Kreacher stood for a moment, shocked to see his great master in such a state before he jumped into action. With a click he restored the room, removing all traces of damage before he approached Harry. He looked different, but Kreacher knew that this was his master - but that wasn't the only thing different: his master had changed. He had been powerful before, but now Kreacher could feel the power coming off him in waves. It made Kreacher want to weep and celebrate; he was so powerful and he was all Kreacher's to look after.
"Great master mustn't sit on the floor, no, if great master be needing to rest Kreacher will help him to bed, yes he will," Kreacher muttered, staring in awe at his master.
Harry, drawn out of his dark thoughts of revenge by the muttered words, looked up to see Kreacher standing next to him with a look of worship on his face. The old house elf was practically vibrating in his excitement. Startled by the behaviour of his elf, it took Harry a moment to realise what had been said and that he had collapsed on the floor.
"Thank you Kreacher, but that will not be necessary," Harry said, standing gracefully.
Kreacher nodded, still awed by the changes in his master.
Harry took a moment to breathe deeply before slowly releasing the breath. He had a lot to think about and decide. Moving from the drawing room, he made his way up to the library, preferring to use the desk in there over the one in the formal office. Entering the library, Harry saw the book he had previously been reading laid down next to his favourite chair. Soul Magics and Bonds: The Lost Rituals had not held the answers he had previously been looking for, but now the book had potential. Thinking about the bond he shared with Tom, he was unwilling to think about sharing such a bond with Voldemort, made Harry almost weak-kneed. The longing in his soul grew the dangerously the more he thought about the bond; it was nearly unbearable the longer he stood there.
Shaking off the longing with renewed vigour, Harry picked up the book and began to read. Hours later, he almost threw the book into the fire. He had been correct - it did hold answers, none of which filled Harry with any hope. Soul bonds were rare and those who have them are considered to be the luckiest people alive for they truly had a perfect mate out there. Interfering with a soul bond was inconceivable to most as they were considered sacrosanct; to interfere with one deliberately was to challenge magic herself.
It was only with their bonded that could somebody with a soul bond ever have real happiness, and nine times out of ten, if one of the bonded pair dies the other immediately follows. In the rare cases, like Harry's, that one of the bonded dies before the bond is fulfilled and the person lives, they usually die after a few years. Without their bonded they lose the will to live, their very magic is torn in half and the loneliness and ache they feel from the broken bond will drive them to an early death. The longest recorded life after a broken soul bond, according to the book, was 12 years, and that was in the 1600's when a four year old boy died in an accident and his soul bonded committed suicide at the age of sixteen.
With this information, Harry tried to calm himself. Dumbledore would have known this, he had wanted Harry to kill his soul mate. With that in mind he wanted to raise Dumbledore from the dead to kill him, repeatedly. And the Weasleys, he wanted to destroy them. He just wasn't sure how yet.
He wasn't happy to think of Tom Riddle as his soul mate, in fact the more he thought about it the more he tried to hate it, but there was something stopping him from achieving his anger. He remembered meeting Riddle when he was twelve in the chamber of secrets; that boy had so much potential. Such potential that gradually became warped and twisted by Dumbledore and the insanity caused by the horcruxes no doubt.
Standing, Harry decided to rest and think more on the situation the next day. He would no doubt be better equipped to deal with his thoughts after a few hours of sleep.
~
The next few days passed by in a blur for Harry. He scoured the Black library, reading anything he thought would help him but found all books said the same; without Tom, Harry would eventually die, and sooner rather than later. He had also found more information on soul bonds that had him thinking more into it. It was written soulmates could not deliberately kill one another; this made Harry wonder about what had really happened that night when Voldemort had come for him and killed his parents. Dumbledore had claimed that it was the power of his mother's love that had saved Harry - he had preached this fact ever since Harry had met him, using it as an example of the power of light magic. Yet, now Harry wondered if his supposed defeat of the Dark Lord was really down to his attempt on Harry's life. By trying to deliberately kill his bonded, Voldemort ended up killing himself. That would also explain the last battle, in that final duel Voldemort died after their wands had locked and his own killing curse reverted in on itself. Harry didn't think anybody really understood that, and he wasn't exactly waiting to tell them.
This also made Harry wonder about how it was possible for Tom to not realise just who Harry was, unless, of course, he had his bond blocked like Harry had. This created more questions for Harry, as never before had somebody deliberately blocked a soul bond, Harry was unsure about how to find out if Tom had had his blocked. It would possibly be one explanation for his behaviour Harry mused; it couldn't have been easy having the bond blocked for so long; having such a vital part locked away, it was no wonder he went insane. Add to the fact his horcruxes would have continued to rip away at his already blocked soul? Harry thought, retrospectively, that it was surprising how sane Voldemort was by then end, which was saying something as he was completely nuts.
Even with these realisations, Harry was still lost on what to do now. Honestly, he was tired. He now knew it was probably his broken bond making him feel like this, but he just couldn't bring himself to care. The only thing that was keeping him going was his desire for revenge; revenge for himself and for the boy Tom Riddle had once been. It was Dumbledore he wished he could make pay, but with him already dead he would settle for his pawns - he just had to find them.
On the day Pig arrived, carrying a letter Harry easily identified to be from Ron judging by the chicken scratch writing, Harry felt a slight maniacal glee. He hadn't yet planned out his revenge but he wanted to test the waters so to speak. He knew that Ron, Ginny, Hermione, and Mrs. Weasley were a part of Dumbledore's plans, and he planned on finding out if they acted alone today.
During the week he had Kreacher help him measure his new body and had sent off for some new clothing. The rich clothes made Harry look every inch the lord he was and Harry couldn't wait to see the reaction they had on the Weasley family.
"Hello, Pig," Harry said, taking the letter from the small bird. He couldn't bring himself to hurt the poor creature, no matter whom he belonged to. "Why don't you go have a rest while I get ready? There's no rush for you to get back," he instructed. Although not as smart as Hedwig, the bird seemed to understand and, with a quick nuzzle to Harry's hand, he took flight to an owl perch Harry had conjured with a wave of his hand.