Carry On

“… So, you know who everyone is, right?” Colonnello asked.

Harry hummed as he continued to stare at the door that led out of the office. Harry shifted and slouched further in his seat, hugging the purple sequin pillow to his chest.

Next to him, Colonnello shifted again before taping his booted heel on the marble flooring in a rapid staccato pattern. The uneven spaces between the taps made Harry’s hair stand on end—although, in all honesty Harry could find nothing wrong about the jitter. Harry let out a sharp burst of air through his nose before he finally turned and looked to Colonnello.

Colonnello was also slouched, but his hands were on his knees with fingers hooked into the fabric. Lips pursed and eyebrows furrowed.

Harry cleaned his throat loudly and shoved the pillow he was clutching to his side as he straightened up.

“Well… knowing itself is.. questionable. I’ve come to find that my memories aren’t… hm…” Harry trailed off as he attempted to find a word to describe the not exactly organized, but perhaps more incoherent than was good mess that was his state of memories. His memories were biased, full of holes and other misunderstandings—and Harry couldn’t say he trusted his memories one hundred percent. Especially as more memories seemed to pop up when triggered by a word or a sight or sound. It was exhausting in ways Harry didn’t know how to put to words and was doing his right best to ignore (he had bigger things to worry about).

(It would be nice to just have a few days to process—but time was not a lot of currency he had at this exact moment…)

In the end, well, Harry just sighed and clasped his hands together, giving his own hands a little squeeze. “To be honest, I would rather meet everyone as they come… with how I am now. Knowing how anyone was in the past doesn’t matter much now.” Harry said. He took a moment of staring at his knees before glancing to Colonnello. Harry wondered if blatant staring was just going to be a thing?  

The frown and furrowed eyebrows were still there.

Harry watched the flex of Colonnello’s jaw, the quick glance away before the other focused on Harry. Harry wasn’t exactly sure how he knew, but he could feel it deep in his gut that Colonnello seemed to find something of what he said unappetizing.

Harry sighed, “just spit it out.”

“… knowing how we were in the past is the foundation for now.” Colonnello’s hands fisted on his knees and gave a little tremble. “We all built a relationship with each other. It’s… it’s wasteful, to see it disappear.”

Harry sighed. “People grow apart sometimes, with or without memory problems.”

After a long stutter of silence, Colonnello breathed out a bitter, “… I know.” Perhaps he wanted to say something else but had thought better of it. Harry could respect that. Harry himself didn’t always have the best filter on his mouth, even when he tried.  

The long pause lasted until Colonnello spoke again. “.. you were a police officer?”

Harry hummed. He didn’t debate too long on what to tell Colonnello. The Wizarding nations had essentially crumbled within the last century. It didn’t matter if he told muggles or not. Or whatever a flame active mafioso could be considered. “A version of a police officer… I made sure the laws were upheld in general. But my subdivision was more into investigation and elimination of dangerous witches and wizards. My team was very specialized. We were often… left to our own methods for how to get the job done as long as we followed some basic protocols.”

“… sounds a bit like a hitman.” Colonnello remarked quietly.

Harry tilted his head back so he could eye the chandelier. “… I suppose it does seem like it.”

“… did you ever kill anyone, in this job of yours?”

“No—not while I worked there. I have… injured a fair amount of people. Sometimes… rather badly. But I never killed them. Not for work.”

Colonnello nodded as he smoothed down the fabric of his pants that he had clutched. He did it a few more times before he spoke again. “… tell me more about you.”

Harry was the one that let the silence linger as he looked away from Colonnello.

In all honesty, Harry was at a loss on how to answer that. He was used to people just knowing more about himself than he was typically comfortable with. It was less effort on his part. Harry didn’t exactly have to go out and convince people of his moral character or job position. Even when working his job people would often follow his commands without question just because he was Harry Potter and everyone knew him on sight.

Even here, in the few interactions within Carcassa that he had that he could remember off the top of his head, it had been much the same. (There was probably many that he didn’t remember that likely didn’t go so well…)

Adding insult to injury included the fact that Harry didn’t quite… know who he was, exactly. Not anymore. There was just… too much. Too much to process and integrate. He needed time.

Harry blinked away the fuzziness in his vision, pulling himself sharply back to focus. He avoided looking at Colonnello.

“Well…” Harry said, “my name is Harry. Uh… Harry Potter. My wife’s name… was Ginny. I have magic—I’m sure you’ve seen the whole magic thing by now—and I went to school for magic… and I eventually got a job as a magic version of a sort of police officer.”

“That’s a lot of ‘magic’ in one sentence.”

Harry snorted, “magic is pretty encompassing. Once it’s in your life… once it is your life, well… it’s not something that you just... give up.”

“… how come everyone here isn’t just doing magic all the time?” Colonnello asked.

Harry frowned as he raised his hands and ran his fingers through his hair. “That’s the part that, well, it’s hard to swallow for me. I’m told that we just started to… not have children with magic. And then a disease came and robbed a generation of children of magic—that happened to my youngest daughter. Lily. And it just sounds… fast. Fast and convenient.” Harry pressed his lips together as he worked his jaw side to side, grasping for how to explain the situation and pleased that Colonnello was actually giving him the time to work this out.

The thought of it all came suddenly. Wasn’t this just… too convenient?

… why had they been so determined to find that creature with the checkered mask?

“… and it’s burning up their… time? Lifespan? Energy...?” Harry trailed. Someone had likely said a good word for it, but he couldn’t quite grasp it. It was on the tip of his tongue. It was a pressure behind his eyes and a lump in his throat and—

“… have you been using magic?” Colonnello asked—the pitch was different. Perhaps a bit higher?

Harry looked back to the blond to find that the man had turned to sit sideways on the couch to face him. Part of his boot up on the white furniture (that would definitely stain).

Harry nodded, “yeah.. uh, yes—waking up, no one told my anything… well—they lied. So they did tell me things, but it’s debatable and… well, never mind that. From there it was just a hard thing to, well, sink in. Chew on? There is some metaphor that should work there…” All he could think about was that stupid gillyweed. He still remembered gnawing at that wad of hard, slimy plant—it still felt so viscerally real, as if he was still in the act of it. Some sensations stayed, no matter how hard one tried to forget.

“… and this is related to… Frank?”

“Right. Uh, yes—my children tell me that he is the man behind our kidnapping… Colonnello, could you tell me a bit about what happened that day?” Harry pressed the other. Harry’s mouth had gone dry, and he was a bit lost about what to say to really explain to Colonnello ‘who’ he was. It was simply better that Colonnello talk about himself. About anything else.

Colonnello nodded briefly and shifted to lean the small of his back against the arm of the couch. He crossed his arms over his chest, tucking his fingers in to the crooks of his elbows as his eyes drifted to the rather obnoxiously large rifle sitting on the coffee table in front of their couch.

“… you had called me…. And not that that was strange, but you were very panicked, so it stood out. I mean, more panicked than you usually got during these episodes. And you usually don’t call me first when you get that escalated. You usually call Viper or Reborn first… but since you called me, I figured that they weren’t available. I had a few hours before my plane, so I detoured…” The muscles of Colonnello’s arms tensed.

“You were just…. Ranting. Raving. Gotta admit, that wasn’t the lowest I’ve ever seen, but it was getting there. You were losing it, repeating about eyes on yourself. You just kept going and going and going—you were very loud, and honestly, if that establishment didn’t fea—respect Reborn so much I’m sure they would have thrown you to the police or at least to the street…” Colonnello sighed, the flexed tightness of his face easing as he shook himself a little. “Eventually you calmed down and we shuffled out and then just… I don’t know—I got hit by something and I was just, gone.” Colonnello sighed and rubbed his eyes, pushing hard as if to push an ache out of them.

“… still no headaches, right?”

“Yeah, no, I’m good—just… remembering. Processing.” Colonnello mumbled and dropped his hands as he attempted to shift himself back in to forced casualness.

“And… and after that—do you remember… them…” Harry made a vague gesture toward his own face.

Colonnello did exactly two slow blinks—the rest of his body not moving as he did it. Harry didn’t even think he saw the man breath—before he cocked his head to the side. His eyes had shifted to fixate on the rifle on the coffee table. If that rifle didn’t look so clean and well taken care of, Harry imagined that the man would be cleaning it. Colonnello’s leg had taken up tapping again. “I… I remember the pain. In my eyes. But I can’t really… well—I don’t remember any details. It was fuzzy. The next thing I really remember is waking in the forest with your unconscious ass and a trunk full of suspicious liquid.”

“… oh right. I left that open.”

“Fuck yeah you did—that was seriously—I… I can’t. Not important.” Colonnello sighed and rubbed his face, before waving his hands as if he was shooing away the memory from his head. Harry let it go, since his questions had been answered. At least Colonnello was mostly spared the pain of being helpless and at the mercy (the actual lack thereof) of the Unspeakables.

Colonnello was focused back on Harry then, and Harry could feel the intent even before Colonnello opened his mouth.

“So… who is Frank? In detail, that is. Some big bad?”

Harry felt his hackles rise. He didn’t know what exactly set him off. Colonnello’s tone was nonchalant. His posture relaxed and gaze firm but not too intense. Although the more Harry looked at it, the more his gut feeling told him that it was all forced. Colonnello was lying with his body language. He was not relaxed at all.

Harry took a moment to just look at Colonnello as the idea settled into his head that Colonnello was forcing his own calm. “… are you fishing?” Harry asked.

It wasn’t as if Harry isn’t willing to answer Colonnello’s questions about Frank. It wasn’t as if Frank was entirely off topic… but at the same time, Reborn had tried to ‘throw down’ (his brain thoughtfully threw that specific phrase to the forefront of his brain) with Harry about Frank before Harry had shut the hitman down.

So, Harry wouldn’t be too surprised if Colonnello was trying to gain some information.

(Harry would have, too, if he was in the same position.)

Colonnello snorted and nodded. His hand moved in a little twirl (‘yes, continue!’).

Harry shook his head minutely before he closed his eyes. He appreciated the honesty, he really did! Harry didn’t doubt that Colonnello had a rather personal vendetta against Frank. Especially after what happened.

“Frank is… complicated.” Harry shifted and turned to face Colonnello. He attempted to use his own feet to shove off his boots, but the clasps and zippers and ties were too well fitted. Harry eventually had to lean over and fumble his boots off. He dropped them to the floor soon enough and folded his legs on the couch. He wiggled his socked toes (no ruining the furniture! His memory of Aunt Petunia’s pitch when she ranted about this very thing was hazy now, but the fact that it occurred was forever stamped into his memory—) for a moment before he focused on Colonnello. “So… Frank was one of Liliana’s elements—”

“Wait. He belongs to her?”

“Rouge. He seemed to have gone against everyone—”

“The fuck—”

Harry sighed and motioned for Colonnello to be quiet. “…. From what I understand… Well, Liliana is my great something grand-daughter. She is old enough to have seen magic enough to, well…. miss it. She wanted it. She expressed that to Frank, her fiancé—” Colonnello made the rudest, throatiest noise Harry had ever heard (and that was saying something, Harry has worked with trolls in the past—thank you Hagrid), that Harry chose to ignore— “and Frank seems to have schemed some way to try and bring magic back?”

“…. What the hell—why kidnap us? He went rouge and threw himself out there just to take us out?”

Harry tilted his head to the side and took a moment. That was a pretty valid point. Frank could have stayed in hiding without Liliana or the Carcassa ever knowing what he was doing. But he had done more than that—he had slaughtered Carcassa members, he had kidnapped Skull and Colonnello, essentially murdered Skull to bring Harry back and… well…

“… when he woke me up—he lied to me… but at the same time, some of the things he said has lined up with what I have learned from my children.” Harry rubbed his hands together in an attempt to keep his hands from his mouth. “He… he painted himself as the victim. That the government—the magical government, had gone bad. And he wanted me to destroy it.” Harry paused here, and he really, really thought about Frank. He had never really focused on the man outside of the immediate need of surviving (both the Unspeakables and Frank himself).

Trying to remember every little thing about the man was a bit like looking through a foggy window in winter during a snowstorm (and the snow was sticking).

Harry looked up to Colonnello. “… But I’ve known Frank for a long time. Years and years. Since he was little. I’ve… I’ve…” Harry listed absently. “… I have him in my head. I’ve trained him. I taught him to drive. Cars, motorcycles—I’ve… I’ve taught him… fixing leather. Stunts. Bombs…” Harry trailed again. He hadn’t realized it until he honestly thought about it. But one thought led to the next, and the next, and the next…

A loud snap of fingers in front of Harry’s nose brought Harry back to the couch in the office. Harry blinked his eyes back in to focus and following Colonnello’s retreating hand as the other man settled back. Colonnello seemed to have a permanent frown on his face.

“Tell me if I’m wrong—but this bastardo is someone you’ve known for years, set to be married to your great whatever kid, and he has fucked with your head and attempted to kill you?”

“… ah…” Harry trailed. Colonnello wasn’t wrong… but it also didn’t feel completely right?

Colonnello didn’t make a noise, but the sudden crumpling of his face was easy enough to read.

(Colonnello is not happy!)

“He, uh, he seemed more intent on making sure you died rather than me?” Harry asked with a smile. Harry watched that crumpled expression go completely blank and he knew without a doubt that that was the wrong thing to say and he quickly rushed to explain that.

“Well, the building you were kept at—the eye thing—well, Frank mentioned in passing that someone had been captured at the same time as me and was charmed to look like the me that I was before the me that I am happened and Frank didn’t make any mention on saving you so I decided to make sure that you were safe and no longer in the clutches of the Unspeakablesbecausenooneshouldhave—”

Another snap of fingers in front of his face, and Harry took a deep breath in response. (That felt… scripted.)

“…. As short as possible.” Colonnello said. That was not a pleading. Colonnello’s face was still strangely flat in a way that was starting to seem more and more forced.

“… while Frank was lying to me, I had him help me rescue you and bring you to safety. And then I saved you when Frank showed his true feelings.” Harry said, and then sealed his lips before the rest of what he had done could come out. That he had burned down at least a third of London. Maybe even half. Not even considering the rest of the magical world that existed in wizard space.

No, that…. That, Harry didn’t think he was ready to confess to that. Not yet.

“… what was Frank asking you to do?”

“… overthrow the government.” Or was it more? Was it something else?

“… and you just took me and left?”

Harry pressed his lips together and nodded, looking away from Colonnello quickly.

“…. You took me. And left.” Colonnello pressed. And Harry made it a point of not looking at the blond as he nodded again.

“… fucking bullshit. What did you do?”

“Nothing!”

“Skull—!”

Harry couldn’t stop the sharp intake of breath he took, or the one that Colonnello mirrored. Harry held still as the silence between them yawned.

Slowly, Harry turned his head and looked to Colonnello Harry found the man had dropped his face in to his hands. The man was doing some very slow, deep breathing.

“You all keep doing that.” Harry spoke—it came out soft and much more quiet than he hand planned. “You all keep calling me that!”

Colonnello flinched, but after a moment he lifted his head and faced Harry.

“… you’re just… it’s like Skull isn’t gone. You’re just… so alike!” Colonnello clenched his hands in to fists.

Harry didn’t know if this was a compliment, sincere or backhand.

“I hardly think I am similar to Skull—”

“But you are!” Colonnello hissed, and his demeanor was like a switch was flipped. That need to prove himself.

It had Harry’s hair standing on end, “I am not! I am me—”

“And you are Skull!” Colonnello pushed right back.

“How could that even be? He… he didn’t have magic! And that is me!”

“Skull was more than just ability!”

“What worth am I if I can’t—” Harry clapped his hands over his mouth and took in a deep breath through his nose, even as Colonnello shifted closer. Not close enough to loom, but Harry couldn’t help but focus on Colonnello now.

“… sure, it was all kinds of fucked. We all had bad relationships. We clash—we all clash with each other. But even then we are a team. A family! Skull—you—you’re our family. If we needed to drive out of a situation, you were in the hot seat there. If we needed a distraction, you were out in the masses starting either a riot or some kind of clown show! You were—are, useful! You could make bombs on the fly, out of the wildest materials! An-and know where to shoot to not kill a person and… and… and you’re so human and… and it’s easy to lose that.” Colonnello grimaced, a hand going up as if to press on his eyes before he forced his hand down.

“… don’t talk about yourself, as if… as if you don’t matter when you didn’t use magic.” Colonnello concluded.

… what could Harry say to that? What could he do?

Harry didn’t know what to do. Didn’t know what to say. Could he even respond to that?

(Was he really… was Skull…?)

Colonnello reached out, his hand going high as if he was going to pat the top of Harry’s head—

The door slammed open sharply and Harry jumped to his feet at the noise even as he turned to look—Liliana!

“What did the Goblins say?” Harry rushed to ask as Liliana prowled into the room. Fabian and the Lovegood boy flowing in behind her. Liliana gave a slow glance between Harry and Colonnello before she moved to a nearby chair and dropped herself down in an exhausted sprawl.

“… they have conditions.” She hedged. And Harry waited until she followed up (she really was too much like himself) with, “the main one of which is that you must be unconscious the entire time.”

“… oh. Okay.” Harry readily agreed. Anything to get this over and done with.

Harry noticed movement out of the corner of his eye, and he turned his head to look to Colonnello as the man jerked up. “What, no!” Colonnello instantly countered Liliana, his suddenly raised voice attracted all the eyes in the room. “No way! He won’t be able to defend himself.”

“… but I don’t need to defend myself.” Harry pointed out. Liliana looked away, and Colonello’s flat face was rather intimidating as he gestured to Liliana. In fact, Harry rattled his brain to try and remember what that gesture was…. Was that code? Sign? A threat? What—

Liliana raised a hand and deliberately cleared her throat. “In light of this sentiment, and while we do want to trust the Goblin nation and their representatives… we also are in line with Colonnello’s thinking and were able to sue for the existence of one human to watch over Harry during the surgery. Therefore, I will be sitting with him.” Harry hummed as he looked between Liliana and the guardians that stood behind her chair.

“I want to be with him,” Colonnello immediately threw out there.

Harry turned and looked to Colonnello, “… you don’t even know what a goblin looks like.”

Colonnello’s hackles rose up, “you told me they’re short and mean. That’s enough.”

Liliana’s nose wrinkled, “do you know their customs and hidden verbal meanings?”

“Well, no…” Colonnello puffed, shoulders drawing taunt as he pushed his chest forward. He was clearly pulling himself up to ‘throw down’.

“Let it go. It’ll be fine.” Harry waved Colonnello’s concerns away (even though his face didn’t change), and he turned to Liliana. “When is this going to happen?”

“… now. So, if you’ll come with me.” Liliana said as she stood up. Harry nodded and scrambled to shove his boots back on. Colonnello shifted to sit on the edge of the couch, body tense and eyeing the rifle on the coffee table. Once Harry got his feet back in place, he stood and patted Colonnello on the shoulder.

“See you in a bit,” Harry shoved as much false cheer into his voice (Colonnello flinched—did Harry have to stop with the forced cheerfulness?) and waved to the blond as he exited with Liliana. They made quick work to getting to the infirmary that Harry had already spent some (actually rather significant) time in. A wheeled bed was already set up and ready for transport.

Harry glanced around and found no one else. “Where is Albus?” He asked as he moved to the made bed and took a seat.

Liliana moved to stand next to him, “at the house.” She answered, her eyes automatically going to the side. If they could see through walls, Harry would say that she was looking toward the family house.

“Do they know?”

“… I sent a messenger.”

Harry raised an eyebrow.

“… I’m afraid they’ll try and disagree—this shouldn’t be dangerous. But if we don’t move quick enough… this isn’t the time to be cautious. We have to get this weakness out of you.” Liliana jumbled but got out the gist of what she wanted to say.

Harry read between the lines. The ‘I can’t rest until I fix this Achilles’ heel’.

“… is your relationship with Lily okay?” Harry asked. He remembered the meeting room. The tense conversation between Lily and Liliana.

Liliana’s eyebrows wiggled together, “… yes. Why do you ask?”

“… no reason.” Harry deferred as Fabian returned and held out a glass vial.

Harry took it and waited for Fabian give his instructions before he continued. Fabian stared and waited. Harry had a feeling the waiting contest would have gone on for a while if Liliana hadn’t stepped in with a simple, “sedative and sleeping drought. It’ll put you down for a day. And you’ll be groggy for a few days after. They requested the strongest one we could give you. You need to take it with food. Here.” She passed over a packet of crackers. Saltines.  

Harry nodded and held the vial with one hand, thumb over the opening to prevent unintentional spillage. He used his teeth and ripped open the package of crackers with his teeth. With the crackers open, he promptly shoved the clump of crackers into his mouth and forced himself to swallow the short stack of extremely dry crackers. He choked a bit, but once his mouth was clear he threw back the potion. It hit the back of his throat like a bludger.

It tasted like ashes and he gagged—and that turned in to several sharp coughs. Lovegood handed him a small cup of water and Harry kicked that back quickly. It immediately eased everything, but it still felt like he had just taken a long drink of boiling-cold coffee. Lovegood yanked the cup—beaker?—out of Harry’s hand and Harry rubbed his throat as he shifted and flopped down on the bed.

“I don’t remember it tasting that bad before.” Harry said hoarsely.

“Hm… Have to ask Albus about that,” Liliana mentioned as she eyed the vial. She eventually reached out and patted Harry’s hand. Harry only noticed that because he was looking toward her. He didn’t even feel that.

Harry blinked and opened his mouth and gurgled—

“It’s okay. I have you.” Liliana said, voice soft as she moved and raised a side rail so he didn’t tumble out. “It’s almost over.”

Harry blinked once. Twice. Thrice. And then—

It was a struggle to open his eyes, but he eventually did. He found himself… well—it didn’t really matter where he was. There was a face in front of himself. It was—orange hair and freckles and—

“Ron,” Harry breathed. His body felt light, as if the chains around his lungs had loosened. Harry shifted and clumsily brought a hand up—and almost walloped Ron on the head. Luckily, his friend caught it. “Ron, it’s so good to see you. You won’t… you won’t believe this…” Harry jumped when he accidentally bit his own tongue. The pain sharp—but just as swiftly was gone.

Ron’s hands—the hands that had caught Harry’s hand, tightened for a moment before easing.

“I can’t… I’m so… so… relieved. You’re here. I’ve been so—it’s been too much.” Harry blinked the tears that were forming. He was less seeing Ron’s face and more of just the blur. “I’ve been… I’ve been needing you. You and ‘Mione. It’s just… these people. They’re just so… so strange. And I need you.” Damn, did he need Ron. He needed his partner.  “It… it’s been hard to think straight. Like too many thoughts at once. It’s better to just—not. Not think. Just do… and you and ‘Mione always scolded me for it but… but…” The man that usually fixed Harry’s ideas so that they were less likely to blow himself (and their location) up. The man that Harry trusted to back him up. The man that… the man that…

Harry blinked and found that suddenly he felt icy cold. “… Ron, you’re not dead. Right? You can’t be dead.”

But Ron is dead—wasn’t he?

The chains that had seemingly loosened…. Tightened. It was hard to breath. As much as it was hard to keep his eyes open.

“No, no, no, no—no—no—nononono—”

Harry jerked back into consciousness with a sting in his nose and an ache in his teeth. He was in the… office? The chandelier was a rather clear sign about where he was—the purple of it was something he hadn’t seen anywhere else on the base (not that Harry really had been everywhere… just yet). Harry blinked a few more times before he focused more on his body.

He wasn’t in pain, no.

After a moment to breath, he felt fine. Fine, but heavy. Drained. He hadn’t felt like this in a while, although he had felt this exhausted more recently than he would prefer. Harry let out a long breath and avoided using his head to look around the room. He doubted he was alone and—

There was Leon on the back of the couch he was on. Harry didn’t doubt that Reborn wasn’t far from the chameleon.

(…chameleons are notoriously hard to keep alive, after all—)

In fact…

… oh. This was a surprise.

Verde. Green. That hair.

Harry blinked and took in the fact that the other was typing almost feverishly fast on a laptop. Now that he noticed it, Harry’s ears seemed to give a mighty pop and he could hear the click-clack of the keyboard as the man continued. He hardly paid Harry any mind. Harry forced himself to continue to breath normally even as he hoped that his body hadn’t just been left with the creepy scientist. His fingertips tingled even as chills ran up his legs.

Skull hadn’t caught Verde’s eye too much during their time together. Skull was, ultimately, too annoying and not that interesting outside of the obvious memory problems. Harry could vaguely remember some disconcerting words and statements, but overall, he just felt unease with Verde (as opposed to fear or terror).

Just uncomfortable. But that was fine. Harry knew a lot of people that made him feel uncomfortable.

Harry looked away to take stock of the rest of the room.

Lal laying out on the other couch—asleep. Rifle tucked in her arms and across her chest and boots still on and a towel tossed under her shoes to prevent potential stains—

A flash of red out of the corner of his eye had him turning his head (and that took a lot of effort) to look and see Fon staring out of the large windows. Morning light was streaming into the room. It barely caught Harry’s leg—his bare leg.

Harry jerked into a sitting position with a gasp—his skin felt… raw. Not painful, but uncomfortable. He could feel the morning sun on his skin and, well, he took in the fact that his clothes were gone from his body. He had on his underwear and an undershirt but—well—

He felt exposed.

His skin prickled when he felt every eye turn to him and he quickly drew his legs to himself even as he threw out a hand to grab the back of the couch when the world gave a little tilt.

“Liliana…?” Harry asked as he turned to the room at large and—

That large desk was not there the last time he had been in this room. Nor the several ancient looking books and… Well, of course Reborn was there with his feet kicked up and a book in his lap. Reborn didn’t even look up as he turned the page. The sound loud in the absence of Verde’s typing. “Not here,” Reborn remarked, “it’s been two days since your surgery.”

Harry blinked before he rubbed his face.

Unfortunately, he did so with the hand holding the back of the couch. Harry sank back down on the couch, his body minutely trembling. He didn’t hurt, but he felt rather… weak.

“Liliana was very helpful in explaining the surgery,” Reborn lightly remarked as he soundlessly closed the book and set it on the desk. Reborn’s dark eyes lingered on the book a moment longer before he changed his focus to look to Harry. After a moment, Reborn smoothly lowered his legs from the desk and stood.

Harry blinked and jumped in place when it looked as if Reborn seemingly apparated from the desk to standing at the coffee table. Reborn sat down on the edge of the coffee table closest to Harry’s head. “As well as the complications that occurred.”

“… complications?”

“The obsidian stones not planted within your skin or fat layers have shifted or fused with certain organs and bones.” Reborn placed his elbow on his knee and his chin in his palm. “Twenty nine have been removed.” Reborn reached into the breast pocket of his suit jacket and pulled out a stone as fathomless as his eyes but only as large as a Go stone.

Harry instantly felt like he wanted to puke. He hurriedly looked away from the stone.

“… where…” Harry coughed, attempting to force his throat to earn it’s keep.

“I convinced Liliana to focus on her other affairs,” Reborn said simply as he spirited the stone away and back into his pocket without once looking away from Harry. Harry didn’t think the man was even blinking.

It felt like the inside of his throat was sunburned. “.. why…?”

“Apparently removing this specific ritual has never been done before. Complications were bound to happen.” Reborn said as he used his free hand to reach out and pinch Harry’s cheek. He pinched hard enough to be extremely uncomfortable, but not hard enough to hurt.

Hard enough that Harry felt the absence of that firm bit of non-flesh in his cheek.

Cold-warm—

Harry blinked up at Reborn even as he felt the world getting dark around the edges…

“… Reborn…”

“This is why we read. The. Fine. Print.” Reborn’s voice was falsely pleasant. And Harry took in the very real fact that he couldn’t see Colonnello in the room. (Had… Had Harry gotten Colonnello in trouble?)

“She mentioned that you have to rest. Complications.” Reborn coolly remarked as he pulled his hand away and stood up. He smoothed out the lines of his suit as he turned away.

Harry hadn’t realized his hand had moved until he grabbed the back of Reborn’s suit jacket and yanked as hard as he could. Reborn didn’t even have the decency to stumble as he turned his head just enough to look over his shoulder.

“Don’t be a dick—stop cutting me off when I’m talking!” Harry yelled even as his body started its inevitable tilt to fall off the couch.

Reborn did not catch him.

Harry groaned from where he had crumbled to the ground (after landing on his face—Reborn was such an obnoxious little sh—!). He blinked the tears away, his nose wasn’t hurt, but the shock of it had automatically brought them out. Harry let out a breath of air and started the laborious shifting to get himself up enough to sit. When Harry finished moving, he found that Reborn had taken a seat again on that coffee table, and behind him he noticed that Lal was casting them a expressionless stare before turning away and resettling to nap.

With Reborn re-settled in to place and looking at Harry with expectation… well, Harry didn’t quite know what to say. Had he meant to say anything? He had just been a bit upset, and it led to this…

“… I have called you a lot… when I haven’t been myself, have I?”

Reborn’s face shifted minutely, but it was so smooth at the same time. Harry didn’t have a chance on reading it. And just assumed that the man was projecting agreement.

But Reborn seemed more agreeable than typical. He wasn’t looming. He was projecting calm. And Harry ran scattered fingers through his brain to come up with something to keep the conversation going. “… I, uh… w… when I was drunk texting you. Before the motorcycle… when Leon was in my apartment—you found me through the texts… right?” Harry tacked on the question at the end to stop potential sass.

“Hoo… you just figured that out?”

Harry wanted to scream at the man, but he was rather too tired.

“… then… then… I was… the circus. Everyone was there?”

The silence seemed like agreement.

“… I don’t remember much of the circus.” Harry admitted.

“… you were using a lot of magic at that time, weren’t you?” Reborn asked suddenly.

Harry paused before he nodded and then shrugged.

“From your records, I found documentation about your… ‘maggots.’”

“… why do you have my file?”

“We all have a thorough medical documented with Verde. It was a given to update yours.”

Well, Reborn wasn’t wrong. But at the same time…!

 Harry sighed and looked around, “where is Colonnello?”

“Sleeping,” Reborn swiftly answered, “… when I pinned you in that alley, when you broke your wrist… you used magic on me.” Reborn continued.

Harry thought about denying it, but honestly at this point Harry didn’t think his actual response mattered. He just nodded and then waited. Reborn had stolen the control of this conversation and Harry didn’t have the energy to fight for it back.

“The underground. The last car. You destroyed the floor and when you disappeared….”

“Ah—apparated. Like teleporting.”

“When you crashed your motorcycle at your event—”

Harry cut Reborn off, “uh, not that one.”

Reborn tilted his head just a little and made that same hand twirl that Colonnello did. A silent, ‘go on.’

“… I just crashed. And next thing I knew I was up. I was fine. It didn’t even hurt.” Harry shrugged.

“… your broken wrist?”

“Ah, set that with magic and kind of… forgot about it? It’s fine.”

“… when I shot you in the leg?”

“Ah, it was fine…”

Reborn hummed and leaned forward. Harry found himself leaning back against the couch. Harry frowned at himself for so swiftly cowering and then at Reborn for making him do it. Reborn kept the silence, and Harry swiftly grew impatient. He didn’t even know if Reborn was trying to make a point or was asking a question… he didn’t know!

“It’s not the worst thing that ever happened to me! I mean, getting hit by the killing curse twice is a record, all things considered. I even got impaled by a Basilisk. What’s a gun shot wound to that? Or… a bit crushed by a motorcycle?” Harry started strong and lost a bit of steam along the way before he crossed his arms over his chest and stared back.

Reborn didn’t speak and held the silence for a short bit before he spoke.

“Verde, can you verify?”

“From the autobiography, all three of those events were mentioned. He appeared to be running on full capacity with his memories prior to us since he defaults to those as opposed to Arcobaleno related injuries.” Verde replied in monotone as he scrolled something on his computer.

It took a moment for Harry’s hazy brain to process what they were saying.

“… autobiography?”

“… Harry James Potter, born July 31^st, 1980 to James Potter the first and Lily Potter. Your formal titles include not just being a part of Wizarding peerage, but also consists of ‘The Boy Who Lived’ and ‘The Chosen One’.”

Well, that was a little bit like a punch to the gut, hearing that come out of Reborn’s mouth.

“… well, you have done your research.” Harry said, sounding faint even to his own ears while his arms loosened. “… how did you get a hold of that?”

Reborn hummed and then said, “your Albus supplied it.”

“… why would he do that?”

“Would you even trust me if I told you?”

Harry looked away. He didn’t know. He didn’t want to put it to the test.

(… was he really going to have to talk to Albus about this?)

With his eyes away from Reborn, they landed solely on Fon. The man was still next to the window, still surrounded by morning light. He was watching Harry, and Harry couldn’t place the man’s expression to anything outside of calm and collected. (But Fon always looked like that, didn’t he? Fon is very much an actions louder than words man and Skull’s memories proved it by—)

Harry turned his head and looked to Reborn before he sighed. “… I’m too tired right now.. I can’t do this.”

“… quite.” Reborn hummed and reached out and lifted Harry off of the floor and back on to the couch. Picking him up like a child from under Harry’s arms. Harry watched his knees and fought with himself not to lash out at the action.

… he would rather not be on the floor.

“.. why am I here and not the infirmary?” Harry asked as he slumped in to the pillow that had been tucked against the arm of the couch.

No one answered him. Harry sighed and motioned to the purple sequin pillow at his feet to see if anyone would grab it for him. After a moment of no one moving, Fon stepped forward and silently passed the pillow to Harry’s waiting hand. Harry wrapped his arms around the pillow as he glanced to Reborn—Reborn was at the desk again. Leon sitting on the coffee table where the man had once been.

And here was Fon.

“…. I don’t really remember you, Fon.” Harry settled on saying as he looked back to the man. “Maybe I just never took notice but I don’t…. I don’t know you. Or I don’t… it’s muddled. Please… tell me about you.” Harry prompted the man.

It might be a little bit of a lie… but only a small one. Harry had pieces of memories in his head and disjointed everything and a red haze lingering at the edge of his senses where he didn’t want to disturb it.

Think of it… like a blank slate.

Right now, he was too tired to fight. Harry didn’t have the energy. He felt weak.

It was okay to take this—to recuperate.

Harry was used to other people knowing more about himself than he was comfortable with. That wasn’t new. But perhaps he could change the tide, just a bit.

… but he could learn a bit more of Fon. Get a clearer picture.

Fon shifted and moved around the couch and sat down at Harry’s feet. He moved slowly and telegraphed each motion clearly. Harry doubted the man was as calm as he projected. Each movement selected with delicate precision.

“I am not quite able to pinpoint where to start,” Fon softly began. And he sounded familiar. Like this was how he was supposed to be. Not the character he played in Germany or at the Motocross event or at the circus. This was real. The cadence was even, and Harry would have considered Fon almost monotone if not for the multitude of subtle inflection scattered throughout the man’s English.

Fon arranged his face into something almost helpless, as if to help visually convey the point across. (His face and eyes continued to project a deadly calm—and this felt normal too.)

Harry gave a sleepy hum as a haze settled in the back of his head and his blinks became a bit harder to stop lasting so long. “Well… how did we meet?”

“… I met you prior to the coming together of the Arcobaleno. By several months. A contact of mine selected one of your stunt shows as the meeting place for a passing of information. The common move of hiding in plain sight. And….”

Harry slowly blinked once, twice, and—

And he woke up warm. To warmth and quiet. Harry shifted until the tension down his spine eased. He would have gone back to sleep if he hadn’t needed to use the bathroom so badly. Harry shifted and groaned to himself as he cracked open his eyes and flailed. Blankets. Stiflingly warm. It took so much effort to kick them off.

He was not on the couch. No. This was… the infirmary. He looked around and—there was Reborn in the chair to the left with another book. Verde to the right with his laptop. And Liliana at the end of the bed, typing on her phone.

Harry shifted and rolled to the edge of his bed and swung his legs down. With his legs swinging, he used the momentum to shove his upper half into a sitting position. His vision swam. It felt like his brain had liquified and was swishing around in his skull. Harry pinched his eyes shut and took a hard inhale through his nose before quickly pushing himself to his feet. The shock-cold of the tiles stung, but he just clung to the bed as his legs took a second to recalibrate.

When he felt more stable, Harry cracked an eye open and briefly scanned his environment.

Reborn eyed him from his seat but did not rise to stop or catch Harry. That was fine for Harry. Reborn had questionable motives on the best of days—right now certainly did not feel like such a great day in the making. Once his feet felt strong enough, Harry hurried to the attached bathroom to use it. He only tripped over his own feet twice.

It might feel like he was walking on dry sand and wading through a strong river at the same time… but he didn’t make a fool of himself or require assistance. Harry avoided looking at himself in the mirror.

He did his business. Drank water from the tap. Splashed some water on his face until he didn’t feel like he was going to drop to the ground any moment now.

When his eyes would drift to the reflected surface, he froze himself and looked away.

—he didn’t want to see the not-stranger looking back at him—not right now—

When Harry came out of the bathroom, everyone was exactly as he had left them. Harry also had the vantage of spying Fabian, Lovegood, and a handful of other people beyond the curtains of his curtained off bed.

Harry cleared his throat, “… so… I’m upgraded from the couch?”

“Reborn stole you for a few hours for his ‘base’ within the Carcassa.” Liliana sharply cracked before Reborn could speak. Not that it looked like Reborn was going to speak—the man was lounging in his chair with his book, a lazy curl to his mouth as he focused on what was written in the book.

Harry squinted at the book. It looked vaguely familiar…. But Liliana was here. A quicker way to get answers.

“How…”

“It’s been four days now,” Liliana answered as she tucked her phone away and turned her full attention on to Harry. Verde was still typing rapidly in the background. Harry chose to ignore it (as best he could) so that he could focus on Liliana.

As for four days—Harry was honestly used to long healing sleeps. He was sure that waking up after he went to bed after the Chamber of Secrets had to have been his longest recorded sleep (he hadn’t even slept so long when he had ‘died’). He stretched his arms over his head and felt his shoulders pop and loosen up. It seemed about right, the amount of tension that he had in his body related to how long he had been asleep. “And I’m all fixed up?”

Liliana’s eyes shifted to the side momentarily. “… as much as can be right now. More research needs to be done. Otherwise, we run the risk of permanently crippling you… or killing you. But the good news is that no one else will know that we’ve removed some of them—so they won’t take that into account.”

“How fast does recalibration occur?” Verde asked, voice flat and distant.

Liliana and Harry both turned to Verde to find the scientist’s flat eyes fixated on them. Harry suppressed a shiver and crossed his arms tight over his chest. It felt like Verde was talking about an animal—and that one small nightmare about himself in a zoo flashed behind his eyes. Liliana looked away with a curling smile-grimace, but she did answer, “it has varied over the years. It’s been reported that some attempts took days. Other times it took only a few minutes. From our own recalibration… Boss could do it in as little as a bit under a minute.”

Harry blinked straight ahead for a second too long before he looked to Liliana. “… Ginny was that fast? She, uh… ‘re-formed’ me… a lot?”

“… yeah. She always put you back together quickly.”

Harry pressed his lips together to bite down the questions that he had as he used the corner of his eye to check on Verde and Reborn. Harry had to quickly look away from Reborn’s flat stare. Considering the topic, Harry would save his questions for a time when they weren’t hungrily waiting for more answers. When Reborn was not there.  

“Anyway… I’m just here to tell you to rest. If you feel like you’re falling asleep, don’t fight it. It’s for the better. The effects should wear off soon.”

“… why do I have to sleep so much? I feel pretty good right now.”

“It was a major surgery. They removed at least four of the stones from major muscle groups. And not to mention your nervous system…” Liliana paused, and then let her words trail off. After a moment she reached into her pocket and pulled out a roll of parchment with a bring green wax seal and set it in to Harry’s hand.

Harry delicately gripped the parchment and waited for Liliana to speak. She obliged after turning and staring at Reborn for a solid few seconds. “That’s the official report from the Goblins.”

Suddenly the paper felt significantly more important. Harry waited a moment to see if anyone would speak before he popped open the seal and unrolled it. The writing was certainly cramped, and it took Harry a good second to shake the cobwebs from his thoughts and focus on processing the Goblin language.

At least he didn’t scream when he felt a breath across his shoulder and a “—I can’t read this” from Verde.

Harry did choke and fall into a coughing fit, unfortunately. He threw the parchment on to his bed so he didn’t rip it in half while he rushed to cover his mouth. Harry recovered swiftly, wiping the corners of his eyes as he turned and found both Reborn and Verde at the side of his bed, talking swiftly between each other in what was probably a smash of four languages at the same time. All Harry could hear from that was white noise as he watched them look over the unrolled document.

“They’ve been waiting like that for hours—vultures.” Liliana hissed. Although she choked when Reborn turned his head and gave her a narrow eyed sneer.

Harry reached out and physically turned Liliana away from Reborn, and ended the murder eyes competition. He didn’t care if Verde and Reborn fussed over a parchment they couldn’t read. Harry had already gotten the gist of it anyway, “I need to rest for a while longer—no magic and no flames,” He confirmed with Liliana as he let go of her shoulders. Liliana was staring down at where Harry’s hands had been. Quietly, she nodded her confirmation.

Harry rubbed a finger over the corner of his mouth and paused. He rubbed harder and then swept his hands over his face.

The glasglow scar was gone.

Liliana glanced up and gave a brief, helpless smile. “… it’s a well-known fact that that scar bothered you a lot. While you’ve been unconscious, all the scars that housed a stone were healed… to an extent. There is still some faint discoloration that will need a few more treatments. It’s not everything, and you still have many…”

Harry flinched when he gave a large sniff—and he noticed the two Arcobaleno freeze in place. He quickly wiped at the wetness welling in the corners of his eyes and shook his head.

He wasn’t vain! He wasn’t… it was just… a lot.

It was all a lot.

(Hours and hours of practice and repetition and placing pieces of silicone mimicking flesh and foundation and color and—he had just wanted to blend in. He just didn’t want them to stare… feminine hands over his own, guiding his motions as he brushed bit after bit of make up in to place until he was a white mask of armor—)

Harry pointedly didn’t look to Reborn or Verde as he focused on Liliana.

“Right, well…. Right.” Harry used the palm of his hand to wipe away another tear and straightened up his back. Priorities. “After a bit more research, they’ll get the rest?”

“… it’s a possibility. You are the first known case, after all. The ones not removed were because of delicate positioning, and you were destabilizing. So in a few months we’ll have to check in again and create an action plan.” Liliana explained. Lowering her voice to try and make it just a little harder for the interlopers to hear.

Harry nodded, a little relieved (and a little sad that it wasn’t over, not yet).

“From what I can tell… it’s okay for me to move to another place to rest, right?”

“Yes,” Liliana said.

“Great. Lovely. I’ll return to the house. Will you accompany me?” Harry asked. He needed to step away from the Arcobaleno so that he could have a proper conversation with Liliana. Harry raised a hand and rubbed his fingers over the smooth section of his face. Liliana nodded her agreement.

Things have been progressing. His head felt so clear—his thoughts were smooth. It was like he had shook off a great exhaustion. And while he was still feeling weak… he felt so much better.

It made it very clear where he could be going. What he should be doing.

What he should be settling.

The need to settle the remaining corrupt Wizarding government. They had been chasing Harry for years and it’s already been proven that they were not going to stop. Not until Harry made them stop.

“You would not allow one of us to sit with you?” Reborn asked, the silky voice cutting through the air with the precision of an obsidian knife. Harry looked to Reborn’s face and found that it remained the perfect face that Reborn was known to do—projecting only what Reborn wanted in this moment. Harry didn’t bother to read it.

He tilted his head, “I—.”

“It’s family only—warded against anyone without Potter blood. You’ll be teleported to the New Zealand if you try.” Liliana supplied as she grabbed Harry’s elbow. “Likely in pieces.” She didn’t move him, but Harry certainly felt the claim as easily as Reborn and Verde saw it.

Reborn hummed, low and deep in his throat as he eyed Liliana. He let the silence stretch for a few beats too long before he nodded.

“When you have finished your rest, I have something to discuss with you.” Reborn informed Harry.

“… something?” Harry asked.

The corner of Reborn’s lip stretched up, creating the illusion of a soft, human groove of a smile line on his face as he echoed, “something,” to the air as he turned toward the break in the curtains. As he went, Reborn rolled the Goblin’s parchment into a neat roll and smoothly tucked it inside his suit jacket. Verde followed with his laptop tucked under his arm.

The curtained area suddenly felt tremendously large.

“… well, that went easily.” Harry said, but before he could continue a huge, cracking yawn broke through. Harry rubbed an eye and looked over to Liliana. She was still watching after the Arcobaleno, her nose wrinkled as if she had smelled something awful.

Harry couldn’t help the laugh (not a giggle) that slipped out and had her looking to him so quickly that Harry could swear he heard her break the sound barrier.

After a moment, she smiled something small and soft.

“I am… relieved.” She admitted, before her shoulders curled up high and she looked away.

Harry hummed and pressed a hand over his mouth to hide the yawn. It felt like the yawn rolled through his entire body. Harry rubbed his thumb over his cheek and smiled. “Me too…. Me too.”

“To the house…?”

“Yeah,” Harry rubbed an eye and followed Liliana out of the infirmary. He glanced around, mentally counting off Liliana’s retinue as he went. The infirmary was still missing Albus.

“… where is Albus?” Harry asked.

“The greenhouse, I think?” Liliana stated as she shoved her hands in her pockets and walked like a hooligan.

Harry considered pointing it out, but soon let it be.

They walked in comfortable silence, and Harry watched as Liliana’s elements peeled away one by one until even Fabian walked away when they reached the stoop of the home of Potter.

“I can breathe easy, now. The chance of you being controlled—of another event happening—the chances should be next to nothing.”

“That’s a good thing,” Harry remarked as he watched her go toward where he knew the kitchen was. This was certainly the most… happy he had seen her. In a long while.

Another yawn slipped out. He was feeling a little hazy. “I’m going to go… rest.” Harry said and got an agreement from Liliana. He shuffled off and in a few blinks Harry found himself in his room. His damn jumpsuit was still thrown across his bed. Harry eyed it for a moment before he crawled in to bed around the suit and left it alone. Harry settled on his stomach and buried his face in his pillow.

He didn’t even have the energy to kick off his boots…

When he opened his eyes again, Harry found that there was light streaming in—it looked like early dawn. He had likely lost a day. Or perhaps two. He would find out once he got up. Harry shifted and rolled on to his back and looked around his room.

Like a treasure trove of things that had been precious to him in the past.

… it felt hollow.

“It’s just things…” Harry mumbled to himself.

The only thing that he would soon have left, would be things. Items that had aged without him too. Harry sighed and rubbed this face. In a moment, he would sit up. In a moment, he would face the world. In a moment he would settle the score.

In a moment.

In.

A.

Moment.

Harry inhaled deeply. As far as he could. He held it and counted in his head. Counted until it felt like his chest would burst. Then he let it out, long and slow. Until he felt just a little empty. He did it again. And again. Until he felt hollow and at peace with himself.

He never truly learned to clear his mind until he was much older.

When Harry blinked open his eyes, he found himself feeling heavy and light at the same time.

He felt… clear. And levelheaded.

“I feel like myself,” Harry said, and hoped that by speaking it into existence, it would be true.

Harry turned to his side. The first stage to getting himself up. His eyes eventually landed on the bedside table. To the orb that he had gotten from the ministry.

… it was time to get going.

He had a to do list.

Find Frank. Deal with Albus’ Scorpius. Find out why ‘Selene Lovegood’ was stamped on that prophecy orb. Destroy the Ministry of Magic—check on international relations. Find Checkerface. And… And… probably many, many more things as well. But this came to mind first. He would deal with these in whatever order came first.

Perhaps the orb, then. That would likely be the easiest.

Harry pushed himself up into a seated position. He took a moment to sniff his shirt. His skin felt a little greasy. A shower to start the day—and get himself moving.

…. Some things might be beyond his reach, now.

But he would take everything still here and grasp it tightly. He would love his children, and he would love them after they left him for the next great adventure.

To be able to focus on what he wanted… he had to deal with this shit list.

He needed to make time. Harry would not be given time—he just needed to claw it out himself.

Harry scratched his nose and pushed himself out of bed. He moved to his shower and stepped under the hot spray with his clothes still on. He pulled off the scrubs while standing under the hot spray. It was almost like being born again. The heavy, wet heat giving way to a steam clean.

Harry stepped out of the steamy shower stall blindly, pressing a small towel to his face as he did so. He dabbed at his face as he shuffled to the sink. With his face dry, he dropped the towel in to the sink and looked up. At his face. Harry raised a hand to his mouth, and watched his trembling fingers grace the corners of his grimace. It was his mouth again. His own cheeks.

The scaring around his hairline was minimal compared to all of it. Compared to before. Harry couldn’t help but touch his own face. His nose, his eyes… the swell of scar tissue right under his jaw was still there. But now… now it looked like his own face.

Harry inhaled sharply through his nose. The stuffy sound of congestion reached his ears and he blinked against the blur to his eyes. Eventually he squeezed his eyes shut and reached for the towel on the rack. He dried himself as he stepped out into his bedroom.

Inevitably, his eyes landed on the jumpsuit on his bed.

It seemed like forever since he had laid it down. He grabbed some simple jeans and a t-shirt and sent the jumpsuit in to the hamper.

Harry then turned to the half formed prophecy orb he had placed on his bedside table. Harry turned it over in his hands and raised it to the light.  

There, engraved in the glass. As he remembered it. Somehow, Harry recognized Frank’s handwriting.

‘SELENE LOVEGOOD’ was still there, in the glass.

How… curious.

Harry took a moment to strap back on his wand hostler and then shoved his wand inside before he left his room. He started down the hall, keeping an eye out for Liliana. If nothing else, she could confirm for him that it was indeed Frank’s handwriting. That it wasn’t just his mind playing tricks on him.

… why had he been tricked to pick up a prophecy about himself, that had a Lovegood’s name on it—and was written in Frank’s handwriting?

Harry padded down the hall, quiet on bare feet.

An open door did catch his eye. Before Harry could think about it, he had shuffled over to the open door and he peered inside.

Lily sat at a large, beautiful desk.

“… is that… the Headmaster’s desk from Hogwarts?” Harry asked, because he had been in front of that desk enough times to recognize the unique carvings on the front. Lily dropped her pen and jumped slightly before she turned and looked to Harry while she placed her hand over her heart. It took her a moment before she let out a chuckle and nodded.

“Yes, mom stole it.” Lily answered simply, but the statement left Harry feeling a little out of water. He drifted into the room, couldn’t help it.

“Ginny did that?”

“Yes… she stole a lot of things. I’ll have to show you the treasures sometime.” Lily agreed as she picked up her pen and signed on the bottom. Harry drifted to stand next to her and peered over her shoulder at the document.

Lily glanced up and smiled. She held up the paper for Harry to read it. Her movements did not look forced—in fact, Harry felt like they had done this before. Harry reached out with a free hand and picked it up. “Orders?”

“Mostly shipping movements,” Lily commented. Harry read a few lines of the, indeed, shipping orders before he dropped the paper back to the desk.

“The desk is more interesting,” Harry commented.

Lily laughed and patted the desk as she stood up. “Yes. I believe it was James and mom who conspired and did it a few decades ago. When mom… passed, I took the desk.”

Harry eyed the desk and then looked to the doorway that was truly far too narrow for the desk to go through. Lily laughed again and pointed to the double doors that led to her private garden. Harry took a moment to really look around the room then.

Lavender. And dark blue. That appeared to be the theme. A dusty seamstress mannequin tucked in to a corner with a maroon cloak draped on top. Photos of animals everywhere. Even—“is that Oodako?” Harry asked with a laugh. It was a cute picture of a very tiny Oodako. Lily hummed as she stepped over to the nook by the double doors that had a small table and two chairs. As she sat down, a cup of tea and a plate of small cakes appeared.

… those were cakes that he did, indeed, like.

“Come sit, daddy.”

“How did that just…?”

“Appear? Magic, of course. This is Sherry, and she is a little shy… a house-elf.” Lily clarified after looking to Harry’s face.

“Right… I didn’t realize…” Harry trailed as he shuffled over to the little table and took a seat. The new cup of tea appeared almost instantaneous. The cup was also the brightest shade of neon purple that he had ever seen. Lily watched him for a moment before she smiled and pushed the plate of cakes closer. The frosting alternated between white and pink.

Harry delicately picked up a cake between two fingers, even as he set down the orb in his hand on to the table. He sniffed it and caught the scent of strawberries. “You always did like strawberry.”

“Yes, and banana.” Lily said, even as she used her withered fingers to select a small cake of her own.

Harry found that the tea was perfect on his tongue and paired with the cake.

“… we did this a lot.” Harry remarked with a smile.

Lily hummed with a nod, “… when mother found it hard to keep a neutral face with you, I briefed you with your orders. And… well, we talked about Oodako.” Lily added with a glance to the picture on the wall.

Harry looked to the photo on the wall as well. “… you seem to have taken well to photography. Would you happen…. Happen to have photos of the family? From when… I wasn’t around?” Harry hesitated and tried to make himself not sound too desperate. Keep it even.

Lily took a delicate sip of tea and nodded. She stood and drifted to a narrow bookcase tucked into a sharp corner and came back with four photo albums that looked far too heavy for her thin arms. She placed them delicately on the small table and motioned for Harry to look at them.

Harry reached for the first one, the album that was dark green with gold inlaid in straight lines along the edges.

Ginny’s face… a portrait.

It looked like the one from Grimmauld Place. The one that Harry had burned. The Ginny in the photograph looked ahead and raised a hand to wave, even as another caught the sun hat from flying off in the wind that sent her red hair spinning. Harry felt his breath catch in his throat as he stared.

Ginny. And James and Albus and Lily… Sometimes all, sometimes one.

Harry did not know how much time went by as he went through the pages and the albums. Watched the lines of age bloom across smooth faces. Watched Ginny go grey. How they left their home and the background changed from familiar places to ones he didn’t know.

… they had moved on… in a way.

Places that they had all meant to go to together.

The way that they all stood did not leave room for him.

Lily silently passed over a handkerchief.

Harry accepted it as he placed the last album on the table. He dabbed at his eyes and took another sip of his tea that was still the perfect temperature.

“… I should have been there.”

“But you weren’t. You couldn’t.” Lily offered her hand out to him, and Harry took it. He delicately held on and let her squeeze her frail digits around his hand before she let go. He didn’t dare squeeze her hand himself. He did not want to hurt her.  

Harry and Lily sat in silence for a while. Until they ate all the cakes and polished off the tea.

“What is that bit of glass?” Lily asked.

Harry couldn’t help but look to the pile of glass shards. “… when I was lured into the Ministry… I felt compelled to go to the room of prophecies. I found three with my name. I broke two of them to listen to them, but the third one… I heard someone enter, so I placed it in my pocket. It shattered, and I didn’t hear it.” Harry reached out and picked the orb up with his hand. “I didn’t know that they put names on the orbs.” Harry said.

Lily nodded and peered at the shard. “Yes. Part of the documentation effort. The one who told that prophecy, their names are usually listed on the orb. The one or ones it belongs to is typically written on a placard.” Lily explained as she settled her hands on her stomach. “There is some complicated sorting magic on it, I don’t really recall it. It has been a long time since anyone has been concerned with it. The Centaurs stopped sharing their prophecies about fifty years ago.”

Harry nodded, debated, and asked—“who is Selene Lovegood?”

Lily’s eyebrows drew together, “… that’s the daughter of Mezzaluna Lovegood—sister to Liliana’s cloud.”

Right—the Lovegood boy. Harry couldn’t remember his first name. He didn’t think anyone had ever told him it. And Harry hadn’t asked either.

“… what happened to her?”

Lily glanced to the side before she let out a small sigh.

“… she disappeared around the same time as Frank. When he… took his leave of absence. She disappeared first, from our researched timeline. But truly, only once he involved you…”

“How did you know that Frank was involved? I thought all the watchers had been killed?”

“… Mezzaluna Lovegood survived for a short time after the initial assault. She was left for dead—a blood curse. She slowly boiled alive. She lived long enough to tell us that Frank had been involved.”

Harry looked away. He could vaguely picture a reed thin woman with hair that was more white than blond when he thought of Mezzaluna Lovegood. But it was too… indistinct. Like he had never noticed or bothered to take note of her. Skull had not known her as his watcher. She was just… she was just…

“Mezzaluna gave me stuff. A lot.”

“Yes, if you were granted supplies, she would give them to you.” Lily nodded, a wry smile on her lips. “She did curb some of your more ridiculous impulses.”

“… ah. She wasn’t the one that gave me the, uh… blimp?”

Lily laughed, “oh goodness, no. She did not approve of that one.”

“But I…” Harry trailed with a small frown. “I… I went above her. And you. I went to… to Boss—Ginny.” Harry blinked, the word ‘Boss’ coming out before ‘Ginny’ did.

Harry paused a moment, and then he laughed. Lily soon followed.

“Her face was hilarious! Mezzaluna was a bit put off, but eventually we all made good use of it for transport. It made up the cost—which is what was intended in the first place when mother approved it.” Lily said with a smile, patting her heart as she stared off to the side. She let out a little sigh, lips curled in a smile. “Reminiscing with you certainly is enjoyable.”

“Yes, I… It’s… this isn’t what I thought it would be. When we got old.” Harry said, eyes down for a moment before he looked up. “I always thought… it would be different.”

“… life isn’t always going to be what we can predict. The past is the past. Life only moves in one direction.” Lily said, although to Harry it almost sounded like an echo. Like it was someone else’s mantra.

Harry almost argued about time turners. But he swiftly tamped down on the urge to utter it. That once incident, Harry had come to realize, had been a reality that ran at the same time. Harry had lived an event twice—but truly, it had happened at the same time. Harry truly had been in two places at once. So the fact that he had gone backwards was meant to happen, because the first instance of that event happened even as he lived it again and—

He shook his head, to clear the thoughts from the rabbit hole. He and Hermione had only gotten in to this the once time and his head still spun with it. Harry could only imagine the trouble she had had to wrap her mind around that clusterfuck of a year.

“Daddy,” Liliana called for his attention. And Harry granted it. “What did those two prophecies say?”

“Ah…” Harry hummed as he thoughts about it. How strange—he hadn’t understood it then. But now… when he thought about it, he understood what he had missed. “… The strongest seven—and… and me, burning.” Harry tilted his head to the side. “I think they’ve both come to pass. I didn’t see the documentation on the bottom of those orbs. Didn’t think to look, really.”

Lily nodded, a contemplative frown in place.

Harry glanced out the nearest window and found the late morning sun moving to become afternoon. “… thank you for your time, Lily. I’m going to bring this to Liliana.” Harry said as he picked up the orb.

“Thank you for your time as well, daddy.” Lily echoed with a smile. “Why are you bringing that to Liliana?”

“Well, this and a few other odds and ends. They were in my suit. The one she requested I gather up.” Harry answered as he got to his feet. Lily nodded.

Of course, then Lily paused. Her eyes locked on Harry. Her eyebrows were lowered and drawn. She looked conflicted; Harry supposed. He waited for her to settle, tossing the half formed orb back and forth between his hands as he waited.

Finally, Lily sighed.

“I suppose… it’s time.” Lily levered herself up from her chair and moved toward Harry. She didn’t hesitate to reach up and cup his cheek. She smiled up at him, and he smiled back.

“Time?” Harry asked.

Lily smiled, the corners of her eyes pinched in to something almost sad. “To let you go—to stop… stop deciding things for you. Your choice with Liliana is proof enough.” Lily said as she withdrew her hand. Harry almost reached out to catch her hand, but she had turned away. She shuffled over to the mannequin in the corner. Harry watched as she shoved off the dusty robe and revealed… the invisibility cloak.

The hollow.

Harry felt his breath catch. Lily delicately took up the cloak, and walked it back to Harry.

Harry felt… quiet. In his head. The weight of the cloak over his arm felt—

--familiar—

—like ash on the tongue—

Harry took a measured breath. “Why are you giving me this…?”

Lily softly patted Harry on the arm and stepped back. “Please forgive your children. We just… wanted what was best for you. It’s been hard to give you back your own agency. But you’ve taken it back—and I just want you to be prepared for anything. Albus gave you the stone, you took back the wand… and now I’m giving you this.”

“… it’s not supposed to be like this.”

“There are things outside of your control. You can’t control what I do—and I shouldn’t control what you do.” Lily concluded. A wry smile-grimace on her face that Harry had seen on his own face, on Liliana and Albus and supposed that they all inherited it from him—

“I love you, daddy. Take care. I’m going to rest…” Lily said before she made her way to the bed tucked under a massive window. Harry used his wand to hold up the covers. Levitating them with a flick and a murmur.

Lily smiled as she brushed her fingers over the lifted covers and kicked off her slippers before she settled herself in to place. Harry canceled the charm and watched the covers float down. Another charm had them tucked snuggly around his daughter.

“I’m not a little girl—but that is very pleasant. I am… happy.” Lily said, even as she watched Harry magic all the curtains closed. “Magic was always marvelous.” She stroked the covers with a hand as she angled her head to watch Harry in the doorway.

“Yes… I’ve loved magic too.” Harry echoed her sentiment. He wished her sweet dreams and closed the door.

Harry soon found Liliana in the kitchen. Harry sat next to her at the island and settled the orb down between them. Liliana glanced up from her coffee—the smell was very, very strong at this distance—and nodded at Harry. Her eyes glanced down once to the invisibility cloak thrown over his shoulder. They didn’t exchange greetings. They didn’t need to.

“It’s only been a bit less than twenty four hours. Half of the Arcobaleno left. Half remain. From what I understand, the other half shall return shortly. I should just remove them all…” Liliana trailed off in a grumble. Harry just shook his head and let that be.

“I need to clarify a few things.” Harry mentioned as he nudged the orb closer to Liliana. He didn’t need to prompt Liliana further as she reached over and picked it up. When Harry didn’t protest, she inspected it. And soon she held it up to the light.

“… that is Frank’s handwriting.” Liliana quietly stated as she set down the orb.

“… who is Selene Lovegood?” Harry asked.

Liliana chugged the rest of her coffee and let the mug thud on to the table. She briskly rubbed her hands together. “… Selene was one of my… bigger failures.” She admitted and continued without prompting. “She was one of the few born in my generation as a squib. We thought… we thought that it was a sign that the magic was coming back. She was the only one, unfortunately. There was talk about… about encouraging her to make a family as soon as possible, when she was old enough for it.” Liliana rubbed the back of her neck, and from there she ran her hands through her hair. She turned her head and didn’t look to Harry as she spoke.

“And she would just—say things. Sometimes. Little bits of nonsense that ended up coming true. Boss noticed it first. And since she was training me, told me… and I… I told Frank. We had a seer.” Liliana paused she a second. And Harry took a moment to watch her face. The darting back and forth of her eyes, the bouncing leg, the shallow breathing—nervous. She was nervous.

“… you blame yourself for Selene.”

“… I’ve accepted it as my fault. She disappeared the same day that F… that Frank took his leave.” Liliana certainly looked miserable.

Harry shifted and pressed his hands firmly against his knees and waited. He had learned patience. He could take the time.

“None of her things were taken. She just… was just gone. We didn’t know who to blame. And Janus… Janus was never really the same after that. I don’t… I don’t know what happened. To her. And I… it keeps me up at night. Sometimes.”

“So… Frank took her.”

“… I believe so.”

“… what could have happened to her?”

“Best case scenario would be that they hid her away and catch her prophecies as they come.”

“… worst case?”

“… experimentation. Forced impregnation. There are too many options. The fact that she is the most recently born squib….” Liliana sighed and rubbed her face.

Harry placed his face in his hands and let out a little sigh.

“… how long has she been gone?”

“Two years, give or take a month and a few days.”

“… do you have any hair or blood? Anything I could use to track her?” Harry asked.

The question gave Liliana pause as she turned her head and looked to Harry. Looked him straight in the eyes. She blinked and gave a little nod. “Yes… yes, we have blood. And hair. And her twin.”

Harry had that book—from the black library. For the multitude of insidious applications of blood. “If she is still alive, I can find her… if not, I can find her corpse.”

“How…?” Liliana asked.

Harry grinned and lifted the arm that had his hostler on it. Where his wand was stored away. He gave it a wave and chuckled the moment he saw Liliana’s eyes finally focus on the charmed thing. (Finally saw through the charm work that demanded that she look away—) She reached out and ran a finger over the leather.

“… magic surely was marvelous.”

“… it is.” Harry quietly corrected.

Liliana’s wry smile looked far too much like his own. She didn’t correct Harry.

“I’ll fetch you the blood.”

“Thanks… but I think I’ll need more than that. I’d like to go to her lodgings and gather everything that I need.” Harry said, and once he had Liliana’s nod of agreement before he continued. “That leads me to another point. Frank.”

“… yes, Frank.”

Harry settled his elbow on the table and dropped his chin in his head. His body was angled toward Liliana, and he watched her mirror his posture. “Frank is very dangerous.”

“I know…. Family, always.” Liliana echoed herself. “But even still… before he dies… I just—I need to know, some things.”

“… can you go through with killing him?” Harry asked. “Have you ever killed anyone?”

Liliana looked away. “… I hesitate. Fabian has always stepped up for me.”

“… there is nothing wrong with sparing life.”

“… maybe.”

“Ginny—er… your old boss… Yeah. Um. Ginny—she had a merciful side and a wrathful side. She navigated it. And perhaps it might have seemed easy to you. But she did struggle with it when she was younger. The whole Weasley family is known for their impulsivity. It tempers with age for the most part.” Harry offered, “and if nothing else, always remember that you’re part Weasley.”

Liliana snorted, “and don’t forget Lovegood.”

“… wait. Say that part again.”

Liliana snorted, “my own pa is a Lovegood. Do you know Mezzaluna? Her older brother is my pa.”

Well, Mezzaluna was dead, so was… “… is he…?”

“… is he…?” Liliana asked, eyebrows drawn together for a moment before her face relaxed. “Dead? Oh. No! No, he is fine. Oberon is his name. He is stationed in Iceland. We cultivate a lot of our rarer plants over there. He has a very green thumb.” Liliana smiled, the tension easing between her shoulders. “He loves bread—he has put on a bit of a belly recently. Beer and bread and… well, it doesn’t matter much to you. He never became flame active, and was hardly even a squib and…”

“If it matters to you, it matters to me.”

Liliana shook her head and patted the marble counter of the kitchen island.

She moved the conversation on. “I want some answers from Frank. I just… there are things I need to know. And only Frank can answer us.”

“… I doubt we can successfully hunt Frank down. Neither of us knows what he can do.” Harry said.

Liliana nodded her agreement and said, “that just means we have to trap him.”

“We would need bait for—oh.” Harry felt the rush of epiphany with that. “Hah—me.”

“You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

“No, no. It should work out. I have scores to settle in Britain. Throwing myself out as bait is hardly an issue. The only issue would be sneaking in without getting caught…”

“I’ve solved that.” Liliana answered with a little grin. “We just completed an underground to the Alley. Well, the ruins of it.” She trailed.

Harry opened his mouth to ask—how could there even be RUINS of the Alley?—before he realized that that one was his fault. Harry pressed his lips together. The fire had likely greedily ripped through the Alley. Harry couldn’t imagine it had survived him.

“The goblins are continuing to expand the underground. It’ll be more than the Alley soon enough.” Liliana said, although the grin had slipped away. It was like the air suddenly became chilly as her eyes shifted and landed on something over Harry’s shoulder. Their easy interaction halting in its track.

Harry didn’t know the trigger. But he could guess. Harry could read in the shadows of her face and the tightness of her eyes that she would soon need space.

“I’m going to check in on the Arcobaleno. After that I’ll return here and we can sort out the details for moving out on Britain.”

“… you trust me?” She asked, voice soft.

“Family, always. Right?”

Liliana tried for a smile, and Harry understood the sentiment well enough. “Get some rest.”

“Don’t let that dick boss you around.”

“Maybe stop using the word dick and Reborn will stop calling you out on it,” Harry chuckled and left the orb with Liliana as he turned and scampered back to his room. He needed to be at his best for facing off against Reborn.

He felt complete. More so than he had in a long time.

Reborn had a way of needling and destroying barriers and armor with the finesse and flair of a man who wasn’t even trying. Harry needed to stand tall, for himself. Especially on the conquest of ‘something’ that Reborn wanted to talk about.

Harry grabbed his work pants—charm reinforced slacks and his white button down shirt and changed out. He kept the heavy black boots that belong to Skull. He tucked the ends of his pants in and tucked in his shirt. Harry held up his Auror robes and was about to pull them on when he paused. His robes were very strong and very versatile. But…. They were also robes.

Carefully he transfigured the red robes into a hooded sweatshirt and then put it on.

A bit more wand work had a kangaroo pouch at the front where he stuffed his invisibility cloak. It took some fancy backtracking for it to smooth out and not look bulging.

Harry checked his mobility and nodded to himself. He turned to the door, but his aquarium caught his eye. And Oodako.

“… would you like to come with?” Harry asked. Immediately, Oodako’s tentacles started to shimmy. Harry took that as an agreement. He hopped over to the aquarium and stuck out his arm above it. Oodako reached out through the aquarium’s waters and grabbed on to Harry’s arm. Harry watched as Oodako hauled himself up and out of the water. Eventually the octopus made his way up and tucked himself in to Harry’s hood.

The material of his robes stopped the water from seeping in. Water repelling charms were handy indeed.

Harry definitely felt more settled with the octopus tucked away. Oodako was a precious partner and Harry would rather have him than not. Like another puzzle piece slotting in to place. Of the person that he was. The person that he is.

Not Skull.

And… not just Harry as well.

Slowly, slowly he was piecing himself together.

Harry was soon out the door, and out of the compound and—Reborn was surprisingly not right outside and waiting for him. Harry felt a little flat footed now that his expectations had not been met.

Right. Well.

Time to go find them.