One more week later and their final plan was in motion. Harry and his friends appeared on the outskirts of Hogwarts with two guests. The castle was still in ruins, even though he saw some signs of repairs being done. They walked in and to the front doors, where Harry knocked on the door. He was in disguise again. Tony and the guests had to wear runed glasses to see the castle, but that was necessary.
The caretaker, Filch, opened the door with his usual scowl. "Are you the one that made the appointment?"
"That would be me." Harry confirmed with a smile. "It's good to see you again Argus." he added.
"Do I know you?" Filch asked.
"You do, but I doubt you'd remember." Harry chuckled. "Have our guests arrived?"
"Some." Filch said with a frown. "They are in the hall, having lunch with the Headmistress."
"McGonagall?" Harry asked.
"Yes." Filch said again. "Follow me." he then said and led them the short distance to the doors of the Great Hall. They asked the Grangers to wait outside the door for the surprise.
"Would you like to come with?" Harry asked on impulse. "We've got some gifts especially for you."
"Me?" Filch asked.
"Yes, you." Harry said. His friends all smirked, knowing the man's history and the reason for his permanent scowl.
Filch shrugged and followed them in. Inside were gathered a big group of people around a large round table. All of them wore frowns and looks of suspicion.
"Are you Mister Odinson?" McGonagall asked as they walked to the gathering of people. Harry noted all of them had their wands out. A quick, subtle check with his magic and Harry noted there were a couple of people hiding in the antechamber. They were probably backup. Hopefully the other guests were with them.
"That would be me." Harry confirmed.
"And me." Loki said. "We're brothers." he clarified at their look. "Though, Harry here is the one who called this meeting."
"Your letter said something about the future of the Wizarding World and protecting it from people like Voldemort?" McGonagall asked.
"Just one moment, please?" Harry said. Before they could react, Harry waved his hand twice and added his own protections to the castle and its grounds.
"My husband needed to secure the castle, for all of our safety." Natasha said. "Any of you who feel uncomfortable with this arrangement may leave and we will not stop you. This really is just a precaution."
"What did you do?" McGonagall asked. She had felt the magic leave the man, it was like a hundred wizards of Albus' power had recast the wards of Hogwarts. "And how the blazes did you do that?!"
"Harry?" Natasha asked.
"It's about time that we told you all a little story." Harry began. "Let us all get comfortable first, though, shall we?" He waved a hand and the chairs around the table were all replaced by recliners. Harry turned to Steve, "Will you please go get our lasts guests, before we begin?"
"Sure thing, Harry." Steve said as he casually walked back to the door.
"Who is he going to go get?" younger Harry asked.
"A couple of muggles we invited." Harry said. "It's necessary."
"Muggles can't see the Castle." McGonagall informed him.
"We're muggles." Natasha said pointing between most of them, excluding Wanda, Loki and Hela.
"No, you're not." Hermione argued. "You couldn't be here if you were."
"It's a long story, but every one of my friends can see the magical world." Harry said. "Shall we have something to drink?" he asked. He had prepared some for the presentation part and knew how many people to serve, so he summoned the mugs of butterbeer in front of everyone there. "Butterbeer has always been a favourite of mine."
"I'll have a firewhiskey, if you don't mind." Loki said. "The strong stuff."
Harry obliged and summoned his. It was all part of the act.
Steve had by now reached the doors and waited for everyone to be ready, before he returned with Mr and Mrs Granger in tow.
"Mum, Dad!" Hermione exclaimed and ran to her parents. "Why are you here!? How are you here!?" She couldn't help the last question, "Why are you wearing glasses?" It was in her nature.
"Mister Odinson gave us these so that we may see magic." Hermione's father said.
"He's also the one who gave us our memories back, so you better listen to every word he says, little lady!" her mother added, in a stern voice.
"Hey there Mr and Mrs Granger." Harry said. "Take a seat. We're just about to begin."
"Why are you here?" McGonagall insisted after she had watched Mrs Weasley warn Ron not to drink the Butterbeer even as the Grangers sat down and took sips, themselves. Everyone was on edge, but the new arrivals.
"Could you ask your people to come in?" Harry asked. "I don't like the feeling of people watching me when I can't see them."
"How did you…?" McGonagall asked, but stopped herself. When the people refused to come in, Harry charmed the wall to the antechamber invisible, from both sides. He waved at them with a grin. Frowning, the Aurors exited the room, but they all had their wands trained on the strangers.
"Okay." Harry said, before a look of confusion crossed his face. "Where do I start this again?" he asked.
"Probably a good idea to give the gifts first?" Tony suggested. "Otherwise you'll have to tell the whole story all over again."
"Makes sense." Harry said, standing up. The Aurors kept their wands trained on him as he moved. He looked at George and asked, "What would you give to spend time with your brother again, even just an hour?"
George answered instantly, even as people tried to stop him, "I'd give everything I own."
Harry nodded and stuck his hand into his storage and floated out the energy cocoon that contained Fred. There were gasps and Mr and Mrs Weasley looked like they were about to attack the man for stealing their son's body from his grave, until Harry removed a disc and enervated the boy.
"What?! Where am I?" he asked as Harry allowed him onto the ground.
"You're at Hogwarts." Harry said. "It's been two weeks since we rescued you."
"Rescued?" Fred asked, before he was bowled over by his brother.
"George!" George yelled as he hugged his sibling, even as he felt for a familiar gash he knew his brother had on his back, from when they had had an accident.
"I'm not George! You're George!" Fred said, confirming their security phrase. Twins know their siblings. They were soon engulfed in a crushing hug from their mother who broke down in tears and soon needed to be told to stop, before she killed Fred all over again. She didn't laugh at his joke, but relaxed a little, before she started looking him over, to make sure he really was okay.
"It's really him?" George asked, while he gave his twin space so their mother could mother him. He looked up at Harry with gratefulness, but some confusion. "How?"
"Magic." Harry said with a smirk. "And don't worry about the cost. You can pay me next time." he said with a wink. Then he looked at the rest. He cancelled his glamours to more shocked exclamations. "Let me introduce myself again. Hi, my name is Harry James Potter Odinson. I'm thirty-nine years old and from your perspective, I'm a time traveller."
There was the sound of a body hitting the floor as Hermione, who had been standing by her parents protectively, passed out. "She knows the rules of time travel." Tony said with a smirk as he held out a hand to Natasha, who dropped a bill in it. "You should have believed me." he shrugged.
"What the blazes is going on!" McGonagall insisted. "I demand answers form you Potter!"
"What!?" both Harrys asked at the same time. "I thought you'd be happy?" the older Harry continued.
McGonagall didn't know what to think. He was obviously a loon. A powerful loon, but definitely around the bend. Then he performed a miracle, by placing wards more powerful than Hogwarts had likely ever seen in an instant and it didn't end there. He'd brought someone back from the dead! She would not be denied.
"You had better start explaining yourself." she said dangerously.
"Mind if we just get our other guests out?" Harry asked. He stuck his hand in storage and pulled our Amelia Bones and Rufus Scrimgeour, who he also enervated.
"Auntie!?" Susan yelled.
"Susan? Is that you? You look so much older. Where was I? The last thing I remember was Voldemort attacking me with a Killing Curse." Amelia said as she hugged her niece. She had believed she'd never see her again. She really thought she had died.
"Sorry for the delay, Susan, Amelia. We had to protect the time-line." Harry apologised.
"What is going on?" Scrimgeour asked. He saw the Aurors and walked to them. "I'm going to need some answers."
"Mister Scrimgeour…" one of the men started.
"That's Minister Scrimgeour to you." the man insisted.
"Not anymore, sir. You've been missing for a year. We thought you were dead." another man said.
"I saw the bloody body meself!" yet another Auror insisted.
"I remember being attacked, but nothing after that. What the hell is going on?!" Scrimgeour asked.
"That's a question I think we'd all like answered." a new voice said. Harry had taken out the healed form of Severus Snape.
"Wait your turn, Snape." Harry said, with a wink. Snape actually decided to hold his tongue, but moved away from the man who had brought him to wakefulness.
Next, Remus Lupin and Nymphadora Tonks joined the growing group of seemingly resurrected people.
Next, Ted Tonks was brought out. Tonks and Remus had been asking questions, but Harry refused to repeat himself over and over again. When Ted joined the group, his daughter broke down in tears and hugged her father with all her might, while Remus stood off to the side and smiled, a look of pride on his face as he watched the older Harry bring so much joy to so many people. It was a miracle and he would not spoil it for anyone by interfering.
Harry had invited Andromeda, Nymphadora's mother, and their son, but understood why they were not there.
To everyone's amazement, except for those who already knew, Harry next produced Dumbledore himself. It had taken quite a bit of power, but Harry had been able to remove the curse and fix the hundred and sixteen year-old man up.
"Albus?!" Minerva exclaimed as she sat down hard, not having the strength to stand. Most people had stopped talking and just stared.
Albus looked at the people assembled. He noticed the older and younger Harry as well and saw the people he didn't know. Then he answered, "I believe I am me, yes, though I doubt my own eyes, since I seem to be seeing double."
"Sorry about the wait." Harry said. "Time travel."
Albus nodded, with a look of interest. "You are being a little light on the details there, Harry."
"Not fun is it?" both Harrys said. The younger Harry looked a little angrier, though.
"Indeed." Dumbledore said. He understood how infuriating it could be to be given half-answers, but he had done all he could to set things up for young Harry to succeed.
Next, Harry started bringing out all the other people he had saved. He hadn't gotten them all, but he gotten damn close. His team had been working overtime pointing out people who were about to fall, and he had done his thing. The only people he didn't save, were the Death Eaters and their allies. These people, he left in suspension, so that they could later be returned to their families. There was still much to discuss.
Harry made no further move to continue pulling out people. Remus had been hoping as well, but his heart sank when Harry stopped. Tonks noticed and went to her husband. She'd already enquired after her baby boy and would be leaving immediately after they were done to go hold him again. Remus' face held a sad kind of acceptance.
When Harry noticed, he walked up to Remus and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, Remus, I got him too, but I can't bring him out yet." He said looking around at the Aurors and people who didn't know Sirius was innocent.
Suddenly Remus' eyes held the hope again and Harry couldn't resist the hug the werewolf gave him. "Thank you." Remus whispered in a broken voice. "Thank you." he repeated.
This became the norm as Harry suddenly became the recipient of more and more hugs of gratitude. Ginny, on the other hand was quiet. She stood off to the side with a look of sadness on her face. She had remembered the woman saying Harry was her husband.
It took a while for everyone to settle down. When they were all settled, Harry stood up again. "So, I'm guessing you're less inclined to attack me now?" he asked.
There were no more wands trained on him and Hermione had been brought back around. "You're breaking the rules." Hermione insisted. "You're not allowed to change the past."
"Unless you are setting things right." Tony insisted. "Harry used a couple of loop-holes to do what he did and preserve the time-line."
"But then how-" Hermione started, before her brilliant mind caught up. Then she got up and went to stand in front of the younger Harry. "You can't take him." she insisted.
Harry smiled sadly at her. "Wouldn't that be breaking the rules, Hermione?" he asked.
"But you can't!" she insisted as tears started rolling down her cheeks. "He doesn't deserve it! He's had enough!"
"What is she talking about?" Ron, who had been mostly silent, asked. When Hermione started crying on their best friend's shoulder, he knew that something was wrong.
"It's time for my story." Harry said. This was the hard part, so he had opted to cheat. He took out his Pensieve tablet. "This is a Pensieve. A new one, which one of my friends created." His other friends all took out their Pensieves as well. "In them I have placed the memories of the important events that would have happened to this world if I hadn't stepped in. I will ask all of you who wish to know what happened to enter the Pensieves and watch the memories. I warn you, these are not happy memories."
His friends ranged around the table and as one they all placed the Pensieves Tablets down so that any who wished to could enter the memory. There wasn't one person who didn't enter, except for the Aurors, who were ordered by both Amelia and Rufus to stand guard while everyone was busy. They didn't look happy, but agreed.
Harry noticed Filch standing off in a corner, though. "Didn't you want to see?" Harry asked.
"Couldn't make a difference. I'm a glorified janitor." he said sourly.
"Let's fix that, then, shall we?" Harry smirked. The people would be busy for a while, after all. Harry walked to the man and took him aside and started whispering with him. He presented him with a few gifts and soon the man was excitedly running out of the hall. Harry re-joined his friends and Harry called for Dobby, who he had forgotten to tell everyone about. Oh well.
"Hey Dobby, would you mind asking the Elves to prepare us something to eat? It's getting a bit late." Harry asked.
Dobby looked between Harry and the younger Harry and smiled. "I will get the great and other great Harry Potter sirs and their friends something to eat." Then he disappeared to the kitchens.
The food arrived shortly and everyone that was not in a Pensieve chowed down. It didn't take too much longer for the memories to end. There was a lot of crying going on as people saw the atrocities caused by the Death Eaters and Voldemort himself.
The younger Harry looked up and asked with angry eyes, "So he made another one? And he's out there, right now, planning to destroy the world?"
"No." Harry said. When all the eyes were on him, Harry stuck his hand into Storage and removed the still form of Voldemort. There were gasps all around and suddenly there were many wands pointed at Harry. Harry put Voldemort back in Storage. "No, he's not out there, but if you don't accept your responsibility, he will be."
There were many angry eyes now, but Hermione understood and she started crying again. Her poor friend had to go through so much!
"Why don't you just kill him now?" Rufus asked.
"The rules." Tony said. "It doesn't matter if Harry kills him now, if the younger Harry doesn't go to a different reality to become who Harry becomes, your world suffers the same fate."
Hermione just cried harder and suddenly hugged her Harry. "I'm so sorry." she said.
The younger Harry looked at the smartest witch he knew and he realised she knew what they were saying was the truth. He looked up at his apparent older self. "Is there no other way?" he asked, ignoring Hermione who was still inconsolable, but keeping an arm around her.
"I'm afraid not." Harry said, sincerely.
"On the bright side," Loki said, "You gain a loving family."
"And friends." Bruce said.
"And techno magic." Tony added.
"And other new kinds of magic." Wanda added.
"And a loving wife." Natasha added, hugging her Harry.
"And a girlfriend." Tony added, unnecessarily.
"And a home." Hela said.
"And in this world, there is no magical government and you can create and explore the limits of magic like never seen before." Harry said. "There are other planets filled with intelligent life and there are people with powers and skills you couldn't dream of." he finished.
The younger Harry listened as so many of his dreams were brought up and things he didn't even know he wanted. So many things he could do and achieve, with no limits, even if it was at the cost of apparently not seeing his friends again for many years. "But I need to leave everyone I love behind to do this?" younger Harry asked sadly.
"You need to do it to stop the destruction of this world, yes." Harry agreed.
"But I come back." younger Harry asked. "I can come back and I can stay here." he insisted.
"I don't think I'm allowed." Harry said. "I wouldn't want to if I could."
"What!?" Molly Weasley asked, suddenly angry. She loved Harry like one of her own sons. It felt like a rejection. And poor Ginny. To see the man he becomes and know that he's already married.
"Oh, relax, Mrs Weasley." Harry said. "I didn't say you couldn't come with me. I want you all in my life. I just can't leave what I have gained behind. I have responsibilities and many more loved ones back home."
"So you want us to leave our lives for you?" Mrs Weasley asked.
"No, I don't want that, but I can offer it. The world I went to could use with more magical people in it, and I have enough money saved up so that I can offer anyone that goes with me anything they could hope to have. Even opportunities." Harry said.
"He's the richest man on the planet and owns a company that is protecting more than one planet." Tony added. "The magical research and development department always needs more people and we've only got three magicals at this point."
"Three magicals?" Hermione asked.
"Hi. I'm Wanda Maximoff, one of the other magicals." Wanda said. "I'm currently dating an artificial intelligence, which Harry helped make sentient. He also saved me from becoming some sort of vessel for an ancient god of chaos."
Hermione's head looked like it would explode. But she persisted, "How can you run a company that does magical research with just the three of you?"
"Actually, Wanda isn't even working for me yet." Harry said. "She's only been studying magic for, what, three years now? And the other magical works mostly in my hospital."
"Almost four." Wanda corrected. "I've finished my Charms, Defence and Transfiguration up until seventh year, but I'm working to become an Enchanter like Harry. I'm also studying Potions and Runes. Jarvis, my boyfriend, is studying Arithmancy and he's teaching me as he goes."
"You're having Potter teach you potions?" Severus asked with disbelief.
"Actually, I finished my seventh year, if you have to know. They fixed all the problems you caused thanks to being a horrible teacher, when I joined the Aurors." Harry said, with a bit of a smile on his face.
"No, I was the first Potions Master in our reality." Bruce said. "I taught someone else, who now teaches at Harry's magic academy."
"But you're just a muggle." Snape sneered again. "No muggle can make potions. The best you can hope for is a soup with expensive ingredients."
"I've already cured some forms of cancer, thank you very much, Master Snape." Bruce added with just a bit of heat and his eyes flashed green.
"Bruce finished his mastery in just one year and I wouldn't call him 'just' anything." Harry warned. "He could kick your ass, no matter how much magic you have."
"I'd like to see him try." Snape smirked.
Abruptly, Bruce stood up and started transforming. When he was done he took two steps toward Snape and stopped nose to nose with him. "When Hulk try, you die." he growled out with a wicked smile.
"Hey, there, big guy." Harry smiled. "If you're going to turn him into paste, do it outside, please. Filch only just finished cleaning in here."
Hulk had ignored the spells that had hit him. To all of them it looked like he was immune, but Dumbledore had noted Harry's finger twitch and smiled softly, knowing he had shielded him. He had misunderstood. If the Hulk was hurt, he'd not go down. He'd attack.
Hulk soon took a step away and transformed back, when Snape just stared at the giant man in shock, with a bit of fear on his face.
"Guys, this is Doctor Bruce Banner. He's a scientist and has been using science and scientific gadgets to figure out how to make potions more efficient and powerful, while taking away negative side-effects." Harry said.
"He can also transform into a giant green rage monster if you piss him off." Tony added. "Harry helped him and the big guy figure out they could talk. The transformations are voluntary now."
"Harry helped Tony figure out how to make technology work around magic as well, which makes using an electron microscope and spectrometers so much simpler." Bruce added.
"Harry's also employed the smartest people on the planet and they all work with or for him." Natasha added.
"He also saved the lives of half the universe." Hela added.
"Literally." Loki added. "That wasn't a figure of speech." When everyone stared at him in shock, he smirked and continued, "He was also adopted by my father, Odin Borson, Allfather, of Asgard. King of the Gods."
The twins suddenly went still, then both of them asked, in one voice, "And you are?"
"Loki Odinson, God of Mischief, at your service." He smiled at them.
The twins fell off their seats as they scrambled to run to Loki's side. "Please teach us!" they begged.
"Maybe you should ask my brother?" Loki suggested. "After all, he did win the prank war we had going."
Both twins slowly turned to Harry, who smirked, "Learned from the best, didn't I?"
The twins mock fainted and just lay on the ground. One of them asked, "Fred?"
"Yes George." the other answered.
"Do you know how long it will take to pack?"
"No idea George, but I think we can do it in a few hours if we have to."
"Do you think they'll wait?"
"We should probably ask them how long they are staying first, don't you think?"
The twins finally got up and asked together, "How long do we have?"
"Boys!" Mrs Weasley objected.
"You know Mrs Weasley." Harry said. "I do have a cafeteria that needs people to cook for my army. And I only have so many who can use healing magic in my hospital."
"Army? Hospital?" Molly asked.
"And places for every one of your family." Harry confirmed. "We need a ward specialist, a dragon handler, magical researchers and people with experience with enchanting mundane items. We even have the beginning of a couple of quiddich teams that could really do with a coach. Not to mention the magical liquor, the living island of magic and a whole universe of magical plants and undiscovered potions ingredients."
He turned to Snape, "We could really use someone with your experience. You were a crap professor, but I know you were a prodigy with potions. Anyone working for me has limitless funds at their disposal if they can prove the need." Harry tried. He didn't like the man, but he could sure use him. "Not to mention that I can give you front-row seats to Voldemort's punishment and a new start in a world that doesn't know who you are."
"Imagine the respect you can earn for yourself and the conversation of a whole department of Potions Masters." Loki added. He turned to Harry, "I hear Jemma Simmons is nearing her mastery. That makes it, what, three for now?"
"There's an advanced class that's reaching seventh year level soon as I recall." Harry said.
"How long did it take them to get to that level again?" Tony asked, knowing the answer.
"I think about three years." Harry said. "But to be fair, they also have work to do during the day and they make most of the nutrition potions we send to third-world countries for support."
"I thought you'd have a machine to make those by now?" Tony asked Bruce.
"Not yet, but I do have a couple that produce primers and some of the simpler stuff so that I don't have to waste the student's time making those for me anymore." Bruce said.
All around the table there were faces filled with stunned disbelief. The things mentioned were simply that, beyond belief. Minerva couldn't be prouder, though. Her lion had gone on to change an entire world for the better and saved so many lives! This is what magic was supposed to be. She caught Dumbledore's eye and knew what he was thinking. Instantly she stood up, "I'm going with you!" she said before Dumbledore could. "Sorry Albus, but you'll have to stay here and watch the children go off to be useless in the ministry."
"You're the headmistress." Albus said with a smile. "I've been dead for a year. I'm almost certain I'm not on the payroll anymore."
Just then Filch ran into the room and approach Harry with three wands in his hand. "Empty." he said simply.
"Ask Albus to give you a couple." Harry suggested.
Filch walked over to Albus and placed the wands on the table. "Make 'em repair for now. I'm still fixing things." he said.
Albus looked at Harry. "What is this?" he asked pointing to the wands.
"I enchanted them to store spells of one kind." Harry said. "Cast twenty Reparo spells into each of them and stand back while Filch uses them to fix the Castle." he smiled.
"You didn't?" Hermione asked with wonder. "You can give magic to a squib, now?"
"Any non-magical actually." Harry said.
Filch, flinched at the statement, but then looked back to Albus, waiting. He'd wanted to cast spells his whole life. With this, he finally felt like a wizard. "Well?" he asked.
Albus reached for where he normally kept his wand, but then frowned. "I don't have a wand." he said.
"Here." Harry said, tossing him a ring. "Put that on a finger and touch it to the wands while casting the spell."
Albus looked at the ring. It looked like nothing special. He tried it on anyway and felt a strange sensation as the ring flashed. He pointed with his finger and tried channelling a repair spell. The ring flashed, but nothing else happened. Then he took the wand in hand and channelled the spell again. To his astonishment, he could feel the spell enter the wand. "How is this possible?"
"One of my friends, Rocket, made this as his mastery rune project." Harry smiled. "He wanted to make one rune scheme that takes the intent from the wearer to allow normal people without magic to use magic items. I found out afterward it works just as well as a focus with contact if you already have magic."
"I meant, how does the wand store the magic? I haven't heard of a spell or enchantment like that." Albus clarified.
"It's a new enchantment I came up with. Nifty isn't it?" Harry asked.
Albus nodded, impressed, and cast the spell into the wand again over and over, quicker and quicker, until the wand flashed, indicating it was full.
"The other ones, too." Filch said in frustration at the old man taking his time.
Albus complied and filled up the spells until they both flashed. Filch took them back and hurried out of the hall again. "You've done so much." Albus said. "And this ring! I can't even see the runes!"
"Trade secret I'm afraid." Tony said. "Harry's company owns the trademark. He'd tell you, but then he'd be in breach of contract."
"What about our world!" Scrimgeour objected. "If you all leave, who will be here when the Death Eaters start up again!?"
"Oh, right." Harry said, looking sheepish.
"You have to excuse Harry." Natasha said. "He gets so caught up in his displays that he forgets little things like that."
"This is no little thing!" Scrimgeour objected.
"Yeah, yeah, sorry." Harry said. "We already gathered up all the Death Eaters and got them to confess everything under Veritaserum. They signed confessions or faced the wrath of Hela."
"Hela?" Dumbledore asked.
"My sister." Harry said, pointing at Hela. "The Goddess of Death."
"It is a pleasure to meet so many of Harry's friends and allies. His subjects will be sad that they couldn't have been here." Hela said. "Xera was quite upset that Harry wouldn't uproot her tree to bring her along."
"His subjects? Tree?" McGonagall asked.
"Xera is my girlfriend and she is a Nymph, like the ones from legend." Harry explained. "They have an allure, like the Veela do here, but they are bound to trees and the land."
"Harry saved her people from slavery and they decided he was their king." Natasha explained. "For Harry to give the grove everything they needed, he had to take one as a consort, so we call her his girlfriend and allowed her into both our hearts. She's just a bit shy of three hundred years old, but looks about twenty-five, considering they could potentially live for thousands of years. A lot like Hela and Loki."
"I'm almost Three thousand myself and Loki is, as I recall, around a thousand five hundred?" Hela asked Loki.
"Just a couple hundred short of our oldest brother Thor." Loki agreed.
"Enough of this nonsense!" Scrimgeour interrupted. "We need to take the Death Eaters into custody! I saw what they did to our world in your future. We cannot wait to ensure they are no longer a threat!"
"We can hand them over as soon as we have a magical oath that they can't buy their freedoms again. Many of them are from old pureblood families and will-" Harry started.
"That will not save them this time." Scrimgeour said with determination.
"Then get who is in charge over here, so we can take their oath." Harry said easily. "We will not allow one of them out of our sight without that. Otherwise, we take them with us and see justice done ourselves. This is non-negotiable."
The younger Harry couldn't look at his older self and not be impressed. Everything he mentioned just made him want to jump into his life, but he knew there would be hard times and close calls, considering his luck. When Scrimgeour looked at the older one with anger, but he just blinked uncaringly, like this man couldn't touch him, he knew his choice had been made.
Ginny and he had spent so much time apart, and he had missed her dearly, but they were just in the beginning of something. The choice was not a difficult one. Family, magic, friendship, companionship, saving people using means that were not allowed here. Dreams offered to him on a silver platter covered in pain and hardships, that he would face gladly for half of what the man before him had. He made eye-contact with his older self and nodded slightly.
Harry looked at his younger self and remembered who he had been, before it all went to shit. He opened his mind to Harry and a connection formed easily. "Are you sure?" he asked mentally, sending his younger self glimpses of what was to come.
The younger Harry could see many memories flashing before his eyes, until one stayed there. It was a moment he shared with his wife, when he was so angry that he couldn't stand it, but she was there, calming him and bringing him back from the edge of madness. Then his heart and mind filled with a love he had never known, couldn't conceive of experiencing himself. When the older Harry broke the connection, he didn't want it to stop. But it was over. He wanted to feel that himself, and his resolve solidified. "I'll do it." he said aloud to his older counterpart. Harry didn't know it, but in that moment, he had forged a connection for himself. A space reserved for one woman and one woman alone. It was what Death had meant, when he said that Harry hadn't really chosen her.
"Good man." Harry said with a sad smile. "We'll set you up and sort you out as soon as you are ready. We've got a couple of days, while we confirm we have everything you'll need."
"How do you know what he will need?" Ron asked.
"Don't be stupid Ronald!" Hermione said angrily. "He's obviously been through it already, hasn't he?"
"But, I mean, something could happen different!" Ron defended himself.
"It really couldn't." Harry said. "That's the reason we had to wait for the prophecy to be fulfilled. We had to ensure that everything happened as it should."
"And where will I learn the skills I will need?" Harry asked, thinking the older Harry must have learned them somewhere.
"I'll be wiping your memory of today and implanting my memories of events up to the point where I arrived in the other world, which will impart my skills and abilities to you, to a degree." Harry said. "Then there's also a few other things we need to give you, but you will have all you need." he assured him.
"On the bright side," Bruce said kindly, "when you reach this point, you will find out that you might not have actually suffered all that much. That you were just the next iteration in a series of events that made you who you needed to be."
The older Harry looked at him and frowned, "So, I might not have gone through all that?"
"Oh I'm sure you did, at some point." Tony added.
Both Harrys put their hands to their heads, but only the older one said, "I think I need a drink. Time travel talk always gives me a headache."
"It's good to know I'll always be smarter than you." Hermione said to the younger Harry with a wry smile.
Just then Dobby popped back in. He had been given access to Backup Plan and had poured Harry a stiff drink. "Here you goes." he said with an easy smile. "Harry Potter must not be having a headache. He must gives Harry Potter good strong memories."
"Dobby!" the younger Harry and his two friends exclaimed.
"Must Dobby gets more drinks?" Dobby asked the older Harry.
"Bring out some of the Rum and Firewhiskey, please?" Harry asked him.
Dobby disappeared and reappeared with the drinks. "The rum is an invention of Harry's company. It gives a feeling of acceptance and welcome. The firewhiskey is what they were able to figure out from the original." Natasha informed them.
Most of the older people got a firewhiskey, but Albus and Minerva both tried the rum. "This is marvellous!" Minerva exclaimed as a gentle wind blew on her face.
"Quite so!" Albus enthused. "You made this?" he asked Harry.
"I enchanted it." Harry said. "Bruce and Tony worked out the magical ingredients and processes to produce it."
"Harry supplies the magic, we provide the brains." Tony boasted.
"He's also made two other drinks." Loki said, "But one is an ale, meant for celebrations and the other would not do in this cold castle as it is meant to cool you down, while it freshens you after a hard day of labour or fighting."
"This firewhiskey is even better than what we have here!" Mr Weasley exclaimed.
"We looked into distillation methods, after we got the process for the original. Then we upgraded our process to improve the quality." Tony said. "This is one of our products meant for only those in the know, since it is fully enchanted. We've got a version that is meant for the public that is less enchanted. We still have waiting lists for the stuff and we're making a pretty penny."
"You guys really should talk to Tony about business. He's a marketing genius." Harry told the twins. Then he said in a stage whisper, "He's a billionaire, you know."
"Did he say 'billionaire', Fred?" Fred asked George.
"I believe he did George." George confirmed.
"Harry is still richer." Tony scoffed. "Demand has never been higher, since we started producing power and communications systems that nobody can emulate or even begin to compare with."
"I never cared about the money, until I saw how much good it was doing." Harry said. "I keep throwing money into projects and they keep on making more money than I can invest!"
"Story of your life, isn't it?" Fred asked. "Everything you do just keeps on getting more and more attention."
"At least he has the public on his side, this time." Natasha said.
"Not to mention the uproar when people found out Harry was married." Loki laughed. "He was the most eligible bachelor in Asgard and on Earth." At that statement, Ginny broke down in sobs and ran from the hall. "I didn't mean to hurt her feelings." he apologised. He got up and said, "Let me go see if I can help."
"No." Harry interrupted, getting up himself. "Let me. I think I owe her an explanation."
Harry walked out of the hall and cast a spell to find the girl. He found her on her way to the Astronomy tower. Why was it always the astronomy tower? Harry activated his flight and followed her quickly. When he caught up, he levitated her up and took her the rest of the way, but out a window, so he could avoid the many staircases.
When Ginny was lifted from her feet, she yelped in surprise, but soon saw the older Harry was with her. When they landed, Harry walked to the edge and looked out over his much-beloved first home. He was silent, though, and allowed her to gather her thoughts as she cried.
It took her quite a few minutes. But she had questions. She finally joined him at the edge and asked, "Why did you have to be married?"
Harry looked slightly down at her and then away again. "One of my friends asked me the same question, when I brought Natasha to Asgard. She's a beautiful woman and a warrior and thought I disliked her or spurned her attention on purpose. I told her our story to teach her about what it means to really love someone."
"But then why?" Ginny begged.
"Our love was real, but it wasn't meant to last, Ginny." Harry said. "I know it doesn't feel like it to you, but you have to remember that I mourned you. For years. You saw the memories. You know what I went through."
Ginny nodded. While she understood in her head, she couldn't understand it in her heart. "What am I supposed to do now?" she asked.
"I don't know." Harry said honestly. "Spending more time with the younger me will likely only make separating hurt more, but not spending time together will only lead to regret, later."
"Can't you just-" she started.
"There is no way for me to change my personal past without creating problems." Harry interrupted. "If there was a way, I don't know that I'd do it either. I'm happier than I can ever recall, being with my friends and family. There's no way I'd jeopardise that."
"Even for me?" Ginny asked.
"Don't be silly." a new voice said, as Natasha became visible. "Harry isn't doing this for me. He's doing it so that he can guarantee he can save you and this world."
"Hey Nat." Harry said, taking the woman in one of his arms as she explained to Ginny.
"From the moment he came to our world, he's been working to fix yours." Natasha continued. "You cannot imagine the amount of stress he's had to endure for that."
"I'm sorry." Ginny said looking down. "I know he's not done anything wrong and I'm not complaining that he brought Fred back, but that doesn't make it easier."
"At least I didn't lose you and your family this time." Harry said. "I'm really hoping you all decide to join me."
"With the twins going, you couldn't keep mum away." Ginny laughed self-deprecatingly. "If you really could offer better jobs for Bill and Charlie, where mum can see them all the time, she'll drag them there herself, if she has to."
"I'm also thinking of offering the Veela a place on my Island. I know they are treated like lesser beings in this world." Harry said.
"Everyone on Harry's Island has the same rights." Natasha explained. "And most of the heroes of our world tend to end up on the Island for drinks at some point."
"Heroes?" Ginny asked.
"The world I went to have superheroes." Harry said with wonder in his voice. "They have supervillains too, but we put them in their place whenever they show up."
"Harry is considered one of our strongest, if not the strongest." Natasha added.
"Nah, I'm nothing compared to some of the people there." Harry scoffed.
"He still does that, then?" Ginny asked, feeling a bit better, knowing he was still the same Harry, even if he was older.
"Yeah." Natasha agreed. "I wouldn't change him, though."
"I can agree to that." Ginny said.
"Shall we go back down, before they send a search-party?" Harry asked. In answer Natasha lifted up, waiting for Harry to follow.
Harry winked at her and, this time, he picked Ginny up bridal style and they flew out the window.
"How are you doing this?" Ginny asked. "And how is she flying, too? I thought she was a muggle?"
"Harry was able to make magic items that allow normal people to do many things." Natasha said as she went invisible and reappeared.
"You are by no means normal." Harry scoffed. He looked at Ginny and whispered in a stage whisper, "Natasha is a spy. One of the best there is."
"Really?" Ginny asked. "This world seems like it might be fun."
"You have no idea." Harry said with a grin as they approached the door to the Great Hall again. Harry landed them just inside the door and put Ginny down.
"'arry?" the voice of Hagrid asked.
"Hagrid!" Harry answered and ran up to the large man, enlarging himself as he went. He wasn't stronger in this form like Ant-man was, but he took care of that by increasing his mass and durability. When he met the man, he hugged him with a lot of strength and lifted the man, who was the same size as him now, up. "It's great to see you again!"
"Blimey 'arry." Hagrid groaned. "You have grown up good and strong!" he said, hugging Harry back and still hurting Harry through his enhanced durability.
"Damnit Hagrid, just how strong are you?!" Harry said as he pulled away from the man, still smiling, but rubbing his aching ribs as he became his normal size.
"Strong as an ox and twice as big, I reckon!" Hagrid enthused with a smile. Then he looked at Harry and asked, "What's this I hear about you 'aving an island with all kinds of creatures?"
"I'm afraid I can't tell you too much, right now, since we've got company, but I do recall us having some things that even you couldn't handle." Harry smirked.
"Nonsense." Hagrid scoffed. "There's not a creature alive that'll want to hurt you if you treat 'em right."
"Then you've never met a Bilgesnipe." Loki added. "Those will try to eat you, just because you're not made of dirt or ice."
"What's tha'?" Hagrid asked.
"A large carnivorous beast that lives on a planet covered in ice." Loki said with a smile. "It's the home of the Ice Giants."
"Ice giants? Never heard of such a thing." Hagrid said, with a twinkle of interest in his eyes. "What are they like?" he asked as Loki walked off with him, probably planning to tell him of his own heritage.
Hermione walked up to Harry and asked, "How much space do you have? Do you think you can make room for my family?"
Harry smiled. "In another life, you helped me create a pocket dimension in a trunk. We can make as much space as you can hope for, but first I must speak to your parents."
"But-" Hermione started.
"I'm no longer a boy, Hermione. I'll speak to your parents first." Harry interrupted loudly, before whispering, "But just between us, I've already planned for all of you to come with me." He winked at her.
She smiled at him, but realised he was putting on a face, so she controlled her features with some effort and sighed. "Okay."
Harry then went to talk to Mr and Mrs Granger. "It seems your daughter has it in her head to come with us when we leave."
Mr Granger nodded. "Yes. With all of the Weasleys making plans, how could she not."
"Not that all of the things you mentioned had no influence on her decision." Mrs Granger added with a raised eyebrow.
"To be completely honest," Harry said, "I could use someone of her intellect at my company. I would be willing to transport or purchase any equipment you might need to come with her and set you up with a practice anywhere in the world."
Mr Granger looked at Harry, like he was weighing the man in his mind. "Why are you offering this?"
"Because Hermione is a dear friend and I'd love to have her around again." Harry said. "You have to understand. I haven't seen her for more than half of my life, but all of my friends have been on my mind every day, since before I went away."
"We saw the memories, Harry." Mrs Granger said with a sad look. "We know how much you loved her, but you aren't the person she remembers. You'll likely never be able to connect the way you used to again."
"I think you're underestimating how smart your daughter is." Harry said.
"And overestimating Harry's maturity." Natasha said as she appeared by his side. "He's still just a kid who wants to play with magic and hang out with his friends, bragging about his latest achievements. The fact of the matter is, if you wanted to retire, Harry could set you up quite nicely, no strings attached, but he'll probably try to convince you to come work for him and let him invent magical means for you to do your job more easily."
"She isn't wrong." Harry said. "I love spreading magic and making things that make people's lives easier."
"I don't think we would be able to deny her the opportunity, but we can't make her think she's getting her way so easily, either." Mr Granger said.
Mrs Granger nodded along. "We'll tell her we're thinking about it." she agreed. "Do you know how long we have?"
"A couple of days at most." Harry said. "We've got almost everything set up. We just need to get the ritual to send my younger self on and then we'll go back by other means."
"Could we come back, if things don't work out?" Mr Granger asked.
"I'm afraid not." Harry said. "It's a one way trip back. Coming to this time again could only cause problems."
"Maybe we really should think about it." Mr Granger said.
"Whatever you decide, I know you'll do what you think is best for yourselves and Hermione." Harry agreed.
Then he went to re-join his friends, who were still talking animatedly to the Weasleys.
Fred and George instantly went to him. "How did you fly like that?" they asked.
"Magic." Harry answered.
"What kind, though?" one of them insisted.
"Because we can't even figure out where you would start to do it without a broom." the other added.
"Trade secret I'm afraid." Harry smirked. "I am an enchanter, you know. I can't go around telling people how I do what I do."
"But you're going to teach me, right?" Wanda asked.
"I'll be teaching you to the point where you can do certain things." Harry corrected. "It's the job of the enchanter to find their own way, once they have the principles down."
"Harry isn't wrong." Arthur said. "I tend to do things my own way, when I play with Muggle contraptions."
"And we'll love having you in our R&D department." Tony said. "There's so much on the books, it isn't even funny."
"What are you thinking of starting him on?" Harry asked.
"I was thinking he could take his family on a tour of some of our Allies planets, after we correct his misinterpretations of how technology works." Tony said, before turning to Arthur. "No offense meant, Arthur, but Harry told me some of your stories. You need a firm understanding of the basics of electricity, before we can have you work on any of our delicate equipment."
Arthur knew better than to argue that point, but had a question of his own, "What about our home? We've built so many memories there. We can't just abandon it."
Harry smirked and reached into storage, pulling out the snow-globe. "I made this copy last year, before the attack." he said. "It should have everything you had, except for magical items or ingredients."
"You copied the Burrow?" Fred asked as he took the globe from Harry's hand.
"Is this real?" George added, looking into the perfect replica of their family home, from before it was attacked. It had never been the same since.
Harry would have replied, but he was currently struggling to breathe, because Molly was trying to hug him to death. He tapped her on the back and wheezed out, "Air," before she let go of him. "You sweet boy! You even remembered to save our home!" she exclaimed. Then she turned around and hugged the younger Harry. "You are just wonderful!"
"Hey, kill him, not me!" the younger Harry wheezed out. Harry remembered that time of his life. Even as he fought for breath, he enjoyed every moment of the woman's attention. She was his first maternal figure, after all. Well, her and McGonagall. She had always seemed more like a strict but beloved grandmother, though.
It was around that time that more guests arrived. Harry didn't care who saw him at this point. They had diverted the time-line and done so safely. All that still needed to happen, was for them to send his younger self along and then he'd finally be able to rest, like never before.
What he didn't expect, was to feel a curse heading his way from one of the current minister's personal protection detail. He instantly went out of phase, but he needn't have worried. Ten people had jumped in front of him, fortunately with Steve at the head, blocking the attack with his shield. He had activated an enchantment that outfitted him in his Captain America outfit and stood firm in a battle stance.
"What is the meaning of this!?" McGonagall exclaimed at the man. The minister had backed away, apparently unaware that his men had other priorities.
The four men remained silent as they all started firing at the people who now protected Harry. Tony had a moment to don his armour and started stalking toward the men, ignoring the spell fire, as the IM shielding easily blocked the worst of the damage and he had barely lost any nanites. "Stand down, or be put down." His mechanical voice said as his repulsors charged up to fire.
"They're Unspeakables, Harry!" Hermione shouted out to the older Harry, the obvious target. They must have heard about his violation of the rules of time travel.
One of the men suddenly dropped like he had been stunned, but nobody saw how it had happened. The man with the shield was advancing on one of the men as the other two kept firing at the speaking iron golem with glowing hands. The glow soon turned into a burst of energy, which one of them blocked with a shield, but his fellow was sent flying and hit a wall hard. He'd not be getting up quickly.
The man who was being stalked by the man with the shield, also fell down suddenly, for no reason that anyone could see.
The last man standing, turned to try and flee, but the gathered friends and family of Harry Potter had closed ranks and the man was surrounded. Suddenly he stopped moving and then lifted up. Harry was sitting by the table, drinking some conjured coffee, while directing the petrified man's movement through the air with his other hand.
"Let's see what an unspeakable has to say, shall we?" Harry said casually.
"He can't Harry." Hermione said. "Unspeakables are under magical oath to never reveal anything."
"Is that right?" Harry asked, putting his coffee down. He stood up and walked to the man. "So you are under magical oath not to speak, eh? I've been wanting to test a theory for a while now."
Harry cast a strong Finito at the man, but he remained looking the same. "Must be Polyjuice." he murmured to himself.
Bruce heard him anyway and opened an inside pocket and removed a piece of cloth, which he put down on the table and started unrolling. It was impossibly large suddenly, for the tiny piece of cloth, and as it unrolled it revealed lines and lines of potions in vials. They were all clearly marked and labelled.
Bruce looked around for a bit, until he found two vials. He took an empty vial from near the beginning and poured a bit from one vial in and then just one drop from another.
Snape had walked up to inspect the collection and his eyebrows rose and rose, the further he went. When he noticed the two vials the man had used to create what he had, he frowned for a moment, until he realised what he had made. He suddenly looked at the other Potions Master with a look of respect. "Well done." he complimented. "I doubt I'd have thought of that on my own, but how are the potions kept in their primed state?" he asked.
"Harry enchanted a stasis field in each pocket. I can make almost any potion quickly with what I have here." Bruce said as he fished out a syringe and sucked the concoction into it. Then he took out another vial and filled the rest of the syringe with the liquid it contained. When he was done, he walked to the man, stuck the needle in his thigh and depressed the plunger.
"Thanks, Bruce." Harry said, never looking away from the man.
"What was that?" Snape asked. He'd never seen a potion administered that way. He knew of medical science, of course, but didn't think what he just saw should be possible.
"Our other potions master is in charge of developing new ways of administering potions." Bruce said. "Ten times the solution mixed with this acid-based potion will allow for injection. We've got another one for alkaline-based potions."
"Ingenious." Snape said, with just a slight bit of envy in his voice.
It was at that point that the neutraliser Bruce had made, on the fly, started acting. Ten seconds later a new face was being held in place by Harry and his power.
"Does anyone know who this is?" Harry asked.
"I don't know his name, but he is definitely an unspeakable." Amelia said.
"Wonderful." Harry cheered. "Let's begin our experiment, shall we?"
Harry pulled forth his power and surrounded the man with it. It started seeping into the man's body at Harry's direction, then his mind and, finally, his magical core. Harry waited until he knew the man was completely saturated in his power, not knowing that he had begun to give off waves of pure magical energy as the assembled people watched and witnessed his power in action for the first time.
Harry then started pulling his power back and focussed on the man's magical core as he went. He felt it's 'substance' and it's 'channels' as it spread throughout the man's body and started pulling at it, dislodging it from where it was imbedded in the man's very being. If Harry hadn't immobilised him, he would have screamed. As it was, his eyes just bulged. It was the only indicator that he was in pain.
"Harry!" Dumbledore implored, knowing the man was in pain. "You must stop!"
"I'm not going to kill him." Harry said easily. "I just want some answers. I'm almost done."
"But you're torturing the man!" Dumbledore tried again.
Steve, bless his heart, stepped forward. "Harry would never needlessly hurt someone. He's not a monster. If he says this is necessary, I trust him."
The looks on the rest of his friends' faces were showing their trust in him. Not one trace of doubt was seen. Before Dumbledore could argue once again, it was over.
"See?" Harry said as he let the man go. He dropped to the floor breathing hard. "Isn't that better? You can talk now."
"What have you done to me!?" the man asked as he looked around at what seemed to be the ruins of Hogwarts.
"I removed your magical core." Harry said. "You're a muggle now."
"WHAT!?" came the collective exclamation from the assembled people.
"I can put it back." Harry said with a smirk. "If he gives us answers, which he now can, since without magic, you can't be bound by magical oath." He had been wondering why, when he tied his Storage to his magical core, it had felt so familiar. That's when he recalled the enchantment cluster he had made for Melinda May's Skyline. It had felt familiar, because it functioned exactly the same way, even if this was infinitely more complicated. With this bit of knowledge, the magical core he was currently inspecting with his magic and a bit of Aesir magic, he could likely duplicate a magical core now, but it would take some work and a lot of research.
"I'll handle the questioning." Natasha, who had been invisible as she took down two of the assailants, said as she appeared at Harry's side, where she had been since the last man went down. She was now in her Widow Gear with the combat glove in prominent display. She took the man by the collar of his shirt and walked off to a corner, followed closely by the other heroes, dragging him along as Bruce fished out some Veritaserum. They'd been through this enough that Harry knew to send a dictation quill and some paper after them, with a negligent wave of his hand.
"Harry." Dumbledore said as he sat down next to Harry, as he kept on inspecting the, now visible, core of the man being questioned. "How did you do that?" he asked.
Harry looked up from his inspection and saw concern in the old man's eyes. "I'm afraid I can't tell you." Harry said.
"Can't or won't?" Dumbledore asked.
"Won't." Harry admitted. "It has to do with what I've learned of enchantment. I can do what I did, because I have a near limitless supply of magic and because I wanted to test a theory, which turned out to be correct." he finished with a smile. He ignored the snort from the other side of the hall, when Loki repeated, "Near limitless, he says," like it was a joke.
"Why do you look so happy?" McGonagall, who was also interested, asked.
"Because now I don't have to worry about the Death Eaters." Harry said, just a bit vindictively. "I'll be making them all muggles. Voldemort too."
Harry was not disappointed to see a couple of predatory smiles in return.
Albus started stroking his beard and sat back, in contemplation, before he reached into a pocket and offering something to Harry. "Lemon drop?" he asked.
It turned out that the Unspeakables were not as clean as people had wanted to believe. Using the fact that they couldn't speak of it, Voldemort had corrupted the entire bunch of them and turned them into a sleeper cell of sorts. A last resort he could tap if he ever needed to.
Knowing that his team had been unable to do much over the last while and trusting them to take care of themselves, Harry had simply stood back and waited as they snuck into the department of mysteries and started doing what they did best, uprooting terrorists.
It didn't even take them very long. It turns out the department of mysteries functioned with a minimal staff of twenty.
That done, they went back to the apartment. Harry had finally found the ritual that had been used to send Harry to their world. It had to be performed during a full moon, which was two days away. So it was that Harry took Natasha to France, where he would go to speak to the Veela enclave he knew of there. Fleur and her sister stayed with their father and mother, but normally Veela stayed in the conclave.
The conversation started off with some suspicion, until Harry took out his Pensieve Tablet and shared a memory of him and Natasha flying over the island on a carpet and looking down on his land. It was a perfect late afternoon on the island and all the creatures were peacefully going about their business and they had just marvelled at what they had created.
When the first Veela he showed it to, ran off with the Tablet, he had feared she had decided it was a gift, but half an hour later, they were stampeded by the beautiful creatures wanting to know when they would leave. Harry had told them that he would be making arrangements to meet with them in three days, for them to join, before he left.
They then made their way to the Conclave in Bulgaria and had much the same reaction from the creatures there. They next went to go seek out the Leprechauns. They had less success with them, as people tended to think of them as mischievous forest creatures. There was one group, though, that had been hunted by normal humans, for their gold, which didn't even exist, who volunteered to join them. It was only a few, but Harry thought they'd fit right in with the other misunderstood creatures.
Harry's attempts at offering the Goblins a place was met with derision. They thought he was trying to trick them, even after providing a memory.
Harry had remembered that the Death Eaters had House Elves too and that was how he acquired a small army of them. He explained to them that they could choose to come with him, but he didn't think they really understood. Either way, he had no doubt that, between his many friends and allies, there would be someone that could help them break the conditioning that had been such an integral part of House Elf indoctrination for generations.
That was it for Harry. He had made his offers and found some successes at least.
They spent the next day setting up the ritual and getting ready for their departure. More ingredients, seeds, bulbs, saplings and some varieties of magical animals, which they hadn't found yet. All of them were put in Backup Plan and placed in stasis chambers. Harry had even set up a new extension off the main chamber, where everyone that decided to come with them could wait while they were in transit.
When the day arrived for them to send the younger Harry on, it was to tearful farewells and promises to stay safe, even though both Harrys knew that he wouldn't remember. When that was done, Harry took the younger Harry away on his own. This would be a personal, private event.
They arrived at the ritual site, set up in the same location as Harry remembered.
"Are you ready?" Harry asked his younger self.
"What can I expect?" the younger one asked.
"Nothing." Harry said honestly. "You won't know what Tom had done, but you'll remember having killed him in the end and then Tom's ritual finishing and dragging you off."
"How long does it take me to make friends?" he asked.
"Within one hour of arriving you meet an agent, who will become one of your first friends." Harry informed him.
The younger one took a breath and said, "Okay. I'm ready."
Harry took out the potion Bruce had brought along and handed it over. "Drink this."
"What is it?" he asked.
"It's an aging potion that will bring you up to a certain age. I will then make it permanent." Harry said.
"You can make temporary effects permanent?"
"It's one of the last tricks I learned before coming here." Harry said with a smirk.
The younger Harry downed the potion then and, since Bruce made it, aged perfectly, until he was looking at a man that looked like himself. "Looking good." Harry said. "Now hold still." He focussed his power on Harry and then poured power into him, before locking his current form as his default.
When that was done, he levitated out of a pocket the Elder wand, which he had recovered for the event, and the resurrection stone and handed both to him.
"What are you doing with these?"
"Sorry to inform you, but you are the Master of Death. I had no choice in the matter. I remember them melding with my magic shortly after defeating Tom at the battle of Hogwarts." Harry said.
"But then, I can't ever die."
"No, you can't." Harry agreed. "At least, I never have. Fortunately Natasha is ageless. As long as you keep her alive, she'll live and stay by your side forever, so you don't have to fear losing her. Your friends are also working on making a philosopher's stone. One day soon, you won't need to worry about losing them either."
"That's… Good." the younger Harry decided.
"Death met with me and informed me that if I ever want to, he can send me on to the next world. I don't know if he meant the afterlife or another reality, but as long as I have Natasha, I can make anywhere in the world a little slice of heaven, if I need to." Harry said.
"You met Death?" the younger asked. "What's he like?"
"He's kind of a nice guy. Always has tea ready and he likes to spend time talking about how I am experiencing life. He never had the opportunity, you understand." Harry said. "We always make time to chat with him. He also supplies us with faster Magical regeneration, so that we can do more magic, which has come in real handy."
The younger looked at the trinkets in his hand and, after some thought, stuck his hand into an inner pocket inside the dragon-hide Armour Harry had given him to wear. In his hand was the invisibility cloak. As he looked at the three items assembled in his hands, he nodded and they vanished, turning into sparks of magical potency, which then got sucked into Harry's body.
"Turns out I had to accept them." The younger said.
"I always hoped." Harry said with a sad smile. "Sorry that you didn't really have a choice."
"I felt your love for Natasha." the younger said. "I want that for myself as well. There isn't a lot I wouldn't do for that."
"I know." Harry said. "Just so you know; we're trying to start a family. Our adoptive mother, Frigga, is really excited to see her first grandchild."
"That's brilliant." the younger said in awe. "I can't wait."
"You'll have to." Harry grinned. Then he took a breath. "I'm going to wipe your memory now and transfer the experience you'll need. Are you sure you're ready?"
The younger Harry sat down on the ground and lay back. "Go." was all he said.
"Good luck." Harry said before stupefying him. He focussed on him and obliviated everything after the last day, when he had fulfilled the Prophecy. He leaned over him and opened his eyes with his hands. Then he entered his mind and slipped the packets of memories he had prepared with his occlumency to his younger self, imbedding the memories and making them his own.
It took a good half-hour to complete the process, but he could tell it had worked.
Lastly, he placed his younger self in the epicentre of the ritual site and the copy of Voldemort's body next to him. That done, he started incanting the ritual spell and divested his power for the transfer. It took more power than he had thought, but when he was done, there was a flash and the bodies had disappeared.
He stood there for another half-hour, just looking at the site and recalled everything that he had sent himself on to do. While there were hardships, there was also a lot of adventure and discovery awaiting him. Harry envied him all the joy and experiences he had yet to discover, but then realised he was just recalling his own past. This wasn't a copy of him. It was him. He had just closed the loop. Everything from here on out, was a new adventure.
With a smile, he went back to his friends, where they were waiting to hear the good news.