The Truth At Last
"You're improving faster, Harry. I assume the experience of actually fighting someone significantly more used to battle than you are have been imprinted into you, and you were able to grow more efficiently, I see." Merlin said calmly as he easily dissipated the various spells Harry threw at him.
He and his godson were sparring, with Merlin easily having the upper hand of course, even with him limiting himself to using only roughly the same spells that Harry could, but compared to back where Harry lost to him within a minute or two in their first spars since Harry became his godson, Harry was actually putting up somewhat of a fight and could now even get the offense, although Merlin would easily overwhelm him in the end, whereas before he could only attack Merlin when Merlin allowed him to and was forced into the defensive most of the time.
Back then, the goal was to force Harry to experience the importance of defense and flexibility by demonstrating how easy it was for a significantly more experienced opponent to beat him, but now Harry had understood and was able to apply that experience, so Merlin focused on finessing his godson's dueling prowess for as many situations as he could.
"Black was holding back when he fought me." Harry said as they stopped dueling. "He didn't seem to be interested at all in finishing me off. He just wanted to find "that rat" and we didn't fight for long, even though I held my own and even pushed him back. He even said to me that I am definitely my parents son and seemed to be so... melancholic."
Merlin hummed at those words. "Indeed. Near the end of the term, we will be able to find out the truth, Harry. Until then, be patient. I'm proud that you had fought not to avenge your parents, but to protect your friends. Your father and your mother would be proud of you, and so am I."
Harry smiled softly at that. "Yes, Father. I understand now, indeed. When Sirius Black appeared all of the sudden with that knife, I suddenly didn't care about killing him or avenging my parents. All that I cared about was stopping him from endangering my friends and fighting him for that."
"Indeed. Not only that, but you were able to see the greater picture, even in such a troubled time. You were able to remain level-headed, and for that, you have improved a lot, my boy." Merlin declared with a proud smile as he patted Harry in the head.
Alas, the pleasant mood was somewhat disrupted when Ron excitedly wondered if Harry would be able to come to Hogsmeade again along with him. Merlin had agreed, but insisted on Ron following his usage of disguises due to how things had been getting. He would provide them a spatial distortion to get them to the forests of Hogsmeade, and then they would go to Hog's Head for lunch.
However, they were then interrupted by Hermione, who threatened to reveal that Harry had been going to Hogsmeade without a signed form if Merlin allowed both him and Ron to go.
Needless to say, Ron had lost his temper and proceeded to brutally attack Hermione, actually managing to nearly beat her, as he screamed all about how Hermione had only distanced herself from them and chose a pet over her own best friends.
Merlin had not allowed it to get too far, fortunately, and proceeded to forcefully stop the duel after Harry kept failing to stop them from dueling.
Ron had burst off while Hermione sobbed over Ron's harsh words, leaving Harry and Merlin to tend to her, before she ran off to the library.
"Will there be no end to this, Father? Am I too late?" Harry asked morosely as he and Merlin walked back to the Common Room.
Merlin gave him an encouraging smile. "I've seen many more best friends fight much more worse than that. Don't worry, Harry. You can still make it."
It had became increasingly clear to Merlin that Sirius Black was not using any super-powerful magic to breach Hogwarts defenses. He did not have the power for that, no matter how hyped up his abilities might be after he was seemingly revealed as a Death Eater. Rather than breaching the defenses, it would be more accurate to say that he "slipped in".
Merlin had discovered Sirius Black's power as an Animagus upon searching the ground where he fell. He analyzed the magics around it, and felt that Black had used a Disillusionment Charm and a Softening Charm to get away as he did, but then he also felt the presence of a dog with the same signature as Sirius Black's own.
There was no mistaking it. An Animagus was efficient in concealment, but Merlin could easily tell the difference between an Animagus and an actual animal and with the knowledge of the signature of magic of a person, could identify them.
If Sirius Black is an Animagus, then could it be that Peter Pettigrew and James Potter were also Animagus too? Having the powers of an Animagus would definitely be useful when dealing with a Werewolf, as when you transform into an animal with Animagus Transformation, the physical powers of the creature you became would be dramatically amplified by the magic flowing through the body of the wizard. It still wouldn't be enough to contend with a Werewolf in a one-on-one fight, but if it was two or three, it could be possible.
As Merlin thought it over, he suddenly heard Hermione sobbing in his empty classroom.
He had no lessons for the day, as when it was Hogsmeade weekends, he would probably be administering recordings of the class and delivering them to the third-seven years, so Hermione was able to easily get here.
Merlin gently walked inside and patted Hermione in the shoulder. "You alright, Hermione?"
Hermione hiccupped. "I-It's Ron. I don't know what to do anymore... I can't think Crookshanks would devour my friend's pet, but even so, his words back then really hurt. He was right. I was too secretive this year, and too nagging. I should have trusted them more. My best friends. It's just the stress of studying so much has been really getting to me..."
Merlin gave a small sigh as she softly grasped the pendant Time Turner. It was lended to her by Minerva to attend more classes than what she normally could. Unlike Harry and Ron, who dropped most of their subjects except for Divination, regrettably, and Care of Magical Creatures, Hermione remained fixed on having multiple subjects. Naturally, the stress was overwhelming her. While Merlin could comfortably handle the responsibilities and still have more than enough energy and time for other matters, with his immortality and centuries of practice helping him out, Hermione had no such advantage.
"Then open up to them. I'll make sure Minerva doesn't mind the whole thing. Be better, Hermione. You were right that your flaws had lead to this estrangement, yet you can be better. I too had such problems before, but I became better for it."
"Do you think Ron will forgive me?" Hermione asked softly as she stared at him deeply.
"Actually, he's all but complaining about how you refuse to let him in and that if you had, he would have talked to you again."
"Wow, Father. Whatever you told Hermione worked wonders." Merlin smirked as Harry happily reported about how upon returning from Hogsmeade, Hermione had finally confessed to Ron about the whole Time Turner thing and apologized for not being a better friend. Ron had accepted and they hugged for a few minutes.
"Well, Harry. It was not all me. It was also you who worked to slowly but surely close the gap between your friends. I just did the finishing touch with Hermione. You were the one who did the finishing touch with Ron, I hear?"
Harry chuckled as he looked as though a heavy burden was lifted from him. "Thank you, Father. You were right. I'll do my best to cherish them more."
"I know you will. The finals, Gryffindor vs Hufflepuff, is approaching. Good luck with the match, my boy!"
Harry laughed heartily. "Oh, don't worry, Professor, I inherited the Quidditch talents of James Potter, and was trained by Professor Emrys Ambrosius, one of the best fliers there is. Of course I'll win."
Merlin smirked. "Yes. That victory has never been more certain than now. You have conquered your demons, have rediscovered the joys of life, and so you are ready."
Indeed, as Harry had confidently declared, Gryffindor defeated Hufflepuff 250-70.
It was quite a dazzling display from Harry and Cedric, both wielders of the Firebolt. The two Seekers had demonstrated outstanding skill and precision, had fought for their teams with astonishing mastery, and gave one another a strong competitive match before ultimately Harry just narrowly won out.
Thus, Gryffindor had finally won the Quidditch Cup after 6 years of being denied the glory, and Merlin was quite proud as Harry was lifted off his feet by the entire Gryffindor Quidditch Team and paraded towards the stands, where Merlin stood with the Quidditch Cup ready to be presented.
As the Gryffindor Quidditch Team sobbed over finally winning, and Minerva sobbed even harder, Merlin allowed himself to recall fond memories of when he once watched over the Quidditch Cup, where he got the chance to proudly present to each of his children the Cup as the winner kept changing, with Gryffindor having a slight edge over the other houses due to Godric's particular watch on the sport.
And as Merlin happily handed over the Quidditch Cup to his godson, he recalled only a few of Arthur Pendragon or Godric Gryffindor and saw in the boy more of the fact that he was simply Harry Potter, his own person.
The boy he had only raised for 3 years, yet had already made him so proud.
The euphoria of winning the Quidditch Cup and being presented it personally by the man that was his father lasted even when he was faced with the final exams.
He had to admit he pitied Hermione for how she was burdened with so many subjects, but fortunately, his godfather had arranged so that he alone would review the exams for Hermione, and it would be held at the Repository of Usefulness along with the others.
He just had to help Ron out now, since despite Harry having gained an appreciation for mastering proper knowledge, his best friend hadn't exactly shared the same views. Harry had insisted in taking Ron out on practicing numerous skills and testing him out, which made Ron torn between gratitude and exasperation.
And so all three of them were ready to take on the final exams.
It was with pleasure that Harry and Hermione aced through the exams. Even Professor Snape had to begrudgingly admit it as he nodded curtly at both him and her upon reviewing their Confusion Concoction and the papers. Professor McGonagall looked at the two of them fondly as she reviewed the spectacular results of their transformations, the opera glasses created from converting owls sparkling brightly, the Felifors spell causing a cauldron to have not a single trait of a cat, and Professor Flitwick practically beamed as he spoke out words of compliment at their skills in performing various charms to the max.
Ron didn't have much trouble either, although he did have to concentrate more to get the same results, but still earned impressed looks from McGonagall and Flitwick.
History of Magic was also fairly easily handled. Per Professor Emrys's words, as the previous year's exams didn't get to be taken, he used half of it into the current exam. It contained details of the story of the Founders and Merlin 75%, and the rest were materials easily remembered too, so Harry was assured he, Hermione, and Ron aced it easily. Ron had practically grinned most of the time, after all, and Hermione was smiling to herself.
Astronomy was also easy enough, Professor Emrys having kindly displayed various methods to quickly make an effective Star Charts, and Herbology was a class Harry was on par with Neville, so he and his two friends aced through it easily enough, the spells of accelerating a plant, the methods of de-fanging vampiric vegetation, and handling various plants being did with ease. He swore he was barely sweating, unlike all the others, who were covered nearly entirely in sweats, and had no sun burns, as he already had been trained by Professor Emrys to handle numerous hazards.
Defense Against the Dark Arts didn't even make Harry break a sweat, casually grinning as he easily emerged out of the obstacles and was proudly awarded full points, which increased in spades when both Ron and Hermione passed entirely as well.
However, the mood was ruined in the Divination exam.
Now, this was where Harry's patience was genuinely tried. Professor Trelawney included few of the Divination methods used by his godfather, and Harry had to stop himself from narrowing his eyes and keeping his face even constantly.
Even so, that paled compared to the prophecy his professor had spoken.
"It will happen tonight. The Dark Lord lies alone and friendless, abandoned by his followers. His servant has been chained these twelve years. Tonight, before midnight... the servant will break free and set out to rejoin his master. The Dark Lord will rise again with his servant's aid, greater and more terrible than ever he was. Tonight... before midnight... the servant... will set out... to rejoin... his master..."
And so it was that Harry rushed to his godfather's classroom and informed him of this matter.
"Yes. This is a genuine Seer Prophecy. Worrying indeed." Professor Emrys had declared grimly as Harry eyed him nervously.
"But you said that free will can change the outcome of a prophecy!"
"Yes, it can. And I'm going to do my best to. The device I'm using is close to uncovering the truth, Harry, and I must request that you remain safe and secure. Leave everything to me."
Alas, Harry could not fulfill what his godfather wanted for him.
Still distressed over matters, he had set out alongside with his two friends to Hagrid's Hut, even managing to find Scabbers, who turned out to be alive, only to be intercepted by a large black dog dragging Ron into the Whomping Willow.
Harry had rushed after his friend, tapping a knot into the tree trunk to freeze the three, a weakness his godfather had shown him when Harry asked about it in case he ever had a violent encounter with it again.
Imagine his surprise when he and Hermione found themselves in the Shrieking Shack. His godfather had shown him there when they visited Hogsmeade, and Harry's good memory made it easy for him to recognize it all.
"Stay behind me, Hermione."
With that, Harry focused on one particular technique his godfather had shown him. The ability to detect the presence of others by reading the magical energies around using the Old Religion.
He focused again and again, and eventually uncovered Ron's location. He was in a magnificent but dusty four-poster bed with rickety doors, but there was also another presence. That of Sirius Black.
"Black is here." Harry said grimly as Hermione's eyes widened.
"Listen. Professor Emrys taught us all a few healing spells, so you cast that spell on Ron, and wait until Black is distracted enough before you start throwing in your spells. Don't push yourself and focus more on supporting me. Black is too much for any of you. Even I'm not sure just how well I could fight him. I fought him before, so I could hold my own, but you two aren't ready yet."
As Hermione shakily nodded, Harry marched towards the room his friend was inside, but while he tended to his friend, he didn't allow his focus to slip. He kept his eyes forward, readying for Black to show himself.
As soon as Black cast the Disarming Charm, Harry blocked it and proceeded to fire several spells at Black, who blocked them all.
"I thought you'd come and help your friend," he said softly as he blocked the spells Harry threw at him and fired his own.
His voice was better than before, but still strained. "Your father would have done the same for me. Brave of you, not to run for a teacher. I'm grateful... it will make everything much easier."
Harry said nothing to that as he focused himself. He wasn't here for revenge, but to keep his friends safe.
Deciding to try out a particular spell his godfather had taught him, Harry shouted "Astrice!"
Clearly not expecting such a powerful spell, Black was pushed back a few feet by the beam of pure magical energy even despite him blocking the spell.
"Draca!" Next was a small dragon made of sparks. Although Black blocked the spell, the sparks somewhat blinded him, allowing Harry to push him back further as he kept up an aggressive barrage of spells, not stopping until the sparks cleared.
When the sparks cleared, he was honestly surprised to find that Black had took 2 slicing spells to his right shoulder and cheek. Black himself had clearly not expected this as he hummed.
"How your parents would be proud of you." With that, Black healed those wounds as Harry eyed him warily, not willing to take the initiative against the significantly more experienced enemy.
"I've waited too long for this, for justice to finally be served, and I don't want to hurt you, Harry, but I will if I must."
With those conflicting words, Black intensified his attack and Harry began to struggle as Black slowly pressured him, his attacks becoming increasingly unpredictable and his spells harsher. His defenses had also grown stronger, as he no longer allowed himself to be pushed back even when Harry fired charged up spells, responding by simply charging up his defenses well. Black was clearly a master-level duelist, just like how Hagrid had described him.
A particularly strong Stunning Spell managed to push him a few feet back. He could not keep this up, or else Black would win, but how-
His salvation came in the form of various spells thrown at Black by Ron and Hermione, giving Harry the time he needed to recover.
He didn't let Ron and Hermione engage Black for too long as he stepped back into the fight quickly. He was to be honest thankful that they had both actually gotten to receive training from Professor Emrys before this. Their skills were still not on par with his, but they kept up just well enough and managed to avoid making any critical blunders and provide cover whenever he needed it.
Harry lead the two as they began to overwhelm Black, who could no longer dominate the duel despite his best efforts. He made sure to keep the teamwork efficient as he synchronized his assault well while also shouting out flaws and openings his friends made.
It took 3 more minutes, but Black was eventually overwhelmed. The blow to finally end the duel was a particular spell taught by his godfather.
"Acwillan!" A sharp blow of magical energy finally pierced Black's shield, sending him flying.
However, rather than finish off Black, Harry instead proceeded to walk up to him.
"Tell me the truth." Harry asked sharply. "Are you the one who caused my parents deaths?"
Black coughed a few times before he gave a mixture between a shake and a nod.
"What happened that night? Who is the real traitor, you or Pettigrew?"
Black's eyes widened.
"Answer me!" Harry demanded, now allowing some of his anger to flow through him.
Black gave a deep breath.
"How did you suspect Pettigrew?" Black asked curiously, no longer aggressive.
Harry narrowed his eyes, but indulged him.
"My current godfather, Professor Emrys Ambrosius, found it highly unlikely that someone of your personality would have betrayed my parents and chosen the side of those you loathed. He also researched recently, and found the possibilities of Peter Pettigrew surviving and he was the actual traitor. He's currently trying to divine more of the truth, but now that I have you, tell me."
Black let out a small chuckle.
"I'm already starting to like that professor, despite never meeting him. Yes, Harry. It was not me. It was Peter Pettigrew, that traitorous rat."
Harry nodded, but did not allow himself to let his guard down.
"Show me the proof."
"The proof, Harry, is here."
Harry turned around and watched as Remus walked into the room.
Merlin gave a few deep breaths as he finished the divination spell. Even for him, Divination was easily the most difficult branch of magic ever.
Be it interpreting the destiny of a person, looking into the future, or even just seeing the events of the past, none of it was as easy as simply waving a wand or willing it to happen. He needed some actual effort and some spells even required certain measures.
13 years had passed since then, and it was difficult for Merlin to cast the spell, even with the help of this pentagram, which was why he needed to exploit several full moons before the pentagram had enough power. He could cast it normally, but it would have taken a lot out of him, and that would be not good for anyone.
Even so, a part of him was burning with rage over the cowardice of Peter Pettigrew and the injustice of Sirius Black, but he nevertheless knew what to do know.
Merlin? Merlin! Things have become much more complicated.
Him? Why is he so close? I could feel him traveling here.
Kilgharrah? What do you speak of?
If you are to unveil the true justice, then we must convene. Meet me at the topmost cell of the Dark Tower. You'll know why when you go to the Hospital Wing.
Merlin's eyes narrowed. The Hospital Wing?
But then it hit him.
Harry!