[1978 Pt.1]

[Kennington Road, London.]

[August, 1978.]

The rain came down in torrents upon the cobbled streets of Kennington Road, casting a melancholic mood over London. Thunder boomed in the heavens as if the gods themselves were unleashing their fury upon the mortals below.

The street lamps provided the only source of light in the gloomy night, their feeble glow creating pools of illumination in the dark waters of rain-soaked pavements. Such scenes were a common sight during the heavy storms that occasionally swept through the city.

Yet, amidst the downpour, a peculiar event unfolded that would elude the attention of the untrained eye. A man, with short white hair that seemed to shimmer in the dim light, materialized out of thin air on the sidewalk of Kennington Road. His appearance was accompanied by a brief popping noise that was lost in the cacophony of raindrops crashing against the pavement.

The man had very short white hair as he wore what looked like a flowing robe. This man was William Grey, the humble owner of a magical shop known as 'Beholder's eye'.

'Beholder's Eye' was a very popular shop both in London's Diagon Alley and among some very private and rich customers both magical and non-magical that traded directly with the Greys. The shop showcased an exquisite and rare collection of magical and non-magical objects that were sought after by the rich clientele they mainly dealt with.

The Greys have held their place as a source of luxury items for five generations, a fairly low amount of time in comparison to the older families but a long time compared to most newer families. William had continued the family business but he had definitely changed it for the better, after all his family's definition of exquisite objects also included slaves both magical and non-magical. The only luxury items that William's ancestors did not sell were witches and wizards, and only because the law prohibited it.

The man had completely changed the reputation of the shop after inheriting the business by first selling the original location in Knockturn Alley before getting a storefront in Diagon Alley where he only sold enchanted items, gems, jewellery, watches, glasses, etc. He also took commissions where he enchanted items and artifacts in exchange for Galleons.

William looked around searching for anybody that might be watching him before he moved towards a particular manor's metal doors.

Clutching a peculiar jet-black umbrella that seemed to glisten with an enchanting shimmer, William walked with purpose towards the manor that was nestled amidst the rain-soaked aspen trees.

As soon as he reached in front of the two large metal doors, they both swung open allowing him entry fast enough that he did not have to slow his pace for them to open up.

The sound of rain outside faded into the background as he opened the wooden entrance door, William felt the magic of the manor hum and buzz as if in joy that he had returned safe and healthy.

It was a nice feeling, a feeling that made the place feel like home.

He looked at his clothing, it was slightly wet despite the umbrella. He waved his umbrella in a specific pattern and sighed in contentment as the water evaporated due to the warming charm he had cast. He looked at his umbrella before shaking it, turning it back into a white wand. William looked and took off his shoes before he walked towards where he believed the rest of his family was gathered.

He walked into the dining room. He found his wife, Aurelia waving her wand and preparing the food for the night, her black hair whipped around and as his hazel eyes met her electric blue eyes, she flashed him a loving smile.

"Oh, this weather is dreadful," he remarked with a hint of amusement.

She said over her shoulder as she focused most of her attention back on the food, "And here I thought it felt calming."

He rolled his eyes, well aware of his wife's love of the rain.

He moved his eyes towards Alexander, who was working on a set of transfigurations for one of the commissions, they had received.

The figurine of a Pegasus, which looked as if it would come alive any moment, rested on the dining table. The figurine was close to the size of William's forearm.

As he looked at the detailed transfiguration, he couldn't help but be happy with his daughter Irene's choice. Alexander's talent helped the family business in more ways William could describe. The boy could have become a Master in Transfiguration if he and Irene had not decided to start their own part of the family business where Alexander would transfigure a rock into figurines while Irene would enchant them over a period of a few days to make them as lifelike as she could. They had several such figurines that both of them worked on together daily.

The figures sold for pretty good prices. Alexander being a muggleborn also sold non-magical statues to muggle parks, though that paid in muggle currency and while more detailed than most muggle craftsmen, it was still nowhere close to his magical figures and statues.

William knew that Alexander wanted Nathan, his son, to not be ignorant of the muggle world since the boy believed that the muggle world had much to offer the magical world both in knowledge. William while not sure of the veracity of the claim, did not ask Alexander to stop either, knowledge of navigating a different culture could never hurt an individual, and it would do Nathan a lot of good to know about muggles since muggles and magical shared the same world.

"Dad? You are home," William turned around to see his daughter, Irene, standing at the entrance of the dining room holding his grandson, Nathan. The boy was wrapped in covers and only his small face was visible through the covers his mother had wrapped the boy in.

Nathan had gotten his electric blue eyes from his grandmother while the tuft of hair on the top of his head was the same colour as William himself.

Irene walked towards him as he held out his hands for his grandson.

As he took him in his arms and looked at his grandson before asking in a gentle voice, "Young Nathan! Gramps missed you!"

The boy gave a gurgle of "Uwaaa!" as a reply and William smiled. What he did not notice, however, was the glint of intelligence in his grandson's eyes.

**** **** **** **** ***

As Jason or Nathan looked at his family, he felt both hopeful and anxious about the future.

He had recouped his memories a month ago, or a month after his birth, Jason was fairly uncertain of his opinion about what he could only describe as a rebirth after death.

He still flinched whenever he remembered the last moments of his previous life. His previous life was something that anybody would describe as being a pretty fulfilling life though his end had been disappointing.

Jason was born to two loving parents who raised him well, pampering him here and there, and rewarding him whenever he performed well on a test. He had been a great student and was aesthetically pleasing to look at in his humble opinion. He had aced his schooling where he had computer applications as his stream. He had finished his computer science engineering undergraduate degree as valedictorian. And while most of his peers prepared for job interviews, he prepared to aim for the national public service examinations, and despite being a good student Jason would admit that the exam was tough even for him who had performed well in most examinations with minimum effort.

Jason had served as public administrator for four years before shifting his gaze towards politics, after all, what held greater power in a democracy than the representatives of the public. This is where, for the first time in his life, Jason realised that being smart did not guarantee you success or safety. Jason had never expected his political opponent to be such a sore loser that the criminal bastard would stab him in the neck in front of a live news camera just before Jason's oath of office.

He was not sure whether to be incredulous at the madman or try to stop the fountain of blood that his neck was leaking after the three stabs from a large knife. Not that it would have helped much as he died in the ambulance during transit anyway.

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AN: This is a rewrite of my original fic -HP: Ode To Nothingness- but this time I will do right by my story. The MC won't act like an idiot in this one like he did in the last one's early chapters for one.

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