Chapter 5

Portkeys.

Harry regretted ever bringing them up. They had returned to London soon after they had ensured the terrorists were safely under lock and key.

Fury had given Harry a list of projects he wanted him to work on.

But he had also been begged to return to New York and work on Rogue's condition. Megan was also demanding he go… so she could join him.

Charles Xavier had offered Megan a place in the school, but she had declined, claiming that she needed to look after Harry.

"I can't believe those bigots." Hermione snarled as she paced in the sitting room of the former Malfoy Manor. "It's times like this I wish His Majesty would ignore the warnings of others and reveal magic to the world."

"Oh? And why is that, Miss Granger."

The girl squeaked and bowed as the aforementioned monarch entered the room with a smile.

"Please, feel free to sit or continue pacing." He said as he sat in one of the armchairs by the fire. "But I would like to know your reasoning." He said sincerely.

"Well… magicals are a bit like mutants." She said carefully as she stood. "We have abilities and have been looked down on by non-magicals. But now we have our own governments… or had. If the bigots suddenly discovered we existed they couldn't treat us like mutants because mutants don't have an independent government. It would be like declaring war."

"I believe I understand your point of view. But, you underestimate the extents that these radicals will go to. They will form groups that will attack and kill magicals and mutants alike.

"Differences, even miniscule ones, are what start wars. Usually that difference is based on greed. One party wants something the other has."

"I suppose that when magic does become public it will mean more hatred aimed at us." Hermione sighed as she slumped on the sofa next to Megan.

"At least you can hide being a witch." Megan sighed. "There's no hiding these." She jabbed a thumb over her shoulder at her wings.

"You are a member of my household, Megan. I will not allow you to be persecuted like that." The King said firmly. "Now, Harry, how are your experiments going?"

"I made an air filtration system like Colonel Fury asked, but I can't test it."

"That is something the Colonel can arrange."

"Well, I've also made fire and heat resistant bodysuits, but Pix could only test them at oven temperatures."

The King frowned. "Please tell Ally and Dobby that they are to bring you straight to the infirmary if you are injured. They are not allowed to let secrecy laws to prevent them from keeping you safe."

"Mister King, Sir?" Dobby asked as he popped in. "Is Dobby allowed to protect family from bad humans and wizards? Ally was very upset when Miss Pixie was stolen."

The King stifled a smirk at the scowl from the pink haired mutant. Everyone had taken to calling her 'Pixie'. "Absolutely. This applies to both human and elf members of your family. If any tries to hurt your kits, you protect them. Understood?"

Dobby bowed low. "Thank you Mister King, Sir." He then popped out.

"Erm… You Majesty?"

"Yes Miss Granger?"

"Is it ok for Dobby to call you that? I know Missus Weasley won't allow Ron to visit because she doesn't trust him to be respectful." She grimaced as she remembered the vitriol filled letter from Ron and the follow up explanation from Mrs Weasley.

"It is all about respect." The King smiled. "Dobby might not use the appropriate terms, but there is no doubting the respect he shows."

Hermione nodded.

"Now, how are your studies going? Is everything running smoothly at Hogwarts?" He asked.

"It is… difficult. The muggleborn are relaxed, they are happier with more muggleborn and muggle adults around. But there is still a lot of hate from the Purebloods.

"We can even see the professors don't like it."

"Well, it has only been six weeks. Do you know if many of your classmates took advantage of the half term break?"

"Mostly the muggleborn, Your Majesty. I think the Purebloods thought it was a trap."

"Hmm… perhaps you could use your friendship with certain Purebloods to convince them, help them set an example?"

"I can try. Missus Weasley might listen to me, so will Luna and Neville."

"There is no pressure, Miss Granger. Hopefully they will simply believe by seeing you returning home for the week."

%

Harry split his time between London and New York.

In London he practiced his magic and was taught basic GCSEs by tutors with Megan.

In New York he was working with Rogue on her mutation. Magic was still a secret and she had been given a hairband of her own to protect her mind.

At the suggestion of Scott Summers he often made things to help the other students with their mutations. This would often give him a new avenue to use with Rogue.

Many of the professors assumed that Harry had some form of a mutation.

Harry spent a quiet Christmas with Megan, the King, Doctor Braddock, Betsy and her brother Brian.

By February, everyone at Xavier's school was sporting something made by Harry. Xavier himself was a little put out when Jean told him that many of the students had asked for mind protection.

He was displeased that he seemed so untrustworthy. But he was not going to put something on his head to prevent his telepathy and appease others.

Forget the fact that his telepathy, like Jean and Betsy, was a sixth sense that allowed him better navigation.

He was not putting something on his bald head. It would stand out like an ugly zit.

Everyone was curious as to how Harry made these devices, but only Rogue had a clue and she was not saying and wore her own headband as a precaution.

With the help of Megan they had managed some simple experiments with Rogue. She couldn't absorb magic and she couldn't mimic physical mutations.

She could only absorb from organics, but not flora, only fauna.

Megan had asked if her friends from the school could come to visit, but it was not something that could be done easily. Most of the students were runaways and it was difficult to get passports.

There was also the issue of security as they could not let everyone on the palace grounds. Even Hermione had to go through various security checks.

%

It was June and Harry and Megan were at the school. Harry had another set of runes to test on Rogue. A good few of the students were willing to help with the tests so that Megan wasn't always drained and exhausted.

Half an hour after they arrived everyone was struggling to get into the television room. The news was playing and showing a black and grey behemoth of a monster tearing through the city.

"Shouldn't we help them?" Megan asked worriedly.

"Any acts of aggression from mutants will be used to bring more laws against us." Ororo shook her head. "We don't help unless the humans ask for help."

"Which way is Harlem?" Harry asked as he drew his sword and shield.

"Harry, we can't get involved." Ororo said firmly.

"I'm not a mutant." Harry retorted as he dropped his visor.

Three identical blond sisters stood up and pointed south. "Go that way, Harry." They said as one.

Harry nodded to them and turned to Ororo. "As a human, I'm asking for help. You don't need to fight, but you could at least help innocent people get clear."

Harry turned and began running out of the mansion.

The sound of metal slats falling into place filled the room. "Piotr, what are you doing?" Ororo demanded.

"Helping my friend. Defending the innocent." The older teen retorted. He headed for the mansion's exit, several others following.

"He's not wrong, Ororo." Charles said quietly. "I know how much you dislike humans, but you can't paint them all with the same brush. Would you have humans treat us all the same because of Magneto?"

Ororo growled before stomping off.

Charles allowed himself a small smile. "Students, I will be in Cerebro helping to guide Colossus and your friends. Do not feel pressured into helping. And consider whether you would be a help or hinderance in Harlem. It may be best if some of you, like Rogue and the Cuckoos, stayed back."

%

"Lad, you realise that this could be your last battle?" Arnie asked quietly as they flew towards the glow of fire in the night sky.

"If I'm going to be stuck in here, I might as well make the most of it." Harry said stonily.

"You have a plan?"

"Try some magic to knock it out. If that fails… we'll see how potent basilisk venom is."

They came to hover over the carnage of the borough of Harlem. Shops were on fire, cars where everywhere except where they were supposed to be.

People were screaming, cowering, fleeing.

He saw a helicopter suddenly get hit with a car thrown by the behemoth and begin to spiral towards the ground. Harry was instantly after it.

He managed to get under the helicopter, to his surprise he was able to hold it off the ground mere metres from death.

He nearly dropped it when he saw a massive green face with a curious expression, just a meter from his own. It wasn't the one he had seen on the news.

"Erm… Hi? Could you give me a hand?" Harry tried.

The massive green monster grunted and then helped Harry lower the military chopper to the ground.

Harry managed to rip the side door off as the green giant pulled the back door off.

"On your rear, Lad!" Arnie called out.

Harry turned and saw a massive black hand reaching for him. The next thing he knew he was flying through the air. He landed with far less force than he expected.

"You are very light for so much armour, Harry."

Harry looked up into the grinning metallic face of Colossus. "I designed it that way. Thanks for the catch."

"No problem." Colossus assured him as he put the knight on his feet. "You are going back?" He asked grimly.

"Yeah… but I think there is someone else trying to stop the monster."

"I will help protect civilians." Colossus assured him.

Rain began to pour from the skies. Harry looked up and Ororo hovering in the air in a black bodysuit with a cape. Her eyes were glowing.

A blast of ice hit a nearby flaming car and Bobby and his fire controlling friend, John, stepped up, quelling the fires.

"Thanks." Harry said before shooting back into the air.

%

Harry could see the two giants pounding on each other, they were wrestling at times like he saw some of the students do.

The helicopter was on the edge of the building and teetering. He needed it clear or they might get killed. That's when he saw a fuel leak suddenly ignite. The woman in the helicopter screamed at the green monster.

The monster turned, it growled angrily and then slapped its hands together and caused a blast of air that snuffed the flame but caused the helicopter to totter. Harry swept down and cast a cleaning charm to get rid of the fuel. He then moved to the helicopter and cast sticking charms between it and the building.

Then he turned back to the two giants. He was sure the green one was even bigger than the last time he saw it.

Harry stepped up next to the green monster. It looked down at the metal clad teen.

"I can kill it with this." He said as he held up his sword.

The green giant raised a doubtful eyebrow.

Their attention was drawn by the clear mocking laughter of the black monster.

The green giant became enraged and leapt at the black monster.

Harry stayed back, their strength and speed were incredible. An errant limb could send him flying… again. He needed to wait for his opening.

He saw the green giant become even larger and eventually managed to wrap a chain around the black monster.

Harry saw his moment and engaged his invisibility.

The green giant felt the black monster go limp. He jumped slightly as he saw the metal knight appear from thin air, its sword embedded in the chest of the abomination he had been fighting.

Harry pulled his sword out and raised the cross-guard in front of his face in a salute to the massive hulk in front of him. He then lowered it.

"Freeze!"

"Dad, no!"

Harry turned as the green giant threw the corpse away. One of the soldiers was holding an assault rifle pointed at them. The woman was being held back by another soldier, but it was clear it was only to protect her.

"Put that weapon down." Harry ordered as he raised his shield and positioned himself between the giant and the soldier.

"The Hulk is coming with me." The soldier barked.

"This guy just beat that monster to a pulp. Do you really think your gun is going to affect him?"

"Stay out of this. We're not going to let him get away again."

"You fire that gun and your bullet will only hit you." Harry warned.

"Hulk! Run!" The woman pleaded.

The Hulk growled angrily and then roared in rage before leaping away. Harry swung his shield, knocking the weapon from the soldier's hand.

Harry shot into the air, leaving the people to care for themselves. He needed to talk to the Hulk.

%

"Lad, why are we chasing after this creature?" Arnie asked as they flew. "Some of my previous wearers chased down creatures, but the creatures brought their fate upon themselves-"

"I don't want to fight him, Arnie. I want him to help me."

The Hulk had left New York City in minutes by simply jumping. He could cover miles in a simple leap. But Harry's armour was fast and his eyes were used to finding tiny golden snitches in torrential downpours.

Even in the early hours of the morning darkness he could track the Hulk.

Eventually the massive green giant stopped in a forest, breathing heavily, not from exertion, but from rage.

It looked to the star speckled sky and roared one final time before slumping to the ground and just sitting there.

It leapt back to its feet as Harry landed with a small thud.

"Wait!" Harry called out. He drew his sword slowly and laid it on the floor, doing the same with his shield.

He then lifted his visor and fell to his knees. "Please! Help me. I'm trapped in this armour. Please try and pull it off me. Please help me be free."

The Hulk looked at him, distrustfully. Then it grunted and turned away.

"Please!" Harry begged.

The Hulk sighed before grabbing Harry's helmeted head in one hand and lifting him up like a toy before grabbing his legs and pulling.

The Hulk frowned. He pulled harder.

He dropped the knight on the ground.

"It's magic. People say that only a god could break the enchantments. Please, keep trying." Harry pleaded.

Harry held out his arms and the Hulk grabbed them, slowly it pulled. For a full ten seconds nothing happened. But then Harry saw frustration on the Hulk's face and it began to growl.

Five seconds later and the Hulk snarled angrily and Harry saw its muscles ripple and expand. He could feel the armour finally straining.

The Hulk, never loosening his grip or letting up, lifted his head to the dawn tinged sky and roared as his muscles and skeleton expanded to beyond what they had been when fighting the abomination in Harlem.

Then there was a loud crack, a scream and the arms came away from the torso.

The knight fell to its knees as the breastplate fell to the floor and the greaves crumbled. Only the helmet remained.

He couldn't lift his arms, his wrists and forearms were crushed.

The Hulk knelt down in front of the puny human and carefully pulled the helmet off with his finger and thumb.

Harry Potter looked up at the incredible being in front of him with tears pouring from his eyes in joy.

He was finally free.

"Thank you." He managed before he collapsed, completely out cold.

%

Harry had no idea where he was. He thought he might be in a bed, it was soft.

Soft… he opened his eyes.

He could see everything. There was no helmet to partially obscure his vision. There was no permanent shadow.

He was free.

He sat upright in a fluid motion.

There was a man wearing a loose t-shirt and a pair of tracksuit bottoms sitting in a chair in the corner of the room Harry was in. The room was his bedroom in England.

The man jumped as Harry sat up, startled by the movement. "Harry! You're awake. Lemme get that nurse."

The door swung open and Madam Pomphrey marched in. "Not to worry Doctor Banner, Ally has been keeping a strict eye on Mister Potter."

She wasted no time drawing her wand and waving it over Harry. "Good, your shoulders and forearms seem fine. Can you move your fingers for me?"

Harry wiggled them somewhat stiffly.

"Hmm, we'll have to set you some exercises." She frowned. "Are you hungry?"

"Yes, Madam." Harry said hoarsely.

"Alright Ally, you can bring Mister Potter some breakfast."

The little elf walked in, levitating a tray of assorted food and drink.

"Eat as much as you can Harry. I will go and inform Miss Gwynn and His Majesty that you are awake."

"Wait… What happened?"

"I can answer those, Harry." Doctor Banner promised.

"Who are you?" Harry asked as Madam Pomphrey and Ally left.

"I'm the big green guy you helped defeat the Abomination with. In Harlem, New York?" He smiled.

"Did you get shrunk in the wash?" Harry asked doubtfully.

Doctor Banner laughed and pulled his chair up to the bed. "The Other Guy is a manifestation of my rage. It is a result of some bad experiments that went wrong combined with a dark childhood… a bit like your own."

"You know about me?" Harry frowned as he poked at the Weetabix.

"The King, Megan, Doctor Braddock… they've all told me about you." Doctor Banner nodded.

"But what happened? I remember chasing you into a forest. I wanted you to-" Harry looked down at his unarmoured hand. "I wanted you to free me." He whispered.

"The Other Guy did." Banner nodded. "He must like you. The only other person he ever acknowledged was Betty Ross, my ex-girlfriend.

"The Hulk, which is what people have named the Other Guy, got frustrated when he couldn't easily take your armour apart. He kept trying. He succeeded but managed to mangle your arms in the process.

"The proof that he likes you is that he picked you up and took you back to Harlem. That's when he let me out and your friends who were doing damage control recognised you and called in Madam Pomphrey.

"They brought me back with you. Well, I begged them to." He admitted.

"Why?" Harry asked.

"Harry, you are the only person I think the Hulk will respect. I wanted to make sure you knew me in case he ever got out again."

"But why? Isn't the Hulk a good guy? He was fighting that monster and protecting the other people."

"The Hulk is not good or bad. He just is. He doesn't want to be bothered. But because of my poor anger control, he can get loose, and the anger I felt becomes his.

"Usually it is the US Army that angers us. They want to capture us and experiment on us to turn us into a weapon."

"Is that why that soldier pointed the gun at you?"

Banner scowled. "General Thaddeus 'Thunderbolt' Ross."

"Thunderbolt?" Harry said doubtfully.

"Something to do with his military service. Probably because he's so loud." Banner said dismissively. "But yes, he's the one who has been chasing me."

There was a knock on the door.

"Come in." Banner called.

The door opened to admit Doctor Braddock, Betsy, Megan and Hermione.

"Really, Harry? Dragons and basilisks weren't enough? You had to fight that abomination?" Hermione sighed as she stepped up to the bed and hugged him.

"Somebody had to and the Hulk didn't turn up until I did."

"Next time take me with you." Megan glared at him as she slapped his shoulder.

"They would have squashed you like a bug." He retorted as he flicked her wings.

"Then make me some armour!"

"Pixie, back off on that for a bit." Betsy said as she pushed the girl to the side gently and hugged Harry. "How are you feeling?"

"A bit weak. Or… it feels weird not carrying that armour around. Weak is the wrong word. Everything else feels weak. Like I'm floating."

"You are likely going to need some physiotherapy, Harry." Doctor Braddock warned as he stepped up and took Harry's hands, moving it through various motions. "According to Madam Pomphrey, you have maintained your height that the armour gave you. You are over five foot eleven."

"At least I can feel soft sheets again." Harry shrugged with a smile. "Did you manage to collect my armour, shield and weapons?"

"No, the Hulk didn't bring them with you." Doctor Braddock explained.

"I need to go and get them. I need to find Arnie and I can't leave the Sword of Gryffindor out there, a single nick could kill."

"Very well, I will talk to His Majesty."

"Already here, Sir James." The man in question said as he strode into the room. He moved straight for the bed and grasped Harry on either side of the head, staring at him intently. "You are well?"

"I think so, Sir." Harry said softly.

"I will contact Nicholas. You will have a fully armed escort when you go back." He said before turning and leaving.

"He was very worried about you, Harry." Megan said softly. "He came here every day to check on you."

"I- I had to do something." Harry reasoned somewhat desperately. "People were dying."

"Bah! His Majesty was extremely proud when he heard you had gone to lend aid to the people of New York." Doctor Braddock said. "But he cares for you. And Megan. It doesn't matter how proud and confident he might be about either of you, he will always worry for you."

%

Agent Coulson was decked out in a black jump suit with tactical gear as opposed to his usual suit. He had a team of other agents with him as well.

Betsy, Megan and Doctor Banner had also accompanied them.

"It was about here." Banner declared. "Yes, see, here's a piece of the armour."

Several agents gulped as they saw the piece of armour poking out the opposite side of the tree it had entered.

"Excellent." Coulson said. "This should give us a direct path to follow."

He wasn't wrong. But it was a long path. That shard had travelled over five hundred meters through multiple trees.

Lying where they had been left were his sword, shield and helmet. Harry quickly gathered the sword and shield, putting them next to the helmet that he picked up.

"Arnie? Can you hear me?"

"Harry! You made it!" The voice declared happily. "I was worried you wouldn't get help soon enough."

"The Hulk got me back to New York quickly."

"The Hulk?"

"The green giant who freed me."

"Ah, a noble beast, if a bit single-minded."

"Says the being created for battle." Harry retorted.

"I suppose my body is a loss?" Arnie said sadly.

"Not if I can help it. I need to find all your pieces for safety, but then I can try and put you back together." Harry promised.

"You'd really put me on again, Lad?" Arnie asked softly. "Those were dark days for you, son."

Harry lowered his head. "I don't know if I can put you on, but I can try and make you whole again."

"We were a good team, weren't we?"

Harry could hear the smile. "Such a shame you weren't there with me for the dragon and basilisk."

"We've been together for the better part of a year. I am certain you'll give me more opportunities." He scoffed.

Harry managed to summon the entirety of the shattered armour once he had found the gauntlet holding his wand.

%

The door to the Xavier Mansion opened to a trio of blondes who grabbed Megan in a hug.

"How is he?"

"Did he wake up?"

"Is he as super hot as we thought?"

Megan looked at them in amusement before she turned to those behind her. "He's passing fair." She shrugged.

The girls looked and saw the young man and Betsy.

"That's Harry?" One of them asked.

Harry went as stiff as a board as they suddenly pounced on him hugging and slapping him in turn. "Don't you dare do that again!"

"How could you hide those gorgeous eyes from us?"

"How about we-"

"Celeste Cuckoo!"

The blonde Celeste pouted as Jean Grey walked up. "You're not supposed to read our minds."

"I don't need to read your minds to know where yours was going. Now give Harry some breathing room. He only just escaped his cage."

"Come on Pixie, let's go plan a party!" The triplets led the girl off.

Jean looked at Harry, still tense. She smiled. "Don't worry, I can see you won't appreciate physical contact yet, and I don't need to read your mind either."

Betsy laughed as Harry sagged in relief.

"Come on in. Everyone will be pleased to see you."

Harry was suddenly a huge celebrity. It wasn't because he had gone up against the Abomination. It was because they finally saw his face in full.

"So this is what the Knight looks like?" Ororo smirked as everyone looked at him.

"Likewise." Harry shrugged. "From my point of view, everyone was surrounded by a shadow. I'm lucky my glasses never got dirty." He said as he tapped the black rimmed frames. "I love taking them off at last."

"Those were glasses?! I thought you had a cool tattoo!" The excitable Jubilee exclaimed with disappointment.

Harry shook his head before addressing Ororo. "Thanks… for coming and helping."

Ororo raised an eyebrow. "You are the only person to thank us."

Harry shrugged. "Nobody thanked me and the Hulk. If you do this for the thanks… you're doing it for the wrong reason."

Ororo scowled and poked him on the chest. "I do not appreciate wisdom from children." Then she smirked. "You're lucky Scott and Charles told me the same thing."

"H-Harry? Can we try?" Rogue asked nervously from behind Ororo.

"No!" Betsy said firmly, pulling Harry back. "Not until he has recovered properly. He is supposed to be in bed still but we needed to recover his armour and weapons."

Rogue looked utterly depressed.

Betsy moved forward and hugged her carefully. "It's just for a few days. I'm sure Harry will be back up and getting in trouble soon enough."

%

There was an issue that needed to be addressed quickly and it involved a meeting with the King, Doctor Braddock and Colonel Fury.

Harry was taken to a secure room in the palace where Doctor Braddock explained the situation.

"Your scar, Harry. We have interrogated Albus Dumbledore and from what we can tell, it might be cursed. He believes that a shard of Tom Riddle's soul may have lodged in there."

Harry shuddered as he resisted the urge to touch the now offensive part of him.

"As it is in the scar we think we can excise the scar and remove it. But we need to be thorough and that means we want to remove that section of your skull as well and replace it with a metal plate."

"Son, this is a dangerous operation." The King said with clear concern for Harry. "It will involve our best physicians and magical healers. But there is still tremendous risk."

"Is this why Riddle keeps attacking me? Is this part of the prophecy?" Harry asked calmly.

"Prophecy is a crutch for the weak, Harry. Prophecy didn't need to tell us to keep fighting during the war. It didn't tell the French that they were not alone as the Resistance worked with us.

"You didn't need prophecy to tell you to aid the people of New York." The King said firmly.

"Prophecy is the reason Riddle keeps coming at you like the Coyote only to fall victim to his own traps as you skate on by like the Road Runner." Fury smirked. "He believes the prophecy. Next time you see him, ask him why he's so eager to be a servant of fate."

%

The surgery was due to be performed in September, mere months away. Most of this was because Harry wanted to work on the plate.

Yes, he was going to put runes on the metal plate.

But first he wanted a way to break runes. He wanted to learn how to control the runes so that if he was ever trapped again, he could escape. He no longer wore armour all the time, but he carried his shield at all times. Nobody questioned it and assumed it was like a safety blanket.

In the meantime he worked with Doctor Bruce Banner and Rogue.

Bruce was happy for Harry to work on something to help him with the Hulk, but it wasn't something he wanted to rely on. Bruce worked on meditation to control his rage. To control the change.

Rogue, on the other hand, grew very familiar with Harry. She was constantly in physical contact with him as they tested new runes and arrays.

During one of those visits to the school there was a nasty encounter.

It was late in the evening and Harry and Megan were getting ready to head back home when the glass to the conservatory smashed inwards and smoking canisters hit the wooden floor.

Harry was familiar with gas canisters and other such ordinance due to his work with the army. He immediately cast a bubble head charm on himself and Rogue.

Screams of fear rang through the mansion as black clad men in masks began crashing through windows and doors.

Of the twenty that entered, eight went flying straight back out.

Two from Scott's eye blasts, three as Piotr threw them, two from Harry's wand and one as Logan tackled them outside.

Then the gunfire started.

Colossus stood boldly in front of the others as bullets smashed into his metal body.

Then Harry came sliding in from the hall with his shield. The bullets impacted the shield and the four men went down from their own rounds.

Around the rest of the mansion the intruders went stiff and then collapsed as Charles Xavier took their control away. He was livid and had to fight not to simply lobotomise them.

Ororo and Jean were instantly checking the wounded. Six children had bullet wounds and two had broken bones. One seemed to be reacting badly to the smoke canisters.

Harry grabbed a cushion from one of the chairs. "Dobby."

"Master Harry, Miss Pixie was attacked as well. Ally protected her and killed the men."

"I'll go right to her." Harry promised. "This is a Portkey. Can you take it to Madam Pomphrey and bring her back? The children are injured."

"Dobby will." The elf grabbed the cushion and vanished.

Harry cast stunners at every intruder he found as he headed for Meg. He also cast bubblehead charms on the staff and students. He found Megan nursing a bullet wound to her leg whilst the Cuckoos tried to bandage it.

"Here, I can fix it." Harry said as he quickly cast bubblehead charms on them. He then numbed the leg, summoned the bullet and healed the wound.

"I don't know whether to compliment your healing skills or yell at you for dragging me into another mess." Pomphrey said irritably as she appeared.

"Could you settle for making sure none of the children die from the attack?" Harry glared at her.

"Master Harry, Dobby is making sure little ones is being well. Master Harry's other elves are here too." Harry looked at the elf with a raised eyebrow. "Mister King Sir says there is being no secrets when his children are hurt." Dobby said defiantly.

"Keep up the good work." Harry smirked.

"Everyone take cover in the sub-basement. There are more men coming." Xavier's voice sounded through the school speakers.

Harry looked at the back of his shield. He started breathing heavily as he closed his eyes and pushed magic into the shield.

Metal flowed up his shield arm, swiftly covering his body, in seconds he was once again the armoured knight.

"Harry… no." Poppy said mournfully.

Harry looked at her, his face hidden by the visor. "Somebody has to." He then vanished in front of them.

This was the third variation of the armour. The second had been a simple test for Harry. A test to see if he could mentally handle being back in the armour.

The only thing that remained the same was the helmet. And that was because Harry refused to don the armour without Arnie.

But things were now very different. There were all manner of commands that could sap the power of the armour and thus the runes. Arnie could now free him.

He had managed to make the visor invisible to himself. The whole helmet did not exist to him. He could even put his hand through it. But only he could.

Beyond that, nothing else had changed.

He was still able to be silent and invisible, and he still carried the Sword of Gryffindor.

These men had attacked innocent young children. They had fired lethal weapons at them. Harry was going to stop them before they got any further. He was tempted to kill them with his sword.

Instead, he let them kill themselves.

He appeared directly in front of them and stood there as they fired. They fell to the floor from multiple bullets. Unlike the King's Guard, these men were using fully automatic weapons. Each of them fired more than a single bullet and that cost them their lives.

Harry moved on towards the black Humvees, one of which had crashed the gate.

More bullets came his way. More men died.

Then a helicopter appeared overhead, a bright spotlight shining down on him. Harry shot into the sky and straight through the bottom of the craft, it exploded in his wake, lighting up the night sky.

Harry didn't stop, he flew higher until he could see the mansion like a small dollhouse. Then he aimed himself at the collection of Humvees and flew fast and unwavering.

"This is not the time to test your limits!" Arnie nearly screamed.

Harry smashed into one car causing it to explode with the force of impact. The other vehicles were sent flying. Harry stood up and surveyed his work. He sheathed his sword and cast a spell to detect any living beings. He found four and headed towards them.

"Ross." Harry growled as he drew his sword.

The Army General was bleeding from a slice to his upper arm, and his left leg appeared to be broken. The other three men were trying to pull him to safety.

Two of them aimed their weapons and fired.

They held their triggers down and were torn to shreds.

Harry looked down at the last man and the General. "Please. Fire your weapons." He said darkly.

"S- Sir?"

"Stand down, Harry." The man sagged in relief as new men in tactical gear approached.

"You know what they did, Coulson." Harry said, never looking away from Ross. "They attacked children. Shot them. They shot Meg."

"Harry, prisons aren't to save criminals from death. They are to make an example." Coulson said as he holstered his weapon. "Come on, you are a hero, not a murderer. Don't stoop to their level. Let's go and check on Megan."

%

Pomphrey and the elves were able to heal all the children. There would be some tough nights ahead as they dealt with the trauma, but they were healthy.

"Coulson." Logan nodded to the agent as he and Harry entered the mansion.

"Logan. Can you give me an overview?"

"These asshats decided to attack a school filled with children as they were headed for bed. I don't care what genes you've got… we take offense to that."

"So I see." Coulson said as he surveyed the dead bodies. "The students and staff?"

"Safe, healed. The kid's healer came and set everyone to rights. But there were a lot of bullets in a lot of very young flesh.

"Who did this?"

"General Ross."

"The guy after Banner?"

"He must have discovered Harry's connection here and thought he was a way to get at the Hulk." Coulson theorised. "The fool is lucky Banner wasn't here. Everything we have says that, despite the rage, the Hulk doesn't like innocents being hurt.

"Are the students secure?"

"In the sub-levels."

"Harry, come on. I want you out of that armour." Coulson ordered.

%

As soon as the students saw the knight being led into the metal walled sub-levels they gasped. They all knew how relieved Harry was to be free of the armour.

"Jesus, Harry, why would you put this thing on again?" Jean asked with concern.

"Different armour." Harry said as he pulsed his magic into his shield causing the armour and sword to flow into it. "This one actually comes off." He smiled weakly.

"Harry, are you aware that you don't wear one of the devices you made to prevent mind-reading?" Xavier asked as he rolled forward. "All the telepaths here refrain from reading others, but we can still sense emotions. Yours spike with fear whenever your armour is mentioned.

"We know what putting that cage back on has cost you."

"Let's focus on the bigger situation." Scott stepped in. The telepathic link he willingly shared with Jean let her know he wanted to take the pressure off Harry. "Why were we attacked?"

"We believe General Ross thought he could get at the Hulk if he captured Harry." Coulson answered. "Considering he had his men fire on you, he knew you were all mutants and that you could defend yourselves."

"And the fact that they were children means nothing to you?" Ororo demanded.

"Me? It means plenty. Ross? You know how hard he's gone after the Hulk."

Ororo backed down at the glare from Harry.

"We've got Ross in custody." Coulson told them. "He's not going to go through the usual courts, he'll pay though."

"What do you mean?" Scott asked.

"If we let the police handle this it will put a major spotlight on this school and mutants. Not to mention Harry and the Hulk.

"Very quickly this will turn from a case of attempted mass murder and kidnapping into a means to persecute people who defended themselves."

%

Coulson had repairs underway on the mansion before dawn. They would be finished before lunch. It would be paid for by the Army… unless they wanted to explain why they were operating on US soil against US citizens… US children.

Ross was already being investigated for the events in Harlem. He was an embarrassment to the US Army.

The residents of the school were now fully aware of magic. They had seen Harry, Megan and Poppy cast spells. Dobby and his family had been none too subtle.

So now the younger children were pestering Harry and Megan to show them magic. It wasn't a hardship, but it did become a little tiresome.

Harry was finally getting somewhere with Rogue. He had changed tactics. Instead of focusing on trying to prevent her absorbing he was now studying what she could absorb.

She couldn't absorb magic. She could absorb life, energy and memories. After their experiments with her absorbing from Harry, she knew the spell incantations and runes, but she couldn't use them.

The question became, could she bypass magic. Harry had begun researching how to create a magical aura. The type that powerful magicals like Dumbledore could.

The answer was no. She could touch Harry, but she couldn't absorb anything whilst his skin was permeated with magic. The magic seemed to disrupt it.

Megan wasn't able to produce the same effect but Madam Pomphrey was willing to help. Another success and an avenue for Harry to go down.

Harry needed a break from trying to help Rogue. A change of pace. So he went to see if he could help another member of the school who had trouble with their mutation.

"I don't ever remember the world being so… colourful." Scott said in awe as he blinked.

"We're in a sterile metal room… this is not colourful." Harry pointed out as he stood in the infirmary in the sub-levels of the mansion with Jean.

"I see everything in red. This is colourful for me, Harry." Scott assured him.

"Well they are just magically reinforced glasses with some perception altering runes. You are still seeing everything in red, magic is just translating it for your brain."

"You look like Harry's older brother." Jean smirked.

"Considering the attention he gets, I'll take that as a compliment." Scott grinned.

"You think being the target of every nut job is a good thing?" Harry asked dubiously.

Scott patted him on the back and changed the subject. "Hank." He said, looking at Jean.

Jean nodded slowly. "I suppose Harry doesn't need medical details for now." She activated a computer monitor and pulled up an image of another male with dark hair and spectacles. "Harry this is a good friend of ours. Henry 'Hank' McCoy."

She pulled up another image. "This is what his mutation has made him look like."

The glasses were the only thing the same. This new picture showed a tall, muscular, blue-furred, fanged creature. Almost cat like.

"Huh… he looks familiar." Harry mused.

"You've met him?" Scott asked.

"Oh, no. Just, he reminds me of someone." Harry moved closer to the screen. "These are all physical mutations? Like Pixie's wings?"

"Yes." Jean confirmed.

"I don't think I can help him like I have the others." He turned to Jean and Scott. "Everything I've done so far is to… inhibit your abilities. Your hairband prevents your telepathy. Your glasses prevent your beams escaping.

"But all your abilities are still there. Take off the glasses and hairband and you can use them.

"What you want here is to rewrite his physical structure. It isn't something I think I can do with runes without causing a lot of pain and discomfort.

"We can try some stuff, experiment, the usual, but it is going to be a lot more invasive and uncomfortable."

"How invasive?" Scott asked.

"Human transfiguration." Harry said as he held out his wand and pointed it at Jean questioningly. She nodded and he transfigured her into a cat.

Scott looked on, his eyes, for once, visibly wide.

Harry cancelled the spell.

"That was… weird." Jean breathed heavily.

"And not what I recommend letting me experiment with. I work with runes and might be able to create something, but you really need a transfiguration expert.

"I'll also need volunteers to try out another method."

%

Jean and Scott said they would contact Hank and get him to meet Harry.

Harry had finished most of the modifications to the metal plate they were going to put in his skull. He was back to tinkering on a solution for Rogue.

Really it was a distraction from the surgery.

But the day came and Megan, Betsy and Hermione had accompanied him. He was very nervous, despite what the doctors told him.

The anaesthetist told him to count backwards from ten… but he never remembered that.