A Familiar Bond

The past few days had gone by in a blur for Sirius Black. First, he welcomed his godson into their house, and to his utter shock, found that the lad was already married. Then came the revelation that his deranged house elf had destroyed a bloody Horcrux, with possibly more yet to be found.

If that wasn't enough, the revelation that his godson's wife was none other than Bellatrix, who had been mind controlled into servitude had exceeded all limits. Safe to say that Sirius was looking forward to a few quiet days.

Nothing of note had happened after Bella's revelation, or Valerie, as she now preferred to be called. Only Harry was permitted to call her 'Val' whenever he wished. After everything was said and done, they spent the rest of the day in relative quiet. The atmosphere had been very awkward, but slowly, they had come out of their respective shells and Sirius was fairly certain that they could at least hold a steady conversation without any hesitation whatsoever. They were not yet as close as they used to be, but Sirius was positive that it would come with time.

As Sirius made his way down the stairs towards the basement, he became aware of the loud booms that were coming from the duelling arena. He sighed. His godson and his cousin were at it again.

It had been a recurring theme for a few days now. Harry and Valerie had decided to hone their fighting prowess as much as they could. They reasoned that there was a possibility, however remote, that Voldemort might return. And Harry had vowed that the dark cunt would have to go through him to touch even a hair on his wife's head. His hotheaded cousin, in equal fervour, threw herself forward, claiming the same. Safe to say, those two were truly suited to one another.

But the biggest surprise for Sirius was that the two fought dirty. He had asked them for a real demonstration, and the sight had chilled him to the bone. Even after one was disarmed, the fight didn't stop. They attacked each other with whatever they could, even bare fists, headbutts or kicks. According to Harry, you had to fight until you were able to, no matter the equipment.

A similar sight greeted him as soon as he passed the threshold and entered the duelling room. The arena was in disarray; debris was scattered around and he could see Harry and Valerie, in their workout attire, performing their deadly dance in the middle of dust and dirt. Punches were blocked, kicks were deflected and tackles were dodged as each tried to overcome the other in whatever way possible. Their wands lay discarded far away, and Sirius realized the loud explosions he had heard a few minutes ago had been the cause of that.

'These two are not humans.'

A sharp whistle brought the two adrenaline-fueled teenagers out of their funk, and they abruptly stopped to look at him. Sirius raised his eyebrow.

"How many times now?"

"Fifteen give or take," Harry replied, picking up their wands and handing one to Valerie, who summoned a bottle of water. They took turns taking a swig out of it before getting out of the duelling arena.

Sirius sighed and tapped his wand to the rune on the side, and the duelling arena repaired itself.

"You have destroyed this place fifteen fucking times, at least, in two fucking days. Are you two insane?"

He was greeted by a pair of raised eyebrows.

"Come on, Siri. You're overreacting," Valerie deadpanned, and Sirius was left gaping.

"I'm overreacting!? It's a surprise that you're not injured. I can't believe you're not injured yet to be honest."

"Don't worry, we take precautions," Harry waved his hand dismissively, "both kinds," he added belatedly and was rewarded with a slap to the chest.

"Behave," Valerie chided as Sirius pretended to gag.

"I didn't need to hear that, I really didn't."

Harry chuckled.

"Don't worry, Sirius. We take care not to go too far. And our fights are purely to hone our magic and spellcasting, not to inflict damage. That is reserved for those who deserve it. Right, Val?"

"Mm-hmm," Valerie nodded.

"See, nothing to worry about," Harry smiled. Sirius only sighed. There was no use arguing with these two frenzied teens.

"What did you come down here for, by the way? Wanna fight again?"

Sirius stared at his overly sweet cousin with a deadpan stare. He knew that look all too well. That was the tricky Bella who acted like a sweet baby but had a poison sting ready to strike. He still had twin marks on his butt to prove it.

"I'll pass," he replied with the same stare.

"Tch. Too bad," she sighed, before smirking, "I need to take a bath after all the exertion. You really tired me out, baby."

Sirius groaned as Harry hid his smile. He turned around to look at his wife, who was giving him a mischievous grin.

"Don't be late, baby. I'm waiting for you in the bath."

With a wink, Valerie walked off with a deliberate sway of her hips, something Harry intently focused on.

"I really don't need to hear all this!"

Harry chuckled.

"See ya, Sirius. Gotta see to my wife, y'know."

Without waiting for a response, Harry took off after her, leaving Sirius standing there.

All Sirius could do was shout "Dumbledore shall be here in an hour!" behind his godson as the teen ran upstairs.

XXXXX

The couple left their bedroom fifty minutes later, fully refreshed and satiated. Glowing, they walked downstairs, Valerie holding on to her husband's arm and talking in hushed tones.

"Merlin, you two are disgusting!"

Their whispering ceased as they looked, surprised, that they had reached the living room.

"Please Sirius, they are young people in love. It is to be expected. And as I always say, there cannot be enough love in this world," Dumbledore smiled at the young couple.

"You don't have to listen to their disgusting flirting all day long, or see them eyefucking each other every time they're in front of me," Sirius muttered.

Valerie gave him a death glare and the mutt quickly shut up.

Dumbledore chuckled.

"Are you ready, Harry?"

Harry nodded.

Sirius twirled his wand and the travel wards came down. Dumbledore held his arm out, and Harry planted a small kiss on Valerie's lips before grabbing on. The pair disappeared with a soft pop.

"You think they'll be able to find anything out?" Valerie asked, taking a seat on the sofa.

"Let's hope they do. The earlier we manage to get rid of those abominations, the better off we'll be."

Valerie could only nod in response.

XXXXX

Horace Slughorn was lounging in the VIP box of the Holyhead Harpies' home stadium in Anglesey, Wales. It was their league match against Puddlemere United, their fierce rivals, not that he cared about it. His presence here gave him a golden opportunity to make a few connections.

He had to give a little credit to himself. He had curated quite a collection of witches and wizards over the years, all of them reaching respectable places in the Wizarding World, either locally or beyond. There had been a few rotten apples, but Horace didn't pay them any mind. Nothing was perfect.

He had to remember to thank dear Gwenog for inviting him once again. As expected, the Harpies vs Puddlemere match had attracted quite a crowd, and Horace had spent the entire time socializing. It was after all the affair that he had grabbed a glass of premium whiskey and taken a seat in the corner, looking at the game on occasion.

"Good to see you enjoying, Horace."

Slughorn looked up in surprise before a small smile crossed his face. However, his eyes widened when he saw who had accompanied Dumbledore. He quickly schooled his features. Dumbledore's eyes twinkled in amusement.

"Albus, good friend, come join me," Slughorn beamed, inviting the pair to sit on the chairs.

"I hope I am not intruding?" Dumbledore asked rhetorically as Slughorn passed them a small glass of the same whiskey.

"I didn't know you were coming to watch the game, Albus. Where were you? I didn't see you."

Dumbledore chuckled.

"Oh, I didn't come to watch the game. I heard from the grapevine that you were here tonight, and I thought to pay a little visit. It's been a few years since we met."

Slughorn stared at Dumbledore over the tip of his glass, his eyes flicking between the pair sitting in front of him.

"You want something."

Dumbledore inclined his head.

"As you must have heard, the number of graduates for Potions has been falling over the past decade. I don't feel the need to tell you the problem."

Slughorn sighed.

"I still don't know what you were thinking when you hired Severus to teach, Albus. The boy has had a flair for Potions, that is without a doubt, but he has never had an aptitude for teaching. You know how he was as a student."

Dumbledore nodded.

"He was the best candidate we had for the post, so I had to hire him. But the falling results has attracted the attention of the Education Board."

"I seem to recall old Griselda mentioning something along the lines when we met last afternoon," Slughorn nodded, looking shrewdly at Dumbledore. The headmaster simply nodded.

"Which is why I have decided to relieve Severus of his duty as the Potions professor. I have come to you to recommend someone I might hire as replacement. I fear we need immediate results so the candidate needs to be capable and competent."

Now Slughorn was surprised, although only slightly.

"Hmm. I might know a few, but I am not sure whether they would agree to a teaching job."

"Is it true that you taught my parents?" Harry interjected for the first time, and Slughorn looked at him in surprise, before he smiled softly.

"Indeed I did, Mr Potter. Truly remarkable, your parents were. Although I preferred your mother. What a remarkable witch she was, a true prodigy in Potions and Charms in particular. Why, I remember talking with Filius about her so many times. I can bet you are as much of a potions prodigy as she was, hmm?"

Harry smiled sheepishly.

"I'm afraid not. I'm not bad at it, but I feel I'm not good enough."

"Nonsense, my boy. You are Lily's son, there's no way you can be anything but a genius at the art."

"Well, we haven't had the best instruction over the years, so…" Harry trailed off, and Slughorn nodded in understanding.

"Don't get me wrong, I am not trying to badmouth Professor Snape here, but I am sure you are aware of the animosity he had with my father."

"And he has held the grudge against you. Albus, why did you even hire that lad? You could have employed him as the DADA teacher! I remember he was very good with his wand."

"As I said Horace, we didn't have any competent replacement after you left," Dumbledore sighed.

Slughorn stared at him for a moment, before looking at Harry.

"Alright, I'll see if someone agrees."

Dumbledore nodded.

"Could you please hurry and tell me by tomorrow, Horace? I apologize for the urgency but as you know, the Triwizard Tournament will be held at Hogwarts this year, and the school will host many foreign dignitaries as well as their children, so we have to be done with the academic preparations by next week.

If Slughorn's eyes were not gleaming previously, they were positively shining right now. And that was when Harry knew they had done it.

"Don't worry, Albus. If I cannot convince anyone by tomorrow, I will come back for a year or two myself. Hopefully that would give you enough time to find a permanent replacement, hmm?"

Dumbledore hid his triumphant grin at that and simply nodded.

"I knew I could count on you, old friend," he bowed his head slightly and stood up, prompting Harry to follow.

Slughorn looked at them, surprised.

"Where are you going? Now that you're here already, at least watch until the match is over. Might as well meet a few professionals, eh my boy?" Slughorn prompted Harry, who, although initially surprised, nodded with a smile.

"I'd like that, thanks Professor."

"Uh-huh, not yet," the potions master grinned, and Harry gave him a false smile.

They took their seats and watched the match, sipping the whiskey and making small talk with the man of the hour. Harry looked at Dumbledore and smirked when the old wizard discreetly lifted his glass in a salute.

XXXXX

It was an hour later that the headmaster of Hogwarts apparated with Harry Potter in the Astronomy tower.

"Apparating in Hogwarts. Being the headmaster has its perks, eh?"

Dumbledore chuckled and started walking, gesturing for Harry to follow. The pair walked through the corridors until they reached the Headmaster's office. Dumbledore gestured for Harry to enter and the door shut behind them.

Once they were seated, Dumbledore looked at him with a small smile.

"Now that Horace is more or less certain to return, we have to discuss a few matters to fully entrench him in your camp."

"You mean he won't be convinced just because of who I am or who my mum was?"

Dumbledore shook his head with an amused smile.

"You need even more than that, my boy. You must realize that Horace has shut his mind off that memory, and only a powerful motivation can make him disclose it. His greed is a huge factor, and we need to amplify it."

"Can't we just, you know, dose him up with Veritaserum and make him reveal whatever it is?" Harry asked. Dumbledore chuckled.

"If only it were so easy, Harry. Horace is an accomplished Potions master and a master occlumens. Veritaserum won't work. And I hope you are not thinking of using force."

"Not at all!" Harry exclaimed, horrified that Dumbledore would even think of him stooping to that level. Using force on an innocent man was not even up for discussion.

"Good. So the path remains the same. You must get close to Horace, become his confidant, even. And for that, you need some more clout, as much as you can accumulate."

Harry nodded.

"Apart from who I am, I have the Potter and Black lordships. That's got to count."

"It certainly does. But gathering even more clout will only increase our chances. Horace won't be able to pass up the opportunity to collect you even now, but with so much recognition, he would be salivating at the thought."

Harry grimaced.

"I'm not sure I like that image," he muttered. Dumbledore chuckled.

"Conveniently, we have the perfect opportunity to gather even more clout for you. An event that is to take place this year."

"You want me to enter the tournament."

Dumbledore nodded.

"You have grown into a very capable wizard, Harry. And I have personally seen you grow so powerful that you can go toe to toe with accomplished Death Eaters. I shouldn't say this, but your wife, when she was under his control, was one of his finest, and look at you – already capable of challenging her and even coming on top every so often. I have no doubt that you will successfully tackle any challenge this tournament throws your way."

Harry sat there in contemplation. On one hand, this was a surefire way to gain immense fame, something that would surely attract Slughorn. On the other hand, he was slightly apprehensive about what the tournament might entail. However, he was more than confident in his abilities. He had faced Voldemort and survived. He had slayed a fucking Basilisk. What was a wizarding tournament compared to that?

With a firm look, Harry nodded.

"Good. Once the school year starts, you need to start building a rapport with Horace. I'll leave it to you. He holds his little club meetings, and you are bound to be invited. Use those meetings to get close to him. Once you are selected, include him in your plans and discussions. Make him feel important to you. Gain his trust, Harry. That is very crucial."

Harry had been listening intently to what Dumbledore was saying. Although underhanded, they had to do it. It was essential to know the truth as soon as possible.

Dumbledore continued.

"Once you feel sufficient trust has been established, discreetly prod the topic. Don't go bluntly. Horace will shut himself off if you do. Use discretion instead. Ask your wife for help. I believe she will prove herself quite capable in this endeavour."

Harry nodded in understanding.

"Try for the entire memory, Harry. And if it's not possible, extract as much information as you can."

"Alright, I understand," Harry nodded.

Dumbledore leaned back on his chair and sighed.

"Tom hasn't returned yet, but I fear the day is not far enough. There is a rumour of a ministry worker disappearing in the forests of Albania. Unnatural events have been reported in those forests, and the Albanian ministry has now declared it a restricted zone. I'm afraid we don't have as much time as we think we do."

Harry listened with rapt attention; his mind filled with absolute determination.

"I'll get that information, Professor," he stated. Dumbledore nodded with a small smile.

"That concludes our discussion for today. However, before you go, take these with you," Dumbledore summoned a few thick books from the shelf behind him.

"What are these?" Harry asked, rubbing his fingers over the binding softly.

"A comprehensive study on Battle Transfiguration and rituals," Dumbledore informed him, and Harry's eyes widened.

"I assume you are reading books from the Black library?"

Harry nodded.

"I gathered as much. Although I won't dissuade you from going through those tomes, I would advise you to exercise caution when leafing through those pages. You should remember not to give into the temptation those spells and rituals evoke. Substitute your reading with these books in between. Nothing contained herein is in any way detrimental, either in short or long term."

Harry nodded, thanking the old wizard for another boon he had bestowed upon him.

"You are a capable wizard, Harry, and dare I say, the biggest hope for our survival. I have faith that you won't let us down."

Harry shook his head and stood up, gathering the tomes in his arm before walking over to the fireplace.

"Remember Harry, live your life, and grow strong. You have all the tools at your disposal. Use them."

Harry nodded, and Dumbledore watched with a smile on his face as he was gone in a flash of green fire.

Once his office was silent, Dumbledore brandished his wand and cast the Patronus.

"Severus, could you please join me in my office? There is something I need to discuss with you."

The shining mirage of Fawkes bowed before it vanished through the thick walls of the Headmaster's office.

To be continued…

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