Harry Potter 1. Prisonbreak

**The Turning Point**

**Chapter 1 : Prisonbreak**

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**Disclaimer** : I do not own Harry Potter but Artemis is mine.

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**No. 4, Privet Drive**

She stood on the footstep and knocked on the door. A minute later, she heard the shuffling of the feet and the door was opened by a horse faced woman.

She removed her hood and spoke with a sweet smile on her face, "Hello Petty, I have wanted to visit you for a while."

"YOU!", she shouted pointing her shaking finger at her.

She then screamed and then fainted.

_It seems the excitement was too much for her._

She levitated the woman inside and placed her on the sofa. She heard two sets of footsteps and knew that they had heard the scream. An enormous beefy man with beady black eyes and no neck came waddling with a slightly smaller version of his.

"YOU! What have you done to my wife?", the larger one shouted.

It was then that he got a proper look at the girl. Now, he understood why his wife had a bad reaction. It took all his self control not to cower in fear but he couldnot stop his hands from shaking.

"B-But you are dead.", he stammered.

"I assure you that I am quite alive, atleast as far as I know.", she replied.

"They said you died when they left the boy on our doorstep.", he said.

"I would love to explain but I don't have the time for it." she replied.

She petrified them and placed them next to the woman. She then stunned them for good measure.

"Who are you?"

She was barely able to contain her flinch. She chastisised herself for letting someone sneak up behind her like that. She had not been here for long and she was already getting careless.

"I want you to keep your wand where I can see them. Slowly turn around. Any wrong movement will see you in a lot of pain.", his cold voice said.

She slowly turned around and looked at a pair of green eyes the same shade as her own.

Harry was shocked. He had heard some noise and had gone down to check it out. He saw a redheaded girl pointing her wand at his relatives. It was the moment she turned around that he got the biggest shock of his life. She resembled his mother to a T. He must have been gaping at her if her amused expression was anything to go by.

"I can see that you want an explanation. But first I would like to check how secure this place is, if you don't mind."

He suddenly felt like a bucket of water had been dumped on his head. Her voice was nothing like his mother's. In fact, it sounded like those pureblood heiresses in Slytherin. A voice that expected to be obeyed. He noted that, while she spoke English very well, the way she spoke was as if English was not her native tongue. He suddenly remembered that she had asked something and he nodded in reply.

She pointed her wand up and made a circular motion above her head. He shivered as he felt something pass through him.

"When was that vase bought?", she asked pointing at a vase that was glowing.

The vase itself was a gaudy, blue colored thing with flower patterns on it. It was the kind of vase Aunt Petunia would love to have among her collections. But he knew that there was something important he was missing.

"I don't remember seeing that vase before.", he replied.

She cast a spell at the vase causing it to glow many different colors causing him to gasp. He knew that spell very well and the implications of those colors. He had learned that spell after his second year when he saw the consequences of being fooled by a dark artifact. Specialis Revelios is a general charm with its own limitations. After all, when he cast the charm on the Triwizard Cup, he learned that it was a portkey but not its destination.

"You are correct. It has a Notice-Me-Not charm on it. It is not a strong one as it becomes ineffective the moment you know its there. There are also monitoring charms and eavesdropping charm."

Harry felt bile rise from his stomach when the implications set in. Fortunately, she had already conjured chairs for them. So, when his knees gave up due to the shock,he didn't end up with a sore behind. He knew that panicking now would only cause more problems. So, he took a deep breath, make that a few deep breaths, and forced himself to think logically. Who was spying on him and how much did they know about his life here? Didn't he have a right to privacy even here?

"How long has it been here?", he asked her though he wondered whether he was better off not knowing.

"Quite a long time. If it makes you feel better, I am sure they didn't get much. Whoever enchanted it did not take into account the interference of blood wards. It works as well as a badly tuned radio of olden days. The rare times they get a signal, there will be so much noise that they won't be able to deduce much.", she assured him.

Ironically, he felt assured by her words. He wondered how he came to trust her so quickly.

She held out her hand and said, "Call me Artemis"

He shook it and said, "Harry Potter but you already knew that."

"I don't understand why everyone refers to you as Harry. After all, it is just a nickname. Your real name is Hadrian. You do know that, don't you?"

Any happiness he felt at meeting someone new faded away as his suspicious nature kicked in. How did she know his real name. He only learned it last summer after the trial when Sirius had told him. At first, he had assumed it to be a tasteless prank Azkaban addled mind of Sirius came up with in a misguided attempt to loosen him up but his serious demeanour(pun unintended) and the original birth certificate with his real name cleared those misconceptions pretty quickly. Apparently, all Potter males are traditionally named after old kings and emperors. After all, his grandfather was Henry Potter and great uncle and his link to Black family was Charles Potter. If you go far enough up, you would even find Julius and Augustus Potter. For some reason, he guessed the prophecy, his parents wanted his real name kept a secret. As they say, names have power. Right after his birth, his grandfather, the then Head of the family, declared his name a family secret. The spell acts similar to the Fidelius charm and restricts those in the know to family members. Sirius would not have been able to keep the information had he not done the Godfather ritual. That is the reason her ability to casually mention it is worrying. He didn't know enough about the spell to confirm anything.

It was then that he noticed something he had missed earlier. He looked at the windows wondering why there were no Ministry owls swarming in.

"You have done a lot of magic but ..."

"Ministry doesn't know about magic being done here. So you can use your wand freely without repercussions.", she replied.

He waited for her to elaborate but she didn't.

"How did you do it?", he asked.

"I put up a Magic Isolator ward around the house. As the name suggests, it magically isolates the house from the outside world. During the war, the Death Eaters used this ward along with Anti-Apparition and Anti-Portkey wards whenever they attacked a magical home. It not only cut off Floo connections and any other means of communication the victims may have had but also shielded their use of heavy Dark Arts from Ministry sensors. It is a simple ward that anyone with enough power can cast but devastatingly effective when used properly. Of course, the power needed increases with increase in area. That is the easy part. The difficult part is to ensure that noone else learns of my little addition. There are wards to inform the caster when someone tries to tamper with the wards. So, I tied it with the blood wards and merged them in such a way that it will be as if they have always been part of the whole. Did I satisfy your curiousity?", she replied amusement coloring her tone at the last part.

She idly noted that he was overwhelmed by all the information she gave him. She gave him some time to assimilate the information but felt disappointed when he nodded. It seemed he knew nothing about the wards that have been protecting him since his childhood. She had a lot of work to do.

"So, what do you know about the Charm of Brotherhood?", she asked.

"Nothing. I haven't heard anything like that before.", he replied.

"It is a charm cast between two people. It is typically a trust building exercise. It is purely intent based charm. There are no wand movements or incantations or use of any external foci. It is old magic. After the charm is cast, the people involved are considered brothers by magic or in our case siblings. I don't know whether it is good enough to actually alter inheritance and family trees. So, to even offer one is a show of great faith.", she replied.

"You do know that it is the charm of _Brotherhood, _right?"

"I know. Nothing in my research indicates the charm having any gender component. I believe it is because it was mostly done by men as women in those days didn't have the authority to make such important decisions. I have heard mentions of there being a charm of Sisterhood for women but I don't know how true it is. In olden days, the very notion of a woman rising high enough to be on equal basis with a man was considered laughable. While the non-magical world have moved on, our status quo is still the same.", she replied.

While what she said was important, he found what was left unsaid interesting.

"So, the charm is your way of sticking it to the traditionalists."

"Yes, it is.", she admitted, "Even in the Matriachal Houses like Greengrass where everyone knows that women have all the power, they have to resort to send their husbands to do the public negotiations and dealing including Wizengamot politics because the old snobs in the society find it emasculating to see a woman take a prominent role. In high society, appearances are everything.", she said bitterly.

He understood her sentiment. After all, growing up under the control of these creatures he had for relatives and spending rest of time where the society is taking turns glorifing and villifying him had made him a cynic. He understood what it was like to feel contempt for the society and ashamed to be part of it. After knowing Hermione for years, he had a knack for knowing when a female was going into the revolutionary mode. He knew that if he didn't change the subject subtly into safer waters, he would hear many descriptions of the male species that cannot repeated in polite company.

"So, what does the charm do?", he asked.

Okay, maybe subtlety was overrated.

She had a devilish smirk on her face that seemed to be saying that she knew what he was doing and she found his pathetic attempts amusing.

"Once the charm is activated, it acts as a lie detector and tells us when the other person is lying. If the bond is strong enough, it can even recognise any atempts at hiding information. Unlike Unbreakable Vow, you don't need a third person to be your bonder nor is it magically binding. You should also know that this charm completely bypasses the Occlumency shields.", she replied.

He felt embarrassed at being reminded of his lack of Occlumency skills but shook it off. He knew that whatever decision he would take that day, he would be responsible for the consequences. It was his decision to run off to the Ministry that cost Sirius his life. Now he could do a Malfoy by crying and whining about how life is unfair or he could grow some balls and own up to his mistakes.

On one hand, it would be hard to keep secrets from her but on the other hand, he was poor at secret keeping anyway. If he had chosen not to go with it, he would be caught unawares if she suddenly decided that he was more of a liability than an asset. The only downside he could see was that he didn't know if the charm had any side effects that would give her an advantage over him. After some thinking, he decided to take a leap of faith and do it. He had some questions to ask of her. He preffered to know whether she was lying or not rather than wonder about it.

"What do I have to do?"

"I will make a small cut on both of our palms. Then we will shake hands in such a way that our wounds coincide and focus on our intention."

"Do we really have to make a cut on our hands?", he asked nervously.

Ever since the Graveyard incident, he had been wary of anything that required blood. Umbridge added to those fears with her bloodquill.

"The original version didn't require blood. But those involved had enough proficiency in wandless magic to push the required amount of magic through their hands. If I am wrong and you have enough control over your magic, we will do the original version.", she replied.

"Wait! You can do wandless magic", he asked surprised and slightly skeptical.

He instinctively raised his hand to cover his face. He waited for a moment and lowered it after realizing that there was no immediate danger. He was shocked at the sight in front of him. There was a wand floating in front of him and Artemis was standing with her hand stretched towards it. Suddenly, the wand flew back into her hands.

"No need to look so impressed. It is something any ordinary wizard can do with enough practice. In the olden days, the wands were merely learning tools to get children acquainted with magic. After their education was over, they only use their wands in fights where they need to cast quickly and accurately. Then again, wands of those days were crude and primitive.", she replied.

He noted that, in spite of her words, she was quite happy to see him impressed by her. He then remembered something he had not thought about in years. At the end of his first year, Quirell had bound him in ropes with a snap of his fingers. From what he knew, Quirell was at best, an above average wizard. It seems that she was right.

"Alright, let us do it now before I lose my courage.", he said extending his palm towards her.

He resisted the urge to take back his hand when she touched her wand to his palm. He gritted his teeth when she made the cut. She made a similar cut on her palm and took his hand. At first, he thought that the charm didn't work. Then, he saw their hands glowing. The glow soon spread and engulfed them. After a moment, the glow faded away and they seperated. He could already feel the change. He felt as if a great burden he did not know he was carrying had been removed. He was feeling oddly calm and content.

"Is it just me or did we form an emotional bond?", he asked.

"Yes, we did. Or should I say we reforged the bond?"

"What do you mean?"

"We are twins, duh! Don't tell me you haven't figured it out yet. While telepathic connections are rare between twins, majority of them have varying levels of emotional bond", she replied.

He could feel that she was telling the truth but also was hiding something. The charm seemed to be quite useful after all.

"Why did noone else tell me that I have a sister? Everyone told me that Dursleys were the only relatives I had.", he said bitterly.

"That is because noone else knew, silly. I am neither naive nor foolish. I know that if anyone else knew, they would try to manipulate me. Actually, I didn't know either. Granny Agathe, the woman who brought me up, told me everything she knew a few months before her death which was not much more than that I was born in London and that my parents were magical. Naturally, I came to London to find out more. For some one like me who lived her whole life in a country side in Greece, London was like a completely different planet. I spent a lot of time sight seeing. After that, I went to the British National Library to find out more. They have a magical section only we will we able to see. It turned out easier than I expected as the librarian mistook me for Lily Evans. A visit to the National Archives told me all I needed to know. You were still in school at that time. So, I didn't fell the need to walk in there and publicly announce my identity. So, I returned home. I didn't think I would come back to England so soon but after Granny passed away, I had nothing tying me there. So, I took our counterpart of OWLS and came here.", she replied.

"Didn't you have any friends in Greece?"

"You have to understand that Granny was not much of a social person. We lived in the country side in a house which everyone else thought was haunted. She had no living family left. She took me in because she wanted someone to pass her legacy to, someone who would remember her fondly even after her death. We were each other's lifelines. I was homeschooled. While I was advanced for my year group due to it, there were not many social opportunities for me."

He knew from their emotional bond that she was more upset than she had let on. He suddenly felt guilty for suspecting her. True, he did lose his godfather but he never knew the man well. To be honest, death was actually a reprieve for him. His life was one of pain and suffering but he had friends who cared for him and many people who, while not as good as his parents, took on the role of parental figures for him. She is all alone in the world. She left her home country and came here for the only link she had left : him. She might have sensed his guilt through their bond. The next thing he knew she had put a hand on his shoulder.

"You should not feel guilty for excercising caution. The most dangerous enemy is the one we do not know about. While some people will try to outright kill you, there will be people who seek to use you for their agenda, swindle you of everything you own and dump you after your use is over. You would have to be careful of every word you speak and think many times before agreeing to anything.", she said.

"What is the plan?", he asked.

"First step is to get you out of house and into your new home. The next step is to get you emancipated. After that sham of a trial, you will be considered an adult in all your future dealings with the law. There is an old law that a minor who undergoes a trial in front of the entire Wizengamot will be considered legally an adult from the moment the trial begins. It was to ensure that those who commit serious crimes do not go scot free due to their age. On that note, we might as well go to Gringotts and see the state of our accounts. Over the summer, you will be taught everything you need to know to act as an effective head of the House. But, that is more of a long term project.", she replied.

"Wow! You seemed to have planned everything as if you knew that I was going to accept that offer."

"What can I say? I like to be thorough. I don't jump into trouble with my eyes closed and hope for luck to save my life. I am more of a skill and hard work kind of girl. Everything is planned.", she said with a smug expression on her face.

He laughed. He couldn't help it. He knew she meant it as a barb against him but her expression was too funny. He knew that she found it amusing too.

"It is time for us to leave. Let us go upstairs and pack your stuff.", she said.

He stiffened. He knew this was the first of the many occasions where he would regret having the twin bond. He knew his sister could feel his embarrassment just as he could feel her amusement.

"Is there a problem?", she asked.

"Well, you see, my room is in disarray. It hasn't been cleaned in a while. I would rather you not see it.", he replied.

"I would have let you do it on your own but who knows how many tracking charms and monitoring charms are there on your stuff."

She started climbing the steps forcing him to follow. He felt a sudden spike of anger from her side and knew that she saw the multiple locks and cat flap on his door. The anger faded as quickly as it arrived. Other than a slightly scrunching of her nose, there was no physical indication of her disapproval. She checked each item for unwanted enchantments.

"Why don't you the charm you used downstairs. Wouldn't it save a lot of time.", he asked.

"Revelos magicus reveals the magic on an object. Doing it in a room used by muggles where magical items are not supposed to exist is very effective and saves time. Doing it in a room used by a wizard who owns heavily enchanted items like broomstick and snitch, it is a waste of time and magic.", she replied.

He was sure that she had other reasons. He knew that she was doing it to extend his humiliation as much as she could and enjoy it properly. He was not going to say anything of course. Having a sister was well worth all he humiliation that came with it. As if sensing his thought patterns, she turned her head towards him and gave him a dazzling smile which seemed to increase her beauty ten times. He had a feeling that he would have to play the protective older brother role many times in the coming days. He was now starting to understand why Ron was so stressed when it came to Ginny.

"Is this the room that you stayed in your entire life?"

Harry sighed. He preffered forgetting about it but she deserved his honesty.

"I only got this room after Hagrid came with the Hogwarts letter and threatened them. Till then, I was living in the cupboard under the stairs.", he said.

He felt a bigger spike of anger as he expected but he used the opportunity to study her reactions. For a moment, she shed her cheerful outer skin to reveal the darker undertones within. Her stajce screamed danger and her eyes became like frozen emeralds. The moment was over and she returned to her former self.

After she finished checking the clothe items, she went over to the cage and the bird within. He noted with amusement that Hedwig was eyeing his sister as if judging how much of a challenge she will be.

"Don't worry about Hedwig. She is a very intelligent owl but also quite vain and possessive. She was the only girl in my life for some time. Then Hermione came and she had to earn Hedwig's approval. I am sure she will adjust to your presence in no time.", he said.

She gave him an 'I know something you don't' smile and said, "Harry, she is even more intelligent than you realize. She can sense our twin bond and know that I am no danger to you. She is studying my familiar actually."

"You have a familiar?", he asked surprised.

Usually it took years of companion ship for a pet to become a familiar.

"Oh yes, an Egyptian asp or I guess it is now called Egyptian cobra. The magical societies tend to use older terms. He is sleeping now. He hasn't adjusted well to the English weather. Poor thing. I am sure he will be alright in time", she replied lifting the sleeve slightly to show a greyish brown head of the sleeping reptile.

"Artemis, that is an Egyptian asp", he stammered, "isn't it one of the most venomous snakes in the world?"

"Don't talk about him like that. He is perfectly harmless, well, to us. To the enemies, not so harmless."

The sheer adoration in her voice surprised him. He vowed to himself that he would keep her as far away as possible from Hagrid. If both of them got together, the school won't remain standing for long. It suddenly occured to him that the snake was the only souvenir she had of her happy past. He resolved to never complain about it as long as it never hurt anyone.

"Why don't you bring her out? As soon as we clear her, we can leave."

He held out his arm. The owl understood and flew over to him. She spent a minute admiring her which Hedwig seemed to love if her puffed up chest was any indication. Artemis then ran a series of tests none of which he understood. Atlast, she lowered her wand and sighed.

"There were residues of multiple tracking charms and redirection charms on her. The charms seemed to be recent, about few months old. I say residue because none of the charms seemed to stick for long. Either she has unusually high magic resistance for a post owl or there exists some level of familiar bond which reduces the effect of foreign magics. That is a mystery I would like to solve. Anyway, what are you planning to do with the cage?"

Seeing his confusion, she explained, "Hedwig is obviously smart enough to understand what you are saying and is obedient to you. So, the only purpose the cage serves is to sate your relatives' desire to keep you both miserable. Considering that this is the last you are going to see of them, it is pointless. It also serves as a dead weight for you to carry around and make a fool out of yourself."

Hedwig gave a bark in agreement with her.

"When you say it like that, it seems a waste. You are right though. It has never been used outside this house. I think I will keep it here.", he replied.

Hedwig flew upto her and gave her ear a nip as if approving of her and returned to her owner.

"Well, I will leave and let you get ready.", she said and left.

She went downstairs to check on the Dursleys. They were still asleep. With a wave of her wand, she woke Petunia.

"Now, I want you to listen to me very carefully because I am only going to say it once. You are one of the most despicable creatures that I have had the displeasure to meet. I will not bother comparing you to any animal because I don't want to insult it for being unfortunate enough to share some similarities with you. The cruelty you commited against an innocent child to delude yourself of your own superiority makes me feel disgusted at the fact that you are related to me by blood. You do not deserve a prison sentence. You deserve to burn in the deepest pits of hell. I, acting as Head of House Evans, disown you and your son from the family on the account of betrayal of kin and forbid you from owning or passing on anything that belongs to House Evans."

She inwardly congratulated herself for silencing her as at the next moment Petunia arched her back and opened her mouth as if to scream but no sound came out. After 15 years of anchoring the blood wards, it must be quite painful to have it pulled out. She knew that even if Petunia lives, it will be as a mindless husk. Blood wards can be quite ruthless in punishing those it considers its enemies. She gritted her teeth as the felt the pain of needles poking her every inch of skin. She knew that if the wards found her wanting, she would follow Petunia. The pain ended and she felt the slight drainage of her magic. The anchor transfer was successfully completed. She knew that Petunia would no longer be a problem but she petrified her to be sure. She let out the gas from the gas line and returned to the living room. She woke the other two and petrified them. They seemed confused but she didn't feel the need to inform them of their predicament. She was not going to go off into a long villain speech and risk being in danger zone when the gas eventually explodes. Right at time, she saw him walking downstairs struggling with the luggage. He seemed to have understood he meaning of her look as the next thing he did was tap the trunk and make it light weight. They went outside and waited a minute for the wards to surround them. Then, they disapparated away.


	2. Settling Down

**The Turning Point**

**Chapter 2 : Settling Down**

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**Disclaimer** : I do not own Harry Potter but Artemis is mine.

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They appeared in what seemed to be a small, picturesque village. He took a deep breath and instantly felt rejenuated. He had a feeling he was going to love this place. In Privet Drive, even the air felt artificial and stale. It was more like an enlarged version of the models displayed in building companies. This place looked like one where actual people lived in. He felt her put a cap on his head and tap her wand on his glasses.

Upon his questioning look, she answered, "I just made your glasses look opaque from outside. We can't have anyone here knowing your identity, can we? People here, while good natured are quite nosy. In a small village like this, gossip travels fast. It is not like they have any other source of entertainment."

"What is this place?", he asked.

"Don't tell me you haven't recognized the place. You have come here before, haven't you?", she asked as if the very idea of him not coming here was a sacrilege.

"No. Why would I come here?"

She looked at him as if he was suddenly going to laugh saying what a good joke it was. She sighed when he didn't do it.

"The village is called Godric's Hollow. As you might have guessed, it was named after one of your founders Godric Gryffindor. Apparently, old Godric did a favor for the then reigning monarch. I don't know which favor it was. In return, he was enobled and was given this place. The important thing is that this is the place where your parents spent their last days. They are buried in the graveyard behind the local church.", she replied.

"Are we going to live in my parents' home?", he asked excitedly.

But the excitement soon died out when he felt her irritation through the bond.

"We are not going to live in _our _parents' home because _our _parents never owned a home here.", she replied.

He felt his face heat up in embarrassment when he realized the source of her irritation.

"I am sorry, Artie. I have been alone all my life. I am just getting used to having a sister, a sweet wonderful sister.", he said.

Her irritation faded away when he felt the happiness and sincerity from him. She tried to be humble and courteous about it but she knew it was not successful. Granny had always said that she had an inflated view of her importance.

She casually put an arm around him and said, "World is a rough place to live in. We, Potters, have to stick together. As I was saying, our parents never owned a home here. The house they lived in was taken over by the Ministry and was declared a national asset. From what I learned of the house, it was one of the few good things your Ministry did. I don't know whether it is because of the wards but the locals believe that the house is cursed. They say that every family that considered the place home suffered bad luck. In late 1880s, the Dumbledore family moved in here. The matriach of the family, Kendra Dumbledore bought the cottage and brought her three children to live with her, two boys and a younger girl. They say she was a very secretive and paranoid woman. Apparently, they only learned of the youngest by accident. The mother had always locked the girl in a room whenever anyone visited them."

She paused to take a breath or maybe something more dramatic which gave him a moment to think, something he wished he hadn't. The girl's situation was getting too similar to his 'cupboard under the stairs' life for his comfort.

"Where was I? Oh yes! Once the village folk came to know about it, they came up with various theories ranging from the girl being a squib to the girl being ... not right in the head. Back to the topic, many years after settling in, the mother died in an accident. There was no details given which gave cause for people to talk. Not long after that, the girl followed her mother to her death in a similar way. During her funeral, the brothers got into a fight and younger brother Abeforth broke his elder brother, Albus' nose. Then Abeforth accused Albus of causing their sister's death in front of all the people present there and left. I don't have to explain our parents' tragedy of course."

"Was this Albus..."

She nodded her head as if she expected him to ask that question.

"You would know the brothers of course. After all, Albus is now the Head master of your school and Abeforth runs that that pub in the village close to your school, Hag's Head. Sometimes, I think I know more about what happens here than you do.", she replied.

"It is Hog's Head actually.", he replied though his mind was not in it.

It was testament to his distracted mind that he never responded to her barb. It was a bitter shock to him to learn that his head master's family lived and was buried here in the same place as that of his parents. He wondered, if head master had cared as much as he told him, why didn't he take him along whenever he went to pay respects to his family. It would have been a good way to bond and he would have loved the support.

"I want to visit our parents' grave.", he said.

"We will go as soon as you get settled here. It is a shame that no one else had thought to take you there. As a family, it will be a bonding experience for us.", she replied.

She decided not to tell him that she had already visited when she came to London few months ago. She could feel his anger at no one offering to escort him there.

"I forgot to mention that we don't own our new home. It was difficult to get a good house on such a short deadline even if I had the money to pay for it. We are going to live with the old lady who owns the house. After seeing how sheltered you are, I feel it is a good thing. It will be beneficial for you to meet new people. It will be good for you to know the common wizard's opinions and perhaps influence it rather than the Ministry propaganda you were fed in Daily Prophet.", she paused and continued when she saw his surprised look, "Yes, Harry, it was so blatant that even a foreigner like me could see it."

"How is she as a person? Does she know that I am coming?", he asked.

He was nervous. The only people who let him stay at their home are Weasleys and Dursleys. In former's home, he was welcome but he always felt guilty about being an extra mouth to feed and he would not talk about the latter.

"She is an old lady. When I say old, I am talking about someone who was an adult when your head master was a child going to Hogwarts for the first time. A woman of her age has a lot of health problems and find it difficult to live alone. That is where we come in. The rent is just a formality."

He felt that her acceptance of the deal was because the lady reminded her of her Granny but if she wanted to act like she was doing it for him, he was not going to say anything.

"Well, here we are.", she said standing in front of a house.

The house was small but homely. It was the kind of house that was in fashion in Victorian era but was now an old, unkempt house. They entered the house and she called her landlady. He studied the surroundings while he was waiting for the landlady to come. The inside walls were as grey and age worn as the outside. After living in the sterilised clean house, these conditions left him rather uncomfortable.

He heard the unmistakable sounds of a staff hitting the ground. Soon, the lady herself arrived. She was an old lady bent double with age, wrinkles covering all her exposed parts and a milky sheen covering her eyes. It looked like his sister was not exaggerating the lady's age. She could easily be a contemporary of Madam Marchbanks. By the way she looked around, he was sure that she was blind. It was confirmed by Artemis' later actions. She skipped over to her and kissed her on both cheeks. She then held her hand and led her over to him.

"Bathilda, Hadrian Potter, like the Roman Emperor Hadrian who built Hadrian's wall. Hadrian, Bathilda Bagshot."

"It is good to meet to meet you, madam", he said.

"You seem to be a respectable boy, Hadrian. Call me Bathilda. No need for any formalities. Welcome to my home. It is not much but an old lady like me doesn't need much more than a roof over her head and a warm bed to sleep on.", she said.

She raised her hand and touched his face. She then moved her hand around until she got a rough profile of his face. Harry saw Artemis giggling at his embarrassment. But, his glare only caused her to giggle more.

Bathilda suddenly turned in her direction and said, "You have only been living here for two days and you have already brought a boy home. Kids these days are very impatient. Why, in my day, the girl will only bring a boy to her home after both their parents had their negotiations and had the children engaged. Even then, they will never allow them to be together without adult supervision."

"Bathilda", she squealed her cheeks tinged pink in embarrassment, "Hadrian is my brother. I told you on the first day that he will be coming to live with us."

This time he was the one laughing. After enduring her many jokes at his expense, it felt good to laugh at her for once. The interesting thing is that he had no way of knowing whether Bathilda had actually forgotten or was having fun at her expense. He was already liking her.

"You did?", she asked surprised.

She then scrunched her forehead as if she was trying hard to remember, then nodded and said, "I guess you did say something like that. The boy can stay in the room upstairs. Artemis, Why don't you show him his room?"

"Yes, Bathilda."

Bathilda then went inside leaving them alone.

"Don't think too much about her not offering you tea. She hasn't had guests in a long while and old age had made her forgetful. I would have offered you tea but the dinner will start soon and I don't want you to miss out on the pleasure of enjoying my cooking due to having a full stomach.", she said.

"I am sure your cooking will be worth being hungry for some more time.", he replied wanting to get on her good side now that he knew that she was the one making food.

"Come on, Harry. I will show you your room."

They went upstairs and into a small, dingy room. He put his trunk down and started unpacking.

"She must really like you. This was her nephew Gellert's room. She had expressly forbidden me from even taking a peak in to the room but the moment you arrive here, she gave you the room to live in.", she said giving him a pouty look.

He rolled his eyes at his childishness.

"You know, it is nice to see that there are people who don't stare at my scar the whole day and treat me like any other person."

"Who are you talking about?"

"Both of you. More you considering that Bathilda is kind of blind."

"I know that you are some kind of minor celebrity but you are my brother. That is the most important thing to me. As for Bathilda, it is not like she isn't famous herself."

"What do you mean?"

"The frail, old lady you just met is the foremost expert in European History. I had thought you would be starstruck considering that you have been learning the course books she had authored since you joined that school of yours.", she replied.

It just then occured to him who exactly his landlady was. Bathilda downstairs was the Bathilda Bagshot who wrote Hogwarts: A History series and A History of Magic series. He had half a mind to go back and ask about it but he crushed that impulse. It was that kind of attitude that irritated him. He was not going to do it to anyone else.

It was then that he noticed something odd. His sister, who used every opportunity she had to make jokes at his expense, did not make fun of his moment of dim-wittedness. In fact, she had a serious look on her face.

"We will have all our meals together where we will exchange many stories. She might mention her nephew Gellert whose room you are staying in. We both know he is Gellert Grindelwald, the dark lord Albus Dumbledore defeated but we won't mention anything about it. He was the only family the woman had. Let her keep her memories of her teenage nephew untainted by the knowledge of what he later became."

He agreed understanding the seriousness of the issue.

"On other note, do you have any elves in your school that would like a job? It is not a temporary job. So, the elf would be bonded to a person."

"I know just who to ask.", Harry said enthusiastically.

He was glad that he finally got a chance to help. He had been feeling like a deadweight already.

"Dobby"

A tiny being with long, drooping ears wearing many hats on his head and many socks on his feet appeared. The moment he appeared, he ran to Harry and hugged his legs.

"Master Harry Potter, the greatest wizard ever, remembered Dobby. Dobby is so happy.", the elf said excitedly.

Harry was embarrassed by the elf's enthusiasm and was trying to pry him from his legs. So, naturally, Artemis came at him like a shark who smelled blood.

"Greatest wizard ever eh, Harry? Is there something you haven't told us?", she asked.

"Not now, Artie.", he said exasperated.

"You are right.", she replied with a straight face.

He should have known something was up when she behaved uncharacteristically. But, as he didn't know her well, he didn't see the warning signs.

She knelt down next to the elf and asked,"You are Dobby, aren't you?"

The elf turned away from Harry's legs and scrutinised her closely.

"I is Dobby. Who is you?"

"I am Artemis, the girl lucky enough to have the greatest wizard ever Harry Potter as my brother."

"You is Great Harry Potter's sister.", Dobby scrutinised her for a moment with unblinking eyes and said, "You is Great master's twin. Dobby can see the twin bond."

"Yes, Dobby, I am.", she then lowered her voice as if speaking a secret and said, "Harry is a forgetful person. While we know that he is great, we don't know how great he is. As a loyal friend of his, isn't it your duty to ensure that everyone knows how great he actually is?"

"Yes. Harry Potter is a great wizard and Dobby be telling everyone how great he is."

She then winked at Harry and gave him a smug smirk.

"Dobby, I am not that great.", he said.

"My brother is the most humble wizard too. It seems there is a lot I don't know about my brother.", she said.

"Yes, Master Harry's Mistress Artie. Master is very humble."

"Then, would you like to tell us all about it over dinner? You would even have the honour of cooking the dinner if you remember that we have an elderly lady who has medical problems with us."

"Mistress invite Dobby to dinner. Dobby is very happy. Dobby understands that old people need special food. Dobby served old master Abraxas when he was ill."

Harry sighed and surrendered knowing that there was no way to salvage the situation.

"Dobby, why don't you ask Winky whether she wants to work here?", Harry asked.

Dobby popped away and came back with an elf wearing pink towel.

"Are you Winky?"

"Yes. Is miss the one who wants to hire Winky? Winky doesn't understand why. Winky was a bad elf who was given clothes by the old master.", the elf said lowering its head in shame.

Artemis looked at her brother for explanation.

"Winky used to work for the Crouch family. Two years before, during the Quidditch World Cup, Mr. Crouch, then head of Department of International Magical Cooperation, had ordered her to save a seat for him. There were a few drunken Death Eaters causing problems and a Dark Mark, the Death Eaters' symbol, was cast from the middle of the forest. Upon investigation, we found her holding a wand. While we know that she didn't cast it, she was fired for disobeying orders. Ever since then, she has been miserable resorting to drinking everytime Dobby is not keeping an eye on her. That is the shorter version. I will tell you the full details later.", he explained.

She had to admit that the account didn't show the elf in good light. Well, an incompetent elf was better than none. The house was in a worse shape than what could be salvaged with her cleaning spells. She hoped she was not making a mistake with this decision.

"I am ready to give you a second chance with a few conditions. The moment you join my household, you will sever any loyalties you have to anyone else. Your loyalty will only be to your mistress, to me. I will be the one deciding punishments. You need my permission to get drunk and waste away. You will do all the duties a house elf has and attend to Bathilda too.", she said.

"Yes mistress. I agree."

Winky knelt before her mistress-to-be and they said the words to accept her as part of the household.

"Your first order to clean up the house. Don't change place or dispose of anything before asking me or Bathilda for permission. I can understand that it is a tedious work. So, that is all you will be doing today. From tomorrow onwards, you will resume all other household work. Now leave."

Both the elves disappeared with a pop.

"You do know that I will pay back all the embarrassment you are putting me through, don't you?", he asked.

She smiled at him pityingly and said, "Don't feel too bad about it, Harry. I was just catching up on the work load of the last sixteen years. Anyway, make yourself comfortable. I am going to go outside to put up the wards.", she said.

"May I come with you?"

She thought about it for a moment and said, "If you really want to watch, follow me.

XXXXX

Harry woke up disoriented. But, he instantly went on guard when he realized that he was in an unfamiliar surrounding. He groped around for his glasses and found it on a table nearby. He put it on and then frantically searched for his wand. He found it on the same table. He suddenly remembered the events of the previous day and had to restrain himself from whooping in joy. He escaped his prison.

"You know, for someone who is the top priority on the hitlist of many people, you are quite lax about your own safety."

He jumped a few feet in air due to shock. He looked around and saw his sister fully dressed as if she was going out.

"Don't do that again, Artie. You nearly gave me a heart attack.", he said.

"I am surprised you are still alive with such low levels of awareness of your surroundings.", she said.

"It was because it was you. If it was an enemy, I would have known of it and would have been ready for them.", he replied.

"Let's say I believe you. Where do you keep your wand when you don't use it which is most of the time?"

"In my back pocket, why?", he answered somehow getting the feeling that he was going to receive a lecture that would make him feel like an idiot.

"Wait! You are telling me that you keep your wand in your back pocket where anyone can take it for themselves or use it to frame you.", she said in a tone used for four year olds.

When she felt his embarrassment, she said, "So, someone had already done that and you still haven't learned anything from that experience."

"It is not like I want to keep it there. There is no other place to keep it if I want to draw it quickly when the danger comes.", he replied.

She said with a pensive look on her face, "I will get you a wrist holster for it today."

She then pulled back her right sleeve and jerked her wrist. The skin of her wrist seemed to peel away ejecting a bone-white wand which she caught with an excellent timing as if she had had a lot of practice. After the wand came out, the peeled skin went to its original position as if nothing had happened.

Upon seeing his horrified face, she quickly assured him, "What you saw was just an illusion. It is a high end wrist holster. It melds onto our wrist like a second skin. It not only has enchantments like Anti-Summoning charm but also is undetectable by the usual methods your Aurors use. So, naturally, it is illegal in Britain. It was very expensive but what is the point of having saved money if we are not alive to enjoy it?"

She was not going to tell him that she had clamped many holsters all over her body containing variety of weapons. Boys his age tend to think they were invincible and her brother was no different if the scant disregard he had shown for personal safety measures are any indication.

"On another note, I noticed that your glasses don't have any enchantments at all, not even the standard package that anyone with spectacles has. It looks as if you had just taken a pair of glasses from dust bin and chose to wear it.

By the way he avoided her eyes and the rush of embarrassment coming, she knew that she had hit the nail right on the head. She was sure that the horse-faced woman had a hand in it. It was times like these that she wondered whether she should have brought them here as prisoners rather than getting rid of them. Then, she would have had eligible targets for her to take her frustrations on. She was supposed to be the sister not the mother.

She walked towards him and hugged him resting her head on his shoulder. He stiffened initially and tentatively returned the hug.

"Do you know the difference between rapists and Dursleys?", she asked slowly running her hands through his hair.

She continued, "There is no difference. Rapists don't do it for sex, you know. They do it for power. They enjoy having power over others, to break their spirits, their will. They are sick, twisted individuals who prey on those they believe to be weak and defenceless. It is their way of proving their superiority over their victim. I have heard about a case in which the victim was a five year old girl. I was a victim of an attempt too.", she rubbed his back when she felt him stiffen and continued, "When I was twelve, I went to the fair in town with Granny. Due to the crowd there, we got seperated. When I was searching for her, someone clammed a hand on my mouth and pulled me by my right hand, one with my wand in it. Before I knew, we reached a deserted alley. He was a tall and well built man and an ordinary twelve year old would have been helpless but I had a hidden ace. Let's say he will not be attempting it on any other girl anymore. For the next two days, I followed Granny around like a shadow. Even if the attempt did not succeed, it scared me. Granny was patient with me understanding that I have had a traumatic experience. She didn't tell me 'It was not your fault' or any other meaningless platitudes that would imply that what happened to the rapist was wrong. She congratulated me for putting down the rabid beast and thereby saving all the girls who would have been victims otherwise. Dursleys' abuse and Death Eaters' attack are no different when it comes to motive. Lily had everything Petunia wanted : intelligence, beauty, magic, rich and handsome noble for a husband which made her part of the elite. It was no secret that Petunia wanted to be part of the high society. In a sense, Lily was superior to Petunia in every field. The only way for Petunia to come out superior is to ensure that her son was superior to Lily's. But, she wanted to go a few steps further and completely crush you underneath her feet. She wanted to break your will and groom you to be their personalized house elf. She expected herself to be successful by the time you were eleven. She had expected that when she would say something like not wanting you to be more freakish, you would obey without question. But, you were too strong willed for her to control. You were like a force of nature. The moment you got the chance, you deserted them. From Dobby's tales, I assume that they tried to take back control of you but it backfired and they were too scared of you to try again."

"I just remembered something. Before my third year, I blew up Marge, Vernon's sister, like a balloon when I lost my temper after hearing her speak ill of my parents continuously for the seven days that she was there. I was so scared of the Ministry deciding to expel me that I chose to run away. I ignored their calls to reverse it and went directly to the cupboard under the stairs where all my magical things were kept locked up. The moment I came, the locks blew apart and the door swung open. It seems that I am capable of wandless magic. There is another instance in which I used lumos to locate my wand.", he said.

"How did you feel afterwards? Did you feel like fainting? Were you magically exhausted?", she asked.

"Actually, I didn't feel any different. I got more tired due to walking a long distance than by magical display.", he replied.

His reply reminded her of many old Greek legends but she put those thoughts to the back of her mind. She would not know anything for sure until she had an idea of his true potential.

"It seems that you are capable of wandless magic after all. I will see what I can teach you."

It was when she released him from the hug that she saw the tear tracks on his cheeks. She wiped them off his face and kissed his forehead.

"Get ready quickly, Harry. Bathilda has an appointment at eye care centre after breakfast. It would be good to get your eye checked too.", she said and left the room.

The information he gave confirmed what she had already suspected. There was a mental block on him caused by the abuse. If it had been a spell, it would have already been detected and verified. By refusing to consider them as relatives or authority figures, he passed the first stage of removing the block. While many would have seen his tears as grieving, she saw it as an evidence of weakening of the block which would result in accelerated healing. At that rate, the school would be welcoming a completely different Harry, someone more powerful and confident. While she would like to believe that she was the cause of the miraculous recovery, she knew that the prospect of never returning to Dursleys was a major factor.

Another thing she learned was the existence of a loose end. Apparently, in the short time that they interacted, that Marge character had been as abusive as the three Dursleys put together. While her first impulse had been for Marge to die of heart attack on hearing about the misfortune that struck her brother's family, she decided that it required some subtlety. She decided that Marge would stop taking care of herself after she hears about them causing her to be ill and bedridden and die a slow death. While she was no Potions expert, she knew enough to know about binary potions to ensure that she doesn't get caught. No one hurts her brother and gets away with it.

XXXXX

**AN : **The one thing I hated about canon was that the Dursleys got away with such blatant child abuse. Artemis is doing things I had wanted done in canon.

I have read many stories in which either the Greengrasses or Amelia Bones end up being Harry's adult role models. I have not read any story about Bathilda Bagshot taking up the role. This is my attempt. This chapter introduced her as a good natured but eccentric and forgetful woman. The coming chapters will see her in a more important role.

The next chapter contains a must have for all hp fanfiction stories : A visit to Gringotts.


	3. Potter Renewed

**The Turning Point**

**Chapter 3 : Potter Renewed**

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**Disclaimer** : I do not own Harry Potter but Artemis is mine.

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**July 2**

Harry came down to the dining room to see that both of them were sitting there waiting for him. He noticed that Bathilda was sitting at one end of the table and Artemis was sitting at her left. From the meals at Burrow and Grimmauld place, he knew this tradition. Bathilda's seating signified her position as the host or head of the host family and everyone else are supposed to follow her lead. But he didn't understand why his sister left the second most prominent position for him. Wasn't she more important in the 'family' having known Bathilda longer? He decided to ask her about that later.

He stood behind the chair not knowing whether he would have to bow before the host or give some specific greeting. Their demeanour gave away nothing other than that they were waiting for him to do something.

Sensing his nervousness, she said, "Take a seat, Harry. The meals here are informal occasions unless Bathilda says otherwise."

He took a seat and waited for his host to start eating before digging in himself. He idly noted that she seemed to be an entirely different person from the eccentric lady he met the day before. Her dress, while not gaudy and flashy like Dumbledore's, had a quiet elegance about it that gave her the air of a wise, respectable old lady.

"Artemis did ask me if I could have some meals be of formal nature so that you both could learn the code of conduct for such occasions."

The said girl turned towards the host to show her that she had her full attention. She was surprised that Bathilda had remembered it but she had hidden her surprise so well that he would not have known about it if not for their bond.

"I can't teach you all the rules involved in formal occasions. Many of the rules depend on the type of occasion you are going to. There are some parties that last the whole day and have eighteen dishes for one to consume over the course of the day. You would have to know the order in which the dishes are to be consumed. You would have to know the specific spoon or fork to be used to consume them. You would have to know exactly how to drink the no doubt expensive wine they would have provided lest the host be offended. Then, you would have to know what greetings are to be given and to whom. The greetings themselves depend on the social status of the person relative to yours. If you make a mistake, you would either offend someone influential enough to make your life miserable or lower your own status in the society. On other hand, the greeting that is appropriate for funerals might not be appropriate for birthday parties or wedding ceremonies.", she said.

Harry noted that there was a greenish tinge to his sister's cheeks that he knew was mirrored on his face. He didn't understand why she was reacting that way. Didn't she already know all that? Neither noticed the slowly growing smirk on the face of their host.

"If you still wish to learn, I will set up some of the meals as formal sessions so that I can teach you the general rules that are common for all formal occasions and the important things that you should definitely know. As we have an elf now, it is possible for me to arrange it. You would have to learn other rules by going to the specific events and practicing them. The more you practice, more well versed you would become in these rules. There is a reason pureblood parents drag their children through all the social functions and host a few themselves. By the time the children come of age, following the code of conduct would be as natural as taking a shower.", she said.

"Alright.", he said glumly.

"Don't be so down, dearies. It is no different from learning magic. When you first started learning the Levitation charm, you had to focus on getting the wand movements correct, say the correct incantation with proper emphasis on the specific sounds. But, after many years of education and understanding the principles involved, I am sure you can now do it half asleep. It may seem difficult at first but after a lot of practice, you will feel as if it had always been a part of you.", she said.

"Thank You. We are grateful that you are spending your precious time to teach us. You didn't have to do this.", Artemis told her.

"There is no need to thank me, children. It is the duty of us elders to pass on our knowledge to the younger generation. It is also our responsibility to ensure that you children grow up to be respectable citizens. We are the history while you are the future. While academic achievements are important, they are useless without knowledge of how to behave properly in a society. There is more to magic than a few wand movements and incantations. On that note, I think it is time to invite Albus for tea. I am interested to know what exactly is taught in that school of his.", Bathilda replied.

Harry nodded at his sister in acknowledgement. He understood what she was talking about last night. Their host spoke of the head master as if he was just an errant child who was caught redhanded and was due an earful of scolding. He promised himself that he would never get caught causing trouble to Bathilda. He sure would love to be a fly on the wall when the head master gets his scolding. He could tell from the half-smile on her face that she was thinking the same.

They continued some small talk until they finished breakfast and left the house.

XXXXX

They soon reached a pub similar to Leaky Cauldron.

"Hi Lawrence, how is business doing?", Artemis asked the man behind the booth.

Harry saw that Lawrence was a tall middleaged man with pepper white hair, brown eyes and a slight stubble on his chin. His eyes had a weathered look as if he had seen many things in life. He had an air of pleasantness, understanding and eager to help kind of person. Harry didn't know whether it was his nature or due to his long experience as bar tender.

"Business is going as usual. What about you? How were your accomodations?", he asked her with a kind smile.

"Our accomodations are proper. We are in good terms with the land lady. Anyway, Lawrence, this is my brother Hadrian Evans. Hadrian, Lawrence, bartender and the man who introduced us.", she said tilting her head towards her landlady.

"It is good to meet you, Hadrian."

"It is good to meet you too, sir."

"No need for all those formalities, boy. Its not like you are here for a job interview. Call me Lawrence. Everyone does. What can I get you?", he asked in a jovial tone.

"We are not here to have breakfast, son. With the kids getting a house elf, I don't have to worry about that. We are here to use your Floo connection. The kids decided it would be good for me to have an eye check up.", she replied.

"I didn't know there was a cure for cataract.", he said.

This time it was Artemis who answered, "There is no magical cure. There has been many advancements in muggle medicine recently. I have heard a surgery can clear cataract. We are just going to inquire about it and to see whether Bathilda is eligible for it."

"If that is the case, I would not keep you waiting for much longer. The floo is through the door over there.", he replied showing a non descripit door on the side wall.

After saying their goodbyes, they went through the door. Harry went to the floo box and took out some powder. It was then that he remembered that he did not know where to go.

"We are going to Leaky Cauldron and then we are walking to the Muggle world.", Artemis said.

He threw the powder into the fire and jumped into it speaking the name of the location.

XXXXX

Harry was soon spit out of the fire and fell on his butt. He slowly got up rubbing his behind. He saw his sister being spit out the same way. She landed on her feet but it was an unsteady landing. She teetered from side to side with her hands spread out on both sides to increase her stability. After a second or two, she was able to stand properly. She instantly moved to the side to let Bathilda through. They were standing ready to catch her but they were astonished to see her walk out of the fire as if she was walking through an open door.

Artemis elbowed him playfully and said, "What does it say about us Potters when the one best at Flooing among us is an old lady bend double with age, is also blind and sometimes has hearing problems?"

The 'old lady' must have heard it because the next moment she was jumping up and down clutching her butt.

"That will teach you to not disrespect your elders. Did you really think I would not hear it?", she said in a serious tone contrasting the playful smile on her lips.

Harry was struggling to hold in his laughter. He had no qualms at laughing at her but he didn't want his host deciding that he needed a demonstration too. He would surely use this as a blackmail material against her if a situation arose.

"Did you have to hit me that hard? A scolding would have sufficed.", she said.

"But I didn't hit you. I was merely poking you to get your attention.", Bathilda said.

"If that is the way you poke, I don't ever want to get hit by you.", she said.

"Now you are learning my dear."

Artemis leaned towards Harry's ear cupping her mouth with her hand and said in a low conspiratory tone, "Next time, I will make sure to never get caught."

She must have expected it because the next moment she expertly dodged another 'poke'.

"We have an appointment children. Let us not dally."

XXXXX

The eye care centre wasn't very far away from the muggle entrance to Leaky Cauldron. It was a small, neat and well designed place. They entered the building to see a mousy blonde woman typing away something.

Artemis approached her and asked, "Is inside? We are here on an appointment under the name of Bathilda Bagshot."

The blonde made a call and then told them to go inside. The moment the doctor saw them or rather Bathilda, he got up from his chair and greeted them. He then carefully led her into a chair by holding her hand. He checked her eyes with a torch and asked a few questions. The doctor himself was a man of average build and looks but the sheer enthusiasm he displayed and the smile on his face made him a more likeable character. By the rapt attention he was paying to Bathilda, it was obvious that he was in the job to help people. He then lead her to a weird looking machine and told her to look through one side while he looked through the other.

" , while the appointment was for Bathilda, I have learned that my brother is due for a check up himself. Is it possible to do it now or do we have to get another appointment?", she asked.

"As long as you can pay now, I don't see why it can't be done. We do use the same machine anyway.", he replied.

After checking her, he made some calls.

After they settled, he explained, "The cataract is in an advanced stage but it can be treated with surgery. I have recommended you to a colleague of mine who does he surgery. You can get in touch with him to know other details. Considering the patient's advanced age, I would also suggest a complete check up."

He then handed them the contact details of the doctor and the brochures of the hospital. He then repeated the same procedure with Harry.

"It seems that your eye sight has improved from the last time you had a check up. It is time for you to get new glasses or contact lenses which seems to be the new fad these days."

He gave the prescription letters and the bill to her. She paid the bill at the reception and left. The shop for spectacles and contact lenses was right next to them. So they gave the prescription and insisted on a blue colored lens.

While they were waiting for the product to be ready, Harry asked his sister, "Do you think he bar tender Lawrence knows about me, well, my real identity?"

"He might or might not know. If he didn't suspect, there is no need to tell him. If he suspects, as long as we don't tell him, he has plausible deniability on his side. If anyone asks whether he has seen Harry Potter or know where he is, he can honestly say no."

Harry stared at his sister in astonishment. It only now occured to him how different she was from him. She was a planner, a schemer. She never went into a situation without knowing all important details and making plans on how to take advantage of them along with many back up plans. He would even bet that all these was part of some great plan of hers. This thought led to another thought. Why did she come to Godric's Hollow in the first place? She told him that she came to buy a house but had to settle for renting one. But why Godric's Hollow? He knew that unlike him she had no emotional attachment to their parents. He also knew that she did geniunely care for him. But, he knew that she would not have placed her base of operations in that village merely to satisfy his sentimental needs when she could have apparated him there any time he wanted. That only left one answer. Bathilda had always been an important part of her plans. Having to stay with her was an unexpected but not unwanted bonus which helped her bring him in earlier than she had initially planned. With the two days she had before his arrival, she already had her eating out of her palms.

It was then that he realized that not only was he thinking about other's motive but also he could unravel some of her plots with the little details she gave out once in a while. It reminded him of his first and second year where he was running around the school playing Sherlock Holmes. He observed things everyone else missed and even protected the stone from the real culprit after solving the mystery. He knew that he had done well for a twelve-to-be. They did the same thing next year. But, for some reason, he started getting less observant and more lazy as time went by. Inspite of his life being threatened by a mass murderer in his third year, he chose to ignore the important problems and spent his time quarelling with Malfoy. He never noticed the Defence professor being ill on days that happened to be near full moon, something that his eleven year old self would have found suspicious enough to investigate. He never tried to find out about Sirius Black even after learning that he was his parents' best friend. He basically had to be spoon fed everything. Next year, when his name came out of the Goblet, he concentrated completely on the tournament ignoring the fact that someone put his name there and that someone would take things into his own hands if he survives the tournament. Things became obvious next year when his head constantly felt like as if it was heavier than his whole body. His already declining focus and observation skills went to new lows along with his emotional balance. It was as if he had a permanent Confundus cast on him. He was actually surprised he did as well in OWLs as he did. He didn't know exactly what had caused that change but he could easily guess the reason. While the twin bond was helping to cure the damage Dursleys did and bring forth his real self, Artemis anchoring he wards to herself strengthened the wards enough to cut off the link between him and Voldemort. Without the side effects of the link, he could now think as clearly as he had when he started his first year but with a realistic view of the world.

"Harry, I am happy to see you appreciate my beauty but it is now time to test your new contacts.", she said giving him a saucy wink.

His initial moment of shock turned into embarrassment when he realized that he had been staring at her the whole time. He turned away and let the shop keeper put the lens in his eyes.

"It is very weird. I have never been able to see this clearly before. I have no idea what I was missing.", he said.

"You are of course going to thank your sister who had the wonderful idea of getting your eye checked up.", Artemis said.

Harry, in a surprising display of affection, cupped her face in his hands and said, "Thank You Artie. You are the best sister anyone could ask for."

He then turned back towards the shop keeper to ask a question not noticing that Artemis had two bright red spots on her cheeks and a shy smile on her face. She had no idea her brother was such a charmer. She didn't know whether to feel bad for the girls her brother might try to woo or envy them.

Their next stop was the beauty parlour. Harry was sent in with specific instructions. Harry came out after an hour and Artemis had to admit that she was pleased with what she saw. He looked every bit the pureblood lord that he was going to be. He had his hair long and tied in a ponytail with a tuft of hair falling forward onto his forehead hiding his scar or the place where his scar would have been had it not been covered up by the muggle make up so well that even she, who knew it was there, could not find it. She would indeed add a nice tip at the end for that. His hair had been dyed in such a way that it would seem as if he had put black highlights on his natural red coloured hair. She briefly wondered what kind of person she was that she didn't feel guilty for basically remaking him in her image to satisfy her need to display her ownership over him but discarded those thoughts quickly. The fact that he had a straightbacked posture and confident stance rather than the hunched shoulders and bowed head stance of earlier made it an impressive sight. It seemed that many of his insecurities were linked to his 'Harry Potter' persona. The moment he shed them, he was free. She decided to get him some clothes fit for his station after their Gringotts business was over. They soon returned home for a fulfilling lunch.

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	4. Visit to Gringotts

**The Turning Point**

**Chapter 4 : Visit to Gringotts**

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**Disclaimer** : I do not own Harry Potter but Artemis is mine.

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Artemis and Hadrian Potter apparated into the Apparition point in Diagon Alley. While they strode forward to their destination, Harry couldn't help but notice that Diagon Alley was different from what he remembered it to be the last time. The crowded, bustling market street had been replaced by a gloomy, deserted place. The majority of the shops had been closed down and the few people who were still shopping were looking at every passersby with suspicious eyes. The Aurors patrolling the Alley seemed to increase the feeling of fear and misery in people. It suddenly hit home that they were in the middle of a civil war. Until now, all the dangerous events that occured had happened in Hogwarts had remained within its limits while those outside it had remained safe and oblivious. But now everyone in the country was in danger. While he had known for sometime that there would be a country wide war, it was only now that he understood what it truly meant.

"Remember Hadrian, when dealing with goblins, be polite but firm. We don't want them to think that we are pushovers but we don't want them to think that we are strong arming them. Goblins love a show of power as they are a warrior race but not a hostile action. Don't say any more words than strictly necessary to get your point across as any words you say can and will be used against you. Be very careful of anything you agree to and read the documents carefully before signing. Don't say anything that is outright offensive or accusatory. They are basically business partners with whom we are doing negotiations. You will understand my instructions better when you see me apply them.", she said.

They soon reached the entrance of Gringotts bank. The goblin guards bowed to them and Artemis gave them a nod of acknowledgement without stopping her stride, the type of nod that a superior military officer would give to a rookie. He tried to emulate that but he had a feeling it didn't work. He wondered whether the warrior culture of goblins had anything to do with the military behavior his sister was suddenly exhibiting.

Harry noticed that, unlike the last time, there were not many wizards in there and even those that were present were in a hurry to return home. They went straight to a teller who was not attending anyone. They waited for nearly a minute before Artemis got impatient and loudly cleared her throat. It was loud enough that everyone in the hall heard and looked at them. Harry felt uncomfortable about their scrutiny but Artemis seemed oddly pleased about it. The goblin in question looked at them with an irritated look.

"What do you want, _human_?", he said rudely.

He said the word human with as much disgust as a person would have when they talked about a dead and rotting body of a rat.

"We have an appointment with Sharpfang of the Inheritance Department now, _goblin_.", she replied equally rudely.

He looked at her shocked. It had not even been five minutes since she told him to be 'polite but firm' and she had already forgotten her own advice. If she noticed him looking at her, she did not acknowledge it. The only expression on her face was contempt for the creature in front of her.

"Sharpfang of Inheritance Department is very busy right now. Wait until he is free. Now, stop bothering me, _human_.", the goblin replied brusquely.

"I think you misheard me, _goblin_. We have an appointment with Sharpfang of Inheritance Department _now_. We have many important matters to discuss and he would be displeased if we happen to be delayed.", she said.

The fact that was left unsaid but well understood was that it would be the goblin teller who would be the victim of his displeasure. It was a subtle way of reminding the goblin of his place in their pecking order.

The goblin must have pressed a button somewhere as just then another goblin came in. The teller told the other goblin something in their language pointing at them.

"Griphook will take you to Sharpfang of Inheritance Department. Now, let me do my work in peace.", the teller said.

Harry opened his mouth to ask if it was the same goblin that had taken him to his vault in his first year but his sister's vice grip on his hands told him it was not a good idea.

They entered the room to find a goblin sitting behind a desk with two chairs in front of it. The room was simple and elegant. The coloring and the design indicated that it was done by someone with a taste. But, what interested him, and not in a good way, was that there were many plaques on the wall opposite him with a head attached to each of them. Most of them were goblins but there were other creatures represented too. He really hoped his sister atleast would be polite to this goblin. He preffered his head to be on his shoulders rather than on a plaque in some goblin's office.

After sitting down Sharpfang said, "Before we discuss business matters, I need to confirm your identity."

He then extended a parchment and a small knife to them. Harry didn't know what to do. He saw her cut her palm and let three drops on it. He followed her lead trusting her at the moment. The cut healed on its own after the required blood had been shed which caused him to suspect that it was a ritual dagger. The letters glowed for a moment and then their name was written on it in blood.

"It seems that you are telling the truth after all. What a pity! Your heads would have given my collections more variety for my future guests to appreciate.", he said disappointed.

He felt fear rise up through his spine. That seemed very similar to the way Aragog behaved before he let his children attack them. He looked around and found that the only way out was the way they came in. He had a feeling that Sharpfang was skilled enough to chop off both their heads before they can take more than a few steps.

"Is it too much for me to hope that you will do something stupid enough that would allow me to have your heads in my collection?", Sharpfang asked giving them a horrifying grin with all his razor sharp teeth exposed.

"Yes, I am afraid it is too much for you to hope.", Artemis replied.

He could feel her amusement through their bond and started wondering whether she had gone over the end. The goblin was talking about killing them and she was amused. Amused!

"Well then, lets get to business. What can I do for you?"

"I would like to have an Inheritance test done on Hadrian Potter here."

"I am sure you already know about the fees."

"Yes. 15 galleons. You can take the fees from Harry's vault. Harry, your vault keys."

He took out the necklace in which he kept the vault key and gave it to her who gave it to the goblin. The goblin put the key in a keyhole, then took it out and gave it to him. The goblin then took out another parchment and knife and handed it to him. He repeated the procedure. This time, there were pictures of coat of arms of many families, some bright, some dim with the name of the families written underneath it.

Sharpfang looked at it and said in a bland tone, "That is interesting. As you can

see, the test shows the coat of arms of the families you are eligible to inherit. The bright ones are where your claims are undisputable while the others are where your claim is not strong. It seems that you are the Heir Apparent or primary heir of the House of Potter, House of Black, House of Peverell and House of Slytherin. You are also the Heir Presumptive of House of Evans and secondary heir of House of Dumbledore."

He was surprised to see that he was inheriting from so many families but his sister looked as if she was expecting it. The goblin did hint that she had taken the test before. She might have had something similar then.

Apparently sensing his confusion, she explained, "Heir Apparent is the technical term for a heir. If the one he is inheriting from dies, nothing short of his own death or conviction in the court of law can stop him from inheriting. Heir/Heiress Presumptive is a person who is the heir/heiress until someone with better claim is found. For example, when you come of age and become the head of House Potter, I will become the Heiress Presumptive. I will keep that position until the moment your son is born if he is legitimate or the moment you declare him to be your heir if he is illegitimate. If you died before your son is old enough to take your place, I will be the acting head and it will be my duty to ensure that he is ready to take over when he comes of age. If you died without having a son, that would be my responsibility too."

"Sharpfang, I can see that inheritance from House Potter and House Peverell are from our father's side and those from House Slytherin, House Evans and House Dumbledore are from our mother. Where does the House Black come from?"

"It seems that the last head of the family had done a Godfather ritual on Mr. Potter. With his death, Mr. Potter will inherit all the titles and the fortune."

Artemis resisted the urge to sigh in frustration. It seemed that every attempt at finding answers leaves her with more questions. Another problem she found herself with was the overflow of grief from Harry's end. She knew that it was the grief associated with losing a loved one. While she had enough emotional discipline to not let it show that it was affecting her, she had to make an effort to keep her composure. She even thought she head him say 'Sirius'. She might have imagined it. Why would her brother care about that mass murderer? Or why would a Death Eater perform a Godfather ritual on Harry? For magic to consider someone a child's godfather, they just have to accept the post when the parents of the child offer it. In that case, the child would be his heir if he has no sons to do the job. By doing godfather ritual, he is basically stating that the child is his son and heir. He would then be unable to have any male child as long as his godson was alive. If Sirius Black had been the one who had done the ritual, he would never have been able to do the things he did. She decided that she would have a long talk with Harry when they get home. It was a shortcoming on her part that she had not already done so.

"I would like to have a family tapestry created. I am willing to pay the fees for it.", she said.

"The fees depends on how far back you want it to be. For the first century it is 15 galleons and 10 galleons for the next 6 centuries. That is the limit of your wizard magic. But, we have managed to extend it further 5 centuries with our techniques. For every century thereafter, you will have to pay 20 galleons. Considering that the timeline includes that of the founders of your school which majority of your kind seems to be obssessed over, we believe it would soon be popular among those who can afford it. You can be the first one to buy the improved tapestry if you chose to.", the goblin replied.

It gave them a smile that it intended to be charming but the end effect was terrifying, atleast for him.

"What do you think Harry? Should we go for it?", she asked him.

Harry grimaced. She had no qualms about spending his money till now but when the time came to make a decision for which she would have to take responsibility, she threw it in his lap. He shook off the negative thoughts and concentrated on he task at hand. After all, he was going to be the head of two families. He would have to get used to taking tough decisions.

He calculated the amount to be 175 galleons. He knew that the price would rise drastically once it starts becoming popular. If the result was as good as the goblin had implied, then it was worth the price. The only bad thing he could see was that there was a good chance of losing the money. If it was successful, he would have information that noone else was privy to. It was one of the many things he learned from Dumbledore. Understanding his roots can not only help him understand himself, strengths and weaknesses, but also honour his ancestors.

"I would like to know how much of an impact will the money make in my finances?", he asked.

Sharpfang clasped his hands in front of him, looked directly into his eyes and said, "To access the finances of House Dumbledore and House Evans, you would need the permission of their respective heads. There is nothing left of House Slytherin and House Peverell other than the names themselves which could get you into certain circles if you know what I mean. Even if you disregard your claim to Black fortune, there is enough in Potter finances that you would not notice the difference the fee makes."

The grin was enough to confirm that the goblin had intentionally done it to mess with his head.

"If that is the case, lets do it.", he said.

The goblin took out another dagger and parchment and told him to spill seven drops this time. He did so and soon the tree started forming. He learned many things by observing the tree grow. Persephone Dumbledore, elder squib sister of Albus' father Percival Dumbledore, had married into the Evans. Neither of the Dumbledore brothers had a child if he had a claim despite being a distant relative. His relation with House Peverell started when the only daughter of Ignotus Peverell, Imogene Peverell married Theodosius Potter. After Ignotus' death, Peverell line was absorbed into the Potter line.

A greater surprise came when the tree was completed. He, Harry Potter, was the direct descendant of Salazar Slytherin from his mother's side. Apparently, his mother had descended from a squib named Bartholomew Gaunt who was kicked out of the House Gaunt. At the time, Gaunt line had already absorbed Slytherin line into them. Either the practice of officially disowning someone from the family started much later or they didn't bother with it as Bartholomew's descendants still had family magic albeit dormant. While he was disappointed that he didn't inherit the Gryffindor line, he was happy that his Slytherin inheritance had nothing to do with Voldemort.

"Harry, do you have the documents I asked you to bring?", Artemis asked.

He, in response, took out a file and gave it to her. The file contained the written form of the magical contract that forced him to participate in the Triwizard Tournament, the certificate declaring him as the winner of the Tournament and the trial transcripts of the last year's trial in front of the Wizengamot. She was very particular about the documents having the signatures of those officials involved for some reason that she never told him.

"I would like to have Harry emancipated.", she paused with a look on her face as if she had just realized that something was wrong and said, "I believe I worded it incorrectly. I would like to have Harry's emancipation registered."

She then handed the documents to the goblin. After looking through the documents, he started laughing.

"It looks like you are a well respected man, Mr. Potter. You have the recommendations from the Minister of Magic, Head of DMLE, Head of DIMC, Headmaster of your school, Chief Warlock of Wizengamot and the rest of its members and the Supreme Mugwump of ICW. If all those people believe that you can take on the responsibilities of adulthood, who am I to say otherwise?"

He then took a rubber stamp and gave the official approval to all the documents and returned them. He then took a bunch of forms and kept it on the table. He then took a quill which he identified as blood quill and handed it to him.

"Do I really have to use the blood quill?", Harry asked in revulsion.

"It is very important to sign these documents with blood. Otherwise, it would not be considered valid. Ordinary signatures can be forged. Signatures in blood invokes family magics which can not be forged.", the goblin replied.

He took the quill with a grimace and was about to sign when his sister interrupted him.

"Can I have a look at them?", she asked him.

He gave them to her. She put on her reading glasses and checked them. She then seperated two sheets from the rest and returned it to the goblin.

"I believe you have misplaced these forms, Sharpfang. While I am sure that Harry would grow to like you, I don't think he would have bequeated you one-fifth of his fortune as fees for your services or donated 2000 galleons to an unknown account.", she said.

"I apologize for this mistake, Ms. Potter. I will be more careful in the future. Though you would be surprised how many people sign the forms we provide without even looking at it.", he replied with a smug grin.

They both knew that 'misplacing' was intentional and he only felt sorry for getting caught. They both also knew that there was no way she could prove that he had not geniunely misplaced it. The only thing she could do and advise her brother to do was to read and understand the documents before signing.

She could feel the shock at the ease with which he had been nearly swindled. She could not fault him. Muggle born or raised had a hard time getting used to the magical banking system. They are used to a system where they could shift to a different bank if they are dissatisfied or take the case to the civil court who tend to be biased in favor of the customers. As cruel as it sounds, it was a good thing they didn't have much money to lose or goblins would have already conquered us.

Their mother was one of the victims of the goblins' games. She knew that her mother had never intended to start a new House on her own. She had only wanted to start her own account but was given the wrong form. She ended up paying 20 galleons per annum maintainence for a low security family vault rather than the 1 galleon maintainence for a locker. It did turn out to be a good thing in the end. She doubted the blood protections would have existed let alone survived for that long if she had not been the head of a magical family. Lily Evans was a woman who had weird luck, something Harry inherited if the documents in her hands were any indication.

As for Harry, she was happy that noone let him face goblins on his own but also angry that noone bothered to teach him about them. While she knew that his presence was necessary, she didn't like making him a target. His minor status and restrictions that came with it had protected him till now which was one of the many reasons the goblin was very helpful in getting rid of it. If Harry ever steps foot in Gringotts alone, the goblins would be on to him like sharks who smelled blood. They might even get him to sign in blood so that it would be magically binding.

She suddenly realized that Harry was waiting for her when she felt his nervousness and fear rise rapidly. She placed her hand on his shoulders in a comforting gesture.

"I am afraid when it comes to matters of transfering family magic, signature in blood is required. I have checked it thoroughly and ensured that there are no more 'mistakes'. You can sign them.", she assured him.

The moment he got her permission, he signed the papers and returned them to the goblin.

"Congratulations, Mr. Potter. You have become, sorry, registered your financial independence successfully. We would be keeping a copy of the documents just like all the documents involved in a business with us. To complete your registration, you would have to submit a copy of those documents to the DMLE, the Wizarding Examinations Authority, the Minister's Office, Improper Use of Magic Department, Department of Magical Transportation and sign a few forms there. As a new Lord Black, you would inherit the Council seat. So, you would have to register in the Department of Wizengamot Services. You would also have to register in your school too but you can do it the when you go there for your next year.", Sharpfang said.

"What is the deadline for registering?", Harry asked.

"There is no deadline specifically. Considering that you will become an adult anyway when you turn 17, it would be a good idea to register as early as possible. You would only be able to have the privileges if you register in the respective department. For example, until you register in Improper Use of Magic Department, you will be tracked for underage magic. If you register in Department of Magical Transportation, you can take your test and get your Apparition license this summer rather than wait for 2 years due to your late birthday. I am sure a wizard in your position can understand the importance of having such a skill.", the goblin replied.

"That is a lot of work."

"Do not despair, Mr. Potter. You have already done the hardest part. There is a reason emancipations are rare."

"Anyway, what is this Council seat anyway?"

This time it was Artemis who answered, "While my knowledge about your law system is limited, I know that Wizard's Council serves a similar purpose in Wizengamot as the Security Council plays in UN. The seats are permenant and were given to families that were part of the original Wizard's Council, predecessor of Wizengamot. They are hereditary, passing on from father to son. If the family goes extinct or for some other reason has no eligible member to take the position, then that seat remains vacant. No law can't be proposed, altered or deleted without support from a member of the Council. The Wizard's Council forms the top tier of Wizengamot. Having a seat on the Wizengamot in itself is considered a privilege let alone a Council seat. The next tier consists of Minister, Senior Under secretary, the head of all major departments and Order of Merlin 1st class receipients. The last tier consists of seats similar to the Lifetime peerages in muggle world. While they are filled by some sort of bidding process, I have heard that it was more complicated than merely having the highest amount of money. That is the limit of my knowledge."

It was at that time that two goblins came into the room and started talking to Sharpfang in their native tongue. He replied something and they took seats on either side of him, the seats he had not seen before.

"The goblin to my right is Gornùk, the Senior Account Manager of Black family accounts and the one to my left is Ripclaw, the Senior Account Manager of Potter accounts.", Sharpfang said signalling Ripclaw to continue.

Ripclaw placed the box he had been carrying on the table and opened it. There were two rings in it one bigger than the other. They both had what he recognized as Potter family coat of arms.

"The bigger ring is the Lordship ring worn by the head of House Potter and the smaller one is the heirship ring. The rings channel family magic in a way similar to a wizard channeling his magic through his wand. I would suggest you wear it, Mr. Potter, so that the family magic can properly assimilate into you. I am surprised that you haven't asked us for the heir ring when you were eleven. It doesn't matter now anyway.", Ripclaw said.

Harry was shocked by the little tidbit but decided to think about it later. He took the bigger ring and examined it between his fingers. It was an elegant looking ring with a ruby stone on which Potter crest was carved on. He slowly placed the ring on his left index finger and watched it adjust to his size. He suddenly felt like there were ants crawling under his skin coming from the ring. The feeling slowly spread through his body to the very tip. The ring then glowed for a moment and then went back to normal making it look as if he had always been wearing it. He saw his sister looking at him curiously. The moment she was convinced he would not die, she put the ring on her finger. Once the ring fitted in, it changed slightly into a more feminine appearance.

"I am afraid I don't have the Lordship ring with me right now. Late Lady Walburga Black didn't trust us and decided to hide it somewhere _safe and secure._", Gornùk said furious that someone would consider Gringotts not safe and secure, "But, as the rightful Lord Black, you can summon it to you and it will come."

Harry took a deep breath and decided to give it a try. He closed his eyes and held his palm face up willing the ring to appear on his palm. He suddenly felt like something was pulling through his stomach and he suddenly felt the ring materialise on his palm. He touched his right hand to his forehead and realized that he had started sweating. He was feeling slightly exhausted.

"I might have forgotten to mention that the power required to summon the ring depended on he distance and the wards it would have to pass through. I guess it was a good thing that House of Black had only one ring.", Gornùk said with a smug grin on his face.

Harry gritted his teeth and forced down his anger. While Artemis outwardly had a poker face, he could feel her anger through the bond. He was sure now that she didn't know that fact.

"Harry, the ring."

Harry put the ring on his left middle finger. The pain was much greater this time. He felt like his blood itself was boiling. The pain was slowly spreading up his arm. He gritted his teeth determined not to make any sound that would amuse the creatures in front of him. Soon, he had to bend down and bite his right hand to keep from screaming. After the pain reached the tip, his body started to cool off to normal. He looked up expecting to see the goblins making some comments but was surprised to see them unnerved. He looked at his sister and saw her looking pained. He then remembered the emotional bond and knew she had felt similar as he had.

Just as he had opened his mouth, she interrupted, "If you are going to apologize, don't bother. I only felt a fraction of the pain you did. While I knew about Black family's reputation, I never knew that they had Lordship ring which could ensure that only a pureblood can become Lord Black purifying the wearer if need be."

"Is that what had happened?", he asked shocked.

"We will talk about that later. Sharpfang, we need a copy of our parents' will. We would also like to visit both the vaults.", she said firmly.

"I believe that will of the late Potters is still in the Potter family vault. It was sealed by the Wizengamot on the reccomendations of the Executor of the will, Albus Dumbledore. As the new Lord Potter, Mr. Potter has the authority to unseal it. Account Managers Gornùk and Ripclaw will show you to your vaults. May your pockets be filled with gold."

"May your enemy's blood stain your blades."

The Potter twins followed the two goblins out. Harry noted that while they were not nice by any means, they have stopped being condescending to him. They were treating him as well as they treated Artemis. After conducting their business, they left the Gringotts building without anymore unusual events happening. As she was leaving, she decided to hire someone with a good knowledge of law to act as the middle man as soon as possible.

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The moment they got out, Artemis hugged him so tightly that he could almost feel his ribs break. When she let him free, he thought her eyes were wet but it was gone a moment later.

"Harry, I was really scared. Your body was literally smoking. I thought you were going to die."

He put an arm around her shoulders and held her to him.

"Don't worry. I am a survivor. I have survived worse. Though if your theory is correct, I am starting to wonder whether there was some truth to the claims of Death Eaters. I feel more powerful and in tune with the magic, if you know what I mean", he said.

"I know. I think its temporary. When you put on the ring, your magic interacted with each other, negotiated until they agreed. The pain faded away after they accepted each other. It was easier for Potter family magic as it had always been a part of you. You just got greater access to it but for Black family magic, it not only had to rewrite your genetic code to get you fit for the strict conditions but also make you capable of having more than one family magic without them tearing you apart physically or mentally. If you want to know more, you need to know about the history of magic, where did our magic come from. Bathilda will be better at explaining it. I'd rather not about it here. People prefer fae being wherever they are now and don't want to risk summoning them by referring to them.", she replied.

He had to smile at her cunning. She gave him enough to get him hooked but not enough for him learn on his own.

"Artie, the whole Gringotts episode had me confused. Can you explain it to me?"

"What do you want me to explain?"

"You lectured to me about the importance of polite but firm rule, the rule you broke yourselves.", he said petulantly.

She rolled her eyes and said, "When I mentioned it, I meant it for the goblin(s) that we were going to work with. Before you negotiate with a magical creature, you have to understand their culture and thought processes. For some sentient beings and especially those with warrior tendencies, you have to give a show of power to prove your worth before you can meet the one whose audience you seek. The goblins are very strict when it comes to their chain of command. To be considered worthy of negotiating with them, you have to consider all goblins below him in the hiearchy as beneath you and act accordingly."

"So, when the goblin was rude and acted as if you were not worth his time, he was challenging your superiority and you had to show him his place"

She was surprised for a moment before she remembered that he was her twin. He was supposed to be as smart as her, atleast theoretically.

"Exactly.", she replied giving him an approving nod.

"What about the goblin's attempt at swindling? Was that a test too?", he asked.

"What do you think?", she asked geniunely interested in his opinions.

"I was very nervous and scared then. Now that I think about it, yes. If he really wanted to swindle us, he would have been more subtle.", he replied.

"You are partially correct. The goblins like to play tricks on people, the tricks that usually result in their gain and the victim's loss. It is in their nature. It doubled up as a test as well.", she said.

"I assume that I failed that test."

"Yes, you did.", she replied surprising him with her honesty, "But, your display of endurance and determination after you put the Black family ring on impressed them and made them reassess their opinion. They will be watching your next few moves to ascertain whether they will be able to make greater profit in assisting your rise or assisting your downfall. Lets talk about politics some other time. Now tell me, do you want to do the shopping for clothes now or tomorrow?"

"We will do that tomorrow. I am too tired and I know you are too."

"Alright. We will buy a pair of glasses for you. I think it is better to keep up the illusion that you are helpless without your glasses. Then, our enemies will underestimate you."

Harry had never gone shopping with a woman before. So, he had no idea what a golden opportunity he had missed. She knew that he would bemoan that lost opportunity the next day.

They stepped into the Damien's Enchanced Items to see an old man greeting them. As the wizards rarely ever had eye problems, the glasses were sold as just one of the commodities that you buy from the shelf. As magic could change any set of glasses to the type you want, it was not considered important enough to have a shop on its own.

"I would like to buy a pair of glasses.", Harry said.

The old man waved his wand and an animated tape started taking the measurements of his face. After he got the measurements, he took a pair of glasses and gave it to Harry. With a self adjusting charm on the lens, anyone can wear any pair of glasses and lens of the glasses will alter itself to fit the needs of the wearer. The standard pair of glasses also had Unbreakable Charm, Impertubablity Charm, a modified sticking charm and a few other charms to reduce discomfort. She believed it was the reason none of her brother's enemies had focused on such an obvious weak point.

She had initially intended on buying an extra pair of glasses with many enchantments of her choice. She subtly asked him making it look like she was curious about the possibility after hearing rumors about Moody's Fake Eye. He told her it was possible and that he was capable of enchanching them. He also told them that the prospective buyer also had to fill up a form along with the order giving all his details and stating the reason why they needed the specific glasses. He could only start on the work after he got the approval from the Ministry. It was the law. So, the only people who had something like that were the ones who had the magical proficiency to enchant it themselves. She was sure that Dumbledore had enchanted his glasses with charms of his choice.

Harry paid the price and they left the shop. They decided to have some ice cream before they headed home as they felt they needed some cheering up after the events at Gringotts. They headed to Florean Fortescue's Icecream Parlour and took a seat. When the owner came, Harry ordered chocolate and raspberry sauce with chopped nuts while Artemis ordered strawberry and peanut butter.

Harry was telling her about Hogwarts when he suddenly stiffened. She followed his line of sight and understood what had him on edge. A were wolf. It was an open secret that were wolves were allied with the dark lord. The man himself was tall, middleaged fellow and would have been considered good looking had he taken better care of himself and wore proper clothes rather than the tattered robe he now had. He looked like he had never slept for many days. She slowly slid her wand into her hand ready to attack.

"Don't worry. I don't think the were wolf will attack us in public but be prepared just in case. Better safe than sorry.", Artemis told her brother.

Harry was startled but came to his senses after a moment.

"It is not that. He is Remus Lupin. He had been a friend of our parents since school years. He is on our side. The problem is that if he finds me, he will take me to Dumbledore who will 'convince' the Dursleys to take me back.", he told her.

"Don't panic. Any new action will only give you away. Continue on as if you have never seen him but keep an eye on him.", she replied.

Of course, not panicking was not as easy as he wanted but he took a few deep breaths and concentrated on her.

"Yes Hadrian. When you take a girl out for a date, you should focus only on her."

Harry stared at her gobsmacked. That was something he didn't expect to hear.

"Date? Really!"

"Why Hadrian, my dear, are you so reluctant at calling this a date? Am I not pretty enough for you?", she asked batting her eye lashes at him.

Harry opened his mouth and then closed it. He was about to tell her that she was his sister but decided against it. He had seen many vicious arguments between Ginny and her brothers, mostly Ron, about being babied. He knew now that Artemis wanted the fair and honest opinion from a man's point of view rather that the biased opinions from a brother's point of view. He started assessing her part by part. Her smooth, red hair flew down her back and ended between her shoulders and the middle of her back, her thin, sculpted eyebrows, eyes exact shade of green as his, pert nose, her lips so plumb, full and sinfully tempting as if inviting him to explore, slender neck eager to have him nibble. She was wearing a dress that accentuated her curves, the curves he would love to run his hands over, her breasts average sized but firm that he could not wait to get his hands on and knead. He sighed. She really was beauty personified. She was beautiful enough to give Fleur Delacour a run for her money. He really must be cursed when it came to the opposite sex as the most beautiful girl he had ever seen was his sister and so was out of bounds.

He heard a clearing of throat startling him from his thoughts. He suddenly came to his senses and realized that he had been caught staring at her the whole time again. He ducked his head trying to hide the blush on his face. He had never been so embarrassed in his life before. He also felt guilty about having those kinds of thoughts about her.

"Don't go into self pity, brother. I am pleased to know that I am so good looking that even my brother forgets that I am his sister and starts checking me out.", she said with a smug smirk on her face, "Seriously, there is no need to feel guilty. The family magicks do weird things to a person. Considering that yours haven't settled in yet, I am not surprised that you have weird urges."

Harry nodded his head though he was still embarrassed.

"Talking about family magic, can the house ring be used as a focusing tool to channel our magic?", Harry asked her.

"If you are talking about Lordship rings, I would suggest you to not attempt it except in emergency situations. The rings are meant for ancient and chaotic nature of family magic. The focused nature of our usual magic will quickly damage them. It is common to see rings and bracelets enchanted to be used as focusing tools in countries like India but all focusing tools other than wands are banned in Britain.", she replied.

"I don't understand why Ministry would ban it. After all it would be useful as a back up. There is nothing wrong with them, isn't it?"

"Well, that makes the two of us. In my opinion, it is one of the few things they have to show for British superiority over the rest of the world. After all, the wand usage had originated in Britain and then spread to the rest of the world. I admit that wands are more powerful, efficient and at times quicker than others but they are also not discreet and risk our exposure to the muggles. It should be upto us to decide between power and discretion. The government should learn to mind its own business."

It was at that time that they were interrupted by a very familiar voice, at least familiar to Harry.

"Excuse me"

They turned to see the man they were talking about few minutes before in front of them.

"Can I help you?", she replied.

His sister had always spoken with a weird accent but her words then were so accented that he was surprised Remus understood.

"My name is Remus Lupin. I apologize for intruding on your privacy but I would like to know whether you have seen Harry Potter. He is been missing for nearly a whole day and no one has any idea where he is?", he said.

"Harry Potter? The name sounds familiar. Where have I heard that name", she then turned to Hadrian and asked him, "Do you know anyone by that name, darling?"

Harry knew why she was asking him that. She wanted him to decide how to proceed.

"He is called the Boy-Who-Lived here. You-Know-Who, the dark lord here, cast the Killing Curse on him but he survived and somehow rebounded the curse on You-Know-Who.", Harry replied.

"Oh yes! Now, I remember. I read about it in Daily Prophet. What were the terms they used: attention seeking, delusional. They changed their tune recently. He is the local messiah now. If something like that happened in our country, the newspaper will be forcibly shut down and the owner will have to flee the country for his life. Even those not directly involved will not be able to get a decent job for many years. I admit that we Greeks are very hard on our students when it comes to education. Until recently, I was a student there myself. But, our press has better things to do than create childish nicknames for school kids. As for our Ministry, they actually do their job well rather than blame a school boy for their incompetence."

He could see Remus was uncomfortable by the way he kept shifting his legs.

"I believe you have misjudged me, madame.", he said with a steel in his voice that was not there a second before, "Harry's parents were my friends. Harry is the only link I have left of them. I promised myself that I will take good care of him. I admit that, due to my low social status, I have not been able to care as well for him as his parents would have wanted, as I had wanted. I have failed my friends. I don't want to fail him too."

Artemis gave Harry a brief glance signalling that there was a change in plans and to go along with it.

"How does he look like? I can't tell you whether I have seen him if I don't know how he looks like, can I?"

"He is above average height, has messy black hair, green eyes and a lightning bolt shaped scar on his forehead."

"No. Never seen a kid like that. Did you perhaps check his house? He is a teenager after all. It is quite possible that he decided to watch a movie with his friends or spend some private time with his girl friend without adults in his life watching his every move let alone unsculptrous reporters who would sell their own mothers for a few minutes of fame.", she said.

"That is the problem. His house is no more. It was destroyed in the fire killing everyone inside. We know that he is alive because one of the neighbours claimed to have seen him leaving."

"WHAT?"

Remus mistook the reason for his shock and said, "This is not a criminal investigation. Aurors have searched the house thoroughly and have found a leak in the gas line to be the cause of fire."

"Then shouldn't the Aurors be the ones to interrogate us?", she asked.

"Ministry considers a person officially missing only after they are known to be missing for over 24 hours. I didn't want to wait until then.", he replied.

Remus Lupin sighed in frustration. The neighbour had actually told him that Harry had left with a teenage girl holding hands. As the girl was wearing a jacket with its hood on, no one knew what she looked like. He made the mistake of telling it to the last helpful person. The old man had a knowing look on his face and patted his shoulder sympathetically saying, 'Let the kids have some fun. Its not like we didn't do anything like that when we were their age.'. They never even considered that it might be someone under Polyjuice. If that was what the kidnapper had intended, it was working very well. He had withheld the mention of the girl to the teenagers who looked to be having a date as they might think he was someone who wanted to keep the lovers apart. But, now, they were under the notion that Harry was a possible murderer. Their guarded stance showed that they had not completely believed his protestations.

"Did you try to owl him? Owls are more intelligent than people believe them to be.", she said.

"Yes, we did. I sent many letters myself. Even his friends and their family had sent many letters. The owls returned disoriented with no idea what happened to the letters.", Lupin replied.

Harry was shocked to learn that so many people had sent him letters that he had not received. He had a feeling that Artemis knew the reason for it. He resolved to ask her later.

"If I may ask, how old is he exactly?"

"He will be 16 at the end of July.", he replied.

"Then I don't think you need to worry. He is at the age where he feels self-conscious about his parentage. It is only understandable that he felt the need to go on a journey of self discovery and learn his roots. That is the reason I am here far away from Greece after all. If that doesn't help you, I don't think there is anything you can do but have faith in the boy's ability to keep out of trouble.", she said.

"A completely non-existent ability.", Remus muttered.

He had to admit that, while the kids didn't give him any new information, they had mentioned many new avenues he had not thought of himself. He started wondering how much he really knew about Harry if a complete stranger could understand him better than he did.

"Thank you for all your help. I won't intrude on your privacy any longer.", he said and left.

After making sure that he had really left, she said, "I really hope the man has no plans of joining the Auror force or starting a private investigation firm. He is really bad at interrogation."

"True. Though I feel bad about all the deception. He is searching for me because he is worried about my safety and here I am..."

"Then I guess it is a good thing I intend to bring him onto our plans.", she replied.

"What?", he asked shocked.

He then went over every word she uttered and said, "Self-discovery? Learning his own roots? You sent him straight to our home."

She shook her head and said, "He can not find our home on his own without the residents informing the address to him. Another way is to use Portkey or Apparition to bring him into the house. The blood wards are too strong. If it wasn't for the blood protections, he would have already smelled you out. A were wolf's sense of smell is said to be one of the best."

"He never even suspected anything."

"Just like the muggles in your neighbourhood never suspected anything when Petunia spread many outrageous lies about you. It is a power that the one anchoring the wards is given to protect their charge. I don't think she ever learned why people were so eager to believe her. It has its limitations of course. A low level squib like her could not convince anyone with even a bit of magic in them while a powerful witch like me could conceal you from were wolves who are known for their magical resistance.", she replied.

Harry had intended on asking her about the Dursleys. It was the perfect moment to ask but something stopped him. He knew, for sure, that if he chose to ask she would be honest with him. But, he remembered their talk about plausible deniability. As long as he remained ignorant of the truth, he could say, even under Veritaserum, that he knew nothing about it and was not involved in any way.

"When Remus mentioned about owls returning disoriented, I noticed that you knew something. Did you decide to hide my letters for my safety?", he asked.

"No. That is Dobby's job.", she paused to laugh at his expression and continued, "Seriously, it was something I had just remembered then. Did you know that you have an owl redirection ward on you? Well, not on you specifically. Putting wards on people without their permission or knowledge is illegal. The ward was tied into the blood wards and through that to you. It redirected the owls to Gringotts where howlers and harmful mails were destroyed and the others were kept in a vault. I had intended for us to visit that vault so that you could sent a reply for the recent letters at least but I forgot about that with everything else that had happened. Back to the point, the standard owl redirection ward redirected all owls other than those keyed in to the ward as an exception. It was at that time that the caster realized that there was a problem. The ward will work efficiently until you turn 11 and go to Hogwarts. At school, you will surely make a lot of friends. With the present system, everytime you make a new friend, the caster would have to pop over to your home and key in that person. It is not feasible in the long run. So, genius that he was, he created a solution, a simple yet brilliant one."

She looked at him with eager eyes waiting for him to tell her the answer. From the one day he spent with her, he learned that while she was guarded most of the time, when she gets a topic she is passionate about, she goes on and on spinning tales. She could be quite the drama queen at times. Wards are one of her passions. When he accompanied her in setting up the blood wards, she gave him a few tidbits of warding. The wards of a certain shape tend to have the same weak points as that of a physical object of same shape. It was the most basic yet very important principle. She then explained the weak points of various shapes from dome shape and cubical to pyramidical. That was the end of what he understood from her lectures.

She then mentioned something about exceptions creating holes which a skilled ward breaker can manipulate to sneak in hostile forces or completely obliterate the wards. She also mentioned something about foreign delegate visiting and the importance of balancing convenience and security. They all went over his head. Luckily, she noticed the blank look on his face and showed him mercy.

As far as he could see, nothing he could remember was the solution. But, by the way she was looking at him, she believed that it was something he already knew. Her faith in him made him feel disappointed in himself.

"He delegated that job to you of course. If someone is your friend, you would surely send them an owl. So, he put the condition that those you send letters to would be considered by the ward as your friends and their letters will reach you unimpeded. I don't like the way Albus Dumbledore managed your life or should I say mismanaged but when it comes to understanding of magic, he is a genius.", she replied.

She was right. Now that she had explained it, it seemed so simple, something Dumbledore would do. He still remembered how Dumbledore had explained about the Mirror of Erised, an idea brilliant in its simplicity. He felt so dumb not thinking about that.

"Don't be so down, brother. There is nothing wrong with having different interests. You are a teenage boy. You are action oriented. You love fighting, different coloured spells flying everywhere, chaos, bloodshed. We are different but together we are stronger. We compensate for each other's shortcomings. We, Potters, fight together back to back.", she said.

Did he say that she knew exactly what to tell him to make him feel better?

"Come on Harry. It is time to return home."

They then paid the bill and left home. While they were leaving, Artemis thought about the decision she had taken. If he chose to join them, he would be a very valuable asset. As much as she liked to believe otherwise, to make a difference, you need trustworthy adults as allies. While Bathilda was quite knowledgeable and well connected, she was too old to play any active part. Remus Lupin was not only a were wolf but a well educated one, a rare case. He had to be good with a wand to have survived the war and being a were wolf would make him a formidable opponent in close range combat. He would also give them a connection to the seedier parts of London. Being able to get resources from Knockturn Alley could be a huge advantage. She would have to know more about him to decide exactly what role he would play.

On a personal note, he was a friend of her parents. So, he would surely know about her and could shed some light on the mysteries that surrounded her life. She had a feeling that if he could not, then no living person could help her.

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**AN : **

I have read many stories where, after Sirius's death, Harry inherits so many families that he doesn't have any fingers left to put Lordship rings on. With that, he also inherits a marriage contract per family which results in more wives than he knew what to do with. He might also happen to have all the money in the magical world, own all businesses in wizarding business street, Hogwarts and perhaps Ministry of Magic along with many multi-national muggle companies.

I am attempting a more realistic version where goblins are more than well dressed house elves, Dumbledore has better things to do than manipulate every minor instance in Harry's life to make him suffer as much as possible, you would think a supposedly master manipulator would know better than to keep stolen money where goblins could take it any time they wanted and give it to Harry.

It is important to note that while Hadrian is the head of two active houses Potter and Black while Artemis is a member of one and unrelated to other. Harry's ogling of sister, while distasteful to many, is important in the story as it shows his confusion due to conflicting guidance from family magicks. Potter family magic considers her as his sister and next of kin but the Black family magic considers her as nothing more than a healthy young magical female of breeding age. The only common ground the family magicks have is the repopulation of the House. It seems Harry will be having an interesting year after all.

The story is mostly Harry's pov. So, there will be many things we don't understand now but will learn later. The story has just begun after all.

JKArcanus : I have read your review and found it interesting. I will make some things clear. If you are talking about her knowledge of Triwizard Tournament and the trial, they were a matter of public records. Even if she had no intention to search for Harry, she would have stumbled on to it. As for other things, explanations will be given in time. As I said, the story has just started. Also, I had intended Artemis to be a flawed individual, believable one. That is one of the reasons I lost interest in other stories. I felt as if Harry had lost his importance and was just going along for the ride.


	5. Paying Respects

**The Turning Point**

**Chapter 5 : Paying Respects**

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**Disclaimer** : I do not own Harry Potter but Artemis is mine.

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**Unknown Location :**

In between many items of differing sizes and shapes, there was a silver locket on which a serpent was carved in the shape of letter S. It seemed to be filled with emeralds. It suddenly started glowing. Then it started shaking from side to side as if two forces were fighting inside it. It then glowed bright and dim for a few more seconds. Suddenly, there was an eerie, high pitched scream and then everything went still. The glow faded and then the locket suddenly disappeared.

A shaggy ginger haired man with bandy legs and blood shot eyes woke up from his slumber searching for the source of the noise. When he didn't find it, he went back to sleep citing it to his imagination not knowing that he had lost one of the most valuable artifacts he had ever had in his possession or that his luck was only going to get worse.

**Godric's Hollow :**

Harry heard a knock on the door and called out, "Come in"

As expected, Artemis sauntered into the room with a victorious look on her face.

"Harry, I didn't know you were so interested in children's stories. I would have gotten you some comics.", she said.

"Oh! It is not that. I admit that I started reading it because I wanted to know what magically raised kids had for children stories. But, I found out many interesting things. While the stories themselves are fascinating, it is the notes that Grindelwald had scrawled on the pages that are more important. Do you know what Deathly Hallows is?", he asked excitedly.

"From the words, I can guess that it has something to do with artifacts and death. Other than that I have no idea.", she replied.

"I don't know what it is either.", he said disappointed, "I thought you would know since you were magically raised."

"Harry, there are many cultural differences. I grew up hearing the stories of Zeus, Poseidon and Hades, the Olympian Triad. I know nothing about your culture other than that there is a goddess named Morrighan.", she replied.

"Well, it is just that the symbol next to it seems very familiar but I can't remember where I have seen it before.", he said.

"May I see it?"

He handed the book over to her. She absently noted that the page contained the beginning of the story 'The Tale of Three Brothers'. She then saw the symbol and recognized it.

"I am sure that you have seen it. It is in the Peverell coat of arms. While I think is strange for Grindelwald to show such an interest in our family symbol, it is possible that he saw the symbol on Ignotus Peverell's grave and was just curious.", she said.

"That is what I would have thought too had I not read the story.", he said.

"Really! Then why don't you summarise it for me."

"There were three brothers who travelled alot. They once came across a river and for some reason they knew they would die if they try to cross the river. I didn't exactly understand that part. So, they magically created a bridge and walked through it to the other side. Death was angry at being cheated out of their souls and decided to use cunning to acquire them. He offered them a gift each for outwitting him. The eldest brother Antioch Peverell wanted the most powerful wand in the world. Death plucked a branch of a nearby Elder tree and fashioned a wand for him. The next brother Cadmus Peverell wanted something that can bring back the dead. Death picked up a stone from the river bank and gave it to him. The youngest brother having seen through Death's plans asked for a cloak that would hide him from Death. Death reluctantly tore a piece of his cloak and fashioned it for him. The brothers left and soon went seperate ways. The eldest brother challenged his rival to a duel and killed him. But, his frequent boasts about his wand got many people interested and one day, someone slit his throat in his sleep and took off with the wand. The second brother tried to bring his wife back but only got an unwilling spirit. He then committed suicide to join his wife. So, Death claimed two victims. Death could not find the youngest brother as he was always hiding under the Cloak. Many decades passed and Ignotus felt that it was time for him to move on. So, he passed on the Cloak to his heir and embraced Death like an old friend.", Harry said.

"So, you believe that as your Invisibility Cloak is a heirloom, it must be Ignotus' Cloak?", she asked sitting on Harry's bed.

"Don't forget that House Peverell merged with House Potter several centuries ago. It is quite possible.", Harry replied.

"If you are so sure that your Cloak is special, then put it on and I will check it."

He rolled his eyes but instantly put the Cloak on. She waved her wand in a circular motion above his head and he recognized the spell as the one meant to detect human presence. He felt the magic of the spell pass through him like a ghost but there was no indication that the spell had detected him. No tell tale flash of light, no weird feeling. He felt her confusion and knew that he had not been detected. It was confirmed when she repeated the spell vocalizing it that time. As before, the spell did not detect him again.

"Harry, where are you? Take off your Cloak."

Harry was about to do just that when long neglected part of him called Pranking woke up. He silenced any parts that might make a sound and slowly started approaching her from non-wanded side.

She sighed and said, "If that is the way you want it, fine. Accio Invisibility Cloak"

He held on tightly but it was not neccessary. The spell did not work on his Cloak. When he got close enough, he threw off the Cloak and shouted, "BOOOO"

He didn't know exactly what had happened but the next thing he knew he was lying on the floor feeling like a bludger had smashed into his stomach pulverising his insides.

"Harry, are you alright?", she asked.

He tried to get up but the pain in his stomach increased causing him to cough. She took his hand and helped him to his feet.

"Harry, you should not have tried to sneak upon me. I don't react well to being surprised. I hope I didn't kick you too hard.", she said sheepishly.

He took a few breaths and said, "I have learned my lesson. Did you really have to kick me so hard?"

Now that he had time to think about it, he knew that following his impulses had been one of the most stupid things he did. She had told him that there had been rape attempts on her. So, he should have known that she would deal with instances like that violently rather than risk ending up in actual danger. He had to admit that he had gotten off easy. She could have easily used a lethal spell.

"You know, Harry, it is a good thing that you were hit in the stomach and not your private area, isn't it?", she mentioned innocently.

She saw him gulp in fear and inwardly smirked. She was sure that he would never do something foolish like that ever again. It was a pity that she didn't know Harry as much as she liked to believe. While a part of him was thanking his stars for not sustaining much damage, another part of him was fantasising about how entertaining the results would be if he 'suggested' to Fred and George that surprising Artemis was a good idea.

"Well, we now know that your Cloak is special. But, I think it is too early to call it one of the Deathly Hallows.", she said.

"Then I guess it is a good thing that I noticed the symbol for Deathly Hallows inscribed on the inner surface. So, now, we know for sure that it is one of the Deathly Hallows.", he replied showing her the symbol.

He saw her lips pressed into a thin line like McGonnagal always did when she was displeased. He gave her a smile containing all the sweetness of victory.

"It could be a fake. But, as there is no proof of it, we would have to consider the possibility of it being a real one.", she replied.

He smirked at her indirect confession that he was right. While she was outwardly grimacing, she was actually happy that he still had a part of his childhood left in him.

"I just remembered my promise to you. Come on. Let us go.", she said.

"What promise?"

"I did promise to take you to our parents' grave, silly. Remember.", she replied.

He looked at her in shock as if he had not expected her to go through with the promise. She preffered to think that it was the result of other's failings rather than any mistrust in relation to her.

"Get ready and come downstairs. I'll tell Bathilda and wait for you", she said and left.

He knew that getting ready meant taking everything that might be useful when there was an attack. She always insisted on constant vigilance and assuming that they were walking into an ambush so that he would not be caught offguard when something like that actually happens. So, he decided to take his Invisibility Cloak and a knife with him along with his wand. He went downstairs to see his sister already waiting for him. They left together hand in hand.

They were walking towards the gate when he was stopped by his sister. She pointed to the statue and he was surprised to see a different statue than the one he saw a minute before. He took a step back and saw the statue reverting to its former appearance. He took a step forward and saw the statue again changing. The statue was that of his parents with his mother carrying a bundle in her arms. A bundle containing a baby without a scar on his forehead. He had to admit that the sculptor, whoever he was, had done a good job. It was very close to what they would have looked like in real life.

"You know, Harry, I never realized how famous and important our parents were to the British wizarding community until I saw the statue.", she said.

He didn't know what to say to that. So, he led the way. He stopped when he reached the gates. He could see a tall man in torn clothes standing in front of a grave. It seemed that Remus did get Artemis' not-so-subtle hints after all. He then noticed that he was picking something from the ground but he couldn't see clearly what it was from his position.

"It is a lily made of parchment. It has a weak notice-me-not charm with him keyed in as exception. The moment he picks it up, it unravels into a parchment asking for a password. I set the password to be the same as that of your map. When he uses it, he will be able to read your letter. After he finished reading it, it will change into a lily which he can keep if he so desires or leave it there.", she said.

He looked at her shocked. He had never even heard of an event based transfiguration before. A charm, yes. But, not transfiguration. She was talking about it as if it was not such a big deal. Then again, it was not like he was any good at Transfiguration. Maybe, someone like Hermione would know how to do it.

Well, at least someone is living upto their parents' expectations, he thought bitterly.

"Look, he apparated away. Come on.", she said and pushed the gates open.

"You do know that Remus won't be friendly and cooperative during your meeting. He knows that I am incapable of such a magical feat. He will naturally assume that my kidnapper coerced me into writing my letter or faked my handwriting.", he said.

"I know. I intended it to be that way. I want to see how our potential allies deal with a hostile situation. Sometimes, having no ally is better than having incompetent or untrustworthy allies.", she replied.

"It is your choice. For your sake, I hope that you did not just dig your own grave."

On the way to their parents' grave, he idly noted the graves of Ariana and Kendra Dumbledore. He finally reached their graves and found their names written on a single grave stone, together in death as they were in life. A message was carved on it which said, 'The last enemy that shall be defeated is Death'.

Artemis gave him a wreath of flowers and left saying, "There is something I have to check out."

So transfixed by the graves was he that he didn't even bother to reply. There, in front of him, was the ultimate proof that his parents were gone forever, that no magic on Earth could bring them back. That realization caused him to finally break down.

Artemis had not gone far. She saw him break down and was glad that she had managed to gain control of their connection. While a part of her yearned to console him, she knew that he needed it. She stood there listening as he started talking about his life, his dreams and his feelings. She wanted to congratulate herself for her wonderful idea, the one that would help him deal with his issues and would also give her knowledge that very few in the community had. After all, a proper relationship was one in which both parties benefit. While she could have simply asked him, she knew that he would not be completely honest with someone who he fears might judge him for his actions.

On another note, after it was over, she would have a word with him about excercising caution. While she did the neccessary checks and put up her own set of Privacy wards over them, he should know better than to expect someone else to be always there to correct his mistakes.

After he finished, she placed a hand on his shoulder as a comforting gesture. When he turned around tears staining his cheeks, she individually kissed each drop, his forehead and gave him a tight hug.

"Do you feel better now?", she asked.

"So, you heard everything?", he asked.

"I heard everything I was meant to hear. If you didn't want me to hear anything, you would have put some Privacy wards on your own.", she replied.

His conspicous silence and a pink smudge on each cheek indicated that he got the message clear.

They soon left the graveyard behind. Artemis then led him to a two-storeyed building along the street. The hedge and garden were overgrown, untended for nearly 15 years. The house itself was a ruin, its top floor partially blown apart. He knew exactly what the significance of the house was.

As if confirming his thoughts, she said, "This is the house our parents lived in. I never felt comfortable enough to enter it but, if you want, we can check it out."

He nodded in reply being too emotionally worn out by the experience to form proper words.

"Lead the way.", she said.

The moment he touched the gate, he sensed a movement nearby and jumped back in alarm. A commemorative wooden sign rose up like a blooming flower, with golden letters explaining that the house, which was invisible to the muggles, had been where James and Lily Potter were killed and had been kept in its destroyed state 'as a monument to the Potters and as a reminder of the violence that tore apart their family'. All around it were scribbled notes and graffiti, some by people leaving their names, many others thanking the Potters, some wishing Harry well. Harry had to admit, especially after last year, it felt good to see so many people supporting him.

"Oops! I guess I should have warned you about that.", she said startling him from his thoughts.

Her mischievous smile lightened up his mood even though he knew that her amusement was at his expense.

To say that the living room was a mess was an understatement. There was a heavy layer of dust over everything and all the furniture were in various states of disrepair. For a building considered to be a monument, they didn't seem to have taken care of it very well. How hard was it for someone to come once in a while and cast a few Scourgify and Reparo? Anyway, it was Ministry property now. He had to admit that the house reflected the state of the Ministry : ruins. On further search, he confirmed that the rest of the house was in the same state. The only room left to check was the one he occupied as a baby.

He walked up the stairs knowing that he was tracing the path Voldemort took when he came to kill him. He opened the door and he could almost imagine his mother standing there protectively in front of the crib begging for mercy for her son. He took a few steps forward and stood in front of the crib.

_"Hey mister, nice costume"_

_He turned towards the voice and saw that it was a muggle boy who looked to be around 8 years old. He looked on in amusement as the boy's awe quickly turned into fear. He casually pointed his wand at the boy as he ran away. Two words. Two words would be enough to ensure that he would not reach his father. He turned his attention away from the boy and towards the house his targets lived in. While it would be amusing to see the boy suddenly fall dead, it would alert his targets which would make things more difficult. Better to stick to the plan. _

_He walked towards the house and stopped right in front of the wards. He then erected the Anti-Transportation wards, his special version. While ordinary Anti-Transportation wards stop all common modes of magical transportation, his version even stops Phoenix fire. Can't have the old fool flaming in to interrupt now, can we? He forgoed casting Magic Isolator wards as Wormtail told him that they had no Floo connection. He detected some monitoring wards cast by the old man but let it be. He wanted the old man to know exactly what was going on but be too helpless to do anything. It was only fitting that everyone know of his ultimate triumph the moment it happens._

_He strode through the wards as if they didn't exist and stopped to peak through the window. The image he saw made him sneer in contempt. James Potter was lounging on his sofa as if he had no care in the world. He didn't even have a wand near him. It seems like he was quite sure of his trust in his friend, the one who sold him out within three days. Pathetic. If the child was as stupid and gullible as his father, then the very notion of the boy posing a threat was laughable._

_Longbottom couple were more cautious. Their secret keeper was himself hidden under the Fidelius charm whose secret keeper was Frank Longbottom. It was an ingenious idea, he admitted. He was not surprised. They were purebloods after all. Even with Wormtail's eager assistance, it took 7 months to nab him and get the location. It didn't matter. Samhain was an auspicious occasion for his crowning. While Lord Voldemort sounded good, it didn't have the same ring as High King Voldemort._

_He went upto the door and rung the doorbell. The door was opened by an exuberant James who had a smile on his face so wide that it nearly split his face._

_"Padfoot, it is a good thing you came. I was getting bored sitting here doing nothing. What happened with your date?"_

_It was then that he noticed who exactly he was talking to. Lord Voldemort relished when he saw the exuberance on Potter's face turn into fear. _

_"LILY! It is him. Take Harry and-"_

_Potter never got to complete his sentence as the Killing Curse that hit him caused him to fall to the ground lifelessly. He entered the house taking time to step on Potter's corpse. He heard the mudblood going upstairs to the boy's room for some reason he could not understand. He wondered why she was going upstairs and getting herself cornered when she could escape through the back door. After all, didn't the girl know that the boy was his target and others are inconsequental to him. Her stupidity was not exactly a surprise. She was a mudblood after all._

_He went upstairs and blasted the door open. The moment she saw him, Lily Potter jumped in front of him blocking his view of the boy. He noted that she didn't seem to have her wand with her either._

_"Move aside, girl", he ordered._

_"Please don't kill him. Kill me instead.", she begged._

_He had heard many people commenting on Lily Evans' intelligence. They might have really exaggerated as the girl seemed to be of the belief that she could change his mind by batting her eye lashes and showing some skin. He admitted that she did have a good enough body to tempt a few of his Death Eaters but, unluckily for her, he, Lord Voldemort, was immortal and above such weaknesses. _

_"If that is your wish, I will grant it to you. Avada Kedavra"_

_She fell to the floor like a puppet that had its strings cut. He stepped over her and stood in front of the crib. The chubby boy looked at him with curious green eyes. He wondered whether the boy's young age or his inherited stupidity was the reason for the boy not realizing that Death himself was in front of him ready to reap his soul. He shook off his thoughts. He could not afford to be distracted as he still had to kill the real Chosen One. He knew that the Longbottoms would be more prepared which is why he would be taking some of his best fighters with him. They would keep the couple busy letting him take care of the Chosen One on his own. Before that he needed to finish this business just in case._

_He pointed his wand at the boy's face and said, "Avada Kedavra"_

_He saw the green light hit the boy and the next thing he knew his vision was filled with green and there was a lot of pain._

Harry felt someone shaking him and opened his eyes to see a pair of eyes identical to his. He could feel the concern and worry coming from her.

"Are you alright?"

He groggily got up and said, "I am fine."

"Yes, Harry Potter, you are perfectly fine. You just happened to have fainted, then continued twitching on the floor for some time and woke up screaming. I am sure it is perfectly normal for you.", she said sarcasm bleeding into her voice.

He cringed as he realized how it must have looked like. He knew he had to be completely honest.

"As much as I hate it, after last year, I have gotten used to having episodes like that.", he sighed and continued, "It was not a Voldemort induced vision. It was an old memory from his point of view, the memory of the day our parents were murdered."

"Hearing about your visions is one thing but witnessing it first hand was an entirely different experience altogether. I think that the residual dark magic here was the cause of it. I should not have brought you here. Let us leave.", she replied.

On the way back, he decided to tell her everything about the memory.

"You know, he didn't even think that I could be the One. He tried to kill me just because he believed I was a loose end and he killed my parents because they were in the way.", he said indignantly.

"Oh! Poor Harry! I am sure your male ego was not damaged too much.", she then turned serious and said, "It is better you than the Longbottom boy, isn't it?"

He turned his head so quickly that he could almost hear a crick. He was that shocked. His life being the way it was, he could understand why he would never wish his life on someone else but why would Artemis believe that? He knew that she didn't say that to be spiteful and he was sure she didn't believe that he liked his fame. He knew that sometimes her words had deeper meaning to them.

"I don't understand what you mean. If Neville was the Boy-Who-Lived, he would be the one with the scar. Everything else will be the same.", he said.

"Not exactly. The important thing you should remember is that Voldemort believed that Neville Longbottom was the Chosen One. He came alone to kill you because he feared no danger from you. You should note that Voldemort had intended on meeting a few of his fighters after your death and bringing them along to eliminate Longbottoms. I am taking an educated guess that he was referring to the Lestranges as they were the ones convicted for torturing them. Why? If he was as powerful and dangerous as you British wizards believe, then he could have subdued them on his own and killed the child at his convenience. It might or might not have been an easy victory but it would have been a victory for him nontheless. It is possible that he wanted an audience for his final victory but he could have easily taken them to his head quarters and killed them in front of all his followers. I believe he wanted to discuss contigency plans with them, the plans they were meant to follow if he ended up defeated. As we know, he lost his body when his attack on you backfired. With the sudden loss of their leader, they found themselves in the position of prey and started doing everything to save their own hide. If Neville had been the one, Lestranges would have known what to do and Voldemort would not have stayed 'dead' for long, an year at most rather than our 14 years.", she said.

Seeing that he was speechless, she continued, "If it had been Neville, the defeat would have been expected and he would have calmly studied the situation until he found a solution. As his defeat came from an unexpected source, he panicked. He started doubting his judgement which lead to anger and irrational behavior which resulted in further defeats. You are like air. You only need a small pin hole to escape. Even at times he believed he had you in a perfect trap, you pull a Houdini act making him look like fool. It was only a matter of time before he starts doubting his effectiveness and followers his leadership skills."

"You are a genius, did you know that?", he asked.

"Of course, I knew that though I would not mind if you kept reminding me.", she replied.

"I am glad that someone has faith in me. The prophecy stated that one of us has to kill the other. What chance do I have against an adult with 50 years of experience over me?"

"If that is the way you behave then keeping it from you was one of the few good things he did regarding you. The prophecy is too vague to be of any use. I believe that you are only constrained by the limitations you place on yourself. If greatness had age limit, I would not be great after all.", she said.

"You just sounded like Lockhart right now. I am starting to wonder whether Mom was actually faithful.", he said his previous sour mood forgotten.

He knew from the expression on her face that it was time to run. So, he ran all the way home with her chasing him shouting many swear words.

XXXXX

Harry was getting ready for bed when Artemis came in through the door.

"What happened? I thought you had already gone to sleep.", he said.

"I am sleeping with you tonight, silly.", she replied.

He gaped at her as if she told him that she was an alien.

"What?", came his eloquent reply.

She rolled her eyes and said, "Get your mind out of gutter, Hadrian James Potter. I was talking about sleeping in the same bed not about having sex."

"But why?"

She sighed and said, "I want to know if prolonged physical contact will strengthen the protection. That will help me understand whether my decision to temporarily close the link had any bearing on your episode. Now, scoot over."

He complied inwardly wondering whether she had lost her sanity. She then took both of his hands in hers and faced him.

"Harry, look into my eyes.", she said.

For some reason, he did. From the moment he saw her emerald green eyes, he was transfixed. He could not move and he did not want to. He wanted to stay like that forever staring into those beautiful eyes. Then he heard a weird sound that he could not place. After listening for some time, he related it to that of air moving in after the window had been opened. The sounds changed indicating the rising strength of the wind. When it became a storm, he suddenly found that he could move and realized that she had let go of his hands.

"Fire, Water, Air and Earth. Which of these make you feel safe and 'at home'?", she asked.

"Air"

There was no hesitation in his voice. He did not like Quidditch at all. It exemplified the wizarding attitude of expecting one person to save them all when they screw up but it gave him a chance to be in air. He always felt free whenever he took to air as if he had left all his burdens on he ground.

"I thought so. I assume that you heard the sound of the wind when we were holding hands.", she said to which he nodded.

"Have you ever heard of Elemental magic?", she asked.

"I have heard of it but there is not much information about it other than some legends. From what I understand, it is about people who can manipulate elements. Are you saying that I am an elemental?", he asked.

"No, at least not yet. You have an affinity for air but you haven't learned to intentionally manipulate it. Before you say anything, you have to know that elemental magic is considered as dark magic in Britain. I believe the only reason there is no law banning it is due to there being no known elementals in Britain since well before the Ministry was formed. Ofcourse, different countries have different views. Elementals are worshipped in Greece similar to how Parselmouths are worshipped in India. In fact, Zeus, who the mythology claims to be the King of Gods, was actually a wind elemental, a very powerful one. He was the leader of the group, now called Olympians, who ruled Ancient Greece. Poseidon was similarly a water elemental. ", she answered.

"So, elementals are very rare and I happen to be one. Atleast I didn't get a marriage contract each for every House I inherited.", he said.

He wondered why she compared him to Zeus. Was this her way of telling him that her intention for him was to be a leader of a powerful group?

"You should be really careful when you say something like that. It might just happen. As I was saying, those with potential are not that rare but those who realize their potential are very rare since the wand use became popular. Before I explain that point further, let me give you some basic information. Different cultures have different opinions on the matter. In Greek culture, there were intially four elements which I told you about but aether or void was added which was considered to be a heavenly element and thus eternal and unchanging. In Indian culture, they have Panchamahabhuta or 5 elements : vayu or wind, agni or fire, aakash or sky, jala or water and bhumi or earth. By these standards, Zues would be considered Sky elemental. As you know, sky and earth are natural enemies just as fire and water are. Air is in the middle of all of them keeping them seperate so that their clashing natures don't result in infighting but close enough for them to work together. Air is a neutral entity, the fulcrum around which others operate. Air is also a common ground for others. All others have some minor ability to manipulate air but you might have already known that as you have met some veelas."

"How did you know I was an Air elemental and not Sky?", he asked.

"Sky elementals love thunderstorms and are energised by it. They can cause lightning strikes and if they are good enough, they can even control the electricity in muggle homes. If you heard the sound of thunder when we held hands, you are Sky elemental.", she replied.

"Then I guess I am an Air elemental then. I don't understand what wand usage has to do with it. Is it like family magic where they are incompatible?", he asked.

She nodded in approval. Her brother was smart.

"They both are chaotic in nature. So, you are right about that. But, family magic is like a pool of magic to which individual channels of members' magic is connected to while Elemental magic is individual. In elemental magic, we don't use our own magic to power the spells if you can call them that. We add a little bit of our magic to the usually inert ambient magic to add chaos into it. We then use that for the spells. So, there is less chance for magical exhaustion. That also means that we have to get to them before they get comfortable with their wand. With a few techniques, we will be able to seperate their magical core into two so that they can do both. Elemental magical creatures like veela and fire sprites or those with such inheritance are exempt from it as they are born with two cores."

"So, isn't it too late for me? I have been using my wand for years."

"Usually, that would have been the case but for some reason, your core already seems to be in a state of fission. Few deliberately cast elemental spells was enough to completely split into two. I believe that events in the Chamber had caused that. To understand my theory, you need to know something else. Just like the houses in your school, elements have magical creatures as symbols. For fire, it is a phoenix, for earth a nundu, for water a basilisk and for sky a thunder bird. As long as I know, air elementals don't have a symbol perhaps due to their neutrality."

"So, basically, I beat a water elemental and was favored by a fire elemental. It explains many things. Except for the graveyard incident and my first match, all the times I was in danger, I was underground or in a closed space. I tended to keep away from large bodies of water except in occasions in which I had no choice. I have always felt comfortable at 7th floor but hated having to go to dungeons though I don't know how much of it is Snape's influence."

"The summer before your 3rd year, you blew up Marge like a 'balloon'. Last year, when you needed a secret place to train people, you never even thought of the Chamber of Secrets despite its security. It is as if you subconsciously knew that you are not welcome there unless you are invited by a Water Elemental. From your descriptions, it was meant to be a temple for Water Elementals.", she said.

"I assume that you are a Water Elemental."

"You assumed correctly. May I ask how you came to that conclusion?", she asked.

"You mentioned, using me as an example, that the behavior of elemental is similar to the element. You are neither short tempered nor impulsive. Your every word, every action has a purpose. So, fire is out. You aren't completely rigid or unflappable. You can adapt to a certain extent. So, you are not earth either. I have also noticed that you had a tint of possessiveness when you talked about the Chamber and seemed well informed about Water Elementals.", he replied.

"Well reasoned, Harry. I am proud of you.", she said bringing a smile on his face.

"There are many more things to tell you but it is better to explain during your training. Now, let us get some sleep."

It was then that he felt awkward. It was the first time he was sleeping in the same bed as a girl, sister or not. Was he supposed to kiss her good night? She rolled her eyes snd extinguished the lights with a wave of her hand. She then slept turning to the other side leaving him to do the same.

XXXXX


End file.
