Harry woke up to a small nightmare, not enough to get his elemental powers to react, but enough to make him jump and gasp awake. Harry looked around the room a little discombobulated. A voice made Harry jump, "You alright?"
Harry turned to the voice and relaxed when he saw it was Barty.
"Yeah. I'm fine, just some not so pleasant dreams," Harry honestly replied.
"What about?" Barty asks, being curious, but also understanding the therapy in talking about it.
"Just a few of the things I have seen," Harry replies vaguely.
"Fair enough. I have a question about something you said to the LeStranges," Barty stated.
"Alright. Go ahead," Harry replied.
"You had mentioned that you had dealt with traitors before, leaving them in worse condition than we left the Longbottoms. What did you mean by that?" Barty asked, looking a mix between disturbed and awed.
"Exactly what I said. Before I came back, we had wizards that would be loyal to both sides, giving information to each side, both magical and muggle, to remain alive. After it became apparent that the muggles were winning, those wizards showed their true colors. The ones we caught were tortured beyond recognition, beyond their sanity. It brought the term 'blood traitor' to a whole new level," Harry answered.
"What families turned traitor?" Barty asked, shocked that a wizard, no matter blood status, would do that.
"There weren't any full family by the time they revealed their colors, most families had already been reduced quite drastically, but that was a rarity. Anyway, the ones that did betray their own kind, it was never the entire family, it was only one or two of a family," Harry answered, not giving any names.
"I see. Harry, are you okay?" Barty asked, his question is deeper than just an emotional state.
"If you are asking if I am sane, the answer is not really, it's just really well hidden. If you are asking about my emotional state, no. I just found out that I can summon my children, the ones that are dead. That I failed to keep alive, that I failed to save, that I failed," Harry mumbled towards the end.
"I think you should summon them. You need that closure. You saw Black when he got to talk to your parents. It helped him so much. I think it would help you too," Barty said, wrapping Harry in a comforting embrace.
"I know. I know I need to, I want to. I don't want to, I don't know what will happen when I face them again. I am dreading my reaction after I talk to them. Plus to see them again, I don't know if I'd be able to handle that," Harry told him.
Barty sensed a need for a different topic so he asked, "How did you summon your parents?"
"Well, it's actually one of Tom's Horcruxes. He gave it to me after I had explained my life story, it was the Gaunt ring. The stone in the ring is actually the Ressurection Stone, one of the Deathly Hallows. With Death having adopted me, I have as much ownership to them as Death does. I have complete control over all the Hallows," Harry answers, seeing no issue in telling Barty the truth.
"How did you get adopted by Death?" Barty asked, rather intrigued by this information.
"When Tom came after me in 81, Death was watching. He was watching the Hallows change ownership. He was intrigued that it was a mere toddler that would gain ownership. What made him stay was not that though, it was that I was able to see him," Harry started.
"Anyway, after I was left with my muggle relatives, who hate magic, I was left in a cupboard under the stairs. My soul called out to Death many times. After a while, Death answered the call. He stayed with me night after night, caring for me, healing me after the 'loving' treatment I got from my relatives. After a while, he noticed his feelings for me were parental, thus claiming me as his son," Harry answered.
"So you can call Death and he will answer?" Barty asked.
"Yes, he can Mortal," Death answered, startling Barty and gaining a smile from Harry.
"Hello, father," Harry says to Death.
Barty looks at Death in amazement and awe, with slight trepidation.
"That is not a normal reaction I get from people who see me," Death replied with a fond smile, seeing the expression on Barty's face.
"I've never been one to fear death or dying," Barty replied.
"That is a wise thought process. I don't meet many with that view of death," Death replies.
"Did you need anything Father?" Harry asked Death.
"Just wanted to inform you about your godfather. He is trying to get Kreacher to talk to him about what you went through. Kreacher has been pretty stubborn about it though," Death tells his son.
"Of course he is. I knew he couldn't keep himself from trying. Thanks," Harry replied.
"Always," Death said, looking at his son fondly.
Death disappeared and the two wizards looked at each other in confusion.
"Well, I get to go send a letter to Sirius. I'll see you later. I won't be meeting Tom tonight. I probably won't until everyone gets better. See you later," Harry says, transfiguring his clothes back to normal.
"See you later, Harry. And, thanks for opening up a little," Barty said, letting Harry go.
When Harry left the room, Death came back to converse with Barty.
"Welcome back," Barty started off, seeing Death reappear in his room.
"Thanks. I came to talk to you about my son," Death said, in a slightly threatening, yet caring tone.
"Is he okay?" Barty asks right away, worried about Harry.
"He is dealing well. He still feels immense guilt for what happened to his family. He isn't letting it hold him back, it is actually what is motivating him to join Tom. For all that he has gone through, he is dealing well. Thank you, for being concerned about him," Death starts off, losing the threat in his tone.
"I know you care for my son, in ways he hasn't realized yet. I also know how he feels, which he isn't quite aware of either. The main reason I made myself known to you is that I see that you truly care for my son. I see that he cares for you too. I am glad to know that you aren't going to push him. He is still grieving the loss of his family, however, you are helping him greatly. He opens up to you more than he does his godfather or his brother figure. He hasn't really opened up to me except when I showed myself when he went to talk with his godfather and the wolf," Death continued.
"He has opened up to you, even though his answers may be vague, he has. The other reason I came here was to threaten you, If you hurt my son, you will have more to fear about dying than you currently do. Understood?" Death finishes.
Barty nods, slightly pale, but not too much.
"Good. Let's keep it that way," Death says in a dismissive tone.
"Wait!" Barty shouts a little.
"Yes, mortal?" Death answers.
"Is my mom safe and happy now?" Barty asks Death.
"Your mom is. She loves you and cannot wait to be able to talk to you. You can ask Harry to summon her if you want, he will be able to. He'd love to as well, plus, this might help push him to contact his children," Death says, then vanishes.
Barty slumps onto his bed and rubs his face tiredly. Then goes to get ready for the day.
At Grimmauld Place...
"Kreacher, tell me about Harry's past," Sirius tries to demand.
"No. Your godson asked you to not question or demand me to tell you anything. He will tell you when he is ready, not when you are," Kreacher asks, then disappears.
A snowy white owl flies in through a conveniently open window. A red envelope tied to its leg.
Sirius has his head in his hands and doesn't see the owl, Remus, on the other hand, sees the owl and gets up to grab the envelope. Hedwig bites at Remus's hand, not letting him take the letter.
"Sirius, it's for you," Remus says, gaining Sirius's attention.
Sirius looks up and sees the dreaded red envelope, he pales slightly but takes the letter from the bird. With a resigned sigh, he opens the letter.
'SIRIUS ORION BLACK!!! HOW DARE YOU TRY TO LEARN ABOUT MY PAST THROUGH YOUR ELF! I SPECIFICALLY ASKED YOU TO NOT QUESTION HIM.
What were you trying to learn anyway? It isn't like there was much about you. Not trying to be rude, however, neither you and Remus made it to the muggle/wizard war. Now, I will try to answer questions when I next visit. Which will probably be over summer, since I am not going back to my relatives. I don't care what Dumbledore says, I am not going. I will probably ask to stay with you, if not, I can easily make other arrangements.
On a lesser note, met your cousin and her husband and brother-in-law. That was a fun meeting.
Finally, LEAVE KREACHER ALONE!!! HE SPOILED MY CHILDREN, HE LOVED THEM LIKE HE DID YOUR BROTHER. RESPECT HIM FOR THAT.
And respect and trust me enough to come to you when I'm ready.'
The letter flew into the fireplace and burned itself. Sirius looked at the fire in regret and sadness. Remus looked at the fire in horror and shock.
"Alright. I'll leave Kreacher alone on the topic," Sirius spoke.
"He met the LeStranges!?" Remus whisper shouts in shock.
Sirius and Remus just stare at each other, in shock and horror at what that means. They decided to ask Harry about it whenever they saw him next.
"Kreacher," Sirius calls.
The elf pops in the room.
"Please, prepare a room for Harry to use while he stays here," Sirius asks of the elf.
Kreacher nods and goes to pop off, "And Kreacher," Sirius spoke again, stopping the elf, "I'm sorry."
____
The weekend snuck up on Harry. He was now in the field waiting for the last task to start, the maze. Harry remembered that the maze was dark and full of shadows, he also remembered the wicked plants that ate people, not even mentioning the creatures that roam it.
Harry gets let in first since he was in the first place. Harry pushed all the plants away from him. He didn't let them get near him. He also used the air to levitate himself above the plants, to see where the other competitors were, and where the trophy was. He didn't really care if he won or not, people have seen his skill and knew he was powerful. He saw that Fleur was getting sucked into the plants again and flew over to help her. He used his control over the earth to push the vines away from her and to leave her be. Sadly, she was still unconscious, so he did have to send up the red sparks to alert someone to get her. He flew off to check on Krum and Cedric. The two were duking it out in a wizard's duel. Even though Krum wasn't under the influence of Barty this time, he still had lost himself. As did Cedric. Harry decided to stun both of them and send up the red sparks for each person. He did this to keep them from hurting each other. Finally, Harry landed back on the ground.
Harry used the shadows to see where the Triwizard Cup was located. Once he had the location, he used the shadows to bring him to it. He grabbed the cup and was teleported to the Quidditch field, where they started.
The crowd erupted into cheers and applause. Dumbledore and Ludovic 'Ludo' Bagman came over to check on Mr. Potter.
"THE WINNER OF THE TRIWIZARD TOURNAMENT, HAVING THE MOST POINTS AND GRABBING THE CUP, MR. HARRY POTTER!" Bagman announced.
Harry was given the prize money and got to keep the cup since there was a new one made for each tournament. Dumbledore pats Harry on the shoulder, his eyes having that normal twinkle in it, though Harry noticed the caution in them.
After the crowd left, the students of all three schools had one more feast together and said their goodbyes. The Hogwarts students watched the students of Beaxubaton and Durmstrang depart. Harry quickly left to say goodbye to Barty.
When he got to Barty's quarters, the place was empty of all clothes and anything that resembled Barty.
"Barty? You still here?" Harry asked after he had closed the door.
"Yeah," a voice called from the bathroom.
Harry sighed in relief, he was happy he'd get to say goodbye, even though they'd see each other over summer. Barty came out of the room with a vile of hair gell and a toothbrush. Harry sighed a defeated sigh, knowing that Barty was leaving pretty soon.
"What are you going to do with Moody?" Harry asked the man he grew rather close to.
"My Lord wants to hold on to him for a bit. Not sure why, or where, but he does," Barty replied.
"Hmm. I can see the uses in that. Are you going to be staying with Tom?" Harry asked.
"Yeah. Can't really go anywhere else, I'm supposed to be dead," Barty replied solemnly.
Harry nodded. He watched Barty for a few minutes before speaking again, "Barty, are you ok?"
"Yes, Harry. I'm fine. Just thinking about something Death brought up, when you left," Barty honestly replied.
"What did he bring up?" Harry asked, feeling confused and conflicted.
"After we talked a bit, he mentioned that you can summon anyone dead. He said I can even ask you summon my mother. I want to ask you too, but at the same time, I'm worried about what she will say to me," Barty replied honestly.
Harry nodded, understanding that hesitation, however, feeling confused about why Death was talking to Barty in the first place. Deciding not to ask about what all they talked about, Harry said, "If you want, I can summon her at Tom's place over the summer. This would give you time to prepare yourself for the worse, as well as hope for the best. It would also give you the time to think about what you want to say to her," he offered.
Barty nodded in appreciation, "Thanks, Harry. When do you plan to summon your children?" he asked.
"I don't know. I know I want to summon them with Kreacher, he adored them and remembers them," Harry explained.
Barty nodded in understanding. With a sigh, Barty grabbed the small bag that held the few things he had brought with him and turned to Harry. He levitated the trunk that had Moody in it and shrunk it, with Moody inside.
"See you later, Harry," Barty said, giving him a hug and kissing the top of Harry's head.
Harry hugged him back dug his face into Barty's chest. He was going to miss the companionship he had with the man.
"See you later, Barty. Inform Tom I'll probably be around on the weekend, after I get away from my relatives, and get to Grimmauld Place," Harry told him.
Barty nodded and cast a disillusion spell on him, the one that even hid him from Harry. Harry went to his room and watched the map to make sure that Barty got out safely. Once Barty was safely out of Hogwarts. He closed the map and packed up to leave too. The year had ended and the final feast was tomorrow night and they left on Saturday morning. Harry left an outfit out for tomorrow, the rest he packed. Then he went to bed.
____
When Barty got to his Riddle Manor he went to his Lord's office to inform him of his arrival.
"I'm back my Lord. I have Moody, too," Barty said, after being invited into the office.
"Good. Give him to me," his Lord demanded. Barty pulled out the trunk with the ex-auror in it and unshrunk it. He gave it to his lord with a bow.
"Good work, Barty. I want to talk to you later, after I deal with Mad-eye, alright?" Tom stated, in a demanding tone, disguised as a request.
"Of course, my Lord. Is it okay if I go off with the LeStranges until you are ready?" Barty asked his Lord.
"Go be with your friends, come back here after dinner," Tom declares.
Barty bows and goes off to see his friends.
The LeStranges were still in the Infirmary. Barty smiled as he walked towards their room. He knocked before entering the room.
"Hey," Barty said, as he shut the door behind him.
"Hey, Barty. Is your mission over?" Rabastan asked.
"Yeah. Technically it was over when our Lord got his body back, but it would be suspicious if I just disappeared like that," Barty replied.
"I see. What was the original plan?" Rodolphus asked.
"We were going to kidnap Harry during the third task of the tournament and perform some ritual to give the Lord his body back," Barty replied.
"Why did you need to kidnap Harry? Wouldn't he have just gone willingly, he seems pretty dark," Bella asked.
"He wasn't always dark. At the beginning of the school year, he was as light as they come. Firmly under Dumbledore's influence. After the champions were chosen, he went dark. You should have seen how he reacted when Snape started his shit," Barty said, a small smile to his face.
"Will we be seeing Snape soon?" Bella asks, looking curious.
"No. We will probably not see him again," Barty told the three with an ominous look on his face.
The three LeStranges look at Barty confused but don't make any comments about it.
The four friends talked about anything and everything that came to their minds. Pretty soon dinner was served and Barty drew quiet.
"You alright, Barty?" Rabastan asks, noting his silence.
"Yeah. Our Lord wanted to talk to me after dinner. So I am a little nervous about whatever it could be," he replied, knowing full well what it will be about.
"You know what it is about, don't you," Rodolphus asks, noticing Barty's reaction.
"Yeah," Barty says with a small smile.
The LeStranges look at each other with slight confusion on their faces. They shrug their shoulders and get back to their meal.
After their meal, Barty leaves them to rest and heads back to Tom's office.
"Come in," Tom calls, answering the knock on his door.
"You wanted to talk to me, my Lord?" Barty said, walking into the office.
"Yes, I did, Barty. You may call me Tom for this conversation, this conversation only, though," Tom told him.
Barty nodded and sat in front of Tom, waiting for him to start.
"It has come to my awareness that you are rather attached to Harry, in a rather romantic way," Tom starts.
"Yes, I do, Tom. I would like to inform you know, that you will not get me to stop liking him. However, as I told his adopted father, I am waiting for him. I can tell he isn't ready for a new relationship right now. I am not going to push a new one on him. If the time comes, that he wants to pursue a relationship with me, it will be on his terms," Barty replies, showing Tom that no matter what he says, it won't change anything.
"You met Death?" Tom asks, shocked and intrigued.
"Yes. He basically threatened me, saying to not push Harry and to not hurt Harry. Adding that if I do, I will have more to fear about dying than I currently do," Barty answered.
"Alright. Well, he threatened you in death, I'm threatening you in life. If you hurt him, you'll be sorry," Tom stated firmly.
"I understand, Tom," Barty replied, just as firmly.
Tom nodded and dismissed Barty. Barty got up and bowed at his Lord and went to his friends' room. He decided to just transfigure a cot, a pillow, and a blanket; to sleep near his friends.