The Downfall of Treachery
The voice said no more, but Harry had a sudden feeling of what to do and where to go.
Apparating to Grimmauld Place, Harry entered the townhouse, taking care to not wake Walburga's portrait, and immediately called for Kreacher.
"Filthy half-blood master calls for Kreacher", Harry sits down on a chair in the Drawing Room, pretending not to hear the house-elf’s jab.
"Yes, Kreacher. I'd like for you to lock the entire house down. Only allowing you and me to come and go. Can you do that?"
"Kreacher can close the house, yes"
"Nice. So please do that... and... um... is there any bedroom here that is, er, clean?"
"Disgraced master room is clean, as well as mistress' room and master Regulus' room."
"Yeah, well. I don't feel comfortable sleeping in Sirius' room", Harry says a wave of sadness goes through him, making the boy miss his godfather even more now that his at Grimmauld Place "And, Merlin forbid, I will definitely not sleep on a bed Walburga has used."
A shiver goes through Harry as he says that and Kreacher is unimpressed.
"Kreacher take dirty mater's things to master Regulus' room then."
Looking at Harry, as if expecting something, Kreacher stays there waiting.
"Oh. Yeah. I don't actually have anything on me other than the Hallows and, er, these clothes I'm wearing. Are there any clothes here, Kreacher? I will go out later to buy more but I don't wanna go looking like I just fought a war."
That irony is not totally lost to Harry.
"Master Orion and maters Regulus' wardrobes have clothes, yes."
"Well, I think Orion was very tall from what I remember Sirius telling me about him, so Regulus' clothes will have to do it."
Kreacher doesn't answer him but just leaves with a pop.
"Rude", the boy mumbles.
Signing Harry gets up from the chair, deciding that it's better to have a bath and then go to sleep.
Not knowing or caring if anyone will try to find the Boy-Who-Lived and probably try to use his new fame as the one who defeated Voldemort twice.
Making Kreacher close down the townhouse was a good idea because as much as his friend's reactions to him were more than weird, Harry knew they couldn't stay away for long. Especially Hermione with her need to put her nose in other people's business, and having Hermione come by means having Ron here as well. Merlin forbid they stay away from each other.
Still very bitter about his friend's treatment of him, Harry decides to put the thought of them aside and go do away more important thing: sleep.
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A mumbled voice makes Harry wake up. Slowly opening his eyes, he goes to grab his glasses from the bedside table. Putting them on while sitting up Harry starts to pay more attention to his surroundings, especially the house-elf speaking while looking at him.
"...throw water at them?"
"Excuse me?", is the only thing Harry can say to that.
"Kreacher says that master's mudbloob and blood-traitor are here trying to get in."
"Oh", Harry lets out, still trying to wake up completely "And what did you tell them."
"Kreacher tell them mudbloobs and blood-traitors are not welcome."
Singing as the elf's ridiculous antics Harry says "Of course. Merlin help me. Well, er, tell them I'm not here and the House of Black has a new head or something."
The house-elf doesn't seem impressed by Harry's response.
"Kreacher do that, yes."
"Yeah, ok. Er, if they don't leave I guess you can through water at them."
That brings a smirk to the house-elf mouth and Harry can tell that can't be a good thing.
After Kreacher is gone Harry lays down again, closing his eyes and thinking that he hasn't slept enough to deal with this.
’I was thinking the same thing‘, the voice in his head says again, making Harry jump from the sudden appearance.
"What the- Who are you?! What do you want?"
’I told you Harry, I am here as a friend and as a guide.‘
"That doesn't explain anything. I'm going to ask again, Who are you? And what do you want from me? Actually, how are you speaking in my head?"
’Well, I thought by now you'd have figured it out, Harry. You are actually holding one of my creations right now. Perhaps that's the clue you need."
Confused, Harry looks at his right hand, seeing nothing, then at his left one. At that action, his left hand let go of what it was holding.
"The Elder Wand", Harry says almost in a whisper.
’Indeed‘, says the voice.
"No, but that means that... you are-", unable to finish the phrase, Harry just stays quiet.
’Death‘, answers the voice, in an amused tone.
"But, but why are you here in my head? Why are you talking to me? Am I cursed or something? Am I dead?!", Harry says as he can feel himself beginning to panic.
’This can't be happening. I just wanted some peace and now I have literal Death in my head. Damned Potter Luck. I ended the war but now I'm haunted by Death Itself.‘
"Why do these things keep happening to me?", Harry asks as he looks at the ceiling as if god himself would answer him.
’Calm down, Harry. I am not here to bring you harm. You have reunited my Hallows. The first person to ever do so. And that, Harry, make you my master.‘
"What?! But no, I through the Resurrection Stone away in the Forbidden Forrest. I can't be the Master of Death."
’Oh, but you are, Harry. You have the claim over the Hallows. You have touched and used all of them, Harry.‘
"Wait, but I have never used the wand!"
’Didn't you? How have you arrived here then?‘
"Bloody apparition! I didn't even realise I used the wrong wand to leave Hogwarts. Should've used the Knight Bus."
Death remains silent but Harry can feel It is entertained by his behaviour.
"Wait, you said that I have touched and used all of them, right? Doesn't that mean Dublemdore should've been Master of Death?"
Death laughs lightly before answering "No, Harry. Only someone of Peverell blood can master the Hallows. You're the last of the descendants of the Peverells, actually. No one else alive could master the Hallows other than you.‘
"Oh... Yeah, I guess that explains things."
After that, there is only silence. Harry is trying to digest the conversation they just had. Now having to accept yet another distinct thing about himself. Not that he doesn't like it, no. He is actually very curious about what being Master of Death entails. Is it a new power? Can he bring back the dead? Kill people with one thought? As morbid as it all sounds Harry isn't put off by it. Maybe the Deathly Hallows have changed him in some way or perhaps he has seen so much death and violence during the war that it wouldn't surprise him if that was the cause of his slight lack of morals.
"So, um, Death. What does being your master give me? Can I bring people who've died back or something? Do I have some powers that nobody else has?"
’I'm sorry Harry not even I can bring people from the dead, but yes, you do have "some powers" as you called it."
Rubbing his shoulder awkwardly he answers "Nah, it's ok, Death. It's not your fault. But, yeah, what kind of magic can I do then?"
’Well, you are now a necromancer, Harry. Meaning that you can bring soulless creatures back to life: plants, no sentient animals, as well as controlling the dead. I'm afraid you have had an encounter with the inferi once, yes? Well, you can now make beings much like those, but the process of making them would be easier for you, as well as the control you'd have over them would be complete; different from other necromancers that would need a lot of magic to control the inferi.‘
Harry shivered from the memory of the cave. The horrid place should burn in hell, Harry would tell anyone who asked.
"Um, not to insult you but the power seems a little, let's say, timid. Are there any other things I could do?"
’Of course. The Hallows give their master a lot of power, Harry. You could've destroyed de Horcruxes much more easily, by using your magic to take the soul out of the container, leaving it as an empty object again.‘
"Ugh. Of course, I could. I can never have it easy can I? Well, that's good to know though. Next time I'll use that tactic", Harry answers with a small laugh, much to Death's amusement.
’You can also save people from the brink of death. You cannot resurrect them, but you can keep their souls inside their bodies.‘
Harry nods and hums at that. It's definitely something that could come in handy.
’There is also the fact that, if you wish to, I can no longer touch you. That, of course, means that you'd be immortal.‘
"Wow. Really? That's, um, cool I guess but I don't really have a need for it. I don't think immortality is something I desire."
A wave of appreciation washes through Harry. Death most definitely liked his response.
"Is there anything else?"
’There is one thing, but that'll have to wait. I'd like for you to go to Gringotts first, Harry. Ask them about the records of your accounts and to do an inheritance test. After that come back here and I shall tell you about the other type of magic you can do.‘
"Gringotts? Yeah, I guess that's fine. Wait, what do you mean by accounts? As in I have more than one?"
No answer came so Harry just signed and got up from the bed. He had no idea about what Gringotts you show him but if Death thinks it's necessary then he doesn't see a problem with it.
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When Harry got to the kitchen breakfast was already on the table. Kreacher really did his job this time, Harry thought.
Not only there was breakfast but also the house is clean(?). That's definitely an improvement from the past.
While Harry was eating Kreacher popped into the kitchen and stopped when he looked at Harry.
It took Harry some time to realise it was because of the way he was dressed. He was wearing one of Regulus' open green robes. The inside of the robe was full of constellations, some of which Harry recognised from his Astronomy class. The Leo constellation, with the Regulus A as its brightest star, being the most obvious. To go with the robe Harry decided to do something with his hair, using a product he got from Regulus' bathroom. His hair now was more tamed and come to ear level. Harry also got a silver pocket watch that belonged to one of the Black ancestors, from what he could gather.
Seeing the house-elf continuing look of awe Harry chuckled and said, “Well, Kreacher, I'm flattered but I'm just wearing nicer clothing.”
"Master looks much better now, yes he does", said the elf.
"Well, thank you, Kreacher. Is there something that you need?"
That seemed to take the elf out of his stupor.
"Master filthy friends send letters."
With a snap of his finger, Kreacher made two letters appear on the table.
"I see...I'm going to Gringotts first and I guess I'll read them when I'm back. I have no patience now for those two now."
Kreacher left and Harry resumed eating his breakfast and in the back of his mind, he was wondering what excuse they'd use for ignoring him. If they think he'll just forgive them they are very much wrong. No more selfless Potter, Harry thought. He didn't die for these people just so he could be thrown out like he's nothing but rubbish.
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Arriving at Diagon Alley made Harry a bit weary. He didn't know if people would be hailing him as a saviour or as the next Dark Lord. You never really know with the British, Harry knew that by heart by now.
Thankfully he took his Invisibility Cloak with him, so moving around the Alley was actually quite easy. He just had to make sure not to bump into one of the people who were celebrating the death of Voldemort.
Celebrating was not quite the word. People were behaving like it was the biggest party in Wizart Britain's history. The stores were opened, and people were drinking in the streets. Everyone was hugging each other or crying out of happiness.
Harry sneered. Of course, these cowards were celebrating, he thought. They didn't move one finger against Voldemort, but now it's over they show their faces.
With his mood worsening, Harry made his way to Gringotts Bank, thankful that the goblins were not participating in this cacophony.
Entering the bank Harry took off his Cloak. At the same time hoping that the goblins wouldn't burn him alive for destroying their bank.
’Calm down, master. The goblins will recognise my magic in you and won't dare touch you,‘ Death said, making Harry relax.
"Um, hello. I'd like to talk to the goblin responsible for my account. I'm Harry Potter."
Thankfully the bank was utterly empty with only Harry there at the moment. Probably partying at the end of the war, Harry realised.
Looking up at him, the goblin, shocked by the magic around Harry, could only ask for his key, which Harry said he didn't have.
"You don't have your key?", the goblin asked with a sneer.
"Um, no, sorry. I never actually had my key. Rubeus Hagrid had it when I first came here, and I think Molly Weasley has it now."
The goblin looked at him for a moment, with a face of astonishment. Then the goblin suddenly yelled something in Gobbledegook.
A second goblin appeared, Accompany me, Mr. Potter, he said.
Harry followed the goblin to an office.
"Very well, Mr. Potter, my name is Ironclaw and I am your account manager. I must say, I have been waiting for you for quite some time, Mr. Potter. Your accounts have never been seen by you, which is most unusual."
"I'm sorry, Ironclaw, but I didn't even know I had more the one account. I visited one vault, the first time I came to the bank, and I thought that was my only one. I'm actually here to see the records of my accounts and to make an inheritance test."
Ironclaw nodded and snapped his fingers. A few file folders appeared on the table.
"These as the records since you have inherited the Potter and Black accounts. And these", Ironclaw gave a parchment to Harry, "is all the money and items that have been taken out of your vaults."
Looking at the parchment Harry couldn't help but gape at what was written.
POTTER ACCOUNTS
687 — Trust vault: 50,625 galleons
237 — Potter vault: 25,000,000 galleons
TRANSACTIONS & REMOVALS
— Trust Vault —
13th of November, 1981 - Invisibility Cloak
(Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore)
— Potter Vault —
2nd of May, 1982 - 15,027 galleons
(Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore)
— Potter Vault —
3rd of June, 1982 - Peverell Grimoire
(Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore)
— Potter Vault —
22nd of January, 1986 - 120 galleons
(Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore)
receiver:
(Vault 827 - Weasley family vault)
— Potter Vault —
11th of April, 1990 - 876 sickles
(Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore)
receiver:
(Vault 827 - Weasley family vault)
26th of April, 1992 - 36 books
(Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore)
receiver:
(Vault 1,727 - Hermione Jean Granger's vault)
— Potter Vault —
26th of April, 1992 - 17,324 galleon
(Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore)
receiver:
(Vault 1,727 - Hermione Jean Granger's vault)
BLACK ACCOUNTS
771 — Black Family Vault: 87,000,000 galleons
TRANSACTIONS & REMOVALS
20th of October, 1996 - 12 books
(Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore)
receiver:
(Vault 1,727 - Hermione Jean Granger's vault)
20th of October, 1996 - 23,560 galleon
(Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore)
6th of November, 1996 - Black Grimoire
(Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore)
23rd of November, 1996 - 37,854 galleon
(Vault 1,346 - Order of Phoenix's vault)
Harry could not believe what he was seeing. Dumbledore stole from him?! And it started the same year his parents were murdered! He even stole from Sirius! In the same year he lost his godfather Dumbledore decided to steal from Sirius.
And the worst part: Dumbledore was paying the Weasleys and Hermione. The Weasleys, a family that were proud of their humbleness were fucking stealing from him! And Hermione was not only stealing money but also books, of course!
"How did this happen?", Harry asked Ironclaw, while trying to not scream and destroy the goblin's office.
The goblin, sensing Harry's mood, cleared his voice with apprehension. “You see, Mr Potter, Ironclaw started Albus Dumbledore, as your magical guardian, could take money and items from your vault that could be used by you or given to other with your permission.”
"But I never used any of this! These money, these books, I've never seen any of it."
"Well, Mr Potter, if you wish Gringotts can order all the money and items to be brought back to your vaults. The items can be called at any moment, so they appear instantly back in the vaults they are from. The money, however, could take some time. In this case, given that you did not authorise the transactions it means that the people who were given the money will have to give back more than they were given."
"Dot it!", Harry said with exasperation, "I want every Knut back in those vaults and I want them to lose everything they have in order to pay me back."
Nodding to Harry, Ironclaw got up and left the room, telling Harry that he'll take care of it right now. “Very well, Mr. Potter. It will be done,” he said when he came back.
"Now, in relation to the inheritance test, all you need to do is put three drops of blood on this enchanted parchment, please."
Nodding, Harry did as he was told. The results were at the same time shocking and infuriating.
HARRY JAMES POTTER
17 years old
Half-blood
Parents:
Father - James Fleamont Potter
Mother - Lily Clarice Potter née Evans
Lordships
Lord of the Most Ancient and Most Prestigious House of Peverell
Lord of the Most Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter
Lorde of the Most Ancient and Most Noble House of Black
Titles
The Boy-Who-Lived
The Saviour of The Wizarding World
The Man-Who-Conquered
The Master of Death
Magic abilities
Parseltongue & Parselmagic (Blocked by Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore) — Blocks broken at 11 years old
Occlumency (Blocked by Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore) — 100% blocked
Metamorphmagus (Blocked by Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore) — 100% blocked
Magic of Death and Time
Glamours & Compulsions
Glamour - James Fleamont Potter's hair and facial features
Glamour - To give small stature
Glamour - To harm vision (Vision impaired from overuse of glamour)
(Cast by Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore)
Compulsion - To trust Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore
Compulsion - To befriend Ronald Bilius Weasley
Compulsion - To trust Weasleys
Compulsion - To hate Slytherin House
Compulsion - To act heroically
Compulsion - To like Hermione Jean Granger
Compulsion - To not like studying
Compulsion - To hate the Dark Arts
Compulsion - To hate pureblood ideology
Compulsion - To give his life for other
Compulsion - To make trust the Order of the Phoenix
Compulsion - To love Ginevra Molly Weasley
(Cast by Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, Molly Elisabeth Weasley and Hermione Jean Granger)
Harry blinked, not believing what he was reading. After a few moments after he finished reading the parchment, he looked up at Ironclaw and asked “Are these glamours and compulsions still on me? Can I remove them? And my eyes, can something be done about them?”
"Yes, Mr Potter, Gringotts can remove them all. For a price of course."
"Take it from the Potter vault."
"Very well. Accompany me please."
They left Ironclaw's office and went into another room where some other goblins were walking around. A lady goblin approached them and asked “What can I do for you?”
“The boy needs a cleansing and healing for the eyes,” was all that Ironclaw told the other goblin. She nodded to him and looked at Harry.
"Accompany please, Mr Potter."
Harry followed the goblin to another room. There the lady goblin, Sharpteeth, as she introduced herself to him, told him to lie down on the bed in the middle of the room, telling him to stay there until the process was done.
To say that it was uncomfortable was an understatement. Harry felt like a million ants were walking under his skin. He felt the incessant need to scratch himself but had just enough self-control to remain still. Fortunately for him, the process was not very long, and after a few minutes, he could feel the sensation leaving.
After it ended Harry felt quite odd. His clothes felt like they didn't fit so well, his hair felt lighter on his head, and his vision had most definitely changed. Taking off his glasses that now blurred his vision, Harry realised that he could see without them.
Merlin!, was all he could think of. Shocked by how bad his vision had been before. No wonder he could never write things correctly when he could barely see them. Snape would definitely sneer at him and say he was dumb regardless of vision though, of that Harry was sure.
Sitting on the bed Harry got the Elder Wand and conjured a mirror. To say that he was baffled by what he saw was an understatement.
The most obvious thing was his hair, no longer dark and messy, now it was ginger like his mother, falling beautiful on his slightly freckled face. His eyes were still like his mother's, which he was thankful for. He could now say he was a mixture between his mother and father, no longer the clone of James Potter, but now his own person. He could also tell that he no longer was small. Regulus' robes feeling tight around his body was a strong indication of that. Waving his wand, Harry adjusted his robes so they could fit him properly again.
Looking at the mirror again he could only think, Merlin, I look so different. Harry never thought of himself as attractive but now he would have to change that. He would have to get used to seeing his new self in the mirror, but he was not complaining.
Getting up from the bed, Harry went towards the door. Outside the room was Sharpteeth, waiting patiently for the cleansing and healing process to finish.
"I see you've finished, Mr Potter. We hope you're happy with the results. You're now completely clean of compulsions or glamorous."
"Yes, I'm happy with it, Thank you."
"I'm just doing my job, Mr Potter. Now, Ironclaw asked me to take you to his office again so he can explain some things to you. Follow me please."
Harry said noting as he followed Sharpteeth. Still basking on the feeling of being clean from those traitors' magic. It felt like being free from a prison. Harry didn't think he would ever get tired of this feeling.
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After going once again to Ironclaw's office they talked for a bit. The goblin assured Harry that the people who had stolen from him would know the consequences of their actions very soon and that, if he wished, Harry could take Mrs Wesley and Hermione to court for putting compulsions on him. Harry, linking the idea, said that he'll do just that.
Asking for a money pouch, linked to his Potter vault, so that he can get money without going to Gringotts every time, Harry said his goodbyes to his account manager, saying that he'd look through the files and look for the Potter properties and maybe even the Peverell ones, if that are any.
Walking around Diagon Alley, Harry thought it was time for him to spend money on himself.
His first stop was at Twilfitt and Tattings for some high-quality robes and boots.
Harry decided to go for a completely new wardrobe; going for a selection of black, blue, grey and Slytherin green robes, for informal and formal settings and some winter robes as well. Also buying some dragon hide boots and gloves, Harry left the store, going back to the Alley.
Feeling satisfied with his purchase, Harry thought it was better to go back to Grimmauld Place
Go towards the apparition point, he realised that, to the rest of the Wizarding World, the Harry James Potter they knew was gone. His new face and height were unrecognisable to anyone, leaving them unaware that the Boy-Who-Lived was walking among them.
That brought a smile to Harry's face...