Chapter 5: Prerequisites

September 19th, 1989, London, 211B Baker Street, 0:45 AM

Ethan felt like forever as those images flashed through his unstable mind. Large-scale divination, which specified one's entire fate, was destined to be nigh impossible; those who could pull this off were counted on one hand, such as Merlin or Percival Rackham.

With that said, it would certainly come with a great burden; at worst, the price could be death. As of right now, Ethan was experiencing extreme nausea, headaches, hallucinations, and amplified negative emotions. Blood seeped down from his reddish eyes as well as his ears, and he also suffered nose bleeding.

Ethan had already expected this outcome as prying into related powerful or important figures regarded by Fate itself; the price you paid must fold by a lot more. Ethen slumped down on the cold floor as he used Occlumency to place his mind and keep his consciousness intact.

After all, who knew how long it was? Ethan was finally able to get up, and he then reached for a vile of Blood-Replenishing Potion, Baruffio's Brain Elixir, Draught of Peace, and Grand Wiggenweld Potion. Slowly pumping those potions down his throat, Ethan's complexion finally regained some vitality.

Ethan breathed a sigh of relief as he processed the information he got with a darkened facial expression; his eyes flashed with contemplation on how to deal with all of that. Revival…Deaths… Truth… Prophecy… Seven… Hallows… Voldemort.

After a while, he did a thorough cleaning of the basement as well as all the blood before heading upstairs.

Ethan gently pushed the door to his study as he got to see a peaceful sleeping boy.

Ethan gently caressed the boy's hair with an affectionate look. 'Oh, Harry, what fate had in store for you was beyond cruelty; your journey ahead is filled with death and tragedy as well as glory and true friendship, albeit not too much in comparison with all you would have to bear in that future.

However, I'm and I will do anything to ensure that you get all the happiness you deserve. I will not let this slide this time. No matter the cost...'

Ethen placed a kiss on the boy's head before he turned to his trusty sofa and immediately fell asleep.

…

Harry had the strangest dream ever; he could tell that he was only one year old, and on the outside was a total darkness tinged with the whiteness coming from the falling snow.

Harry thought that he was in his room as he looked at this rather strange yet familiar room, decorated solely for the boy. Then what would come next would hunt Harry for years to come. Harry witnessed what happened on that faithful Halloween; it was no accident at all.

Harry's eyes filled with tears and terror as he watched his mother, whom he didn't yet know but his heart could already recognise, lying dead on the floor. Her body turned cold and pale at a speed visible to naked eyes, and she was trying to protect him from a hooded figure shooting a ray of malicious green light.

Which rendered the boy paralysed, hot tears streaming down his face as he continued to watch the hooded figure getting closer.

The horrible-looking hooded man had red eyes like the devil; he was smiling fanatically as he brought his green light spell once against ending Harry's nightmare.

The petite bot woke with tears streaming down his face as he tried to assure himself that it was just a dream, wasn't it? Harry began to shudder in fear; he needed his guardian, he needed Ethan, and only Ethan's warm embrace could calm Harry down. Harry then spotted a head resting on the nearby sofa.

Harry tried his best to calm himself down; he then tiptoed towards the sofa, his hands clutched tightly against his chest. There, Harry saw the peaceful sleeping face of Ethan. The boy sighed in relief as he squeezed himself into Ethan's embrace and hugged him tight as Harry finally returned to his sleep.

That night, two lonely figures were sleeping soundly as they had found each other, for whatever Fate had in store for them together would eventually make it through.

September 19th, 1989, London, 211B Baker Street, 7:00 AM

Ethan woke up earlier than the boy. He then confirmed that he had fully recovered from last night's event. Shortly, he noticed that his precious boy was sleeping soundly with him on the sofa. A puzzled look crossed Ethan's face as he speculated the reason for Harry's actions: 'Did he have a nightmare?"

However, Ethan wasn't bothered by this; rather, he was very happy as he could feel the boy's affection for him. Ethan got up as quietly as possible, intending to leave the boy sleeping. He then proceeded to complete his daily hygiene, just when he caught the sound of the newspaper delivery at his front door.

As usual, Ethan collected the newspaper, which was laced on his doorstep by Muggles and magical owls. There was no need for payment each time they were delivered, as Ethan paid monthly in advance. Heading towards the living room, Ethan poured his latte as always while skimming through the latest news.

Time ticked slowly on Tuesday morning as the man savoured the peaceful, quiet atmosphere in this cosy living room. He turned to look outside the crystal-clear window. Today would be cloudy with cool winds billowing in the air despite the hanging pale orange sun hiding among the clouds, as it tainted the azure sky with a soft-tinged yellow.

A perfect view to start a new day in this bustling city.

Ethan went on preparing breakfast without using magic; he found it quite relaxing. He did learn a lot about the art of cooking, which was one of many ways to busy his mind, find enthusiasm, or just levitate his mood. Expecting Harry would wake before 8 o'clock, Ethan was easily cooking two dishes of egg-fried rice while contemplating today's plan.

First and foremost, he was going to the supermarket with Harry for supplements as well as buying Harry's necessities. The boy was in dire need of new clothes, and checking up on Harry's physical condition could be done with a few simple spells. After that, he and Harry would go to Hyde Park for a change.

Ethan was placing the dish on the table when he saw his boy walking into the room. He looked like he had just gotten up and done his hygiene. "Morning Harry," Ethan said with a wide smile as he motioned for Harry to sit down.

Harry was a little disappointed in himself, for he had overslept and once again let Uncle Ethan do all the cooking. The boy wanted to prove his worth to his precious Guardian. He was determined to do whatever he could around the house.

The boy had been meaning to ask about his parent's death because last night's nightmare had been bothering him since he wanted to know if it was just purely a nightmare crafted from his obsession or if it was a deep-down painful memory that somehow managed to crawl its way back into Harry's mind. Just then, Harry watched with curiosity as he saw Ethan waving at a Barney owl as it landed perfectly on his arm.

Uncle Ethan was whispering something to the owl as he fetched its cookies. He then saw Ethan pull out a prepared letter from his pocket, tie it to the owl's ankle, and let it fly out of the window.

Throughout the entire time, no pedestrian passing by 221B noticed his out-of-the-ordinary actions at all, as Ethan had cast a simple notice-me-not charm.

Only when the owl had gone out of sight did he return to finish his breakfast with Harry. He noticed the boy's curious look, and he explained that it was one of the ways wizards and witches communicate and how normal pedestrians didn't notice anything abnormal.

Which received an approving nod from the boy. Ethen then continued to tell Harry about today's schedule, which made the boy glow with excitement, though it died down quickly as Harry was afraid that he had consciously hindered Ethan's work. In turn, Ethan assured him that it didn't, as his job was rather particular, even for other wizards and witches.

Ethan had long received permission to work from home, despite the fact that his house was in the middle of London. Ethan could easily uphold the Statute of Secrecy, and he only went to the Department on special occasions, such as submitting important research or using peculiar facilities.

Ethan keenly invited Harry to do the choirs with him before they headed out. They had a lot of fun doing that together.

After having done the cleaning, Ethan went to put on his beige trench coat, as he was wearing a linen shirt with a black vest and a simply tied cravat of the same colour. His outfit was finished with the trusty black silk half-top hat, which added to his refined demeanour and unwavering scholarly aura.

Ethan motioned for Harry to walk with him to the supermarket, for it wasn't too far away from here. He also hoped that this could help lessen Harry's social anxiety. Only then did he notice Harry's dumbfounded look, his eyes glimmering with adoration. Ethan then smiled playfully at the boy as he adjusted his outfit in a gentlemanly way.

Ethan then walked out of his house with Harry holding his hand tightly and clung himself as close to his guardian as possible. They were going to purchase new clothes for Harry first.

They had a great time shopping together. Harry was smiling at Ethan all the time as he got the boy a few sets of new clothes that matched the boy's petite figure.

Now, Harry was wearing a short-sleeved crimson polo shirt with white trim, accompanied by dark brown trousers and a pair of black shoes.

They went sightseeing in the bustling city as Ethan purchased food supplies, daily necessities, teas, and coffees. They had ice cream along the way as they watched magnificent views of rows of modern buildings, although Harry wasn't that comfortable staying within the crowd.

Luckily for the boy, they found a rather spare area within Hyde Park for Harry to stroll around aimlessly.

Ethan was sitting on a not-too-far-away bench, watching Harry feed the ducks as well as the pigeons nearby. The September wind was blowing gently against the green grasses, and he fluttered rows of refreshing zelkovas as it brought the fragrant aroma from nearby flower beds.

Just then, he sensed the magic threads fluctuating behind him on the side, and a pop sounded indiscernibly.

"Quite a view, isn't it?" Samantheus Faramundo, his boss, and one of his few close friends apparated just now. He was still wearing the same outfit from the last time they met. A dark bowler hat, white linen shirt, medium jungle green vest, and a double-breasted overcoat of the same colour were accompanied by a pair of black leather gloves and an indigo scarf hanging over his neck. Ethan shot him a greeting smile.

Sam swiftly made his way to sit beside Ethan. "Coffee?" He extended the spare one to Ethan, which earned him a raised eyebrow.

"I was expecting you to come over in the evening after work, but judging from these cups of coffee, it seems like you slipped here with a halfway excuse. Something like going to grab a specially made coffee from the muggle and promising that you'd be back soon."

Sam almost choked on his coffee as he heard Ethan's remark.

"I bet you 100 galleons, Ms. Diata Morgan, are going to be so pissed when you leave her alone with those mountains of paperwork like that again."

Sam rolled his eyes. "How can you expect me to just sit there with those greatest emanations of boredom after you sent that thrilling news!?". He then waved at Harry as he spotted the boy, which did take Harry a moment to return the courtesy.

"So, everything is considered done then, seeing how much happier the boy is now. Then… When are we going to throw a celebration party?" Sam said it enthusiastically.

"I appreciate the suggestion, but I assure you Harry doesn't need that right now, as he still needs time to get used to all of this. I can't be certain that doing something like that won't terrify the boy."

"You have no fun at all, Uncle Ethan," Sam scoffed. "I assume you don't just call me to notify me of the recent events, so what's the matter? I can already see those calculating eyes of yours."

Sam's tone turned serious at the mention of that look clearly on Ethan's face. Ethan was a long-time friend whom he considered a true genius, even among the Muggles, which taught him that whenever Ethan brought up that scheming look, something had gone awry.

Ethan let out a long sigh as he took a sip of the hot coffee. "I did a thorough divination on the boy's fate, Sam, and it involved much more than you could imagine; Harry could even be the boy to decide the fate of the entire wizarding world."

Ethan's tone was calm, yet it bore immense pressure, which made Sam's pupils constricted as he tried to process the matter. One must know that Ethan's divination is much more reliable and accurate than those vague, cloudy crystal balls stored in the Hall of Prophecy.

Sam turned his gaze towards the petite boy, who was still immersed in feeding those pigeons and petting them.

Just then, a thought struck his mind as he considered the scale of the divination.

"Have you truly gone mad!? I know that intuition of yours should have warned you the moment you began chanting." Sam's voice was hoarse and full of concern for his selfless friend's health; the price he must pay could have gotten him killed.

"Relax, Sam. I know my limit." Ethan's was not convincing at all, as Sam shot him a cold glare with those icy blue pupils.

Ethan took another sip, and he began to divulge what he saw that night. A mix of surprises, anger, and sadness dawned on Sam's face as he looked at the ill-fated boy with his bright, carefree grin, not knowing the utter horror about to descend upon him.

"So, the dark lord returned; those deaths, as well as the fall of the ministry, are inevitable?"

"Some of them? Yes. Can I accept such an outcome? No. I have no intention of letting all of this happen, not this time. Fate had been at odds with me since my birth, and I refused to let that happen to Harry. Come to think of it, I should have done it a long time ago, smiling at the face of Fate." Ethan said it with unwavering resolve.

'Aelia' The name crossed Sam's mind as well as the haunting memories of the last war. Upon hearing Ethan's determination, the boss knew that he would not let another of his friends shoulder all of this alone.

"Then, what have you got in mind?"

"First, I will prepare Harry for whatever shows up on his arduous journey ahead. I don't intend to reveal all of this to him now; my boy deserves to have a happy childhood. Soon, once the time comes, I will tell him everything. He has every right to know why. Ignorance and fragmented truth will only make things worse."

Sam's mouth curled up into a wide, confident smile. "I believe you would do that. Unless you somehow got polluted by our scheming Headmaster. Hmph, I must see his descending smile and the way he looked at me when he got to know my background and that I was at odds with many pure-blood families. The old fox tried to sway me into one of his blind followers. Unfortunately, he didn't know I was paranoid as hell at times and that I had my most perceptive advisor here by my side."

Ethan chuckled lightly as he finished his coffee. "It is certain that the headmaster knows enough about Harry's fate through his obsession with having Harry in the palm of his hand. In the future, we will eventually face him head-on."

Ethan didn't sit well with how Albus Dumbledore handled many things, albeit his doings were very much in the name of the greater good. This had been concluded since his days at Hogwarts.

"It's going to be interesting going up against the most powerful wizard of generations as well as a bunch of retarded nobles."

Ethan shook his head depreciatingly. "Haiz, may I remind you that although I don't agree with the way he did that, that doesn't mean we're going to make an enemy out of him? I prefer we talk through all of this."

Sam just nodded as he too finished his coffee. "Well, this coffee was decent—8 out of 10 for me." He made a quick remark to change the topic. "Tell me, what else can I do to help?"

Ethan pulled out a stack of his research and handed it to Sam, whose eyes soon filled with bewilderment as he was looking at something that could potentially shake the entire Wizarding World as well as bring about a revolution in a brighter, more advanced future.