Avery Manor, Hampshire, 4/28/1992, 22:39
Voldemort was seated behind a desk in the drawing room he had taken to occupying of late. It was much more comfortable than the ballroom and allowed him more privacy for conversations like the one he was currently engaged in.
At the moment the dark lord was listening with rapt attention as Alecto, Amycus, and Merula reported about their recent mission to the vampire covens in Romania.
It would seem that they were partially successful as they had managed to recruit fifteen vampires that were willing to come to Britain. Granted the coven itself had turned him down but Voldemort had expected that result since that particular coven had turned him down many times in the past.
Voldemort was still pleased with the news they brought. Fifteen vampires were more than enough for their purposes as those vampires could create more with little effort.
Truthfully vampires were better for his purposes than werewolves simply because of their versatility. A vampire's abilities were not limited by the phases of the moon as a werewolf was making it much easier to plan attacks with them.
"So when will they be here?" Voldemort asked, looking between his three servants.
"Next week, my lord," Merula answered at once.
"Excellent, I assume Dolohov will be transporting them?" Voldemort questioned.
"Yes my lord, their coffins and native earth are being stored on the ship as well as a few prisoners so we don't have another Demeter on our hands," Merula answered before either of the Carrows could speak.
"Regardless, I still wouldn't want to be on that ship," Amycus chuckled darkly.
"Good because if you fail me again, you will become very intimate with your vampire colleagues," Voldemort warned.
"Yes my lord," Amycus answered looking horrified at the threat.
"What of the werewolves?" Voldemort pressed.
"They were not receptive, they turned us away," Alecto admitted.
"I assume this is because you had already allied with the vampires when you approached the werewolves with my offer?" Voldemort asked in a tone that suggested he already knew the answer.
"Yes my lord, the werewolves told us that they are sworn enemies," Merula answered looking fearful of the dark lord's reaction.
"I am aware, Merula. Truthfully, I did not believe that you would be able to convince them both but I wanted you to give it a try," Voldemort said sounding almost amused.
"My lord?" Amycus asked in confusion.
"I wanted one or the other, Amycus. If I had told you this you wouldn't have put the proper effort in," Voldemort explained.
"Oh," Amycus muttered dumbly.
"You have exceeded my expectations," Voldemort said looking more amused than he was a moment ago.
"When they arrive, what are we to do with them?" Amycus questioned looking relieved at the dark lord's words.
"Have them disperse across the country and order them to begin creating as many new vampires as they can," Voldemort answered easily.
"It will be done," Merula assured him.
"Excellent, with any luck quite a few of the larger cities will be overrun with vampires in a few months' time," Voldemort said, an evil grin playing on his lips.
"Can a vampire turn a muggle?" Amycus asked dumbly.
"From what I've read, it's hit or miss. Sometimes they turn and sometimes they die, either way, it will cause a headache for the ministry," Voldemort replied as he stood from his seat.
The three death eaters watched as their master made his way over to the liquor cabinet and poured himself a brandy.
"I believe that will be all, you may leave," Voldemort said after taking a fortifying sip from his tumbler.
Voldemort watched his three servants bow respectfully before they left without another word.
He had been very busy of late and had almost finished fine-tuning the ritual to corrupt the horned serpent's gem for his purposes.
If the ritual worked successfully the gem would become the perfect focus to amplify his magic to unfathomable levels... in theory.
On the other hand, if he miscalculated, the ritual would overload and completely destroy the gem causing a catastrophic explosion in the process.
This was a bit of a problem. The reserve was far better protected now than it was on his last trip meaning it would be far more difficult to acquire another one.
Either way, he had until the summer solstice to fine-tune the ritual so he still had plenty of time.
On other fronts, he had learned some very disturbing information. If his source was correct, then Peverell's daughter had entered into a familiar bond with a basilisk hatchling. This meant that Peverell's daughter was the first magical since Salazar Slytherin himself to have a basilisk familiar!
There was little doubt in his mind that this child would control the house of serpents when she attended Hogwarts. This could be detrimental to his recruiting efforts in the future if she swayed all incoming students to her way of thinking as most heads of Slytherin usually did.
This only strengthened his resolve to destroy the Peverell family as soon as possible. Hopefully, his first move on that front should be happening within the next month.
Voldemort had decided on the target he was going to go after, like Peverell she had been a thorn in his side for too long.
The reprieve on the wizarding world would end with this attack and he had plans for more attacks after this one.
Hopefully, by the summer the vampires would begin creating chaos as their numbers began getting out of control.
Voldemort decided to spend a bit more time on his research, the solstice was drawing closer and he still has a few problems to sort out with the ritual.
'Soon I will bring the magical world to its knees,' Voldemort thought to himself as he got up and made his way to Thomas' library.
Peverell Beach House, Cornwall, 5/7/1992, 14:38
Harry was quite pleased with how the day was turning out so far. The weather was perfect meaning he was able to hold the twins' party out on the beach this year.
Harry had let them open their birthday present an hour ago and he could never remember either child being so happy about receiving a gift before.
Harry had given them each a Nimbus Two Thousand racing broom that he had originally bought them for Christmas. The brooms were just like the one he flew in his first year and the one that he still flew to this day.
Harry had considered getting them Two Thousand and Ones as the model had just come out last month but he had never been very impressed with the updated model.
Harry had been amazed when the three of them had gone flying together earlier. His children were naturals on a broomstick and he did not doubt that they would make the Hogwarts house quidditch teams by their second or third year.
Currently, the twins were greeting their guests who were arriving every so often for their birthday party.
"You're insane," Sirius muttered as he looked over the twins' broomsticks that were sitting on the picnic table to their right.
"You got Harry one," Harry pointed out.
"Yeah, but I-
Sirius suddenly went deathly still before his eyes bulged as big as galleons. Harry stared at him in confusion before he saw a familiar emerald green head slithering over Sirius' left shoulder.
"I see that Citrine has taken a liking to you," Harry smiled as he leaned over and gently picked the little snake up unable to fight the smile as he heard her child-like laughter.
§You know he's scared of snakes§, Harry admonished.
§He's very warm and Carina thinks it's funny when I scare him§, Citrine explained.
"What did she say?" Sirius demanded, looking to have composed himself somewhat.
"She said that you're very warm and my daughter thinks it's funny when you get scared," Harry chuckled.
"Of course she does, she must take after my evil cousin," Sirius scowled as he looked at Citrine warily.
"She's just a baby, Sirius," Harry sighed as Citrine coiled loosely around his neck.
"One bite from that baby and I'd be dead before I hit the ground," Sirius exclaimed dramatically.
"You're exaggerating, it takes approximately fifty-nine seconds before a basilisk venom would kill an adult human. Though that number varies slightly from person to person so it's hard to get an exact number. There is a shortage of willing testers funnily enough," Harry chuckled as he spotted his own familiar slithering towards him and Sirius.
"And I thought your snake was terrifying," Sirius muttered.
"She's climbing the back of your chair," Harry said a second before Athena slithered over Sirius' shoulder and onto the table.
"She does that on purpose," Sirius mumbled as Athena's body continued to slither over him.
"Well you did call her an overgrown garden hose, she's been known to hold a grudge," Harry said reasonably as he stroked Athena's large head affectionately.
"Daddy, Citrine is missing," Carina said as she came over to them looking worried.
§I'm here§, Citrine chirped happily from her place on Harry's shoulder.
"You have to keep an eye on her, Princess. She is into everything," Harry smiled as he transferred Citrine onto his daughter's shoulders.
"She snuck off when I went flying," Carina whined, giving her familiar an annoyed look.
"She scared Sirius," Harry smirked.
"Bout gave your ole Uncle Padfoot a heart attack," Sirius complained as he eyed Athena warily.
"Run along and play but don't let her get too much sun," Harry warned.
"Why can't she get too much sun?" Sirius asked as Carina ran off towards the group of other kids playing in the sand.
"Sunburn, she is still young, she is also ectothermic and could overheat if she gets too much sun," Harry explained as Athens slithered under the table.
"Well enough about snakes, how is Harry's training coming along?" Sirius asked doing his best to ignore Athena under the table.
"He's getting the hang of basic Judo and it looks like he made himself a new friend in the last few weeks," Harry said as he noticed Jonathan Greengrass and his family making their way down to the beach.
"Who?" Sirius asked with interest.
"Hermione Granger," Harry beamed.
Harry had noticed that Hermione was more often than not seen with his younger self and Susan. He wasn't sure when that had happened but he was pleased as Hermione was a bit of an outcast according to Filius. Hermione was in Ravenclaw in this timeline and even by Ravenclaw standards she was uncommonly intelligent. He realized that her being so smart would create jealousy among her housemates.
He had kept tabs on her without drawing attention to himself and had been getting concerned that she hadn't made any friends yet. Thankfully she and his younger self had become friends just like in his own timeline it just took a bit longer this time around.
"Who's that?" Sirius asked.
"The bushy-haired girl at Harry's birthday party," Harry explained.
"The know-it-all?" Sirius asked as Jonathan sat down beside Sirius.
"Who's a know-it-all?" Jonathan asked curiously.
"Hermione Granger," Sirius answered.
"Oh Daphne's little rival," Jonathan nodded in understanding.
"That's her, so how are things?" Harry asked.
"I can't complain, though thanks to you, Astoria wants a racing broom for her birthday," Jonathan chuckled.
"You have no idea how long it took me to talk Bella into that," Harry smiled.
"Oh look, Pandora is sunbathing," Sirius exclaimed excitedly.
"You know full well that if I look in that direction, I'm a dead man," Harry scowled as he practically felt his wife's eyes boring into him from where she was seated with the other mothers.
"I know," Sirius beamed as Ignotus ran over to where they were seated.
"Dad, can I take my broom up real quick?" Iggy asked hopefully.
"Ask your mother," Harry said more out of habit than anything else making Sirius snort from beside him.
"So when are you getting Edgar a real broom?" Harry asked as Ignotus ran over to beg his mother to let him go flying.
"He doesn't really like to fly," Sirius shrugged.
"Well it isn't for everybody," Jonathan pointed out.
"I don't think he likes heights," Sirius admitted.
"I never liked them much," Jonathan shrugged.
"Bet Amela's over the moon about that, little Susie doesn't like flying either," Harry chuckled.
"I know, it's just lucky that little Harry likes to fly enough for both of them," Sirius beamed.
Library, Hogwarts , 5/9/1992, 14:39
Harry was sitting at his usual table with Susan and Hermione. They were spending another Saturday getting their homework caught up from the previous week.
Harry wasn't sure how it happened exactly but over the past few weeks, Hermione had become part of his and Susan's study sessions.
Harry had also noticed that the Slytherin students seemed nervous around him now making him think that Crane had spread the rumour that he was responsible for what happened to Melanie Selwyn.
"You seem distracted," Susan commented as she looked over at Harry.
"I'm bored, it's a gorgeous day outside and we're sitting in this dusty library writing an essay on Goblin rebellions, it isn't natural Bones," Harry said as he slammed his book shut.
"We're almost finished," Hermione said bracingly looking unsure as to whether or not Harry's outburst was genuine.
"I just finished actually," Harry beamed.
"So you're distracting us so that you could brag?" Susan asked, looking annoyed.
"I thought I was inspiring you," Harry smirked as he began putting his books away.
"Hmph," Susan muttered before she and Hermione went back to their essays.
Harry let his mind wander as he looked around the library. Idly he noticed Draco and Daphne enter the library together.
Deciding he would look around while Hermione and Susan finished their essay, Harry wandered into the row about magical creatures hoping to find something that would interest him.
"Potter, funny seeing you here," Daphne said as she stepped into the aisle.
"I was just bored," Harry shrugged.
"I see you've adopted Granger," Daphne said looking curious.
"She kind of just started studying with us," Harry said as he spotted a book on griffins and pulled it from the shelf.
"Better you than me," Daphne chuckled.
"I still don't understand why you two didn't get along," Harry sighed.
"She's trying to take the top spot from me," Daphne scowled.
"I'm going to take the top spot from you, Greengrass," Draco drawled.
"Maybe in potions but certainly not in anything else," Daphne scoffed.
"Ugh, why do I surround myself with a bunch of nerds," Harry muttered as he began turning through the pages of the book though he wasn't really looking at them.
"I am not a nerd," Draco protested.
"Prove it," Harry smirked as he put the book back onto the shelf.
"Alright, how?" Draco demanded.
"Let's go down and race the school brooms," Harry suggested.
"We can't unless we have supervision," Draco argued.
"Sounds like he's scared," Daphne taunted.
"I am not," Draco protested.
"It's okay to be scared, mate," Harry said with a smirk.
"All right, let's do it," Draco said as he shot Harry a challenging look.
"Come on then," Harry grinned as he walked out of the aisle.
"Don't get caught," Daphne warned before she went back to looking through the book titles.
Within five minutes Harry and Draco were stepping out of the castle into the bright sunlight of a beautiful spring day.
"You know I haven't flown a school broom since flying lessons," Draco said as they began making their way toward the quidditch pitch.
"Neither have I but I really fancy a fly," Harry admitted.
"I heard from Mother that Uncle Harry got both of his twins a Nimbus Two Thousands for their birthday," Draco said as they passed Weasley, Thomas, and Finnigan coming back from the lake.
"Unbelievable, I didn't get mine until last year," Harry muttered.
"Same and Mother only lets me fly it at my uncle's house," Draco scowled.
They soon arrived at the quidditch pitch and made their way to the cupboard where the school brooms were stored.
"So how do we get them out?" Draco said as he tried the door and found that it was locked.
Harry drew his wand and tapped the handle before saying, "alohamora."
Harry reached over and tried the door again only to find that it was still locked.
"They would have thought of that, it's a first-year spell and we're the ones they're trying to keep out of the broom cupboard," Draco said looking highly amused.
"When you say it like that, it does make sense," Harry conceded trying to figure out a way to open the door.
"Are you two ickle firsties trying to get in there?" A familiar voice asked from behind them.
"Fred?" Harry asked as he turned to see one of the Weasley twins behind them decked out in Gryffindor quidditch robes.
"George, he's Fred," George corrected pointing toward his twin.
"I am Fred," Fred agreed.
"You two wouldn't know how to get in there, would you?" Harry asked hopefully.
"Of course, we can open the door in a heartbeat but you don't want to fly one of those relics," Fred said, giving his brother a knowing smile.
"Our options are a bit limited," Harry pointed out.
"Ah but they aren't," George beamed.
"What do you mean?" Draco asked warily.
"We have it on good authority that the Slytherin quidditch team stores their brooms in their team lockers," Fred beamed.
"And three of them fly Cleansweep Sevens," George smirked.
"The Cleansweep is not in the same league as the Nimbus but is a far cry better than those retched toothpicks the school has," Fred added.
Harry thought that was a bit of an exaggeration as the school brooms weren't that bad. True they were slow and certainly not racing models but they were still in good shape. Most of them were Comet 220s and were less than ten years old though there were a few 260s that were in even better shape that the school had purchased a few years ago.
"You want us to break into the Slytherin locker rooms," Draco exclaimed, pulling Harry from his thoughts.
"Don't worry little firstie. We'll keep a lookout," Fred promised and got a nod in the affirmative from his twin.
"What do you two get out of this?" Harry asked shrewdly.
"If we're lucky, one of you two will crash their brooms," George beamed.
"I doubt that," Draco snorted.
"Alright, so how do we do it?" Harry asked with interest already anticipating the wind in his hair.
"Follow us, gentlemen. We'll have you in the air in no time," Fred beamed.
Harry had a feeling that what they were about to do would get them in all sorts of trouble but at the moment, he couldn't be bothered worrying about it.
Great Hall
Harry walked into the hall a few hours later unable to fight his grin despite the situation. The heist had gone off without a hitch allowing Harry and Draco to fly the two best brooms in the Slytherin locker room around the school.
What they hadn't counted on was the Slytherin quidditch team showing up for practice and discovering they had been burgled.
Harry and Draco had been unaware that Higgs and Warrington had reported their missing broomsticks and their head of the house had started looking into the matter.
Unfortunately, the potion master had easily spotted the two first years playing a game of aerial tag over the lake and put two and two together.
Needless to say, he and Draco had three weeks of detention and letters were currently winging their way to Sirius and Draco's mother.
"Where have you been?" Susan asked as soon as he sat down beside her at the Gryffindor table.
"I went for a flight," Harry said as he piled food onto his plate.
"You could have said something, Hermione and I looked everywhere for you," Susan admonished.
"It was rather... spontaneous," Harry defended.
"I heard you managed to get into a lot of trouble," Susan smirked.
"From who?" Harry asked surprised word had gotten around this quickly.
"Who else?" Susan asked.
"Lavender?" Harry guessed.
"Yep, she said that you and Malfoy stole the Slytherin team's broomsticks and took them on a joyride over the grounds," Susan said sounding very curious.
"We did," Harry admitted.
"Unbelievable, Auntie is going to be furious," Susan said, her wide smile contradicting her words.
"I know but I'm still better off than Draco," Harry said reasonably.
"Oh he is so going to get it," Susan said sounding almost gleeful.
"Yes, I wouldn't want to be him," Harry agreed as he glanced over at the Slytherin table and spotted Draco picking moodily at his plate.
"Was it worth it?" Susan asked curiously pulling Harry from his observations.
"It was. Though Professor Peverell is going to be furious," Harry said between bites.
"You can bet he will be," Susan smirked.
"I know," Harry said before he began tucking into his plate of Salisbury steak, not looking forward to his next training session with Professor Peverell.
After they had finished their dinner, the two of them made their way out of the hall but were intercepted in the entrance hall by a very unhappy Draco Malfoy.
"Thanks a lot, Potter!" Draco hissed.
"It's not my fault, the Weasley twins set us up," Harry protested weakly.
"It was your idea," Draco scowled as he walked with them up the grand staircase.
"I know and I'm sorry I got you in troubled," Harry sighed.
"And now my mother is going to murder me," Draco continued ignoring his apology.
"This is your first detention," Harry said reasonably.
"That won't matter, I was caught flying a stolen broom over the Black Lake!" Draco exclaimed irritably.
"When you say it like that, it sounds worse than it is," Harry sighed.
"Where are you two going?" Draco asked as they got off on the third-floor corridor.
"The library, we still have a transfiguration essay to complete," Susan replied looking very entertained by Harry and Draco's argument.
"Good, you can help me with mine," Draco said matter-of-factly.
"Okay but Hermione will be joining us," Harry warned.
"That's fine with me as long as she doesn't annoy me," Draco waved him off as they neared the library entrance.
Harry rolled his eyes knowing that just about everything about Hermione annoyed Draco.
"Alright but I don't want you two arguing like last time," Susan said, giving Draco a pointed look.
"Alright Bones, I won't rile her up," Draco promised as they stepped into the library.
"Good," Susan said looking pleased.
The three of them took a seat at their usual table and were soon joined by Hermione who eyed Draco warily.
"Is it true?" Hermione demanded as soon as she was seated.
"Is what true?" Draco drawled.
"That you and Harry went flying on stolen broomsticks?" Hermione huffed.
"Let's just start on our essay," Susan said before Draco could retort.
Harry couldn't stifle a smile, Draco and Hermione were both struggling to sit at the same table and not argue and it was hilarious to watch.
On the upside, it distracted Draco from his anger about the broomstick incident which worked in Harry's favour.
'Not one of my better ideas,' Harry thought to himself as he got his stuff out and began working on his essay.
Peverell Beach House, Cornwall, 5/10/1992, 09:39
Harry and his family were just sitting down for breakfast when Harry heard the 'woosh' sound from the sitting room letting him know that someone had arrived by floo.
Harry turned in time to see Narcissa sweep into the room looking to be in a very bad mood.
"Bee in your bonnet, sister?" Bellatrix asked looking amused at her sister's expression.
"My little dragon got himself into trouble yesterday," Narcissa said as she took a seat beside Bellatrix.
"What did he do, Aunt Cissa?" Carina asked with undisguised interest.
"Don't poke the dragon, Carina," Harry warned already reading Narcissa's mood.
"Yes, Daddy," Carina replied at once as she stroked Citrine who was coiled up beside her plate
"It amazes me that my son thought it wise to steal the Slytherin seeker's broomstick and take it on a joyride over the Black Lake," Narcissa exclaimed as she fixed herself a cup of tea.
"He what?" Harry asked unsure if he had heard her correctly.
"You heard me correctly. Minerva sent me a letter informing me that my son and that Potter boy broke into the Slytherin locker room and stole two of the Slytherin players' brooms before taking them for a flight over the Black Lake," Narcissa said before taking a deep drink of her tea.
"That wasn't a very smart move," Harry muttered.
"No it was not," Narcissa agreed.
"So what is his punishment?" Bella asked not even trying to hide her smile.
"Three weeks detention with the care for magical creatures teacher," Narcissa answered giving Harry a pointed look.
"And you're here to make sure the detention is not too difficult for him?" Harry asked with a resigned sigh.
"On the contrary, I want you to make the detentions as miserable as possible," Narcissa corrected.
"I usually make detention awful, that's why Minerva keeps dropping them in my lap," Harry admitted.
"No, the reason she keeps dropping them on you is because Andromeda informed her that you were giving her daughter instructions on how to set up those prank wards," Narcissa smirked.
"It was her!?" Harry exclaimed already plotting on how to deal with his treacherous sister-in-law.
"It was," Narcissa agreed.
"Dad, you said that we had to behave when we go to Hogwarts," Iggy said between bites of his waffles.
"You do, I gave Tonks the instructions for those wards before I became a professor," Harry explained.
"And that decision is coming back to bite him, dear," Bellatrix added helpfully.
"It is," Harry agreed before drinking the last of his juice.
"I also want Draco to continue his training over the summer," Narcissa added as she fixed herself a waffle.
"I see no problem with that, he can join Ignotus and Carina in the mornings," Harry agreed and got eager nods from both of his children.
"Excellent," Narcissa beamed.
The table fell into relaxed conversation as they ate the wonderful breakfast that Jangles had prepared.
"Dad, will you take us flying?" Ignotus asked after he and Carina had cleared their plates.
"Maybe," Harry said.
"Please, Daddy," Carina chipped in giving him a hopeful look.
"Yes but first I need to have a word with your aunt," Harry said after a moment of thought.
"Thank you, Daddy," Carina squealed happily as she stood up and gently picked up her familiar.
"You two had best go get changed," Bellatrix advised.
"Okay," Carina nodded before sweeping out of the kitchen.
"Yes Mother," Ignotus said as he stood up and followed after his sister.
"You have something to discuss with me?" Narcissa asked curiously after the kids had left the dining room.
"I do. I've been meaning to ask, how can you get my clearance to the Greek reserve restored?" Harry asked as he gave her his full attention.
"I believe that if you replace the basilisk they lost with one that yields venom and skins, they will be obliged to let the matter drop," Narcissa replied after wiping her mouth daintily with her napkin.
"Where on earth would I find an adult basilisk?" Harry muttered.
"Oh, I know where to find one," Narcissa beamed.
"And how does this benefit you, sister?" Bella asked shrewdly.
"The owner of this particular basilisk runs a certain potions company out of South America that is competing with my own in the snake venom market," Narcissa beamed.
"Chupacabra Potions Supplier?" Harry asked, already knowing the answer.
"Indeed, the same branch of the company that was buying stolen dragon eggs a few years ago," Narcissa elaborated.
"How big is the basilisk?" Harry asked.
"Twenty-eight feet according to my sources," Narcissa said.
"I will consider it," Harry said as he pondered the pros and cons of stealing an adult basilisk.
"Don't take too long," Narcissa said as she gave him a knowing look.
"It's no small thing that you're asking," Harry sighed.
"I know, the job will not be easy," Narcissa agreed.
Harry snorted at that statement as he had little doubt that stealing the basilisk would be very complicated. This wasn't some dark wizard who was raising a basilisk in their cellar. This was a commercial potions supplier who had the Brazilian government in their pocket. The security around the snake would be very tight and was most likely in the centre of one of their harvesting facilities in the middle of the Amazon rainforest.
"Let me know what you decide and I will make the arrangements," Narcissa promised.
"We have to find you another problem-solver, Cissa," Bellatrix said as she rose from her seat.
"I have looked but they're not easy to find," Narcissa shrugged as she refilled her cup.
"You certainly have no trouble finding those little boy toys that escort you at all of your parties," Bella quipped.
"Yes, well handsome young men are easy to find. It's just too bad most of them are not very bright," Narcissa said with a sad shake of her head.
"Otherwise they would know better than to get involved with you in the first place," Bella smirked.
"Trust me, sister, none of them have regretted entertaining me for the night," Narcissa said with a smug smile.
"Alright, I am going to take the kids out on their brooms," Harry said having no interest in hearing about Narcissa's conquests.
"Be careful," Bella warned.
"I always am," Harry assured her before he made his way to the sitting room.
"Think about my offer, Harry," Narcissa called to his retreating back.
"Don't worry, I will," Harry said over his shoulder before he stepped out of the dining room and shut the door behind him.
Harry entered the sitting room to find his children waiting for him with their freshly polished brooms slung over their shoulders.
"Are you two ready?" Harry asked as he summoned his own Nimbus Two-Thousand from his trunk.
"Yes!" Iggy exclaimed.
"Of course!" Carina grinned.
"Good, then let your ole dad show you how it's done," Harry beamed as his broom zoomed down the stairs and came to a stop at mounting height right in front of him.
As Harry led the kids down to the beach he couldn't help but consider Narcissa's offer. He couldn't deny that rescuing a basilisk from where it was being held in a sterile holding facility didn't appeal to him. There was also the fact that this company had no qualms about doing business with poachers and had never been brought to task over the incident at the dragon reserve a few years ago.
He had worked for the company but he felt no sense of loyalty to them. Chupacabra Potions Suppliers were like most large corporations and only cared about money. True Jennifer was related to the company's owner but she was only an employee and he doubted she had anything to do with the basilisk.
He was still indecisive about whether he wanted to take the job but he was seriously considering it.
In the meantime, he had two children chomping at the bit to fly.
Both kids kicked off the second they stepped into the sand. Harry watched them fly for a second, admiring their perfect techniques before he mounted his broom and kicked off to join them in the air.