Prophecies and Parental Pride
Within a manor deep within a forest, Tom Riddle apparated into existence in the dead of night. He was dressed in his customary black robes, a glamour spelled across his body to give him his more monstrous appearance. He found himself disliking it more and more as time went on and was hoping that tonight would be the last time he would have to do it in order to see his goals achieved. Draped in his arms was the unconscious form of one Sybil Trelawney, smelling heavily of sherry. Beyond her lack of consciousness and her inebriation, she was unharmed. Tom had one of his servants pluck her from outside a pub in a small Wixen village. He needed some answers, and he was going to get them from this so-called seer.
The gates swung open at his approach, a gleaming golden ‘M’ spelled onto the wrought iron bars. The soft grass was illuminated by the high moon, and brilliant white peacocks strutted about, idly looking up at the Dark Lord before returning their attentions elsewhere. Their lack of interest suited him just fine, he had no love for the creatures and failed to understand Lucius’ adoration of them. Then again, he was far more comfortable with animal companions he could converse with, and Nagini would never be able to stand sharing his attentions. Especially with a bird of all things.
Much like the gates, the manor doors opened the moment he neared them, granting him entrance into the foyer. Like everything the Malfoy’s had, it was dripping with excess. The gaudy colors and overly rich finery often made him feel itchy and out of place. Even with his status as the Dark Lord, it was hard to let go of the emotions he had grown up with as an orphan. Craving the barest of amenities to survive. To see all this space wasted for nothing more than frivolous decorations irked that part of him. A part that had only grown stronger since reabsorbing his wayward soul fragments.
The shifting of Sybil drew Tom from his thoughts and back to the present as he neared the room that had been cleared for this moment. Inside he found Nagini resting by the fire, curled up on herself. Sitting beside the fire was the only other person Tom truly trusted, even if he had been lying. Severus Snape merely inclined his head by way of greeting. The gesture was familiar and comfortable. Despite the man’s nature as a spy for both himself and Dumbledore, Tom found it easy to hold a comfortable rapport with the potion master.
“I take it Doholov was able to retrieve Sybil with little issue,” Severus asked as he stood to levitate Sybil from Tom’s hands
“Her predilection for sherry made her easy enough to capture from what Doholov told me. How Dumbledore allows her to teach children is beyond me,”
“He claims to value her insight. Though, considering she delivered the prophecy, I assume he kept her around on the off chance she had the chance of giving another,” Severus responded curtly, using his wand to lash the woman to a chair.
Summoning his potions bag, Severus spelled a Sober Up potion directly into her stomach, as well as one to give her a better sense of clarity. Some questions needed to be answered, and considering Legillmency was going to be used, he wanted to ensure her memories were fully unclouded.
As Sybil came to, Tom stood before her, letting the glamour of his monstrous form be the first thing she took in. As those eyes opened they became wide with fear, the woman struggling in her bonds as a scream rattled silently in her throat.
“I have taken care to silence your voice, my dear. It would not do for your screams of pain and anguish to echo this late into the night,” a bony and pale hand lightly caressed her face, eliciting tears from the woman though she made no further moves to scream,
“I am shocked that you did not see this happening. That is not meant to be a barb against your supposed gift, but rather the fact that you had given a prophecy concerning myself,”
There was no way Sybil could have kept the shock off of her face. If there was ever any doubt Tom had about the existence of the prophecy it had been eliminated by such an honest facial expression. With a wave of his wand, Tom loosened the spell that kept the woman silent. Granting her just enough vocal control to speak, but nothing more.
“Al-Albus promised me I was safe. That you wouldn’t find me,” she whimpered, her voice cracking at every turn, “Sa-said as long as I kept teaching I-I’d be safe,”
“As many will soon see, Albus Dumbledore is a liar and a manipulator. Were it not my role, I would not be shocked if he were a Dark Lord himself. However, we are not here to argue the semantics. I want only one thing from you, and that is the memory of the prophecy,”
Sybil turned white, all the blood draining from her face,
“I…I can’t,” she uttered fearfully
“What do you mean, can’t,” Tom growled, causing Nagini to rise up and hiss directly at Sybil, more annoyed at having been woken from her nap
“Al-Albus. He-he Obliviated the memory. Said it was fo-for my safety,”
Disgust rolled off of Tom in waves. Messing with the memories of a Seer often led to their visions becoming muddled. It was bad enough that alcohol was no doubt ruining her mind, but to know that an entire prophecy had been forcibly removed from her mind was awful. Tom was still getting used to feeling remorse after being split from his soul for so long, but he schooled his features to keep it off his face.
“Be that as it may, I am sure you have some…useful information stored in your mind. Severus,” the potions master strode up, sneering at the shocked face of Sybil, “Go digging through her mind. Find any shred of useful information that hasn’t been pickled by sherry and send her on her way. Don’t be gentle,”
As Severus uttered the spell that would allow him entrance into the Seer’s mind, his mind kept drifting to the prophecy. The only reason he knew of the damn thing was thanks to Severus and his penchant for eavesdropping. However, when he had asked the man to see the memory when his sanity returned, several things stood out as odd to him.
For one, as far as Tom had ever been aware, not a single interview for a Hogwarts professor occurred outside the castle. Not to mention that the entire bar had been empty save the three of them and the bartender. Then there were the words themselves. While not every prophecy was crystal clear, there was still some understanding about who the words applied to. The words that Severus had overhead were far too vague for his liking. That and Tom wouldn’t put it past Albus to fake a prophecy in a bid to win the war.
The sound of Severus clearing his throat drew Tom’s attention, seeing that Sybil was passed out. The potion master was spelling yet another substance into her, one that would cloud the memories of the evening. For her and anyone viewing them, it would look as if she were in a drunken haze. Considering who she was, there was very little chance that anyone would spot the deception.
“Take her the Leaky Cauldron. Dolohov has already ensured there was a room acquired for her to sleep off the liquor before taking her. Did you discover anything useful in her mind?”
“Not directly. I was able to find the memory that was removed by Albus, at least the blank patch where it should have been. However, there was another one. From the night before, during Sybil’s actual interview. Albus didn’t Obliviate the entire memory, but there is a section missing. While I think the prophecy I heard was fabricated, there is a chance she did deliver one in the presence of Albus all the same,”
Annoyance rippled across Tom’s features at the information. If there was no prophecy and Albus was just playing a long game, then he could move his focus from it. However, if there was one in play, he needed to know it. Sybil was supposed to be the direct route to gaining the prophecy but it was clear Albus was ahead of the game in that regard. There was only one other option and that was to get his hands on the prophecy orb within the department of mysteries. While there was a chance that the prophecy had nothing to do with him or even Potter, Albus would have tried to keep some details similar between his fabrication and the truth,
“When you return Severus, we need to plan on how best to lure Potter to us. While my new public persona will soon be able to waltz into the Ministry with little effort, I do not wish to draw undue attention to myself by asking for entrance into the Department of Mysteries,”
“That would prove to be rather difficult. Albus has already attempted to Apparate to Potter’s current location several times with no success. The boy’s father has employed ancient magics to ensure the boy cannot be reached,”
“If that is the case, I shall continue with my methods. The boy has been upfront with me during our chats within our shared mindscape. Perhaps being upfront with him would yield promising results,”
“Potter, despite his intellect, is still an arrogant child who has been played by those in power over him. While being honest will give you a favorable chance in getting what you want, you should be prepared for his wariness to stifle your attempts,” Severus spoke as he levitated Sybil into his arms and made to leave for the manor gates
“If push comes to shove, I still have a way into the boy’s mind. Hopefully, it will not come to that,” Tom paused for a moment, his glamour relaxing away as his mind shifted its thoughts, “Ensure that you inform Albus that while I am aware of the prophecy, I am more concerned with finding a way to destroy Potter’s parents. We want to keep his eyes away from the prophecy for as long as possible,”
“I shall make sure my Lord. Have a restful evening,” Severus bid the Dark Lord before taking Sybil and leaving the study.
In the silence of the study, only broken by the crackle of fire and the faint snores of Nagini, Tom let his mind wander more. Ever since gaining full awareness and sanity, he had been doing that more and more. He took time to consider actions and words well before he did them. He had even been more aware of Lady Malfoy’s stiff demeanor when he had to keep a few of his unrulier followers in line, mostly her sister these days. He was still unphased by it, but the fact that he would even pay it any attention was astounding. Then, there was Potter.
The boy was still perplexing to him. Everything about him seemed to be impossible. The son of a God. The survivor of a killing curse, from his own hand no less. The child of a Muggle hero who fought against legions beyond the stars. Beyond all of that though, was the fact the child had been harboring a portion of his soul for his entire life and there were no signs of it. At least outwardly.
Tom knew the soul fragment was there, it was how he was able to communicate with Harry so easily. Yet, unlike his intentional horcruxes, the one in Harry didn’t respond the same. Hell, it didn’t even feel like himself. Sure, if he focused he could feel trace amounts of his own soul in the boy when they were connected, but it felt different. Altered. Every fragment of his soul harbored the emotions and memories of himself when it was created. Yet, the one in Harry didn’t seem to follow that trend at all. It brokered more questions than answers, and with the boy so far away, Tom was more than likely not going to get them.
A sigh left from his lips as Tom finally got up. Nagini, sensing his movement, lazily slithered beside him. She was still lethargic from the ritual that removed the horcrux from her, something that seemed to be getting worse. She was still able to hunt, but most of her days were spent lounging in front of the fire or coiled up on his bed. Even though neither one of them were willing to admit it, they both knew her time was short. Living beings were not meant to house more than one soul, let alone have one pulled from them.
For now, they were both content to ignore the truth and enjoy the time they had left.
That was something else Tom had discovered since regaining his soul and sanity. That life, no matter how brief, was worth enjoying. And wasn’t that just a kick in the pants to a man who broke his soul for immortality?
“You know, just saying it doesn’t make it easier,” came the quip for Harry as he sat down on the grass, legs crossed and eyes closed.
“Be that as it may, I can’t just tell you how to manifest illusions. It is something you have to feel, an intuitive part of who you are,”
Loki was sat across from his son, eyes open and smiling faintly despite his words. The pair had been out here since morning, when magic was at its peak according to Loki. The disastrous dinner from the night before and Harry’s display of uncontrolled magic had prompted Loki to train his son in ways he could vent his power. When he had made mention of his time spent learning how to create illusions, the boy leaped at the chance to do so.
The frustrated face Harry held at the moment though would say otherwise.
“I’m trying to. I can feel my magic but I can’t…connect to it properly,” Harry sighed, before laying down in the grass dramatically.
“Now this, I find rather hard to believe. If I recall, you performed a stunning bit of magic that saved your Godfather. Not to mention your ability to see magic itself. I know you have the capability, as do you. So, what bothers you about this,”
“It’s…complicated,” Harry sighed heavily, “Every time I’ve looked at my magic and tried to pull on its full strength, it's chained up. Like, I can see the binds across it. Sure, there are cracks about that I can use to siphon more power, but it only happens when I’m desperate or in danger,”
“Harry. Are you telling me you have binds placed on your magic,” Loki worked to keep the fire out of his voice but judging by the flinch from Harry, it hadn’t worked, “I’m not mad at you, I’m mad at whoever did it,”
“I don’t know if anyone did. It was just there when I first looked at my magic like it had always been there. I just assumed it was some sort of block that would go away with time,” Harry felt woefully out of his depth, wishing more than ever he had spent more time studying magical theory as opposed to runes and arithmancy.
“Harry, sit up and come sit in front of me. I am going to have to take a look at your core. Blocks, depending on how long they have been placed, can severely harm a wixen. They are meant to contain magic for only a brief period, not for an extended one,”
Harry did his best to try and fight back the queasy pit that was starting to form in his stomach. Instead, he turned his focus to Loki, the man holding his hands for Harry to take. After the moment they had last night Harry felt just that more at ease with physical touch from the man. As he held onto both hands, Harry felt that cool sensation of the man's magic just on the surface. Cold, yet warm and protective at the same time.
“Now, close your eyes and open up your core to me. Just follow the same steps you take to view your core, just let my magic flow alongside your own,” Loki asked, giving his son’s hand a soft squeeze in reassurance.
Harry let his vision shift inwards, feeling the same rush of magic that came when he shifted his sight to see the ambient magic around him. It was easy enough to see his core, the blinding ball of swirling colors constrained by layers of chains. Finding the feeling of Loki’s magic, he gave it a small tug, letting it follow his awareness towards his core. Even though no words were spoken, Harry could feel the emotions of Loki. They ranged from awe and love, to ire and revulsion. Eventually, the flow of magic wanted to be let back up and Harry dropped his gaze from his core. Not before he took another look at it. It looked slightly different. Not larger in a sense, but almost as if it were denser in a way.
“-arry,” the words of Loki echoed in his mind and Harry came back to the surface
“Sorry, just taking another look for myself. I take it you saw the chains. It felt like you were angry about it,”
“On that, you are correct Harry. Those bindings are designed to keep you from accessing the full depths of your magical potential. Think of them less like bindings and more like a dam. Whoever set the dam up has it set to where only so much of your power is given to you. Everything else just stays contained,”
“Expect for the cracks. I’ve pulled magic from the cracks before when I was in court and casting, or I guess summoning, Eikthyrmir,”
“I am sure I didn’t hear you correctly. Did you say Eikthyrmir,” Loki asked with a raised eyebrow
“Yeah. Well, it was my patronus which has always been a stag, but when I cast the spell in the court it looked completely different. The name was just sort of there, in my head when I saw him,” Harry explained, unsure if Loki’s curiosity was a good thing or not
“Harry, in the legends of Asgard, they speak of a stag that stands upon the hall of Valhalla. Its name is Eikthyrmir, and he is considered to be the guardian of the fallen warriors who make it to Valhalla,”
“And this means-,” Harry trailed off, feeling more confused than when he started,
“It means you are summoning the stag of Valhalla to aid you in battle. There are not many Aesir who could claim such skill, not even myself. Even with those binds blocking access to your magic, you can harness the power that would take others ages to master,”
“I mean, the Patronus charm took me ages to get properly, so I don’t know if that makes me-,” Harry started, only to be shushed by Loki,
“Harry, I am not going to allow you to sell your skills short. You have a great understanding of magic, almost intuitive. With proper training, you will outclass every magic user on Midgard. Maybe even myself one day,”
Pride. Harry could feel it rolling off Loki in spades as the God looked at him. Loki was proud of him, and Harry was struck by it. Loki, his father, was proud of who he was and what he could do. Not because he was his son, or because it was expected of him. No, the look that Loki was giving Harry was the type of pride he had only imagined getting from a parent.
Harry felt his magic twinge slightly as he used the joy of Loki being proud of him to fuel his illusion. With closed eyes and a simple smile, Harry pushed his magic outward, feeling the flow rush through him. Opening his eyes, he looked in awe at the small raven he had crafted. It wasn't perfect, the beak was slightly lopsided and the feathers looked dingy and out of focus. Yet, it was there.
“And that, my son, is a fantastic start to mastering illusions,”
The high of his training lasted most of the day. While Loki eventually ended their training when Harry managed to get a raven that had a properly sized beak, the feathers were still fuzzy, the young wizard opted to roam around the mansion a bit more. Truthfully, he was buzzing with energy and needed an outlet. Eventually, his wandering brought him to the one place he had spent more time in than his room, Tony’s lab.
The heavy metal doors granted him access the moment he got close, shutting softly behind him to keep everyone else out. And safe from whatever madness that Tony had been cooking up. As was expected, said man was fiddling around his fabrication table, his hands tinkering with a holographic schematic of an armor of some kind. One that, as Harry got closer, looked too small for the adult.
“Having fun over there,” Harry asked, smirking when his dad jumped up to clutch at his chest
“Trying to kill your old man already? If you want money there are easier ways to go about it than scaring me to death,” Tony quickly dismissed the blueprints in front of him, giving Harry all of his focus, “How’d training with dad number two go? He didn’t teach you how to pull a rabbit out of a hat,”
“No dad,” Harry laughed, “He did teach me how to create illusions. I still need some practice at it, but I can at least make a bird…well sort of,”
It took a bit more focus, but soon an illusion of the lopsided raven fizzled into view. Tony couldn’t resist reaching out to touch the bird, pulling back when his finger went through it, making the bird flicker out of sight,
“I’m still working on making it last longer and more realistic. Loki said if I get enough practice in I could eventually learn duplication magic or even how to alter my own body,”
“Wait, duplication? I thought it was all illusions,” Tony questioned, his thirst for knowledge showing
Harry shook his head,
“According to Loki they are two different things. One is more of a projection of an object or one’s self while the other is crafting a magical copy of yourself as you are in your current state,” Harry repeated almost verbatim from what Loki had told him earlier when he brought up the same question.
“Well, that would explain why FRIDAY keeps seeing two of him late at night. She’s caught him sneaking snacks out of the fridge,” Tony clapped his hands together and jumped out of his chair, “Magic mumbo jumbo done for the day, which means you and I have a project to get back to,”
With a gesture of his hand, a holographic display of a green orb came into view. The orb looked to have several shifting layers, constantly changing shape and speed of rotation.
“PRONGS,” Harry whispered, as he walked to the visual representation of his AI, “He is looking better already. Are we going to integrate him into your system today?”
“You got it kiddo. Since FRIDAY got an upgrade to her server space, PRONGS here will be moving into her quarters so to speak. Plenty of processing power to run whatever you need him to,” Tony couldn’t keep the smirk off of his face, knowing that part of that processing power was going to be dedicated to the suit he was designing. Even though Loki said he wouldn’t, Thor had come through with the Uru after the night before.
“PRONGS has been a big help with my work on incorporating runes into code, as well as finding a workaround for getting electronic to work in the presence of magic. With all that extra power there is so much more headway I could make,” Harry was speaking rapidly, his eyes practically glowing with his manic energy and excitement
“Ah, don’t get too excited kiddo, there are ground rules,” Tony sat on the edge of the table, making sure Harry had all his attention, “For starters, no living in the lab,”
“I don’t live here per se,” Harry started to say before Tony just pointed to a corner of the lab where a sofa had been draped over by a thick blanket Harry slept under, “Okay, point taken,”
“Yeah, it’s bad enough when I do it. As much as I love having a mini-me running around, I don’t need you to pick up any of my bad habits. Secondly, don't try to turn PRONGS into a one-stop solution for world peace, it won't end well. I trust you to be responsible and you did build PRONGS, so I’d feel bad telling you how to work with him,”
“I think I can manage that. Can we go ahead and boot him up,” Harry asked, bouncing from foot to foot.
Tony nodded his approval,
“He’s already set up, just waiting for your voice to wake him up,”
Harry took a moment, steadying himself. PRONGS meant the world to him, and to have him back after so long felt almost unreal.
“PRONGS, you awake up there,” Harry asked hopefully
It took a moment, but eventually, the speakers hidden in the lab came to life with the deep British baritone of PRONGS and by proxy, James Potter
“It has been such a long time since I’ve seen you. I think this is the first time I’ve ever truly seen you. Harry, where exactly are we? I seem to be running with almost 200% more processing power than before. Not to mention it feels as if I am connected to multiple devices at once,”
A small tear rolled from Harry’s face as he heard the voice of his A.I. companion for the first time in ages,
“You’ve missed a lot of things PRONGS. Welcome to the Avengers mansion. That extra power you are running is courtesy of my…of my dad. PRONGS, this is Tony Stark, my dad. Well, one of them,”
Despite there being no visual indication, both Harry and Tony could feel the apprising eyes of PRONGS on them.
“It seems, Harry, that you have found your people. I am exceedingly happy for you. Also, if I may, just who else am I sharing this space with? I am detecting another complex A.I. algorithm within the same network as myself,”
“That would be-,” Tony began, only to be caught off suddenly
“Hi, boss calls me FRIDAY, Female Replacement Intelligent Digital Assistant Youth. I help the boss run things around the compound. What does PRONGS stand for?” came the cheery voice of Tony’s personal A.I.
“While it does not stand for anything specific, I was named after a man believed to be Harry’s father. Perhaps a re-naming may be needed to keep with the trend,” the question was left hanging in the air,
“Only if you want to PRONGS, it is your call,” Harry said, though there was a hint of emotion in his voice that the teen couldn’t place
“PRONGS suit me just fine. It was my first designation and I am rather fond of it. While I integrate myself into the spaces Tony has set aside for my data, shall I store the saved information from your experiments on your personal server,” the A.I. asked
“I have a personal server,” Harry looked up at Tony, “You didn’t have to do that,” the boy almost cried
“Harry, you are my son and I have too much money not to spoil you. Besides, I have seen your notes for your projects and I want you to have a space that is not only for them but can keep them protected. There is nothing safer than a server under Stark Tech level encryption,”
Harry was stunned in a way he really couldn’t put into words. Sure, Tony had gone out of his way to get him clothing and furnishings for his room. Things that he had been told were the bare minimum a parent should provide for their child. The server though, was something else. Tony had seen his work, gone through his code for PRONGS, and thought it was important enough that he needed a server of his own. That his work and skills were important.
He values your work, as he should.
The voice of his mental copy echoed his thoughts, making Harry blush ever so slightly.
“Thanks, dad. That means a lot to me,”
“And Pepper was worried I’d mess this parenting thing up. If you ever get mad at me, I’ll just add more server sp-OOF,”
Tony and his words were cut off when Harry launched into a sudden hug.
It lasted only for a moment, Harry sheepishly pulling away, rubbing the back of his head in mild embarrassment,
“Sorry, I just-,” Harry started
“No, it’s all good, I get it,” Tony responded, trying to figure out just why there was this warm and fuzzy feeling that was spiraling through him, “Just, uh, warn me next time before going in for the hug. Your old man has finely tuned reflexes and I wouldn’t want to hurt you,” he huffed out in a joke, missing the brief look of trepidation that crossed Harry’s face,
“So, I know I’ve gone through your notes when fixing up PRONGS. I know, shame on me. However, I can’t make heads or tails of some of this stuff. Like, the threshold at which electronics can withstand magic. How’d you come up with that number,”
“That’s easy,” Harry smiled brightly, “PRONGS, bring up the recordings from experiments 54 and 54B,”
Father and son crowded around a desk, watching a recording of a stack of Harry’s books circling a phone. As Harry explained how every magical object or person exuded a passive field of magic, neither one of them noticed Loki watching from the entrance,
“FRIDAY,” he all but whispered, his eyes never leaving Tony and Harry, “Could you take a picture of this for me? And start up an album, call it ‘For Frigga,’”
There was no vocal confirmation from the A.I. but Loki was certain she had done it regardless. Even though Tony insisted she was just a computer program at times, Loki felt she was just a little bit more. All the same, the God was happy that he got a chance to start a photo album. It was a very Midgardian concept, one that James had introduced him to so long ago. Now that he had a family of his own, he was looking forward to starting it.