, Lyanna elopes with and marries Rhaegar, birth of Theon Greyjoy, murder of Rickard and Brandon Stark, birth of Robert's Rebellion

280-Battle of the Trident, Deaths of Rhaegar and Lyanna Targaryen, Births of Aemon Targaryen/Jon Snow, Daenarys Targaryen and Robb Stark

281-Houses Slytherin, Malfoy and Lupin arrive in Summerhall, Death of House Frey, House Slytherin becomes Lords of the Twins, births of Albus Slytherin, Scorpius Malfoy and Gendry Waters

283-One year winter, Birth of Joffrey Waters and Lily Slytherin

284-Births of Sansa Stark and Cassiopeia Malfoy

285-House Bolton convicted of flaying men and destroyed, Dreadfort destroyed and ashes reburned, Castle Malfoy built

286-Greyjoy Rebellion, Births of Arya Stark and Luna Slytherin, Theon taken as ward by Ned Stark

287-Winter begins, Birth of Myrcella Waters/Baratheon and Astoria Malfoy

288-Births of Bran Stark and Sirius Slytherin

289-Winter ends, Births of Robin Arryn and Altair Malfoy, Petyr Baelish joins Small Council as Master of Coin, Teddy engaged to Lyra Mormont, Albus and Scorpius start fostering at Winterfell

290-Ser Jorah Mormont flees Westeros, Jon, Robb and Catelyn learn the truth about Jon's origins

292-Birth of Rickon Stark, James Slytherin squired to Ser Barristan

294-White Walkers are first spotted by Night's Watch, Tyrion marries Tysha, James Slytherin knighted, takes up name of Potter

December 297-Waymar Royce killed by White Walkers

298-Game of Thrones

299-Clash of Kings & Part of Storm of Swords

300-Purple Wedding

Draco and Harry's Oath of Fealty: By the gods of this land, I will to my Lord be true and faithful, and love all that he loves and shun all that he shuns, according to the laws of the Gods and the order of the world. Nor will I ever with will or action, through word or deed, do anything which is unpleasing to him, on condition that he will hold to me as I shall deserve it, and that he will perform everything as it was in our agreement when I submitted myself to him and chose his will.

Harry visits Twins and is attacked during dinner, kills off House Frey, becomes Lord of the Twins

Draco becomes Justice of the North, spies on House Bolton and is captured, tortured-including flaying, Eddard Stark convicts and executes Roose and Ramsay, House Black becomes Lords of the Dreadfort, Draco destroys Dredfort, reburns ashes, builds Castle Malfoy across the river from ashes of the Dredfort

Draco brings Free Folk to Castle Malfoy and allows them to live as they will except that they must reap what they sow, marry only other free folk and give 10% of crops to the Castle granary

Harry & Hermione's children: Teddy Lupin, James, Albus, Lily, Luna, Sirius; James is oldest, but is not a Parselmouth

Draco & Daphne's children: Scorpius, Cassiopeia, Astoria and Altair

Teddy becomes lord of a holdfast in the Wolfswood, takes 'Never Despairing' as words, and a silver wolf and full moon on a midnight blue field as sigil, marries Lyra Mormont

James becomes Ser Barristan's squire at 14, takes name of Ser Potter, Fortune Favours the Bold as words, with crossed golden sword and Lightning bolt on a red field-Moat Cailin as Seat

Draco uses the peasants and beggars as spies, Renly uses the servants

Jon goes to Night's Watch in order to meet his great-uncle Aemon and help save the Watch

Draco imposes 5% tax on inns, 25% tax on Brothels to raise money after learning about debt of 4,000,000 dragons

Draco suggests preparing a back-up plan in case they fail in coup-Ned tells Arya and Sansa the truth, has Sansa stay in King's Landing and play little bird while spying on the Lannisters, Arya is told to escape to Essos and find her Aunt Daenarys (? Ask readers)

Joffrey is a harsh king but kind man, truly loves Sansa, but is willing to let her go if she doesn't wish to marry him, Assigns Arys as personal shield

Ser Barristan and Arya book passage on same ship heading to Essos in order to find Dany, join forces and pledge themselves to Dany

Pairings: Robb/Talisa, Albus/Scorpius, Loras/Renly/Margaery, Daenerys/Jon/Satin

Harry goes to negotiate with Renly, dies protecting him from shadow baby assassin, Renly is enraged and demands a duel with Stannis to the death as a trial by combat

Joffrey learns the truth about his heritage and despairs, Sansa comforts him (Poll for Sansa's future husband)

Albus suggests allying with Martells, Robb sends Albus and Scorpius to negotiate

Hand's Tournament entrance Fees

30 Dragon fee for Joust

25 Dragon fee for Melee

20 Stag fee for Noble Archers

10 Stag Fee for lowborn archers

If you want to know what a mans like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals

Valyrio bē vestretir hen oktio mazvēttīr va kilter: An Account of Valyria from The Birth of the City to it's Death

"When a King becomes a tyrant, he thereby breaks the contract binding his subjects to him"

In the name of Robert of the House Baratheon, First of his name, King of the Andals, Rhoynar and the First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms and Protector of the Realm, I hereby command Eddard of House Stark, Lord of Winterfell, Warden of the North and Hand of the King to serve as Lord Regent and Protector of the Realm upon my death, to rule in my stead until my brother and rightful heir, Stannis of House Baratheon, Lord of Dragonstone can claim the throne.

Jorah was walking towards the docks when he heard someone 'Psst' at him. Turning towards the noise, he saw a young boy, no more than 8 years old, and clearly a native of Essos. "Jorah, the Andal. The Spider sends his greetings, and his congratulations." The boy then handed him a scroll with the seal of House Baratheon on it. "A royal pardon, you can go home now."

The boy was just about to leave when Jorah stopped him. "Wait just a minute. I have something for the Spider myself." He then pulled out his own scroll and handed it to the boy. "Viserys is dead, I'm done working for him. My loyalty now lies with Daenarys."

"Jorah the Andal, the Spider has another message for you," the boy said. He then held out another scroll for Jorah to take. "The Spider bade me to tell you to read that quickly."

Jorah raised his eyebrow at the boy before taking the message and reading it. To his surprise, Varys was warning him that Robert had demanded the death of the Targaryens and promised a lordship as payment for their deaths. Why would Varys ask him to spy on the Targaryens, then warn him about the assassins? But before he could puzzle it out, his ears caught the sound of a man calling out in Dothraki, a man with a distinctive Arbori accent. Suspicious, he followed the voice. His suspicions were doubled when the wine merchant dumped a glass of wine as soon as he heard Daenarys' name and immediately offered a 'gift' of a different wine. "Rakharo, put down that cask," Jorah commanded in Dothraki. Daenarys asked if something was wrong, but Jorah just said that he was thirsty, and ordered the merchant to open it.

"The wine is for the khaleesi. It's not for the likes of you." That just made Jorah all the more certain that the wine was poisoned, and he insisted that the merchant open and then pour the wine. "It would be a crime to drink a wine this rich without letting it breathe first," the merchant tried to argue.

"Do as he says," Daenarys commanded. The merchant bowed to her command and gave it to Jorah. Once he had the glass, the Merchant started to sing it's praises again, obviously hoping that Jorah would drink the wine and be satisfied. But Jorah knew better and offered the glass to the Merchant. Naturally he refused, saying he wasn't worthy and it would be bad for his business. Daenarys glared at him and commanded "You will drink." There was no arguing when a Targaryen turned those violet eyes on you. You either did as commanded, or you paid the penalty.

By then, the Merchant knew it was over, and he threw the glass at Jorah and the cask at Rakharo before running. But before he could get very far, Rakharo snagged the merchant's ankle with his whip.

Draco shivered as he saw Joffrey Waters on the Iron Throne. The little bastard actually looked like he belonged on that throne, more than Ned or Robert ever did.

"I command the Council to make all the necessary arrangements for my coronation," Joffrey commanded. "I wish to be crowned within the fortnight. Today I shall accept oaths of fealty from my loyal councillors."

Ned acted as though he hadn't heard the boy. "Ser Barristan, I believe no man here could ever question your honour." Ned then pulled Robert's will out, and handed it to the oldest member of the Kingsguard.

Taking the scroll, he took notice of the seal first. "King Robert's seal- unbroken." He then broke the seal and opened the scroll. Reading it out, he announced "Lord Eddard Stark is herein named Protector of the Realm, to rule as regent until-" He froze as he read the next line. "Is this true?" he asked Ned.

"I wrote it exactly as he dictated," Ned lied. "Robert then verified it before signing and sealing it."

"What is it?" Cersei demanded.

Continuing on, Barristan read "-To rule as regent until my brother and rightful heir, Stannis can claim the throne." Many of the people in the throne room gasped as they heard the will.

"May I see that letter, ser Barristan?" Cersei asked. The knight handed it over to the former queen, allowing her to read her late husband's final words. "Protector of the realm? Stannis as heir? Is this meant to be your shield, Lord Stark?" She asked, before tearing the will into pieces. "A piece of paper?"

"Those were the king's words," Barristan said in shock, as she threw the pieces to the ground.

"We have a new king now," Cersei insisted. Turning to Ned, she said "Lord Eddard, when we last spoke you offered me some counsel. Allow me to return the courtesy. Bend the knee, my lord. Bend the knee and swear loyalty to my son, and we shall allow you to live out your days in the grey waste you call home."

"Like we would ever bow to an inbred bastard with no claim to the throne," Draco said. "If you try to keep the throne, you will bring war upon this land. Heed my counsel, Lannister, Yield the throne and let the land finish the summer in peace."

"Your bannerman condemns himself with his own mouth, Lord Stark. Ser Barristan, seize the traitors."

"Ser Barristan is a good man, a loyal man. Do him no harm," Ned commanded. Joffrey commanded their deaths, but Ned turned to Slynt and ordered him to take Cersei and her children into custody in the royal apartments. "I want no bloodshed," he insisted. "Tell your men to lay down their swords. No one needs to die."

But Slynt had lied to them. He gave an order to the gold cloaks and they turned on the Stark men. Draco quickly pulled out his wand and sword and killed several of them before he took a wound to the leg, in the same place as Ned had. He collapsed, but not before seeing Littlefinger pull the assassin's dagger on Ned, saying "I did warn you not to trust me." Traitorous bastard, Draco thought. As he fainted, he realized that, not only had the coup failed, but also that he was quite glad that he had listened to Harry's advice and not brought any of his family down to King's Landing. His last conscious thought was to plunge his own dagger into the traitor's knee.

"I am Draco Black, Lord of Castle Malfoy and Justice of the North. I was brought here to confess to treason before gods and men." The crowd shouted Traitor! at him, but he continued. "However, I cannot and will not confess to a crime that I did not commit!" Everyone fell silent at that. "I will not serve a boy whose only claim to the throne is through his mother! The boy, Joffrey, whom you now proclaim as king is a bastard born not to King Robert I, but to Ser Jaime Lannister, the Kingslayer! Stannis is legally the next man in line to become king, and I will continue to say so until he claims the throne!" Draco proclaimed over the muttering crowd.

"Kill him! Kill Him!" Joffrey demanded. But Draco would have none of that. With a quick "Accio!" Draco acquired his wand, attacked his guards and apparated North.

That night, Jon deliberately cast his mind out, looking for an animal that would connect to him, and was quickly dragged far to the east. He had spent the night in the warmth of the fire, and in the arms of the woman who had brought him forth from the stone of his egg. His Black brother was on Mother's shoulder, and his golden brother at her feet, and a blood red comet blazed above them. Two men came before them, and the pale man bowed at her knees proclaiming in a human tongue "Blood of my blood," as did the dark male. Mother then stood up, and the black brother cried out. Instinct proclaimed that he do so as well, and so he did, along with his golden brother, and the Dawn came alive with the music of Dragons for the first time in more than a century.

Draco joins Stannis with six men

Robb sends peace terms to Tywin

Tyrion prepares to send Myrcella to Robin Arryn and the Vale

Cat returns to Winterfell, Robb and Harry go south to meet with Renly, Scorpius put in charge of the army

Harry suggests Duel between Baratheon brothers to decide who shall be king, both agree. Harry killed by shadow creature, Renly gains his fury, gives Randall Tarly 1/3 of his army to march to Gold Road and attack the Westerlands, Loras kills Stannis

Theon Greyjoy stays loyal to Robb Stark, Kills Balon and sends Aeron to The Wall, claims Crown for himself, Iron Islands Declare for Targaryens New Greyjoy words: Let us be Judged by our Actions

Theon sends Greyjoy fleet under Victarion to Lannisport and burns the Lannister fleet at anchor

Wildfire is a combination of Greek Fire, napalm, nitro-glycerine and magic

A few days into the Red Waste, Jorah decided to come clean to Daenarys. "Khaleesi?" he called out.

"Yes, what is it?"

"I need to tell you something, something that might make you upset. Remember back in Vaes Dothrak when I asked if you wanted to see Viserys as King on the Iron Throne?"

"Yes, why?"

"You said that you didn't want him on the throne, remember? Well, many people didn't want to see him on the throne, and I must admit that I was one of them."

"So? You pretty much admitted that then. Why would it make me mad?"

"Because I took an active role in making certain that he couldn't become king, Khaleesi. I spied on your brother for the Usurper, keeping him up to date as to his activities."

"You did what?"

"But I swear that I never said a word directly about you, Khaleesi. At first, you were just an innocent child, absolutely no threat to anyone. Now, you are a woman that truly deserves the throne. You would be a great queen, one not only feared and respected, but loved. And I swear, my life and my sword are yours until the day I die, if you will still have me."

"You swear on your honour as a knight that you did not say anything about me or Rhaego?"

Jorah bowed his head. "I will admit that I told them that, but I also knew that between myself and the Dothraki, no man would come close enough to harm you, and it would provoke Khal Drogo enough to at least attempt to take the Seven Kingdoms. I was right about that part at least. But I thought that Robert would send some Assassin to kill you, that would have been easy."

Daenarys thought long and hard. "Ser Jorah, I will accept your vow, but I warn you now, if you do anything else to betray me again, you will suffer the same fate as that wine merchant."

"I understand, Khaleesi, and I swear on my honour as a knight and a Mormont that I am yours from now until the day I die."

Though he had only just arrived at Lordsport, Theon was not impressed at all, and slightly disappointed. If this was the best the Iron Islands had to offer, then why by all the gods would his ancestors have settled here? All the gods? Hmm, just goes to show how much he had changed since being taken in by the Starks, he didn't even know which gods he believed in any more. And to make his homecoming worse, not one person seemed interested in the Myraham, at least, not until one old man asked what she was carrying. "Myrish oranges, wine from the Arbor, and the heir to Pyke and the Iron Islands." The old man didn't seem to react to that, so Theon decided to clear it up, in case he didn't know what he was talking about. "The only living son of Balon Greyjoy." Still no reaction, so Theon decided to clear it up. "Me."

The old man wasn't impressed. "I don't like wine. A woman's drink."

Theon just barely suppressed a groan. "I need to get to Pyke," he told the old man, but he just turned away. Theon was starting to wish that Aemon hadn't named him Master of Ships, if this was the way Pyke was going to treat him.

He was just about to offer some gold when a vaguely feminine voice called out "I'm heading that way. I can take you there."

Turning to see who spoke, Theon was shocked to see his sister, Asha looking back at him. He quickly looked her over, and was surprised to see a rather attractive woman, if you ignored her face that is. "I bet you can," he said in response to her offer.

"Have you been at sea long? Or were there just no women where you come from?" Asha asked.

"None like you," Theon quickly answered.

"You don't know what I'm like," she shot back, in an almost flirtatious manner.

Deciding to play along, Theon flirted back. "Maybe you don't know what you're like. Maybe you need someone to teach you." She just grinned, so Theon decided to test his sister. "Do you know who I am?"

"You think I offer free rides to every man in jewellery, Lord Greyjoy?"

"No, probably not, my lady," Theon grinned in response. Well, at least his sister recognized him. An hour later, after they arrived at the castle, Theon turned and said, "Aren't you coming, Lady Greyjoy?"

"So, you did recognize me."

"Please Asha, as if I could ever forget my own blood." Asha then said something under her breath, too quiet for Theon to hear, so Theon went on to meet with their father and give him Aemon's proposal.

Theon's welcome by his father was almost more cold than his arrival in Pyke. "Thirteen years, isn't it? They took a frightened boy. What have they given back?"

"A warrior and a man," Theon answered. "Someone worthy of being your son and heir."

Theon was shocked to hear a response of "We shall see." How could he not be worthy of being his heir? "Stark had you for nearly twice as long as I did, and now you come as his envoy."

"Not his, Lord Stark is gone. The Lannister bitch and her bastard son saw to that."

"I vowed to outlive them, Stark and Baratheon, and now I have," he whispered. Then he turned to Theon. "And how does it make you feel, that he's dead?"

"He was the kindest, most honourable and noble man I've ever had the pleasure of knowing. I'm sorry he's dead, but what's done is done. Now, I've brought you a proposal from Robb Stark."

"Who gave you those clothes?" Balon demanded. "Was it Ned Stark's pleasure to make you his daughter?" Theon was starting to get mad. What was wrong with his clothes? The cloak was the same one he wore that fateful day that they found the direwolves and Jon heard about the White Walkers, and he was wearing a black doublet with a golden kraken on his right breast. What could his father fault him for? "And that bauble around your neck, was it paid with iron or gold?"

Theon thanked the gods that he had lived in the cold North for the past thirteen years, or he would have blown up at his father. "As I was the one to order it made, obviously I paid the gold price. In case you missed it, it has a Kraken in the centre, Father. I had hoped to give it to you as a gift, but since you're not interested, I'll keep it for myself." Balon reached for the medallion, but Theon caught his hand with a speed that Balon hadn't known for many years. "I said I would keep it, since you are foolish enough to still believe in the Old Ways, Father."

Balon stepped back in shock. "It is as I feared then, the greenlands have made you soft and the Starks have made you theirs. You have betrayed the Iron Islands and your family. You would call kin the son of the man who killed your brothers!"

"You know as well as I do that Ned Stark didn't kill either of my brothers. Lord Slytherin killed Rodrik, and our own walls killed Maron. And I have realized that you are too obsessed with vengeance to ever listen to Robb's offer."

"What offer?" Balon asked.

"An offer to make you king again, but you are so entrenched in the Old Ways, that you could never be trusted. The Old Ways may work in the Iron Islands and on the sea, but in Westeros, they died the same day that Harren the Black died, Father, and you know that! The Seven Kingdoms are too interdependent on each other now to go their separate ways."

"No one will give me my crown, I pay the Iron price. I will take my crown," Balon claimed.

"No, you won't, Father. I challenge you to the Finger Dance of Nagga, the prize shall be the crown of Salt and Rock," Theon demanded. Balon quickly agreed, and a Kingsmoot was called.

"So, in conclusion, Robb receives the bodies of all those who died in King's Landing, including Lord Stark, the greatsword Ice, the persecution of House Targaryen is ended with Daenerys welcomed back to Dragonstone and Aemon released from his vows to the Night's Watch. In exchange for all this, Robb swears his support for my claim to the Iron Throne and helps me defeat the Lannisters and swears the same oath to me that Ned swore to Robert. Is that satisfactory?" Renly asked.

"It is, Your Grace," Harry agreed. "Naturally, I'll need to take this back and have Robb sign it, but I see no reason why he wouldn't."

Renly smiled at that. "Good. I believe we are natural allies, and I hope he feels the same way. Together, we could end this war in a fortnight."

Just then, the wind blew into the tent like never before, and with it came an unnatural shadow. Harry knew exactly what to do and instantly called out "Expecto Patronum!" The spell saved Renly, but with the shadow denied it's main target, it turned and stabbed Harry through. It then vanished, leaving the three men alone. Harry looked down at his chest, surprised. "Huh, stabbed through the chest? And Riddle couldn't do it with the killing curse-" With that, he collapsed, the Boy-Who-Lived no longer.

Renly, who had stared at the shadow and patronus shield in shock finally came out of it with a roar of rage. "STANNIS! You'll die for this! I swear it by the Seven, the Old Gods and every other god out there! You will die for this!"

Jon discovers Blackfyre, Destroys Bloodraven's cave, kills last of the Children of the Forest, duels Great Other until it is forced to retreat

Jon is condemned as traitor to Night's Watch and is sentenced to death, requests being burned for Stannis

Jon is taken to Dragonstone by Mellisandre to raise the stone dragons, discovers secret Targaryen library with red and black dragon egg, drags Mellisandre into the pyre with him, Smaug hatches, Aemon reveals himself

Smaug is the name of a deified dragon from Valyria before the taming of the dragons. Smaug was known as the King of the Fourteen Fires and Greatest Calamity of the Age who terrorized the Lands of the Long Summer for 120 years before being killed by Aemon Targaryen with a single arrow in the eye. Aemon became the first Lord Freeholder, and Smaug became the God of Sky, Fire and Death

Eight thousand years ago, Westeros was divided into seven kingdoms, and for most of those eight thousand years, whenever summer came, Westeros bled while the Seven Kingdoms warred with each other. That all changed when the Targaryens invaded. In the heat of dragon fire, the Seven Kingdoms were forged into one, and Westeros knew peace in summer for the first time since the Dawn Age. All that changed when the Usurper rebelled against the Targaryens. True, he had reason to rebel, but under his rule, women and babes were killed for no reason other than their family. And now Westeros bleeds again over who Robert Baratheon's true heir actually is. The North and the Riverlands are here to say that we reject Robert's family as our king. We will accept only Targaryen rule once again. All of Westeros knows that Daenerys Stormborn still lives in exile in Essos. However, one heir of Rhaegar still lives. Rhaegar married my aunt, Lyanna Stark, and she bore him one son, Aemon Targaryen, who has since been living in hiding as my baseborn brother, Jon Snow. Now that the Usurper is dead, my cousin has seen fit to come out of hiding and attempt to claim his birthright. Let all proclaim their loyalty to the true king and queen of Westeros. And should any Westerosi sail to Essos and encounter Queen Daenarys, tell her that we await her return.

Long live Aemon and Daenarys Targaryen

Signed,

Robb Stark, Lord of Winterfell, Warden of the North and Hand of the King

Complete Small Council:

Hand of the King: Robb Stark

Lord Commander of the Kingsguard: Ser Barristan Selmy

Master of Coin: Scorpius Black

Master of Laws: Tyrion Lannister

Master of Whisperers: Albus Potter

Master of Ships: Theon Greyjoy

Grand Maester: Samwell (Tarly)