There were gasps and screams as they realised that it was Voldemort himself who was attacking them. There was complete silence as all of them were in disbelief when Riddle announced that he was a half blood, and a son of a muggle. They watched the scene when Harry started laughing at Riddle for being a half blood. There were many wide eyes in the room when they heard that the Potter family was almost 2500 years old; Draco Malfoy was unable to speak. The school watched Harry say that Riddle could not be the Heir of Slytherin; him explaining about Riddle's psychology about taking revenge on both purebloods and muggles for the way they had treated him; him explaining about the true nature of parseltongue, which was most illuminating to everyone; him telling Riddle about his past home life. There were many gasps and stunned faces as Harry again described his life at the Dursleys; they couldn't imagine ever being treated like that.
Dumbledore and the rest were shocked to stillness when Harry revealed that Lily Potter had been a parselmouth and her creation of a ritual that saved Harry's life and defeated Voldemort. Dumbledore couldn't believe that Lily Potter had hidden such a talent from him, and worse had figured out a way to deflect the killing curse, however obscure it may be.
They all watched with fascination the duel that took place between Harry and Riddle. McGonagall and Dumbledore, both Transfiguration teachers could not help but admire the duel once it shifted to Battle Transfiguration. The fact that a second-year student was able to perform Transfiguration that NEWT students struggled with was staggering. When Harry finally hit Riddle with the daggers, there were cheers, but it was short lived as Riddle boasted that he could not be defeated.
When Riddle mocked Harry for being alone, the entire crowd gasped at once when they saw the majestic thunderbird appear with a flash of lighting and land next to Harry. No one in Britain had seen a thunderbird as they were native to North America, so no one knew much about them. They saw Fawkes, the phoenix arrive with the Sorting Hat. Some of them paled when Harry mentioned the word 'Basilisk'.
When the school population saw the size of the basilisk, many screamed in terror. They watched anxiously as Harry duelled with Riddle as the thunderbird and the phoenix fought the basilisk. They were in awe of Aquila, who flung bolt after bolt of lightning at the massive snake. McGonagall gasped when she saw Harry conjure a rooster since it was high-level transfiguration. Many faces paled as Harry got hit by the blasting curse, and hit the stone statue behind him, leaving a trail of blood on the wall as he crumpled to the ground. Then suddenly, they saw Harry lift the Sorting Hat, and from its depths came a long, ruby encrusted sword. Dumbledore's eyes went wide when he realised what it was; he had read about it and knew that Harry had just pulled the legendary sword of Godric Gryffindor out of the hat. This was not good at all!
When Harry was flung across the chamber when the basilisk's tail hit him, many students screamed. They heard him shout out to his familiar when the thunderbird looked fatigued and watched as he climbed up to the statue. When the basilisk opened its large mouth and struck while at the same time Harry pierced the long sword through the snake's brain, almost the entire hall screamed with fright, while a few of them fainted. Madam Pomfrey slapped her hand to her mouth when she realised that Harry had been poisoned with basilisk venom! The staff and students watched Harry get slowly poisoned; at this point, many of them were openly crying. When Harry stabbed the diary with the fang and Riddle disappeared, people stood up and started applauding and cheering loudly.
Dumbledore's face turned red with anger as many of them started laughing when Harry offered a vacation to Fawkes. There was much awe when Harry interacted with Aquila. Finally, the entire school was stunned into silence when Harry revealed the sword to be that of Godric Gryffindor. When the Sorting Hat explained about Godric's plan in regards to his family fortune and titles, many were staring at Harry with their mouths open in shock when they realised that they were accusing the true, blood Heir of Godric Gryffindor to be the Heir of Slytherin.
Harry took the memory and returned it to his mind. He turned and saw that Toby was still there, so it looked like he'd seen the whole thing. He nodded to the elf who snapped his fingers and disappeared along with the Pensieve.
"I, Hadrian James Potter, do hereby swear on my magic that the contents of my memory I've shown here are indeed true. This I swear, so mote it be!" said Harry quietly. There was a flash of light, signifying the oath taking into effect. The tip of Harry's wand glowed, signifying that he indeed showed them the truth and that had not lost his magic. Dumbledore was white as a sheet.
"Whoever leaked the information about me being a parselmouth was correct" said Harry finally to the silent Great Hall. "I had been hearing voices moving around the castle, talking about killing. But I didn't realise that it was parseltongue as it was a distant echo and I thought I was listening to English. That was how I found Miss Granger and Miss Clearwater that day; I was following that voice, hoping to figure out what creature it was. The creature, as you know, was a Basilisk. It was Daphne who finally figured it out" he said, looking at his fiancée with a smile.
Daphne continued and said "Harry and I had already dismissed the idea of the creature being a basilisk even before the Yule holidays. Basilisks are known to grow up to twenty to thirty feet, so how could such a massive snake move around the castle undetected? I finally stumbled across the answer before I was attacked – pipes."
"Magical buildings don't need plumbing as there are several charms and runes to take care of that. But Hogwarts, as it turns out, does host various pipes leading everywhere. This was how the basilisk moved from one place to another. Another indication that I found were the spiders. Spiders consider the basilisk to be their mortal enemy and flee from it – there are small spiders visible everywhere near windows trying to flee the castle. But what was the final piece of the puzzle was why the victims were petrified and not killed, as a basilisk's stare causes instant death. The answer is because all the victims looked at the reflection of the gaze. That was why they were petrified" she explained.
"I knew I might be a target because of Harry, and in case the Heir found out that I knew about the nature of the creature, I might be killed. That's why I took a mirror and walked carefully outside. My precaution turned out to be warranted, as I saw the reflection of the snake's eyes on my mirror. If not for that, I would be dead."
Harry continued again "I found a crumpled piece of parchment explaining about this in Daphne's curled hand. It was only a couple of hours later that Ginny Weasley was taken into the chamber. The rest of it, you've just watched my memory."
Harry and Daphne stared at the silent hall. The staff was too stunned and Dumbledore was too angry to even appreciate what they had done. Harry shook his head slightly, grabbed Daphne's hand and was about to walk out of the door when Dumbledore spoke up.
"That was very good Harry" said Dumbledore. "Now return the artefact to Hogwarts. I'm sure it will make a fine addition to the wall in the Head's office."
Harry raised an eyebrow. He knew what Dumbledore was talking about, but was he really that stupid? Hogwarts and the families of the Founders were separate entities. Even if he was the Heir of Gryffindor, he did not own the school. The Smiths, who were distant descendants of Helga Hufflepuff did not return any of their artefacts to the school, so why should he? Besides, the sword was Potter family property. No one could take it away from him; not the Hogwarts Headmaster or the Ministry of Magic.
"What are you talking about, Headmaster?" asked Harry calmly.
"The sword, Harry" replied Dumbledore testily. "Gryffindor's sword. It belongs to Hogwarts, so return it."
"What makes you think the sword belongs to Hogwarts?" asked Harry, his eyebrows raised.
But before Dumbledore could say anything, Hermione Granger who was silent this whole time, spoke up. "It says so in Hogwarts: A History that it is Godric Gryffindor's legendary artefact. Since he is one of the school founders, it belongs to the school" she said self-importantly. "So, you should return it to the Headmaster"
Harry snorted and said "Hogwarts: A History is the most biased book I've ever read in my life. If you want facts, Granger, read the Hogwarts By-Laws; they're at least accurate and not speculation. I'm pretty sure as you know Headmaster, the school and the founding families are separate. Just because Godric was one of the founders does not mean that all his assets belong to the school. Going by your logic, then I can safely say as the Heir of one of the Founders, the Potter family can claim ownership of the castle. But that is not true. Just as Hogwarts cannot touch any money, property or artefacts of the founders, we cannot claim ownership of Hogwarts. The sword is the rightful property of the Potter family, and no one can dispute that. If you have any questions about those laws, feel free to ask the Sorting Hat." Saying that, Harry and Daphne left the Great Hall.
Dumbledore stormed out of the Great Hall, furious that his plans for the year had fallen to pieces.
HP*LIGHTNING LORD*HP
Dumbledore looked again at the destroyed state of his office feeling a sense of déjà vu. How had things got out of hand so easily? Just a month back, things were perfect. Harry was being vilified and targeted by the school as well as the country as a whole. He had expected the boy to come to him for help and guidance after it got worse, but the stubborn brat didn't do it! When Daphne Greengrass was petrified, Lucius Malfoy had one-upped him and suspended him from Hogwarts. HIM! How dare that man try to remove him from his own castle! He would ensure that the first year of Malfoy as one of the governors of Hogwarts turns out to be his last; Albus had limited patience after all.
But the situation now was completely different! Not only had he been suspended, but Harry managed to get into the Chamber of Secrets and kill the basilisk. He had expected them to go together to defeat whatever creature was inside it so that the boy could see how powerful he, Albus Dumbledore really was. But damn that brat! He had gained access to Godric Gryffindor's sword and had slain the basilisk. A basilisk! He, Albus Dumbledore would have been known as the slayer of the basilisk to protect his school, but that title was taken away by the brat! Not only that, he had managed to alert the fact of Tom Riddle being Voldemort to the entire school, and hence as an extension, the country. There would be massive outcry over the revelation. He had to ensure that the newspapers remained silent about this. Besides, there was no way Rita would write anything truthful anyway; she was bound to show Harry in a dark light.
Lily Potter. That name brought Albus's blood pressure to high levels. Oh, how he hated that woman. She had been a parselmouth and had not told him. HIM! He was the Leader of the Light; their protector! How dare she not entrust him with such valuable information. Thinking of Lily made Albus remember another person he hated - James Potter; the snake who hid among the lions. After the attack, he had tried to floo to Potter Manor to take their many books and artefacts that were bound to be in their house, only to be violently thrown back in his office after the wards denied him access. It was then that he realised that James Potter had cut off access to all his properties. Only Harry could access them. He had tried asking Fawkes to take him there, and later to find Harry Potter once the boy had disappeared, but the phoenix had glared at him and disappeared for two months. That incident had shaken Albus so much that he had never involved the phoenix with any of his plots again.
Dumbledore looked at the wand in his hand. The Elder wand felt different now. Oh, it still worked for him, but he didn't think it would have the same potency as it did before. It worked, but at the same time, it didn't. It was hard to describe it himself. He realised that he had acted rashly in trying to destroy the Pensieve; he had lost control. Harry had skilfully used a strong notice-me-not charm and a disillusionment charm to disarm him discreetly. How had he been so stupid as to lose control? There was no flash of light, and the wand fell right in front of him so he couldn't accuse the boy either. Harry would just claim that Dumbledore had just dropped the wand and there were no witnesses either. Besides, who would care about the wand anyway? No one knew it was the fabled Wand of Destiny.
He couldn't use his original wand as the Elder wand tended to absorb the master's old wand. That's why Gellert Grindelwald had been unable to defend himself once Albus had disarmed him (nearly all witches and wizards considered themselves too much of a master to have a secondary wand; not to mention having one was illegal). It was only a few hours later did Albus notice that his old wand had merged with the Elder Wand. Now, there was a problem. Harry was clearly the wand's new master. But since Albus physically had the wand, would it disappear to fully bond with Harry? Or will it stay with Albus until Harry took the wand? He didn't like either of them. If the wand disappeared, he would have to acquire a new wand; that meant revealing to wand makers like Ollivander that he didn't have his old wand anymore and that was unacceptable. The second scenario was Harry fully mastering the wand. That thought made Albus sick in his stomach. Harry's destiny was to die by Voldemort's hand; he couldn't become powerful, even though, thought Albus bitterly, Harry seemed to be very knowledgeable for his age. Just watching Riddle and Harry duel was eye opening to say the least.
Albus Dumbledore was frustrated and at a loss. And he didn't like that feeling one bit. Déjà vu.
Poor Albus, didn't realise that Harry had kept a few pieces of information away not shared it when he showed the memory of the incident in the chamber. Albus had no idea that Harry was the soon-to-be Lord Gryffindor; or that Harry had found out that Tom Riddle had made Horcruxes to secure his immortality.
HP*LIGHTNING LORD*HP
Rita Skeeter put her parchment down on the table and grinned. This was going to be the best news yet. She had received reports of something which happened at Hogwarts just a few hours ago. Apparently, there was a basilisk attacking the students and the rumour she had heard was that Harry Potter had killed it. Pff, as if a twelve-year-old could do that. She wanted a story and this was it. She had received some information that this article tomorrow would show Harry Potter as the next Dark Lord of the country. She didn't care that she was attacking a mere twelve-year-old boy. He was a celebrity, and she needed more viewers. Besides, nothing bad could happen; the public would hate the boy today and love him tomorrow.
She idly wondered what was up with her boss Barnabus Cuffe lately, and was on her way to her bedroom to retire for the night when she felt something impact her. The next thing she knew, she was sitting in front of a large desk. She tried to get up, but to her shock, he was magically bound and gagged. She struggled but wasn't successful.
"Oh it's no use Rita" said a voice. "You're bound, and trust me, there's no way out. Those wards around you were specifically designed for bugs."
Rita panicked. She tried to transform into her animagus form, but screamed when she felt pain. There was clearly a dark version of the anti-animagus ward around her. The voice chuckled, and she found a person moving away from the shadows. The lighting charms suddenly glowed a bit brighter, bathing the room in dull light. She noticed that she was in a very grand study; whoever had kidnapped her was obviously very wealthy. Who was it?
Just then, the figure moved and sat in the chair opposite to her. Rita's eyes widened when she saw who it was. No. It couldn't be. It was impossible.
Hadrian Potter was sitting in front of her, smirking darkly. He was just a 12-year-old boy! How was he able to breach her wards and kidnap her? And what did he plan to do with her? Oh, when she escaped, she would utterly destroy the boy! How dare he do this to her?
"Oh my, my, aren't we a bit angry?" asked Harry amused.
He pointed his wand at Rita and removed the silencing charm on her. "What do you want, Potter? How did you kidnap me? You better let me go, otherwise by the time I'm done with you . . ." threatened Rita.
Harry turned left and right on his magical swivel chair. "You know" he said. "My fiancée says you should never threaten a Lord in his own castle. Trust me, the last person to do that did not end up well. What to do with you?"
Rita sneered. "As if a child like you can do anything. Go play with your toys, Potter and AAAAAHHH!" screamed Rita. The bones in her hand had exploded. The pain was unbearable.
"The Bone Exploding curse" explained Harry. "A lot more painful and destructive than the standard Bone Breaking curse. Do you like it?" he purred.
Rita whimpered. "What do you want?" she asked in a shaky voice.
"Ah, straight to the point, I like that" said Harry. "I want you to work for me."
"I already have a job at - "
" – at the Daily Prophet. Yes, I know" finished Harry. "But what you don't know is this. Read for yourself."
A piece of parchment floated in front of Rita. She read it and her eyes went wide. Another parchment came up and she read that too. Another and then another.
"So as you see" said Harry smirking "I'm effectively your boss. I have to thank you, Rita. This is all because of you. The article you wrote about mine and Daphne's betrothal bothered me. But the next article where you revealed me as a parselmouth is where I decided that I had to act. So, I discreetly took ownership of the Daily Prophet by buying all the shares. I now unilaterally own the company. And tomorrow, it's going to be dissolved. Tomorrow evening, the first ever newspaper of the Magical Daily will be sold, marking the inception of the Magical Daily Press, owned by the Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter. Of course, no one would know that. The public would only be notified about the change in management, nothing more. So again, do you want to work for me?" asked Harry.
"Why do you want me?" asked Rita in a shaky voice. The boy in front of her was no means a child.
"You have talent, Rita, and I respect talented people. While there are other good reporters as well, you are exceptional. What I'm asking you is to work for me, but report the truth. You can use you animagus form to spy on people and weed out corruption. I want to create a magical world worth living in, and that requires a good press. The Magical Daily Press will provide you with all your needs as well as offer you protection; standard contract between employees and the company. I want the country to wake up. There is too much stagnation around us; we need to start anew. No one is willing to shoulder the development of the country, but I am. I will give you exclusive interviews when needed; you'll be a well-known reporter who tells the truth and not a gossip queen who prints lies. Your salary will be hiked as well. What do you say?" asked Harry, his emotionless mask back in place.
Rita thought about it. It was definitely a good offer. She could work under him, but she would leak Potter's plan in the paper later. Before she could even say anything else, a contract appeared in front of her. She read it and paled. "No way, Potter!" she shouted. "This would give you too much control over me!"
"Oh Rita, Rita, Rita" purred Harry as he circled around her. "You are under the impression that you have a choice in the matter. Do you take me for a fool? I know that if you don't sign that contract, you would definitely betray me. Once the contract is signed, there is no going back. It's magically binding. One way or another, you'll work for me. You can either choose the easy way or the hard way."
"Never!" said Rita, determined. Broken bones, was that all the boy could do? Well, she could take it. But Harry came to stand in front of her, his wand raised to her forehead. "Well, this is going to take a bit of creativity, but I'm confident I'll get it right" he said.
"Legilimens"
A few hours later, Rita got into her bed. Well, the meeting with her new employer didn't quite go very well, but she managed. He was also not a person to cross as her arm still hurt. He had forbidden from writing anything that wasn't backed up by facts, so she was quite annoyed. At least the perks and salary were nice. And the employer had also given her a new assignment – find everything about the past of Albus Dumbledore. Now, that sounded like a challenge! She couldn't wait to get started. Tomorrow was the grand opening of the new Magical Daily Press where she would be formally employed. Oh well, time to get some sleep.
HP*LIGHTNING LORD*HP
The students were having breakfast in the Great Hall, many wondering why they didn't get the Daily Prophet when the doors burst open, revealing a furious Lucius Malfoy and his house elf who was bobbing at his feet.
"Good morning Lucius" greeted Dumbledore with a smile.
"So!" he said, strolling forward. "You've come back. The governors decided to suspend you, but you saw fit to return to the school."
"Well, you see, Lucius," said Dumbledore, smiling serenely, "the other eleven governors contacted me a few days ago. It was something like being caught in a hailstorm of owls, to tell the truth. They'd heard that Arthur Weasley's daughter had been killed and wanted me back here at once. They seemed to think I was the best man for the job after all. Very strange tales they told me, too. . . . Several of them seemed to think that you had threatened to curse their families if they didn't agree to suspend me in the first place."
Lucius paled as the students started whispering. Maybe this was a bad idea, he thought.
"And?" he asked. "Have you caught the culprit yet?" No one noticed Harry discreetly call for his elf.
"The same as last time, Lucius" said Dumbledore. "But this time, Voldemort did it by the means of a diary."
"I see . . ." said Lucius, his face red with anger.
Before Dumbledore could say anything more, Lucius heard a voice say "How wonderful it is to see you here, Lord Malfoy. Have you come searching for this?"
Lucius turned to find a smirking Hadrian Potter holding the destroyed diary. His eyes went wide and he paled more as he realised that the diary was supposed to be very precious for his master.
"Why would I want that stupid diary?" snarled Malfoy.
"Oh you don't?" asked Harry acting surprised. "Because one usually gets angry when their property is not with them, as this diary clearly is. Don't you want it back? After all, it was you who gave it to Ginny Weasley in the first place."
"Prove it" hissed Lucius.
Harry laughed loudly. "If I had proof, my dear Lucius, I would have tossed your arse in Azkaban by now. But just because I can't legally convict you, doesn't mean that no one should realise what a psychopath you are. Really, Lucius? Committing genocide in the same school that houses your son? I never thought you were actually such a slime ball. I must confess that I'm disappointed in you."
"Oh Lucius?" said Dumbledore. "Here are the papers for your removal as the governor of Hogwarts. You'll find the signatures of all the remaining eleven of them, along with mine. You miscalculated, my friend. But I'm sure you'll emerge from this debacle a better man" smiled Dumbledore.
Lucius Malfoy's eyes were slits of fury. He turned and said "Come Dobby".
"Oh Lucy!" called out Harry. "Aren't you forgetting something?" Saying that, Harry tossed the diary at the older man.
Lucius caught the diary and found a sock inside it. He was disgusted, so he threw it away. He then threw the book at Harry's feet and said "You'll meet the same sticky end as your parents one of these days, Potter. Mark my words."
Harry smirked. "Oh my. Aren't we a bit un-Slytherin today? Threatening the Lord of a Most Ancient and Noble House in front of the entire school population? Tsk tsk, you're losing your touch, my dear Lucy" he said mockingly.
Lucius snarled, but Dobby interrupted saying "Master has given Dobby a sock". The elf was in shock as it continued "Master gave it to Dobby."
"What's that?" spat Mr. Malfoy. "What did you say?"
"Got a sock," said Dobby in disbelief. "Master threw it, and Dobby caught it, and Dobby — Dobby is free."
Lucius Malfoy stood frozen, staring at the elf. Then he lunged at Harry. "You've lost me my servant, boy!"
But Dobby shouted, "You shall not harm Hadrian Potter!"
There was a loud bang, and Lucius Malfoy was thrown back to the other end of the hall as he landed in a crumpled heap. He got up and pointed his wand at Harry only for the wand to fly right out of his hand and into Harry's right hand.
"Oh my, you need to refine your skills, Lucy. You're too slow. But then again, considering you're age as compared to mine, I guess I can say I'm not that surprised. Oh, how the mighty Death Eaters have fallen. Your Master would be so proud" Harry said in a mocking voice.
He threw the wand back to Lucius and said "Get out, Malfoy. There is no place at Hogwarts for those who plot its destruction. GET OUT!"
Harry slashed his wand in the air and Lucius Malfoy was thrown backward until he landed outside the great Oak doors of the castle. The students, who had until then had remained silent, stood up and started cheering and applauding. Harry smiled as he walked out of the Great Hall.
After he had left, Dobby popped next to him. "Hadrian Potter freed Dobby. He is the greatest wizard ever!" said Dobby, tears leaking from his large eyes.
Harry smiled at the elf as he remembered his own treatment by the Dursleys. He bent down on one knee and addressed the elf. "Glad I could help Dobby. But I know that being free will cause you a slow and painful death, so I'd like to make a proposition for you" said Harry kindly. "I would like to offer you a bond with the Potter family, Dobby. I promise you will be treated well. What do you say?"
Dobby burst into tears and said "It has always been my dream to work for the great Hadrian Potter sir. Dobby accepts, sir"
There was a light glow for a second and then disappeared. Harry put his hand on Dobby's shoulder and said "Welcome to the family Dobby. Minny!"
Another house elf popped next to them. "What can Minny do for Master Hadrian?" she asked.
"Minny, I've just bonded Dobby to our family. Please take him to Potter Castle and look after him. As you can see, he has a lot of injuries" said Harry.
"Minny is so proud of Master for freeing Dobby from abusive master and to take him in himself! Don't worry Master Hadrian, Minny will take care of Dobby" said the female elf. And with a pop, both elves disappeared.