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Return of an Alpha | ||||||
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Category: Alternate Universe Characters:All Genres: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama Warnings: Death, Mild Language Story is Complete Rating: PG-13 Reviews: 409 Summary: For three years, Harry has been Becoming Alpha of Hogwarts. Now another Alpha is returning, bringing with him darkness, chaos, and battle. Watch as sides line up for war, and people and society change. Hitcount: Story Total: 169703; Chapter Total: 3596 Author's Notes: My thanks to Arnel for all the work she puts into my writing, correcting my American vs. British terms (I refuse to use British spelling because it would confuse my computer too much... and me) and even explaining some of what she does. Arnel, you've definitely made me a better writer, and I'm glad you offered to do this. It really does mean a lot! :) |
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“It’s good to be back,” Harry sighed as he collapsed onto his bed, Sirius and Remus at the door to his room. “Well, we like having you all back, finally,” Sirius told his godson, and Harry looked up to see both men were grinning at him. “The manor is just too quiet without you kids here,” Remus agreed. “Impossible!” Harry exclaimed, sitting up. “Two Marauders in a huge manor such as this one, and it’s actually quiet? I need confirmation of that one!” A few moments later, all three were laughing, the men joining Harry on his bed, sitting on either side of the laughing teen. “He has us there, Padfoot,” Remus said once he could speak again, and Sirius nodded while trying to calm down his laughter. “What’s so funny?” Tracey asked from the doorway, obviously done unpacking thanks to magic. “These two,” Harry began, gesturing to the Marauders, “actually claimed that Marauder Manor was quiet without us kids here.” “And you asked them how it could be quiet with two Marauders in this huge manor, eh?” Tracey guessed, grinning a bit. Harry just nodded happily. “He has a point, you two,” she informed the two men, whose shoulders shook slightly with silent mirth. “So Remus told Sirius,” Harry told Tracey, who nodded in understanding. “Well, I came up here to tell you that the others were hoping for a snowball fight on the same proportion as the one last Christmas,” Tracey stated, grinning mischievously. Harry sat up a bit straighter in anticipation, pulling out his wand and waving it at his bags so that they unpacked. Another wave brought two extra pouches to him, which he attached to his belt next to the other four. “Good thing I asked Fleur about that spell,” Harry commented, standing up quickly. “How long can you give me?” “Twenty minutes,” Tracey replied, and Harry knew the two men were a bit shocked by their behavior, but they didn’t understand what Harry and Tracey were up to. “I might be able to push it to thirty if I try hard.” “Try, please,” Harry requested, and she nodded. “What’s going to be the range?” “Entire grounds,” Tracey replied with a smirk, and Harry’s eyes lit up at the thought. “Definitely get me the half hour,” he stated. “I’ll have done all I can by then, and I’ll work on getting more as we fight.” “Okay, what is going on?” Remus asked sharply, obviously worried by their words as he and Sirius didn’t know what they were talking about. Harry knew that he and Tracey were seemingly talking in code, but really, it was more understanding what the other wanted than anything else. “Snowball war of epic proportions,” Harry informed them with a grin. “We’re talking tactics. Now, I’m sorry to cut this short, but Tracey needs to run interference, and I need to get outside.” “Need help, Tracey?” Sirius offered, and Harry saw that he had picked up on what they were planning, or at least the basics of it. “If you help, we might be able to give Harry more time,” Tracey said in agreement, nodding as she led the group out of the room, Harry pulling on his Invisibility Cloak as they went. When Harry left them, his feet charmed to make no sound and leave no disturbance where he stepped — meaning no footprints in the snow — Remus was still lost, and Sirius and Tracey were already making plans to slow the others down. As Harry reached the front door and slipped out, his hand was in one of his many pouches, the feared grin on his face as he began making his traps. Harry laughed cheerfully as he walked into the kitchen, his arm wrapped around Tracey’s shoulders in triumph, her own arm around his waist. The others followed them in, muttering darkly under their breaths through grins. “Were all of those traps yours?” Remus asked the pair as everyone took off cloaks and used Warming Charms to warm themselves. “Well, Ginny helped design them, but yeah, they were ours,” Harry replied, shrugging it off a bit. “Still say it wasn’t fair for Tracey to run interference so that you could go set those up for almost an hour,” Daphne muttered, and many of the others nodded, but the pair just laughed. “You’re only annoyed because you didn’t think of it yourselves!” Tracey declared, and by the looks on their faces, she had hit the problem right on the nose. “Don’t be mean to us just because you don’t like how we came up with a good idea.” “This is all great to hear, but I believe Astoria and Daphne have a couple waiting to see them,” Daniella told the group as she walked into the kitchen, where they had all converged to try and find hot chocolate. Astoria tore out of the room, Daphne not far behind her. Harry and the others left them alone, knowing they needed a chance to say hello to their parents. They had been unable to truly hear from their parents since leaving for Hogwarts because the couple couldn’t go to the Manor, and the mirror was kept there for security reasons. “Should we tell them that Draco is Astoria’s boyfriend?” Tracey whispered into Harry’s ear. He looked up at his almost-twin and grinned as he saw the glint in her eyes. The teens all knew that the pair liked one another, but neither had done anything about it yet, so maybe this would help that relationship along… or just make it more awkward. Either worked for Harry. “It had better come from you,” Tracey warned him quietly, and when he looked at her in confusion, she elaborated, “They won’t be willing to try to hurt or kill you because they know they won’t succeed, not even Astoria.” Grinning, Harry nodded in acknowledgement before moving to go find the Greengrasses, the others following. “Daniel! Samantha!” he called, grinning as he rushed over to hug the pair. After that, the room was full of greetings from everyone. As Harry stood back, watching, his eyes fell upon Astoria and Draco, who were standing side by side, the tension in their bodies obvious. Even though their faces were hiding it, they both felt awkward standing there, especially when they spotted both him and Tracey watching them with matching grins. These grins were the ones that scared all who recognized them. “So, what’s been going on at Hogwarts with all of you?” Samantha finally asked as everyone, adults included, was finally settled down around the living room. “Daniel and I haven’t really been in a position to ask all of you, so we know only what the rest of these people tell us.” She gestured at the Davises, Sirius, and Remus. “Well, the Hogwarts Protectors are going well,” Susan began with a grin that quickly spread to the other teens. “Actually, we might need swords and daggers for everyone to bring back with us from the assorted vaults,” Harry commented, and the adults nodded in understanding. They all knew that, while the Room of Requirement could provide training swords for the group, only objects brought into the Room at some point in time could be brought out. “Ginny, Harry, and I had the sixth years, seventh years, and Ron all go through a mock battle during the last meeting,” Tracey added. “Ron is really becoming a real leader,” Harry stated. “He came up with the strategy, gave the sixth years hope when they had none, and won the battle.” “We’ll have to keep an eye on him,” Maya commented, and the others agreed, though Harry noted the adults gave no opinions, understanding that this was for the teens to decide. “How are you and Ginny doing, Harry?” Daniella asked, and Harry turned to the woman who had basically become his mother. “We’re doing well,” was all he said, but Tracey hit him on the arm and told her, “Ginny had to snap some sense into him because he was letting schoolwork and training get in the way of his time with her.” “Hey!” Harry complained. “I don’t see you and Theo spending much time together when I look at the Map during free time.” Harry knew he had his almost-twin there when she glared slightly before turning to look at Theo. “Anyway, maybe you should be talking to Astoria and Draco,” Harry added, grinning at the pair as their heads suddenly snapped to look at him from where they were sitting on the same couch. “What’s this?” Samantha asked curiously, turning to look at her youngest daughter. “You and Draco, Astoria?” “Harry’s just trying to be annoying, mother,” Astoria told her as Draco glared at Harry, promising vengeance later on. “Draco is a friend.” As Harry watched, Draco winced slightly even as he continued to glare at Harry, and Harry knew immediately that the blond didn’t like the term used to describe his and Astoria’s relationship. All Harry did was raise an eyebrow, and Draco sighed, turning away from Harry to face the two Greengrass parents. “Are you sure, Astoria?” Samantha asked with a raised eyebrow, her lips twitching. “Yes, Mum,” she groaned, “I’m sure.” “Hmm,” was all that Samantha Greengrass said, looking between the pair with an air of amusement about her. Harry leaned back, throwing his arm around Tracey’s shoulders. Then he looked around at the rest of the room. The adults were all shocked, but the teens were trying quite hard not to laugh. Well, except for Daphne, who had a neutral look on her face, though when Harry caught sight of her blue eyes, he knew it was because she was both amused and annoyed. Quite understandable, considering the conversation’s topic. “Harry, why did you say they were going out?” Remus finally asked once the shock began to wear off. Harry only smirked. “Hey, Trace?” he asked, turning slightly to see that she had turned to face him as well. “Did I ever say they were going out?” “Don’t think so,” she replied, also smirking. “I’m pretty sure you only said that they should be talking to Draco and Astoria.” “Very well done coming to conclusions, though,” Harry commended them with a grin. “I was hoping for more of a show, but oh well, this was good enough.” Astoria and Draco were glaring at him, most of the teens were still shaking with mirth, Sirius had barked a laugh, the Davises and Remus were obviously amused, and the Greengrasses were staying carefully neutral, which Harry took to mean that this amused them to no end. Chuckling under his breath, Harry took pity on the pair and turned the conversation to plans about how to train the Hogwarts Protectors, known as the HPs in insecure areas, when they got back. “Why?” was all Draco asked that evening. Harry glanced up from where he was doing his homework at his desk to see the blond standing in the middle of the bedroom, his arms crossed and a hard look on his face, the door closed behind him. “Because everyone knows, and you need to get a move on, finally,” Harry replied, standing up to turn his chair around so that he was facing his friend, sitting again. “So you told her parents?” Draco demanded, and Harry shrugged. “You all were teasing me and nagging me in front of the adults about Ginny for months,” Harry retorted, and Draco calmed slightly as he remembered those times and realized Harry was only returning the favor. “It’s obvious you need incentive to actually ask her, so I gave you one.” “You mean the threat of her father?” Draco asked, disbelief coloring his voice as he finally dropped his arms and pulled out his wand to conjure a chair to sit on. “I was actually thinking along the lines of it being out in the open so that you’re both thinking about it.” Draco’s eyes widened slightly, and Harry just grinned. “All you have to do now is act on those thoughts.” Harry thought Draco was going to grumble about it, but then Draco’s head fell. Startled, Harry half stood before Draco’s gray eyes met his, and Harry saw the anguish in his friend’s eyes. “How can I ask her?” Draco asked quietly, and Harry stood up completely to kneel by his friend. “She doesn’t want anything more than friendship with me, so how can I ask her for more than she wants?” Shaking his head, Harry told his friend, “Astoria only said that to her parents because it’s all that she thinks that you want.” Draco blinked slowly, confusion quite obvious on his normally stoic face. “Draco, have you ever truly shown Astoria how you feel?” “Of course not,” Draco whispered shaking his head. “How could she ever want me? My father is a Death Eater, Harry!” Draco’s voice had risen in volume, but Harry didn’t move. “Even if I do not share the name Malfoy with him anymore, I’m still seen as a Malfoy! How could anyone want to be with someone with this, let alone her?” “You just answered your own question, Draco,” Harry stated, and Draco looked up in despair, shaking his head silently. “Your father is a Death Eater, not you. Anyone who truly knows you, like Astoria does, can look past your history and see the person you really are. How could she not want to be with you, Draco?” Harry closed his eyes and shook his head momentarily before meeting Draco’s eyes head on. “We can’t choose who our family is, but we can decide how to live our lives outside of our own family. You’ve chosen, and I say you’ve chosen well!” “Do you really think she could fancy me?” Draco asked softly, his eyes closed and face covered by his hands, elbows leaning on his legs. “Draco, everyone knows that she fancies you already,” Harry laughed, and his friend’s incredulous look only made his laughter grow. “Mate, she’s been watching you since the summer!” “Really?” “If you just talk to her, you’ll find that she fancies you just as much as you do her,” Harry said firmly, and finally Draco looked hopeful. “Go and talk to her.” Harry stood, pulled Draco from his chair, and pushed him towards the door, turning to return to his Charms homework. Behind him, he heard the door open and close, the footsteps of his friend fading down the hallway. “Final ly,” Tracey sighed as she settled down against the side of the pool beside Harry the next day. “I was afraid they’d never get together.” “They were driving us crazy with the tension,” Harry agreed with a nod, his eyes on the two underwater blurs he knew were Draco and Astoria swimming. “You and Ginny did the same to the rest of us, you know,” Tracey reminded Harry, but he just grinned slightly. “Only because none of you caught on until December that we were actually already going to the Ball together,” Harry replied. “The tension you all saw was really anticipation and amusement.” “True,” Tracey sighed just as Astoria and Draco finally came up for air not far from the talking pair. From the way they were looking at one another, Harry knew their conversation the night before had gone quite well. Of course, the look on Draco’s face had told them all how it had gone with its mixture of shock, pleasure, and happiness. Harry wasn’t sure if Daphne was pleased or disgusted by it all, mainly because it was her younger sister and one of her closest friends. “As long as I don’t have to watch them do anything, I’ll keep my peace,” Daphne had claimed earlier that morning when they had all been in the dining room, eating breakfast. “Race you to the newest couple!” Harry suddenly called to Tracey, basically throwing himself from against the side of the pool to swim as quickly as he could, Tracey making a sharp noise before following after him. “Hey, Trace?” Harry called softly as he entered her room. “I just had an idea…” “What about?” she asked. “The seventh years, when they leave, they won’t have a way to know when we need them or to tell us they need help,” Harry explained. “What if I had an idea so that they could get that help?” “What is it?” Tracey asked, and Harry knew it was going to come true. Harry ducked as spells from five different places flew over his head, aimed by those who had decided to team up against him in the free-for-all duel. Just then, Tracey aimed a spell at Astoria, shocking the younger girl enough that she got Stunned by it. Harry shot Tracey a thankful grin, relieved that she had been only pretending to be against him to do a sneak attack on the one person who would challenge him the most. Cries of outrage rang across the room as the others saw Astoria fall, and the pace of the spells fired at Harry and Tracey sped up immensely in anger. It was all Harry could to do shield and dodge them all, trying his best to help Tracey when he could. Finally, the others slowed down enough for Harry to disarm Susan, Tracey catching Justin’s wand from the air at the same time. When the rest saw that, suddenly the entire group was against the almost-twins except for Graham and Natalie, who were helping the pair from outside the circle around them. Maya shot a spell at Tracey and suddenly spun to aim a Stunner at Graham, who didn’t even notice it until Natalie put up a shield to protect him, the red light having caught her attention. Eyes widened slightly, Graham began to duel his older sister. Natalie was there to help, but she also fired at the circle. Theo got Stunned by Tracey as Harry distracted him with a Cutting Curse to the leg. Draco then hit Tracey on the shoulder with a Cutting Curse of his own, allowing the blood to trickle down her arm until it made it harder to grip her wand. Furious, Tracey silently gave Harry a glance that he understood, so he shielded them both long enough for her to heal her arm, shake most of the blood from her wand, and switch to her left hand, making the magical piece of wood easier to keep a hold of. Once she had succeeded at that, Draco’s gray eyes widened in fear at the icy blue glare sent his way from the girl, who began dueling with him and him alone. From the side of the room, the revived duelists were watching from where they rested against the wall, some with knees drawn up to their chests and others with legs crossed. The adults watching with them had made the rules perfectly clear: once stunned, the adults would revive them, but their turn was over. Of the adults watching, there wasn’t a single one not impressed by the dueling ability being displayed by the teens. When the end of summer had come, their fighting hadn’t been anywhere near this speed or style. As they watched, Harry suddenly conjured a flock of small, yellow birds to distract a few people. Before the school year had started, none of them had been at that level of Transfiguration. “Impressive,” Sirius whistled, watching how the others took the birds in stride and got rid of them easily, most just Vanishing them. As, one-by-one, those fighting Harry fell, Graham finally managed to Stun his sister, though he was panting heavily by the time he succeeded. Natalie protected him until he suddenly Stunned Daphne, who had been about to take Harry down from behind. When Harry heard the noise, he turned enough to see what had occurred and to nod in thanks at Graham before returning to dueling Blaise. Finally, though, it all ended with Harry, Tracey, and Graham still standing, Natalie having finally been Stunned by a stray spell from Draco just before he was felled by Tracey’s wand. “This isn’t done until there’s only one person standing, you know,” Samuel Davis commented off-handedly from his place against the wall as the adults realized the three were done. “That’s what you wanted,” Tracey said, shaking her head with a small grin, “but we have our own rules.” “They won,” Hannah agreed pointing at the three of them. “Natalie did as well,” Neville added in helpfully. “But she was Stunned,” Sirius said in confusion, his brow furrowed as he looked around the group. “When we do free-for-alls, they turn into two teams, usually a small one against a large one, and whichever team is left standing, the entire team wins,” Harry explained, waving his wand to summon four small towels, handing Graham and Tracey one each. He then took a third to wipe the blood from Tracey’s arm, wetting the towel with a quick spell. “Your rules just told us that we couldn’t revive people to make it last longer,” Natalie added in helpfully, rushing to grab water bottles for the four of them. “You kids have some very odd rules when you duel,” Daniel Greengrass said, shaking his head, but they could all see the smile on his face. “Proud of it,” all of them replied in one voice before laughing. “Do you think they’ll be ready?” Samuel asked the group in front of him late that night after the teens had gone to bed. “If it comes down to a battle, they will be, but I hope it doesn’t,” Remus sighed. “I think we all hope that,” Amelia said, her face grim. “But we all acknowledge the fact that if there’s one place Voldemort will try to attack other than the Ministry, it’s Hogwarts. Once he’s out in the open, we’ll get only a year or two at the most before he’s controlling the Ministry and attacking Hogwarts.” “Maybe this group of theirs will stop the school from being destroyed, the students murdered without hesitation,” Daniella Davis said hopefully. “That is up to the students,” Samuel sighed. “They’ll be up to the task,” Sirius said confidently, his chin raised with pride in the teenagers. “I hope you’re right,” was the thought going through most of the adults’ minds. “We’ll prove you right,” Harry whispered under his breath from his spot on the stairs, where he had been standing since he went downstairs to find some tea as his throat had begun to hurt a bit, stopping him from sleeping. “If nothing else, we’ll prove you right,” he swore. |
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