~ ~ = Parseltongue
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Harry flinched as he regained consciousness, a soft groan escaping his lips. Every part of his body was tingling with pain. He opened his eyes and realised where he was. Just as he got to his feet, Ragnok entered the room along with three other goblins.
"Good to see that you are awake, Mr Potter," said Ragnok. "How do you feel?"
"F-Fine," Harry croaked out, but his throat burned and his voice came out hoarse. "H-How long have I been here?"
"Six days," answered the second goblin. "Your vocal cords have taken a lot of strain from the constant screaming, but that is nothing a few potions can't fix. The good news is that the soul-piece has been destroyed without killing you in the process."
"This is an amazing discovery," exclaimed another goblin. This started a heated debate between the aged goblins, but Harry paid them no mind. He was startled to discover the drastic changes that had taken place since the soul extraction ritual.
For one, his vision was now corrected. He could see perfectly without his glasses. No wonder Madam Pomfrey had been unable to heal his eyesight! Maybe it had something to do with the Horcrux being housed so close to his eyes!
Ignoring his nakedness, he tentatively got to his feet and looked at himself in front of the shiny granite wall. The lightning shaped scar on his forehead was no longer prominent. Instead of it being red and inflamed, it looked like a faded version of any normal scar.
A slow smile formed its way to Harry's lips as he took in deep breaths. The ritual seemed to have benefitted him immensely. He felt calm and content. Never had he felt so free before. The feeling was simply indescribable! On a whim, Harry closed his eyes and tried to centre his thoughts, the only mental exercise that Snape that taught him during the disastrous Occlumency lessons.
What happened next shocked Harry. His memories! He could view his memories! Snape had said that only a master at Occlumency could do that!
What was going on?
Opening one eye, he checked to see if he would be missed. The goblins were still discussing the outcome of the ritual, Ragnok included. Closing his eyes again, he dwelled deep into his mind. Strands of memories just before he lost consciousness caught his attention, images flashing before his eyes. What was surprising, however, was the fact that these weren't his memories.
They belonged to Voldemort! He had once again tapped into the Dark Lord's mind, only this time, it was during the Horcrux extraction ritual. He could remember watching Voldemort scream in his throne room, cursing a couple of his Death Eaters in the process.
Harry dug deeper and found more memories.
He didn't really understand the workings of the ritual, but somehow, during the extraction process, the Horcrux's memories were retained in Harry's mind! Better yet, due to the presence of said memories, the ritual had created a form of Occlumency shields in place, to distinguish Harry's own memories from Voldemort's! He had no way of knowing if these shields were unique or the standard ones that Snape had tried to teach him. But whatever the case, they were a boon since he felt content and more at peace with himself than he ever had before.
Harry opened his eyes and turned towards the goblins. He was grateful for what they had done. Without Ragnok's help, he would have most likely sacrificed his life to destroy the Horcrux in his scar, and had the other goblins not performed the dangerous extraction ritual perfectly, he could have died, or worse, woken up with two personalities within him; maybe that's what the unique Occlumency shields the ritual had created in his mind wanted to prevent.
"Thank you," Harry said sincerely, addressing the group of goblins who turned to face him. "Thank you very much. I will compensate you in any way possible for helping me get through this unharmed. What about the blood adoption?"
"I think it is better we do it immediately," replied Ragnok. "The adoption will take about twelve hours as your adopted parent's blood will be merged with yours, essentially making you a Black by birth. It's good that you do not want to waste time. Let us begin."
The goblins, being the efficient beings that they were, had already converted the corner of the room for this procedure once they were sure that Harry would make it out of the Horcrux extraction ritual alive. Harry looked at the stone bathtub on the ground and slowly lowered himself into it.
"The merging process will be completed by tonight," said Ragnok as the other goblins filled the tub with Sirius' blood.
Harry tried not to throw up as the smell of blood reached his nostrils. Instead, he recalled how much Sirius meant to him and how the man had tried his best to take care of Harry. His eyes brimmed with tears as he recalled some of the heart-felt moments he had shared with his beloved godfather.
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"Yes ..." said Sirius uncertainly. "But I'm also – I don't know if anyone ever told you – I'm your godfather."
"I'll understand, of course, if you want to stay with your aunt and uncle," Sirius said quickly. "But ... well ... think about it. Once my name has been cleared ... if you wanted a ... a different home ..."
"Of course I want to leave the Dursleys! Have you got a house? When can I move in?" asked Harry, excitedly.
Sirius' gaunt face broke into the first true smile Harry had seen upon it. The difference it made was startling, as though a person ten years younger were shining through the starved mask; for a moment, he was recognisable as the man who had laughed at Harry's parents' wedding.
"We'll see each other again," he promised, cupping Harry's face tenderly. "You are truly your father's son, Harry. I'm so proud of you, and I'm sure James and Lily would be too."
"Never mind me, how are you?" asked Sirius, looking at him worriedly, eyes full of concern, eyes that had not yet lost the look that Azkaban had given them – that deadened, haunted look.
"Thanks," said Sirius gratefully, opening it, grabbing the food, sitting down on the cave floor, and tearing off a large chunk with his teeth. "I've been living off rats, mostly. Can't steal too much food from Hogsmeade; I'd draw attention to myself."
"Sirius what are you doing here?"
"Fulfilling my duty as godfather," Sirius answered, gnawing on the chicken bone in a very doglike way.
"I don't care … I'll breathe freely again when this tournament's over, and that's not until June."
"Sirius what if I'm becoming more like Voldemort? What if I'm becoming bad?" exclaimed Harry in a panicked tone, his lower lip trembling.
"Hey," said Sirius patiently. "I want you to listen to me very carefully, Harry. You are not a bad person. You are a very good person to whom bad things have happened to. The world is not split into Light and Dark, or good people and Death Eaters. What matters is the path you choose to walk on. That's who you really are."
"When all this is over, we'll be a proper family; I promise," Sirius assured as he hugged his godson tightly, and Harry couldn't help but shed a few tears into his godfather's shoulder.
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Thinking about how much he loved Sirius, Harry passed out. The runes carved on the stone bathtub activated as the merging process began. Slowly, his head disappeared into the pool of blood.