48 Chapter 48

Reappearing with a flash of light in the entrance hall of Potter Castle, Harry slowly ascended the stairs, still carrying an unconscious Daphne bridal style. Once he reached the master bedroom, he went in and gently placed her on the large four poster bed. He frowned when he saw that he still had a wand in hand. He looked at it and he realised that the wand belonged to Dumbledore. Well, at least he could keep it as a token of what had happened tonight, considering he had destroyed Voldemort's wand. But what was surprising was how comfortable he was with using it. He flicked his wand and all of Daphne's clothes disappeared and reappeared on the other side of the room. He carefully tucked her in and sat down next to her. He wasn't surprised that she had fallen unconscious, as it had been a very emotional day for them all. She was physically, emotionally and magically exhausted.

He gently kissed her forehead and left the room after changing clothes. He morphed into a boy having red hair and brown eyes and portkeyed to Hogwarts. Immediately, he made his way to the Hospital wing. As he entered, he morphed back to his normal self and spotted Elizabeth and Astoria sitting next to the unconscious forms of Cyrus Greengrass and Sirius Black.

"How are they?" he asked softly.

Elizabeth immediately went forward and engulfed him in a tight hug. Harry stiffened slightly, but relaxed.

"They'll be fine" said Elizabeth. "Madam Pomfrey and I healed them quickly, but since it was a dark cutting curse, it would take some time for them to recover. They'll have to be here for tonight, and it is better if they rest tomorrow as well. Where's Daphne?"

"She's in Potter Castle, asleep" said Harry softly. "She's exhausted, and after what happened, I don't blame her."

"What happened there, Harry?" asked Elizabeth, moving to scan him with her wand. "Tonight has been so messed up. Thank Merlin I left Dylan with my parents; I don't know how I could have handled it with him here as well."

Harry sighed and asked Toby for his Pensieve. Once done, he placed his memory of the honour duel in the Pensieve and motioned her to watch. Elizabeth and Astoria placed a finger into the Pensieve and they disappeared. Harry wouldn't have done it for anyone else, but this was his mother-in-law; she deserved to know how amazing her daughter was. Nobody knew about Daphne's animagus form until that evening as Harry had handled it himself in registering her at the ICW. It had been their last line of defence and the ability had come in handy tonight. Madam Pomfrey took that time to heal Harry from where Elizabeth had left off, muttering to herself about the constant danger.

"You'll need rest, Potter" she said, after healing him. "I've healed all the wounds. You're very lucky in that you had armour to protect you or it would have ended very badly for you. I suggest bed rest and maybe dreamless sleep potions as well. There is some dark magic residue on your body, but that is to be expected after such a duel. Take this potion for the next two days and get some rest."

"Thank you, Madam Pomfrey" he said quietly, as the healer left.

After she finished watching the memory, Elizabeth was shocked to stillness while Astoria was in awe of the display. "Merlin, I never knew that she was an animagus. Why didn't she tell us? I'm so proud of her; and I'm so proud of you too, Harry. You finally put an end to that monster. I just can't believe Dumbledore was willing to kill you" she said, shaking her head.

"Is Aunt Amy here?" asked Harry.

"She came for a few minutes to check up on Sirius, but she's gone to collect evidence for Dumbledore's trial" explained Elizabeth. "It'll take time before she comes back."

Harry nodded and left quietly. He needed some answers, and he knew the best person to give it to him.

HP*LIGHTNING LORD*HP

Albus Dumbledore woke up with a groan. Even though he had been treated by a Healer, the pain caused by the sharp claws still hurt whenever even the slightest pressure was applied on his face and chest, and this made it worse for him to sleep. He couldn't believe what had happened. He had acted on impulse to defeat Harry, as he had grown too powerful. He had realised now that bringing back Tom was a waste of time and effort (he still didn't believe that all the Horcruxes were destroyed), so now, he had developed a new plan. He would appeal to the Wizengamot about how dangerous Harry was and use it to get the boy executed. He would reveal and explain about the soul piece in Harry's scar and that would make the public flock to him. After all, he would persuade them and make them see reason; what was one life as compared to the greater good? Harry had to be stopped before he destroyed the name of Albus Dumbledore. He had grown far too powerful; he was now the master of the Elder Wand . . .

Albus realised with a jolt that if Harry had indeed found the ring Horcrux, he had the Resurrection stone as well! Together with the cloak, Harry could become the Master of Death! No, that could not happen. Albus had dedicated his entire life to finding the Hallows, and they couldn't go to someone else. Ever since he had seen the memory of Bob Ogden, he had known that the Hallows could be reunited, as they were close. Once Harry was dead, the cloak would be his. But now, the priority was to make the Wizengamot see reason.

Suddenly, there was a flash of lightning in front of him. Albus shielded his eyes and when he opened them again, he saw Harry Potter looking at him with a blank expression on his face. Albus peeped out of the cell to check if the guards had noticed anything, but to his disappointment, the guards weren't there!

"If you're looking for the guards, don't bother" said Harry quietly. "They're asleep at the moment. Once I'm done with you, they won't remember that someone stunned them and later obliviated them."

"Hello, Harry" said Albus with a smile. "Interesting form of Apparition; I wonder how you got through the wards around this place."

"That's for me to know and for you to never find out" said Harry smirking slightly, as Aquila screeched in the sky above London. "How are you enjoying your accommodation Albus?" he asked in mock concern. "Can I get you something? Some food, perhaps? Or are you eager to get your face scratched again? I may not have tiger claws, but my talons are very lethal as well."

"You have grown so dark, Harry" said Dumbledore, shaking his head. "Don't you feel any remorse for your actions? You caused the deaths of twenty-six people tonight. None of them will be able to repent for their actions. Tom was supposed to be the next leader of the light! All this time I was trying to bring him back to the light and you destroyed that opportunity!"

"You were trying to redeem Voldemort?" asked Harry in disbelief. "Albus, how stupid are you? He has murdered several hundreds of witches and wizards, ripped apart thousands of families and destroyed entire pureblood lines and you think a simple apology to the public will set things straight just because you say so? Are you really that insane?"

"You have to be stopped, Harry" said Dumbledore calmly. "You've taken a dark path, and as the leader of the light, it is up to me to stop you -"

"You believe that I've become dark, but you can't see the darkness of the so-called Dark Lord Voldemort?" asked Harry in anger.

"You're too dangerous to be left alive" said Dumbledore.

"What is the real reason you want me dead?" asked Harry in a quiet, deadly voice.

"You are a Horcrux, Harry" said Dumbledore smiling faintly. "I scanned you once Hagrid brought you to me in 1981. Everyone knows that you're a metamorphmagus, so I can very easily convince the Wizengamot that you're hiding the scar. Voldemort cannot be killed unless you are dead as well. The public will soon be demanding that you be executed."

"You're absolutely right about the scar Horcrux, Albus" said Harry smiling, removing the smile on Dumbledore's face. "But your mistake was that you scanned me when I was a year old, but not after. The Horcrux in my scar was destroyed when I was seven years old."

"Impossible" declared Dumbledore flatly. "There is no way a Horcrux can be destroyed without destroying the vessel."

"Ordinarily, you would be right" said Harry smirking. "But when my dear thunderbird familiar rescued me after Uncle Vernon stabbed me, my elves used their brand of magic to heal me, and that's when they discovered the soul piece. You never thought about the magic of other creatures like Goblins or House elves, did you, Albus? That's your wizarding arrogance again, blinding you to what is out there. My elves performed an elvin ritual and removed the soul piece and destroyed it. It has been destroyed for eight years now."

"No. You're lying" said Dumbledore, his eyes narrowed.

Albus watched as Harry flicked his wand to conjure a red and silver coloured royal looking very comfortable arm chair. He observed that Harry still used his Yew and nundu heartstring wand and hope welled in him. Maybe Harry hadn't taken the Elder wand? If he really was the master of the wand, why hadn't the merging process started?

"I'm not lying, Albus. Now, what to do with you?" asked Harry lightly. "Didn't I tell you, Albus? Didn't I tell you that your pawn would one day remove you from the board? Both the light and dark kings are out, and I'm in. In a few years, the initial stages of my grand plan can take shape, beginning a new era for the Magical world. You are nothing but a hindrance in my larger plan. But coming back to you; you're the bane of my existence. You're as responsible for my parents' deaths as Voldemort. You sent my beloved godfather to prison and made him suffer for ten years. You made me suffer so much at the hands of the Dursleys, and now . . ."

Harry came close to Albus, his face just inches from the older man as he looked into his eyes. Albus could see the green eyes were glowing with power; lightning bolts could be seen in them.

"And now, you tried to kill my father-in-law and my godfather" said Harry in a cold voice. "You tried to take Sirius away from me again. He is the closest thing to a father to me and you tried to separate us. Sirius is very dear to me and you tried to kill him."

"What's more" he said, taking Dumbledore's hair and yanking it, making the old man wince. "You also tried to kill Daphne tonight. Let me make one thing clear, Dumbledore. There is nothing more important to me than Daphne. She is my life; she is my very soul. I am nothing without her, and you tried to take her away from me. If you had landed even a scratch on her, let me tell you, I wouldn't be so calm right now. I would have ripped you apart and fed you to dragons. Nobody messes with the Potter family and gets away with it. There is a reason we have survived for so long, and did you think you or anybody else could end us so easily? We were born to conquer, you moron. I am Hadrian James Potter; did you think you could defeat me so easily?" said Harry in a dangerous voice.

"How are you so knowledgeable?" asked Dumbledore with a wince. "You're barely fifteen years old."

Harry smirked. "Well, I'll have to thank Tommy boy for that, really. I might have been born powerful and with a natural talent for magic, especially the mind arts, but when the Horcrux was removed, I gained all his memories. It took a lot of time and effort to access them and learn from his memories, but I was eventually able to do it. Along with that, I extensively studied and practiced for years, just for this moment. I knew that I had a lot of enemies, so I rigorously trained under Alastor Moody as well. And I will continue to train in the years to come. I've struggled to get where I am, Albus. I've worked really hard for it. But if you're talking about my affiliation to lightning, well, that's something I was gifted with."

"Now" said Harry. "Do I find out your secrets and destroy your mind, leaving a drooling mess of a wizard behind, or do I let you spill all your secrets to the world in a couple of days?" asked Harry.

Dumbledore chuckled. "Do you really think you have what it takes to use Legilimency on me, Harry? I'm more than hundred years older and experienced than you are. Your threats are no good here. Besides, how do you expect me to spill my secrets, as you put it? My Occlumency is still excellent, so Veritaserum won't work as well as it should. I will always win, Harry. You should know this by now. I am Albus Dumbledore. Did you think you will be able to defeat me so easily?" he asked with a glint in his eye, throwing Harry's words back at him.

Harry smirked. "Oh, my dear Albus" purred Harry. "You really think I'm that stupid? You're forgetting that I'm not the reckless Gryffindor whom you wanted as a pawn, Albus. I'm a self-made Ravenclaw with brains. I've brought a few trinkets to make you loosen your tongue. They may not have worked were you at Hogwarts and had access to your wand and magic, but since you are currently powerless, my plan would work."

Harry removed a tiny bottle full of golden liquid. Dumbledore's eyes went wide as realisation dawned on him. Harry chuckled and said "Did you think that I'm an amateur brewer? I brewed this potion myself, and had I revealed it, I would have earned my Mastery in Potions thanks to this and the Gillyweed potion Daphne and I invented. Oh, don't worry, Albus. I won't be using the Felix Felicis today. This is for the Wizengamot session when you are being tried in front of the whole country. I'm not an idiot to use this potion repeatedly; I know the dangers of taking it, but I'm willing to risk my physical and mental health for those crucial few hours. I didn't even use it today, even though I know that I would be fighting for my life. Luck cannot alter destiny. No, what I'm going to use now is this."

With that, Harry removed another small bottle. "Highly concentrated Malaclaw venom" declared Harry. "Once you ingest it, you'll be horribly unlucky for more than a week. I have to say, I'm not sure what would happen if I inject you with this dosage; hopefully, the excess amount in your bloodstream doesn't cause your death. Anyway, this will ensure that the trial goes according to plan" he said.

Dumbledore chuckled again as he shook his head. "Is that your grand plan Harry?" he asked, his eyes twinkling in amusement. "I'm disappointed. I expected something more cunning from you. While luck will be on your side, it still won't be enough to -"

"But wait! I have more" said Harry, interrupting Dumbledore. He removed a small bottle containing a clear liquid. "While only three drops of Veritaserum can be used legally due its dangerous properties on the brain of a witch or wizard, I don't particularly care what happens to you. I'll be administrating six drops tonight, so when the trial is held in two days, you'll do your best to answer truthfully. No one will realise that you are under the after effects of the serum during the trial. You'll be too confused after I'm done with you tonight to counter the serum. Do you like it? While Veritaserum questioning is not an end, it definitely is a means to an end, considering all the other evidence we have uncovered" said Harry coldly.

"And for breaking through your Occlumency shields, I could do it right now without any help" said Harry. "But it would be forced, as I would have to blast your mental shields apart, and that wouldn't work for me considering that you are an outstanding Occlumens. If something happens to you, the public will realise that I might be behind it, and I can't let that happen, can I? So, I'll be administering you the Draught of Living Death, and once you're as good as dead, I'll look through your mind as much as I want, gaining all your secrets and knowledge. I'll also be using compulsions and confundus charms to ensure that the trial goes according to plan. As I said, since you are defenceless, it would work." he said.

"Why, Harry?" asked Dumbledore, finally realising that Harry had indeed cornered him. "Why are you doing this?"

"Why?" whispered Harry. "You dare ask me why? It's because you're a fucking selfish, delusional, insane, narcissistic, meddlesome old bastard! How many lives have you ruined because of your megalomania? Wanting to be powerful is a worthy objective; acquiring knowledge and being very intelligent is a worthy objective, but their pursuits obviously haven't elevated you. Those in power have a responsibility to others! You were the Transfiguration teacher and later Headmaster of Hogwarts; you controlled the development of thousands of young witches and wizards. What did you do to improve the mentality of the younger generation so that the magical world could prosper? Did you employ more teachers and introduce new subjects? No. You let it be, building and feasting on the sheep mentality that you introduced to them until no one could even think for themselves without seeking out Albus Dumbledore for anything. You were the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot; did you ensure that justice was upheld and laws regarding the rights of magical creatures were brought in? Did you ever think about the orphans during the war? No. You let all those Death Eaters walk free while you and Crouch mercilessly threw innocent people in Azkaban without mercy. You were elected as the Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards, but I get that you were only there for a few months before I ensured that you were booted out as you lost your seat on the ICW after the Wizengamot ruled upon it, but you did have a seat there for several years. In short, you were one powerful man with worldwide influence after defeating Gellert Grindelwald. What did you do to help the magical world with that power? Nothing!" said Harry heatedly.

"Speaking of Gellert Grindelwald, I found a few special things regarding your relationship with the man" said Harry smirking. "So, the phrase 'For the Greater Good' was coined by you wasn't it? Very useful having people dig up useful stuff about your past, Albus. I found out about your sister's death as well. Even though I got reports about her being a squib, I figured out what had happened. Squibs are ridiculously rare, so there must have been something else. Godric's Hollow also has muggles; they destroyed your sister, didn't they? Wasn't that why your father was sent to Azkaban? For attacking those filthy muggles who did that to Araina? And you blame me for hating muggles? Your actions could have turned me into exactly what happened to your sister or worse, I might have turned into an Obscurial! Imagine the damage that would have caused! Back on topic, you knew about Grindelwald, and yet you didn't do anything. Why? I'm really not sure. But you waited until 1945, until people were literally on their knees begging you to do something until you finally stepped in. Why did you fucking wait till then? You weren't like anyone else; you knew how powerful you were. But you didn't care. How many lives were lost because you sat on your arse?" asked Harry in distaste.

"Did I do the same thing? I was seven years old when I realised that I had to face a whole bunch of Death Eaters and probably Voldemort himself someday. I trained relentlessly so that I could face him one day. I could have very easily run away; I'm a partial metamorphmagus, so it would have been easy to say that the Boy Who Lived is dead and use it to disappear abroad. But I didn't do that. How much damage and destruction have you caused? How many families have you ripped apart for your GREATER GOOD?" said Harry, firing a burst of lightning at the old man.

"What's more" said Harry in a deadly voice. "You also tried to redeem Voldemort because you thought you were responsible for Riddle turning evil, am I right? You refused to let him stay at Hogwarts during the summer, until Riddle's last year where he directly approached Headmaster Dippet. You thought that it was best that Riddle stayed in the muggle world, hoping that the boy would realise that muggles were good as well and not listen to the pureblood ideals. But that was your undoing, wasn't it? I've seen his memories Albus and trust me; the atrocities committed by Tom Riddle were terrible. You didn't even have a considerable impact on him turning out to be evil as he already was. The Gaunts were such an unstable family that it was passed on to him in blood and his hatred of muggles at the orphanage didn't help matters any. Instead of putting down that man like a rabid dog, you let thousands be killed while you spent your time in trying to redeem him, just to soothe your conscience. You couldn't handle it after what happened to your sister, could you? You really are the most selfish bastard I've ever met!"

Harry breathed deeply as he looked at the shaking man in front of him with distaste. "I'm not here to torture you or kill you. I'm here solely to find answers and to ensure that the trial goes according to plan. Good night, Albus. I'll see you in the Wizengamot chambers soon" he said and stunned the man.

He removed the different potions he needed to use. This would take a while.

HP*LIGHTNING LORD*HP

It was nearly 5 AM when an exhausted Harry came back to Potter Castle. He had found some useful things while going through Dumbledore's memories, but most of it just confirmed what he had always suspected; like the fact the Dumbledore did truly leak the prophecy to kill his parents. It had taken a lot of time to organise the old man's thoughts the way Harry wanted, so he was exhausted. But he had also found something odd while going through his memories. It mentioned the Elder Wand, the Resurrection Stone and the Cloak of Invisibility, from the story of the three brothers which he had read when he was a child. Dumbledore's memories had mentioned the Deathly Hallows and the Master of Death. He would have to look into that later, but right now, he was exhausted.

He entered his room and found Daphne still asleep peacefully. He quickly stripped naked and got under the covers of the bed. He put an arm around Daphne, spooning her. He smiled as he felt her soft, warm skin touch his body. He couldn't think of a better place to be right now rather than be here with Daphne, hugging her close. He pushed her hair away from his face and moved closer to her. Hugging her, with one hand cupping her breast, he gently kissed the back of her shoulder and closed his eyes as exhaustion and sleep caught up to him.

Daphne smiled as she snuggled deeper into his hold, placing her hand on his. She never truly felt at home unless Harry was there with her.

HP*LIGHTNING LORD*HP

It was nearly noon when Harry woke up. He could feel Daphne's body pressing against him, so he knew that she was still there as well, so he gently placed kisses on her shoulder and neck, finally nibbling on her earlobe.

Daphne turned to look at him. They both looked deep into each other's eyes and could see the intense emotions shining through them. They could feel the other's intense and immense love they had for the other. With every passing moment, they could feel their need growing.

Harry leaned forward and captured Daphne's lips and kissed her softly and deeply. The incident last night had firmly cemented the bond between them, sealing them forever. The two main people who could rip them apart were no longer a threat, and that removed the last vestiges of fear they both had that they would lose the other.

Harry moved down from her lips and kissed her jaw, earning a moan from Daphne. He kissed her again, as his hands worked on her breasts. He went down and kissed her neck and moved down further to kiss her breasts, his fingers moving between Daphne's legs, making her moan in pleasure as she squeezed his arse.

"Harry" gasped Daphne. "Let's do it. I'm ready."

Harry slowly kissed her body until he was nibbling on her earlobe again. "Are you sure?" he whispered, kissing her ear. "I don't mind waiting."

"No" said Daphne, breathing hard as his fingers between her legs caressed a sensitive spot inside her, making her squirm in intense pleasure. "I don't want to wait a moment longer. I've taken the contraceptive potion, so don't bother with the charm. Make love to me, Harry. I want you to know just how deeply I love you" she said.

"I love you too, Daphne" breathed Harry, as he leaned down to kiss her again.

They soon gave into their love for each other, lost in ecstasy.

HP*LIGHTNING LORD*HP

Daphne slowly opened her eyes to find herself engulfed warmly in her fiancé's arms. Her face was buried in his firm chest, but from the amount of light entering the enormous master bedroom, she would have to guess that it was nearly sundown. She looked up at Harry's face and couldn't help but smile.

She and Harry had finally made love for the first time, and it couldn't have been better. She remembered four years ago when she met him on the train. That tall, very good-looking boy was her fiancé, but she had been quite upset to learn about that fact. But now, she couldn't even imagine living her life without him. She couldn't sleep without him next to her, and she idly wondered if she would ever return to the Slytherin dorms for the next three years at Hogwarts.

No. She would go to bed with Harry every night and damn the inconvenience. Her heart filled with emotion and her eyes watered as she looked at the peaceful face of Harry, who had a small smile on his face as well. Oh, did he have any idea how much she loved him? She didn't even know how their deep bond had come to be. All she knew was that they absolutely loved and adored the other. She smirked and giggled slightly as she recalled in detail what they had done a few hours back. If that was any indication, she was going to have a very satisfying life in bed indeed.

She felt Harry stir, so she started placing light kisses on his chest and neck and pushed him on his back.

"Hello to you, tigress" said Harry sleepily, as he watched Daphne climb on top of him.

Daphne giggled and kissed him sensually. "You're in a good mood" she observed.

Harry grinned. "Why wouldn't I be?" he asked and playfully slapped her arse. "Speaking of tigress, are you okay?" he asked in seriousness.

Daphne smiled. Leave it to Harry to be always worried about her. "I'm fine" she whispered, trailing his face with kisses. "When Dumbledore attacked, I just lost it and let my emotions get the best of me. But you managed to calm me down like you always do. Harry, I'm so proud of you. You defeated both the bastards who ruined your life. I saw the way you duelled Voldemort, and you were amazing! Trust me, that duel is for the history books. Since the entire duel was recorded, it can be shown over and over again to different people. You're a hero to all, Harry, and I can't tell you how immensely proud of you I am" said Daphne softly, looking into his eyes.

Harry blushed brightly. He hugged her close, their chests pressing against each other as he whispered "I wouldn't have been able to do it without you. You're my life, Daphne. Without your love and support, I would have died last night as I would have had nothing to fight for. You were the strongest motivating factor for me, and that's what kept me going. You were amazing as well last night and thank you for everything you have done for me. The honour duel you declared just proved to me that I did the right thing in asking you to take the mantle of Lady Potter. I love you Daph, and I thank Merlin every day that you came into my life" he said, and pushed her back, rolling on top of her, kissing her again.

Daphne smiled into the kiss and slapped his bare arse playfully. She forcefully pushed him on his back and got on top of him again.

"Oh, so tigress is back, huh?" said Harry, as Daphne wiggled her bum on his erection.

"Oh yes" said Daphne as they wrestled on the bed. Harry laughed as Daphne pushed him on his back again, pinning him with her hands.

"You did all the work the last time" she said forcefully, kissing him hard. "Now, it's my turn."

Harry smiled as Daphne kissed his neck and chest, making her way down to his erect penis, looking at it with lust in her eyes.

"What tigress wants, tigress gets" moaned Harry, as Daphne began pleasuring him.