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On June 11th 2019, Harry Potter makes a deal with Death. The Hollows against a chance to try anew.

-

On November 2nd in 1981, a young man turns up on the Dursleys doorstep.

Harry—Hadrian now, in truth—takes a deep breath and tugs his waistcoat straight one last time. He knocks.

Petunia Dursley née Evans answers the door looking uncharacteristically disheveled. Her curly hair is forming clumps and her blouse is stained with unidentified substances. Loud baby screaming echoes from inside the house.

She takes one look at Harry and sneers. “Yes?” she asks harshly.

“Mrs. Petunia Dursley? I am Hadrian Potter, James Potter’s cousin. I learned yesterday that my cousin and his wife were killed, leaving my nephew alone. I have come to retrieve him.”

“What is the meaning of this?”

“Is there a problem, Mrs. Dursley?”

“The letter said that I had to take him! That I didn’t have a choice!”

“I don’t know who sent you my nephew, instead of contacting the proper channels, madam, but I can assure you that Harold does have family to take care of him, which I will do right away.”

“Harold! I was told that his name was Harry.”

Hadrian carefully didn’t roll his eyes. “Harry is a nickname, of course. His full name is Harold James Potter.”

“The letter said that I had to take him in.”

“A Harold’s magical cousin, of course I’ll take him home at the Potter estate. But if you worry that whoever stole Harry will be giving you problems, you could simply swear on your magic that you refuse to raise my nephew.”

“Magic? I don’t have any magic, I’m a normal person, not a freak!”

“Of course, you have magic, Mrs. Dursley. Not enough to use it, but there is still magic in your blood. Chances are that your son or grand-children might have enough to use theirs eventually.”

“I’m not a freak!”

“Mrs. Dursley, as I said, if you worry about my people, simply make the vow. No one will ever be able to force you to do anything more, once you inform them of the vow.”

She glares, then jerks her head. “Well, come inside!”

Harry and Dudley are in the living room. Dudley is in a crib next to a comfortable armchair, screaming his head off and trying to catch Petunia’s magazine. Harry is in… a box, a small ‘crib’ with full sides of dark wood, tucked in the farthest corner of the room, half hidden behind the sofa.

Hadrian carefully doesn’t sneer. He turns toward Petunia and, after a moment of hesitation, holds out his wand. “Take this into your hand and repeat after me.”

Petunia glares again—or maybe, still— and take the bit of wood with as much caution as if she were handed a live wild animal.

“I, Petunia Dursley née Evans,” Hadrian waits as she repeats, “vow on my magic that I will never welcome Harold James Potter in my house to live and be raise until adulthood. So mote it be.”

The light show, as it is, is very light and contained. It’s barely noticeable under the glare of the light bulb, but it’s enough. The Vow has taken hold and no one will be able to force Harry Potter to live with Petunia Dursley in this time.

Hadrian catches his wand as she throws it with a shriek. “Jade,” he calls out.

“Master Potter be calling Jade,” the house-elf says as she appears at Hadrian’s side. They both ignore Petunia’s renewed shriek and the way she rushes at her son’s crib.

“I have found little Harold,” Hadrian tells her. “Please, retrieve every single item owned by the House of Potter or Harold Potter from this house and bring them at the manor.”

“Jade be getting all the stuff back immediately.”

She pops away.

Hadrian strides across the room to Harry’s ‘crib’ and grabs the whimpering child, tucking him safely against his chest. There is a blanket with Harry’s name stitched in a corner, inside the crib. Hadrian grabs it too and wraps it around Harry.

“What was that thing?! What is it doing?”

“A house-elf, one of the Potter servants. She will be retrieving everything that belong to Harry from this house. Onyx!”

“Master Potter?”

The new house-elf looks remarkably older than the first one. Petunia stares like she can’t help herself, mouth twisted in disgust.

“Check out the property. I want to know if there’s any kind of ward or protection around the house.”

“Right away, Master Potter.”

“Jade be bringing home everything that belongs to the young master.”

“Good. Go tell Grenat that I’ll be bringing Harry soon and to have everything ready for him.”

“Of course, Master Potter.”

“There be a ward stone in the garden, Master Potter,” Onyx pops in as Jade pops out. “It being very weak and useless though.”

“Makes sense. Well, harvest it and we’ll add it to the manor’s ward stone.” Hadrian turns back to Mrs. Dursley, cutting her off as she opens her mouth, probably to question him about the ward stone. “Goodbye, Mrs. Dursley.”

He turns on his heel before she can splutter a word more and smoothly apparates away.

-

“Headmaster Dumbledore be at the door, Master Potter.”

Hadrian signs, but gets up. “Look after Harry, Jade.”

“Of course, Master Potter.”

“Headmaster Dumbledore.”

“Mister Potter. I—”

“That’s Lord Potter, Headmaster.”

“Ah, yes, of course. Well, may I come in?”

“No.”

“Excuse-me?”

“No. I may have been living in Australia, but I kept up with my cousin, Headmaster. I am aware of what happened these last months. And I consider you fully responsible for my cousin and his wife’s death. You are not welcome on land owned by the Potter ever again.”

“Responsible—? I am afraid that they were killed by Voldemort.”

“Yes. In a subpart cottage, in Godric’s Hollow, without even a ward stone protecting the house. How you managed to convince James to live in that shack, I will never know. But I do know who forced this stupid idea in James’ mind and who owned the property. Therefore I consider you fully responsible for the fact that the English branch of the House of Potter has gone almost extinct. Thousands of years of family magic, almost gone because of you. You are this close of being declared an enemy of the House of Potter, Headmaster Dumbledore. Do not tempt me.”

“Well—Very well. I’ll be taking my leave, in this case.”

“Yes, please do so. And do not come back.”

-

“The Wizengamot recognizes Hadrian Hardwin Potter for the Potter Seat. Welcome back to England, Lord Potter.”

“Thank you.”

“As courtesy, you are welcome to take the floor, if you have something in mind.”

“As a matter of fact, I do. I wish to know for when is schedule Sirius Black’s trial.”

“The traitor?”

“Yes.”

“Well—”

“Is there a problem, Mr. Crouch?”

“No, of course, but I wondered if it were necessary, after all he confessed on capture.”

Hadrian silently stares down at the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, then slowly turns toward the other lords. They look back blankly at him, as murmurs start to buzz around the room.

“I would think,” Hadrian eventually says, still staring at the most important lords sat around him, “that you of all people would know better than to set a precedent that a lord or heir could be sent to Azkaban without a trial.”

There is a swell of mutters and several people flinch back as one.

“Of course, you are right,” Lord Malfoy, newly cleared of all wrong for being Imperiused, declares, glaring at Crouch. “I believe that we can hold the trial right away. All the judges are present and Black, the traitor, deserves to be judge by a full courtroom. Send for him, Mr. Crouch.”

“Well—”

“What is it now? Send someone to retrieve him, you have enough Aurors to escort him from the holding cells, don’t you?”

“I mean, it’s just—”

“… You already sent him to Azkaban, didn’t you? You sent a man to Azkaban without a trial! Was he even interrogated?”

“He confessed during capture!”

“And exactly how many people did you send to Azkaban without a trial, Mr. Crouch?” Hadrian asks, voice echoing through the room without use of a Sonorus.

“Really, Mr. Potter, it is not necessary to get upset, I am sure that Mr. Crouch has done for the best—”

“It’s Lord Potter to you, Chief Warlock Dumbledore, and that will be the last time I’ll remind you. The next time you disrespect me, I’ll see you on a dueling platform. Now, as you have shown to the court your disrespect for the law, I must inform the Wizengamot that I, Lord Hadrian Hardwin Potter, formally recommend Mr. Albus Dumbledore to be removed from his function of Chief Warlock. Obviously Mr. Dumbledore cannot be trusted to look after our interests. It is after all well known around the world, that Headmaster Dumbledore cannot even bring himself to treat half of the children of Hogwarts fairly, using your Houses system to discriminate. I do not trust him to be fair with adults when he already treats very differently any child sorted in Slytherin or Gryffindor."

"Well now, vicious gossip has no place in a courtroom."

"This 'gossip' has you say, as been spoken by four different head of schools as well as about three dozen high level politicians of country close to Britain. When word spreads so far, Mr. Dumbledore, there's bound to be more that a little truth in it."

“Mr.—Lord Potter, I insist—”

“You insist nothing, Mr. Dumbledore,” Lord Rosier cuts in. “As Lord Potter said, you have clearly stated to this body that you didn’t care for the law. Additionally, as you do not seem surprised at all by the knowledge that Heir Black is already gone from the holding cells, it means that you condone Mr. Crouch’s decision and did not intent to take it up with this body. Since you cannot be trusted to see to the law to its fullest, I as well recommend that Mr. Dumbledore be stripped of his title of Chief Warlock.”

Hadrian sits back, carefully keeping his satisfied smirk internal, as the dark wizards still free takes Hadrian’s opening and jump on the opportunity to get rid of Dumbledore from one of his position of power.

It’s a gamble, of course, but Hadrian banked on the very obvious hostility of ‘the House of Potter’ against Dumbledore, as well as the fact that people think themselves free of Voldemort and therefore might be less rabid to protect Dumbledore’s position. Add to the fact that Dumbledore was caught red-handed, attempting to get rid of a noble wix, and it gives Hadrian’s plotting good odds of victory. Not even the light leaning nobles will risk having someone in power who might throw their family in Azkaban without giving them a chance to defend themselves.

It might be too much too soon, but with Riddle floating in the wind, Hadrian has several years of peace to discreetly get rid of that particular threat. He isn’t above blackmailing Malfoy into giving him the diary and the others will be easy to get, especially once Black is free and Hadrian can manipulate him into casting out Bellatrix and seizing her vault has retribution.

The most pressing threat to little Harry isn’t Voldemort. It’s Dumbledore, and Hadrian is well on his way to get rid of that manipulative bastard.

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