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dropsofnightshade · 2 months

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I was reading one of your asks and the one about the Black Family being equal to British wizarding royalty just got me thinking.

Just how much influence does the black family truly have? inside and outside of Britain. like does current (British) wizarding society still think (perhaps not consciously but maybe subconsciously) of the blacks as 'Gods amongst mortals' as Rhiannon Gaunt said the blacks were prone to act as and if so why?? I'd love to hear a complete and total character analysis of your black family. It's so interesting to read about your version of them and I absolutely love how you've portrayed such a mercurial family.

also, another question, Is the black family madness a thing in this story? I don't think so but It's so cool to vision them all being just a tiny little bit insane. like they're just that family,, yk??

I sometimes just imagine the entirety of the black family making a grand entrance somewhere and everyone is just feeling like "wtf that's so hardcore" and looking regal, powerful, influential and just filthy rich as fuck. (if there's such a scene, trust I WILL be sending a whole ass love letter personally written to you) ((even better if harry's new friends witness this cuz apparently I'm obsessed with such a scenario))

Are any of Harry's Durmstrang friends ever formally gonna meet the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black? and on a scale of level 1-100, just what is they're reaction gonna be like? like Harry's so humble sometimes that it just doesn't register that he's the future heir to one of the most ancient and richest houses in all of Britain so it'd probably be a little reminder that, right, Harry James Potter is actually quite powerful, even at such a young age. (I'm a harry and black family fan if you can't tell lmao)

Almost like Astrid (I love her btw) but the British version. (Yes or no?)

I look forward to your updates most wholeheartedly, with love.

Thank you for the ask! The situation with the Black family in Britain is complex; they are both revered and reviled depending on who you ask. They are a proud dark family, and this is something British society has increasingly seen as a negative thing in the past couple of decades in particular. Amongst the dark families though, and those who have no issue with dark practitioners, they are admired and respected — however grudgingly it may be for some.

Even those who fear the Dark Arts can have a complex perception of the Black family. They can fear the family whilst also wishing to be like them. The Black family have influenced British society and culture throughout the generations. Whether it’s fashion or lifestyle, they set trends that people feel the need to follow. They have never been a reclusive family until recent times — but always exclusive. Those who condemn the Black family’s influence and society’s obsession with them, are still feeding into that same obsession by giving their time and energy to condemn the Blacks.

There is indeed a bit of a subconscious perception of the Blacks as “Gods amongst mortals”, because they exist in a league of their own when it comes to wealth and influence. The only other families who come close to competing with them in Britain, inevitably put the Blacks on a pedestal too. There is almost this mythology around the family that makes people intrigued. For them to have maintained relevance and influence for so long baffles many, and people are still telling stories about members of the family who are long dead. They are a British wizarding icon, consistent throughout the changes society has experienced over the past few centuries.

In my story the Black family madness is not a thing — of course there are members of the family who have been notoriously unhinged, but that just adds to the drama and obsession with the family. You can’t help talking about them, speculating, gossiping, feeding the obsession etc. They are just so interesting.

Rest assured, Harry’s Durmstrang friends will meet his family. There will be a bit of a realisation for some of them about what Harry doesn’t talk about or show in terms of the wealth and power behind him.

There was a scene when Mischa met Harry and spoke to the older boys he was with. Mischa was rather indignant on Harry’s behalf that the boys did not seem to understand the significance of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black. What this shows, is that there are some families in mainland Europe who appreciate the Blacks, but many who just don’t know anything about the family.

Because Britain has been isolated for so long, the rest of Europe have forgotten there are many families in Britain who possess just as much wealth and potential as some of the most influential families in the rest of Europe.

I’m so glad to hear you love Astrid — and yes, in many ways Harry is her equal.

I hope you continue to enjoy the story.

Lots of love!

#thanks for the ask!#dark heritage #the noble and most ancient house of black

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dropsofnightshade · 2 months

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Recapping Chapters 86 - 90

Dani and Adele explain to Harry that the reason Astrid Feyling is such a big deal is because she is the only person currently at Durmstrang who is directly in line to inherit a Dark Alliance seat.

Kasia asks to meet with Harry, having seen him talking with Astrid at lunch. She warns him that Astrid collects people, and she doesn’t want to see Harry be used. Kasia speaks from personal experience; there was a time in first year when Astrid showed her similar interest, before something changed and she was cut out. Her cousin, Lucja, remains friends with Astrid — at least one of the reasons the cousins do not get along.

Harry has his catch up lesson with Professor Sylvan after school, and he learns the way he has been taught Occlumency by his grandfather is wrong. The teacher provides him with some pamphlets for tutors who might agree to teach him in Britain.

When Harry is signing up for the Mabon feast, Quidditch try outs, and Professor Abioye’s First Aid course later that evening, he runs into a sixth year Phoenix. The other boy introduces himself as Taras Nazarenko, and although his magical core seems normal, Harry gets the distinct impression of ritual magic from him.

Harry writes to Tom again, expressing to him his concern about the necromantic influence of the diary, given he has a roommate with a light magical core. He feels he needs to put the diary in the magical suppression container, but he wanted to tell Tom first, before he did so.

Tom explains to Harry that being in the container cut him off completely from the world, and Harry realises it was the cause of some distress or discomfort for Tom.

He is torn, however, Tom assures him that for Harry’s roommate to be impacted by necromantic influence, he must interact directly with the hypothetical item.

Harry questions why Tom did not tell him the full truth about necromantic influence, and Tom tells him that in his day, if a person demonstrated knowledge about necromancy beyond what you could find in an average book, that person disappeared. Until Harry learns to defend himself, and his mind, Tom will not be discussing necromancy further with him.

Harry is frustrated, but trusting what Tom has shared with him is true, he agrees to keep the diary in his school trunk and not the magical container.

Harry plans to meet with Ezra that weekend for a mediation session by the hörgr, although he is fairly certain that the strange reaction of his magic was due to his headaches, and his magic must be developing to react to illness and injury.

In his first World History class, Harry notices his magic reacts in the same way to his teacher, Professor Lis, as it did to his housemate, Taras.

During the class, Professor Lis tells the students about Ezra’s study into wandless spellcraft, and confirms ‘Subject A’ was the only child in the study to succeed in using wandless spellcraft. Harry notices Liam watching him closely, and although the other boy wants to talk with Harry after class, he avoids him to go meet Astrid in the library.

Astrid recommends certain books to Harry, and she tells him about the War of Princes. They get to know one another better, and discuss a Norwegian folktale about unicorns. In this part of the world, unicorns are viewed as harbingers of doom. Harry wonders what it means for Britain, that it has the largest population of unicorns in the world, and in particular, a large herd lives in the Forbidden Forest beside Hogwarts.

Harry is annoyed in the following couple of days as students react with surprise and scrutiny to his closeness to Astrid.

Dani speaks with him privately after class, explaining that those who hold seats on the Dark Alliance accept counsel from their family members, but each also has a select group of people who are not always related to them, who they accept advice from. The people Astrid chooses to surround herself with now, might one day be part of her inner circle of advisors. Dani likens getting her notice to getting a golden ticket to power and recognition.

Harry denies any intent to use Astrid in this way, even though Dani suggests Astrid might have the power and resources one day to lobby the British Ministry to improve laws around the Dark Arts.

As Harry and Dani finish talking, he notices the flash of something bright in the boughs of the oak tree they are standing under. He also feels a flicker of ritual magic, which quickly fades.

When Harry and Dani walk away, he could have sworn he heard a tinkling laugh.

Harry goes on a tour of the school with Léna and the first year Phoenixes, and during the tour he senses something strange from a corridor in the main school building. His first impression is that he is sensing something necromantic. He heads back to the corridor alone later with the Invisibility Cloak to investigate.

He finds a tapestry hiding the source of the strange magic he felt, but upon closer inspection it is not quite necromancy — Harry considers that it might be something adjacent.

Headmistress Vulchanova appears, unable to spot Harry under the Cloak, but knowing someone was present. She comments on the power of the Cloak.

Harry decides to reveal himself, and Headmistress Vulchanova seems to come to some sort of realisation when he appears.

She informs him that she can show him what is behind the tapestry, but only once. Harry agrees, and the headmistress gives the command for the tapestry to be raised. Carved into the wall behind the tapestry, is the same symbol Harry saw engraved on Ignotus Peverell’s grave.

The headmistress tells Harry that Grindelwald carved the symbol on the wall when he was a student. She shares her suspicion with Harry though that Harry does not know the symbol in connection to Grindelwald.

Harry confirms he has seen it before on a grave, and the headmistress states in return her guess that this grave long predates Grindelwald. When Harry does not respond, she proposes an exchange; she will tell Harry the true meaning of the symbol, and in return, he must answer one question truthfully.

Harry weighs up the pros and cons, before deciding it is too risky. Headmistress Vulchanova is pleased — Harry has passed some sort of test in his response.

Although she will not tell him the truth about the symbol, she does give him a clue; she asks him if he has ever read The Tales of Beedle the Bard.

With the clue provided, Harry heads to the library to check out the book. Later that night he asks Tom if he knows anything about the symbol, but Tom does not know anything other than it is Grindelwald’s symbol.

Harry meets Ezra early that weekend for a meditation session in the sacred grove. He learns as he meditates in the grove that not only can be feel the magic in this space — he can actually see it.

He is able to perceive his own magical core visually for the first time, noticing it has a dark centre but a golden edge around it. His magical awareness appears like threads of gold to him.

Harry notices strange black threads coming from his magical core and stretching out into the world far beyond what he can see. He does not understand their nature, and it unsettles him.

Harry catches up on letters from his friends, and they tell him Umbridge is as bad as they suspected she would be. The new DADA professor is Gilderoy Lockhart, who is useless.

Later that day when Harry is with his friends, he notices the strange ritual magic coming from one of the trees he is sitting under. He admits to Liam that he has been getting the impression of being watched around certain trees. Liam does not think Harry is crazy; the trees are very old, and it is unclear how sentient any of them have been from being surrounded by so much magical activity over the years.

Liam asks Harry about Ezra’s study, and Harry confirms he participated. Liam does not ask Harry directly if he was Subject A, but he does ask if Harry has any suspicions of who it might be, or if he knew anyone else in the study.

Harry is able to answer Liam without revealing anything.

The group watch the Saturday afternoon Quidditch try outs, and see Karl play. Harry spots the captain of the Ravens, Ylva Thorvald, and thinks she might have some goblin ancestry based on her stature.

Harry reads The Tales of Beedle the Bard, and when he reaches the final story, The Tale of the Three Brothers, he is struck by the possible connection between the story and his ancestor, Ignotus Peverell.

Harry theorises that Ignotus is the youngest brother in the story, and the cloak that is mentioned is the Invisibility Cloak that has been passed down through Harry’s family for generations.

He is also unsettled to remember the words on his parents’ grave - and old family saying, Sirius had claimed. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. Harry fears his bloodline might be marked in some way by death.

He contacts Sirius to share his thoughts, and Sirius is doubtful of there being a connection, but does recall The Tale of the Three Brothers was James’ favourite as a kid. Sirius concedes there are a lot of coincidences. He offers to check the Potter vault to see if there is a copy of the book there.

That night, Harry dreams of a cloaked figure standing at the end of a bridge. He does not recall the dream when he wakes in the morning.

Harry performs well in his Quidditch try out, and he is supported by his friends and Ezra in the stands.

After the try out, he meets with Ezra to meditate in the sacred grove again. There are other students meditating at that time of day, and Harry examines their magical cores. He discovers a fellow student with a dark magical core, which looks different to his own; there is no golden halo around the other dark magical core.

As Harry attempts to examine the dark threads coming from his magical core, he becomes aware that they carry a distinct similarity to the magic he had sensed from the symbol carved by Grindelwald on the school wall.

He and Ezra debrief afterwards, and Harry also tells him about the ritual magical he has sensed from some of the trees around the school. Ezra is unsure of the cause, and although they consider a few theories together, it remains a mystery.

It does lead to Harry thinking about the people his magic reacts to though, and he shares with Ezra what he has been sensing. Ezra theorises they are perhaps like Harry, capable of wandless spellcraft.��

Harry does not think this is the case though. When he tells Ezra the two people he has sensed the ritual magic from lately have been a sixth year Phoenix and Professor Lis, Ezra is unable to hide his reaction.

He clearly knows something, but refuses to tell Harry anything due to some sort of professional obligation.

On Monday morning, Harry receives a first round offer to play Seeker for the Ravens. Ylva Thorvald asks to meet with him at lunchtime to discuss the offer further.

In between his morning classes, Harry is stopped by Oskar Braun, the captain of the Foxes. He offers Harry the position of starting Seeker — the reason there was no formal first round offer is because he technically offered it to Krum, who refused. But Harry is Oskar’s next pick. Harry agrees to consider the offer.

At lunch he meets with Ylva. He realises two things quickly as he shakes hands with her — she did not give him the same impression as Taras and Professor Lis. His magic took notice of her, even more so up close, but he did not get a strong sense of ritual magic from her.

The second thing he notices is that an examination of her magical core reveals a phenomenon he has observed in only two other people; Fleur and Dion. It was like there were two different types of magic in her.

Harry recognised the second type of magic in Ylva — it was what he felt being around goblins.

He speculates that this must mean Fleur and Dion had non-human heritage too.

Ylva discusses the team and training schedule with Harry, and then admits she was keen to talk with Harry for a reason other than discussing the Quidditch offer. She confirms she is half-goblin, and her mother is the goblin ambassador to the Danish wizarding government.

Ylva informs Harry he is quite the talk in the goblin diplomatic circles.

After their chat, Harry decides to accept the offer to play for the Ravens.

Later in the day, he is approached by Zsófia Vereb, the captain of the Bears. She knows her offer is not as good as Oskar’s and Ylva’s, but she offers him the reserve Seeker position for the Bears, with the goal of him being appointed starting Seeker in the following year.

Harry turns down her offer, and Oskar’s too later that afternoon. Both are disappointed but not entirely surprised.

Harry shares the good news with Sirius and Arcturus over the mirror that evening. When Harry tells them about Ylva, Arcturus points out her mother might well be involved with the negotiations between the goblin nation and the Danish research team developing the advanced Heritage Test.

They discuss the magical impressions Harry has been getting from Taras, Professor Lis, and now Ylva. Harry notes that Ylva feels different to Taras and Professor Lis, but does remind him of a couple of people he encountered at the DAYS gathering.

He confirms Ezra knows something, but cannot share it with Harry due to some professional expectation. Hearing that Arcturus states that they cannot rule of the possibility that Professor Lis and Taras might also have non-human heritage. This is because he can only imagine that if a teacher, for example, had some sort of creature heritage, that they would be required to inform the faculty about it.

Sirius confirms that he found a copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard in the Potter vault at Gringotts. He nearly missed it, because it is written in ancient runes. It may well be a first edition, and Sirius suggests they hire an expert to look at it.

Meanwhile, Tom has had much to think about over the past few days.

It is revealed that although he did attack Harry that night in a panic of being put back in the magical container, that something impossible happened. Harry’s magic, seemingly seeing no difference between Harry and Tom, obeyed Tom, and put Harry to sleep to buy him time to work out a plan.

Tom found himself dragged involuntarily into Harry’s magical core.

Tom had wished strongly Harry wanted to return to Hogwarts, that he did not want to study Mind Arts, and that he did not want to put the diary back into the magical container. He felt like none of this would have happened if Harry had been at Hogwarts.

Without conscious action, his scattered thoughts and wishes had life breathed into them by Harry’s powerful magic. There was no difference between a thought and a spell in the heart of Harry’s magical core.

He obliviated Harry of the memory of Tom attacking, and with that done, he tried to work out how to extricate himself from Harry’s magical core. Tom was also curious and concerned why Harry’s magic responded to him as though he was Harry.

He was pulled in deeper, nearly losing his own sense of self in the process, and ended up in a space beyond Harry’s magical core.

There, Tom saw a piece of his own soul, woven into Harry’s being.

He realised with dawning horror that Harry was a Horcrux; his other self has inadvertently made him one that night in Godric’s Hollow.

Harry magic attempted to consume Tom then, trying to reunify him. Tom truly struggled in earnest then, and Harry’s magic reluctantly let him go.

The following day when Harry reported the migraine and his experiences from that day, Tom feared he had accidentally caused damage to Harry’s mind, and put him under again to survey what was happening.

He found three Compulsion Charms in Harry’s head, and was initially furious believing someone had attacked Harry. Then he worked out what the compulsions actually were and he was confused and wary; a compulsion to want to avoid the Mind Arts, a compulsion to want to return to Hogwarts, and a compulsion to leave the diary out of the magical suppression container.

These were all things Tom had desired but not actually acted on. The compulsions were crafted with Harry’s own magic, but touched by Tom’s guidance. Yet, he had not guided this magic.

Tom carefully released the compulsions, obliviated Harry once more, and then got out of his head. He resolved to avoid entering Harry’s mind or magical core again, to avoid something like this happening once more.

Harry has his first lesson with Professor Abioye the following week, and Viktor Krum is taking the same beginner’s course as him.

He also has his first Quidditch training session, and although he is excited to meet his teammates, he finds a chilly reception waiting for him from the reserves.

The reserve Seeker, Dominik Iločki, expresses a clear dislike of Harry. Karl intervenes when he arrives, and Harry learns from him and the other boy on the starting team, Luis Pichler, that Dominik has been the reserve for a year, and was expecting to get the starting position this year.

Harry speaks with Tom about the Parselmouth ability one night after school, and questions if the ability is truly limited to just speaking the language of snakes, and controlling them.

Tom is vague in his response, reminding Harry that there are certain things he cannot tell him, but that he can guide him to the answers. Tom also reminded Harry that to truly understand Slytherin’s legacy he needs to return to Hogwarts.

Later that week, Harry is in the library with Astrid, looking for books on blood magic that he could not find in Britain. He also goes searching for some books on magical creatures, hoping to research about the topic a bit more and see if he can work out what heritages Fleur and Dion might have, if his theory is correct about them.

Astrid has an interesting reaction to the books he has picked out, and she shares with him that although not as problematic as other books on the topic, they are not ideal. She encourages him to still read them to form his own opinion, but offers to write home to her parents to send over a book Harry won’t be able to find in the Durmstrang library.

It is written by a woman with mer heritage, whereas all the books in the library are written by witches and wizards with entirely human heritage.

Harry also learns the term ‘magical creature’ when applied to communities like centaurs, merpeople etc. is considered derogatory by some. He resolves to avoid using it in the future.

Harry receives a letter from Draco that weekend confirming he has been appointed the new Seeker for Slytherin. He also learns Lockhart was given a formal warning by the Board of Governors, but his classes are still mostly useless.

Harry meets up with Kasia for a duelling session. He manages to beat her, having taken to heart the advice and lessons he learnt from the DAYS gathering. Although he loses the next two duels, Kasia offers to meet up fortnightly to train together, and Harry happily agrees.

Meanwhile back in Britain, the Wizengamot meet to discuss the House Committee report on the public’s views of the proposed new bill to promote and improve werewolf rights.

In a week they will all be voting on the bill, but the purpose of this meeting is for the drafters of the bill, Gareth Greengrass, Amelia Bones, and Levi Selwyn-Burke, to address the concerns raised in the report.

Gareth promises they will be amending the bill, making concessions in the light of the public’s clear concerns. Amelia addresses the Wizengamot further on their proposal for a thirty day grace period, allowing individuals and families to register with the Ministry without facing criminal consequences for failing to previously register as a werewolf.

They are able to soften the mood in the room, and open up the floor to reasonable discussions around the bill.

#dark heritage #recap

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dropsofnightshade · 3 months

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I'm absolutely LIVING for Dark Heritage. It's SO GOOD LIKE ONG MAN. IF I COULD GIVE YOU A THOUSAND KUDOS I WOULD CAUSE HOLY FUCK MAN 🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷

That is so nice of you to say, thank you so much! I hope you continue to enjoy it.

#thank you #dark heritage

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dropsofnightshade · 3 months

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Is there a specific castle that you were picturing when writing about a black castle?? I googled the place (Lake District I think) and it seems heavenly. I would really love to see your inspiration for the castle or how you visualise it if you have the time

thank you ❤︎

I was heavily inspired by Windsor Castle - particularly the view you get of it as you travel the Long Walk in Windsor Great Park - if you Google it you will get an idea of the scale and grandeur.

As a side note, the Vayssière family home was inspired by Château d'Ussé - if it were transplanted to sit atop a hill overlooking the Var Valley.

#thanks for the ask!#dark heritage

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dropsofnightshade · 3 months

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Hello!! just wanted to ask, you mentioned somewhat at the start of your fic that the blacks are essentially wizarding royalty. Is this going to be mentioned or brought up again? I really loved this little fact, and I can't help but imagine some of Harry's friends realizing just what kind of power Harry has as the future heir of said family 🤭 and I was wondering what you think the POV of Harry's durmstrang friends especially visiting Black Castle for the first time would be like?

Thank you so much for such a lovely fic and make sure to drink lots of water and get enough sleep 🩷

Hello, I did indeed liken the Black family to wizarding royalty. This was more reflecting their money, status and legacy rather than any connection (historic or current) to royalty.

In saying that, even among the Sacred Twenty-Eight the Blacks stand out - they are the only family who possess a castle. Most of the Sacred Twenty-Eight own manor houses as their primary real estate. The only other reference of a family privately owning a castle in Britain is the Peverell family.

When Harry's Durmstrang friends eventually come to visit Black Castle needless to say they will be impressed.

#thanks for the ask!#dark heritage

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dropsofnightshade · 3 months

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Hey, I was re-reading Dark Heritage and I noticed you mentioned in one of your earlier chapters that the black castle originally claimed to belong to the dark lady (Morgana), is this going to be relevant in any way whatsoever or like an acknowledgement of the fact as it seems like such a cool fact that harry coincidentally ended up in his (allegedly) ancestors tower?

Also, can I just say that Dark Heritage is an actual bloody MASTERPIECE? When I finished reading the fic, I had to take a deep breath and stop myself from either hurling myself out of my car or squealing at the top of my lungs as my parents would have definitely thought that I needed to be put down for how rabid I was acting 😭

thank you sooo much for dedicating yourself to this monster of a fic. I look forward to the update on Saturday and and I hope you know just how much this means to me 💕

I am so glad you noticed!! It's one of those things where a family has laid claim to a historic connection, but it's a bit murky whether it is true or not. There will be another mention of it down the track - some of the plot points around Black Castle were pushed to the wayside with Harry effectively excluded from the property because of the locket.

Thank you so much for your kind words - I am so happy my writing brought you such enjoyment. Lots of love!

#thanks for the ask!#dark heritage

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dropsofnightshade · 6 months

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Recapping Chapters 81 - 85

Harry prepares to board the Nerida, the ship to take him to Durmstrang. He encounters Arie on the dock, and meets Arie’s parents, Bas and Sanne, and Arie’s grandfather, Hendrik. Harry introduces Sirius and Arcturus in turn, and Sirius hits it off with Arie’s parents. Arie’s grandfather is quite reserved though.

The two boys say goodbye to their relatives and then board the Nerida. They find their friends on the lowest deck of the ship, and see Dani, Adele and Ella interrogating Liam, who apparently had been spotted talking to another girl in their year level, Astrid Feyling. This was apparently a big deal, though Harry was uncertain why.

Harry had hoped to learn more about Durmstrang on the trip there, but learned his enrolment was not actually complete, and that there was one more thing he needed to do before he could be let in on all of the school’s secrets.

He did though learn the ship would travel through to the end of the Geirangerfjorden and then dive for the final portion of the trip to reach the school’s location.

Harry spends the trip to Durmstrang socialising with friends, trying new snacks, and enjoying the sights on deck. He reveals to his friends that he is a Metamorphmagi — though Liam already knew after reading about Harry.

Harry encounters Finn, who appears to be good friends with Arie. Finn mentions the woman in the tailor’s shop that had been with him was his aunt, Annika Vogel. He expects Harry to know the name for some reason, but it is unfamiliar to Harry.

Liam and Arie comment on the tension between the two boys, and Harry plays it off as lingering awkwardness after their duel.

When the ship arrives at Durmstrang the other students go ahead while Harry and the first years wait behind to be brought in separately for their sorting.

The harbourmaster, Halvard Nordhal, takes the students on rowboats to shore and then guides them away from the school through the valley. They meet a teacher, Professor Falk, who explains before the students may enter the school, they must make a pledge in the most sacred place in the school.

The promise is: “I pledge to conceal the secrets of the Durmstrang Institute and to honour its legacy.”

Harry is called up first, and follows Professor Falk to a hidden entrance behind a waterfall at the edge of the valley. He enters the space alone, and as he travels down the tunnel he realises there are ashgaräz lining the ceiling and walls.

He hears a disembodied female voice directing him to approach the altar at the back of the cave, and make his pledge. Harry makes his pledge at the altar, and as soon as he does, a ghostly figure of a woman materialises on the other side of the altar.

She introduces herself as Nerida Vulchanova — the founder of Durmstrang. She guides Harry through his sorting, calling upon the judgment of their kin, the wisdom of the first peoples who practiced magic on this land, and the divine guidance of magic.

Harry feels like there is a hand steadying him during the ritual sorting, and the touch is like lighting, leaving a lasting impression.

He is sorted in the House of the Phoenix. Nerida comments that Harry has powerful kin and he bears a heavy legacy. Harry gets the feeling she might be hinting at Morgana, and wonders if perhaps the Dark Lady herself had been called upon in the ritual. But before he can question Nerida, something appears to frighten her and she quickly disappears.

Harry exits the cave and learns Professor Falk is his head of house as they walk back to join the others. The fives houses of Durmstrang were created during a time of war in this part of the world, and each of the houses had a particular purpose for which it trained its students for war.

The House of the Dragon is for those with an affinity for combative spellcraft — traditionally the soldiers. They are the largest house at Durmstrang.

The House of the Griffin is for those with an affinity for defensive spellcraft — traditionally the engineers. They are the second largest house at Durmstrang.

The House of the Unicorn is for those with an affinity for logistical spellcraft — traditionally the healers, communicators, transporters and constructors. They are the third largest house at Durmstrang.

The House of the Chimaera is for those with an affinity for runecraft — traditionally the intelligence operatives, saboteurs and disrupters. They are the second smallest house at Durmstrang.

The House of the Phoenix - Harry’s house, is for those with an affinity for ritual magic — traditionally the spiritual leaders, diplomats and generals.

Harry realises upon returning that he needs to do something about Tom — he is capable of hearing things outside the diary, and Harry has now made a pledge to conceal the secrets of the school. His belongings, including Tom, and set to be transported up to his new dormitory.

Harry is escorted by another teacher, Professor Abioye, to the school now that he has been sorted. Professor Abioye is the head of the Unicorn house and he teaches the Healing Arts.

Harry learns more about the school, and Professor Abioye shares that he offers a fortnightly healing class for those who cannot fit the proper elective into their schedules.

As they approach the gates to the school a pair of golden statues shaped like eagles swoop them both and Harry learns that these are the guardian eagles, and they survey everyone who enters the school. They are tied to the records of the school, and know exactly who is meant to be entering. Polyjuice Potion, illusory magic, or being in an Animagus form will not fool the guardian eagles.

Harry also learns that there is a second altar, or hörgr, within a grove of trees maintained inside the school walls, which students are allowed to access to use.

At the top of the stairs Harry meets Professor König, the head of House of the Chimaera and the Runecraft teacher at Durmstrang.

Professor Abioye takes Harry to a waiting room across from the great hall to wait for the other students to finish their sorting. Inside, Harry meets Professor Niva and Professor Björnsson.

Professor Niva is the Head of the House of the Dragon and the Duelling professor. Professor Björnsson is the Head of the House of the Griffin and the Martial Magic professor.

Throughout the evening Harry met the first years who shared the same house as him; Emilia Aho, Klara De Vos, Alexander Sommer and Frida Vester.

Professor Falk informs he and Alexander that as they are both the only boys in their respective year levels, they have the choice of rooming together or having seperate rooms.

Harry agrees to room with Alexander, as the younger boy is keen to have company, and Harry knows it would not be a true boarding school experience without sharing a dormitory.

The students are all announced to the school one by one, and as Harry is announced he meets his House Captain, Léna Katona, who directs him to sit at the second year table.

Harry’s friends saved him a seat. After the students are all announced, Headmaster Karkaroff commences the feast, saving his address to the school once dinner is cleared.

At the dinner table, Harry meets Christian Sørensen, who is from Denmark and a Unicorn like Adele. He has transferred into Mind Arts this year, and so he will be new to the class like Harry.

Harry learns Christian’s back up if he fails Mind Arts is to arrange a private tutor to teach him. When Harry questions how Christian would find such a tutor, given how few people teach Mind Arts, Christian mentions the National Tutor Register. It is a system in Denmark of regulating people offering teaching services.

Liam sitting nearby shares that you do not have to be a citizen of a particular country to access their registry.

Harry speaks later with the rest of his friends, still marvelling about meeting the ghost of Nerida Vulchanova. He learns whilst Headmaster Karkaroff handles the day to day responsibilities of running the school, and any public engagements, he answers ultimately to Nerida Vulchanova.

After Karkaroff’s announcements the students are dismissed to head back to their common rooms. Harry is approached by Ezra, who he had not spotted at the staff table. Ezra informs Harry he was visiting Sirius and Arcturus — he felt guilty about not being able to warn them about the pledge. He hand delivered the legal agreement Harry’s guardians would need to sign for Harry to speak with them about the school.

Sirius and Arcturus had been unhappy to learn about the pledge, but had signed the legal agreement, meaning Harry could communicate more easily with them both.

Professor Falk interrupted Harry and Ezra’s conversation, asking to speak with Harry privately. She took him to her office, and explained she needed to speak with him about two unauthorised items identified in his belongings. The guardian eagles not only regulate the people who enter, but any items too.

Professor Falk explains the two items that were picked up were a diary and an invisibility cloak. Starting with the diary, Professor Falk informs him it is necromantic in nature. Necromancy is of course illegal in this part of the world, and even just possessing a necromantic item is an offence.

Professor Falk assures Harry she will not report him — but she does impart a warning. The diary needs to be stored appropriately until it can be discreetly transported back home over the Yuletide break. She has placed the diary in a secure box, which can only be opened by herself or Harry. The box is designed to contain the necromantic influence of the item. Professor Falk tells Harry it is his responsibility to keep the item safe in his belongings - she will not hide it for him. There will be consequences if he tries to bring it back after the Yule break.

Professor Falk is extremely reluctant to talk much about necromancy or how she knew the diary was necromantic. She shares that for those who are familiar with necromancy, they have a way to detect it

Regarding the invisibility cloak, Professor Falk theorises it was identified by the guardian eagles because they could not ascertain the nature of the item. Professor Falk herself could not work out what type of magic infused the cloak.

She confirmed Harry could keep it without any special precautions in place, though she was curious for how long the cloak had been in Harry’s family for. Harry answered vaguely, and Professor Falk seemed thoughtful.

Professor Falk escorted Harry to his common room, passing through the main residential building. All of the house common rooms opened on a communal foyer area. Each door was guarded by a stone statute that represented the symbol of the house.

Harry meets back up with the first years inside the common room, who were waiting for him to appear. They are approached by their house captain, Léna, who gives them a quick tour of the common room and then takes them through to the dormitories.

Inside their dormitory, Harry and Alexander check their timetables, which are on their beds. There are also maps to help them navigate the school.

After getting ready for bed, Harry speaks with Sirius and Arcturus and then he writes to Tom in the diary.

Tom, panicked after being shut inside the secure box and cut off from the world for a period of time, is unable to resist reaching out to Harry’s presence the moment his senses return to him.

Harry is immediately apprehensive, and Tom realises his impulsive action might have just revealed his true sentience and ability to influence the world to Harry.

Harry interrogates Tom about the diary being a necromantic item, and what necromantic influence is.

Tom tells Harry a limited amount of information, and Harry remains suspicious. He confronts Tom with his belief that Tom has the ability to interact with the world beyond just being able to hear outside of the diary.

Tom attacked.

Harry wakes up with a headache, disoriented in bed. He realises he must have fallen asleep while writing to Tom, as the diary is still open in his lap. He goes to bed soon after, figuring the headache is from tiredness. He lays awake for some time though, feeling strangely on edge, like something is wrong.

In the morning he still has a headache and his magic feels unusually reactive under his skin, giving him a sense of aimless alarm.

He and Alexander head to the dining room, and Léna brings them over to meet a girl sitting alone, Mira Zamfir. She is one of the two girls in Harry’s year level.

Mira is cold and rude to Harry and Alexander, ignoring them.

Harry speaks with Alexander, ignoring the girl in turn. Alexander asks some questions about Hogwarts and Harry is taken aback with how homesick the conversation makes him feel, and also the sharp pain he feels in his head.

The first year girls arrive together and Mira treats them to the same appraising silence as the boys. Harry spots Astrid Feyling entering the room and sitting down with some older students — she gives Harry a nod of acknowledgement when she catches him looking her way.

Mira leaves soon after, and Harry decides to head to the owlery to check on Hedwig and then to the hospital wing to pick up a pain relief potion for his headache.

The first years notice his distraction and discomfort and he admits he has a headache and did not sleep well. They all encourage him to get to the hospital wing.

Harry checks in on Hedwig first, and then heads to the hospital wing. He meets Healer Nyström, who documents his symptoms and performs a simple medical scan. She concludes he does have a headache, likely a tension headache caused by stress or poor sleep. The Healer gives Harry a pain relief potion, which helps immediately. She also prescribes him enough pain relief potions to take one every four hours for no more than two days. The Healer instructs him to return right away if the headache worsened or lasted longer than two days.

Harry enters his first class late, the Alchemy teacher, Professor Sundberg, unimpressed at his tardiness. However, he reads the note Healer Nyström prepared for Harry and calms down quite quickly realising Harry had good reason to be late.

Harry sits next to Jan Łaski, who he met at the DAYS gathering. Arie and Finn sit at the work table next to them. Speaking to Jan, Harry learns that Mira behaves coldly to everyone, and also that she and Astrid do not get along.

After class, Harry heads to Runecraft. He runs into Liam on the way, who shares the class with him. Harry feels a bit foggy as he walks to class with Liam, feeling like something the other boy said earlier had triggered a thought in Harry.

Harry’s head started to throb, even though he was not yet due for another pain-relief potion, and he found himself telling Liam that he was having second thoughts about choosing Mind Arts as an elective.

Liam is confused where this feeling came from, assuring Harry he can help him in class, and Harry feels conflicted. His magic also feels alert.

Liam grows worried about Harry’s behaviour and attempts to enquire if everything is okay, but they are interrupted by the arrival of Dani and Adele, who are also in the Runecraft class with them.

Professor König teaches them in a blunt manner, but as a Runes Mistress they are fortunate to have her for a teacher.

Over lunch Harry takes another potion, and notices Finn watching him.

He walks with Arie to Charms, running into another boy from the DAYS gathering, Luther Verbeke. As they walk Harry keeps dwelling on his conversation with Liam and feels the awful headache flicker to life in his head again. He wonders if he should go back to the hospital wing.

In the Charms classroom Harry sees Kasia sitting down and joins her with Arie and Luther in tow. Kasia asks him if he is looking forward to Mind Arts that afternoon, and felt the same conflict rise up in him about how he felt about the elective.

He was saved from answering by the arrival of Professor Hyseni, the cheerful Charms teacher. Harry could sense she had a powerful light magical core.

Professor Hyseni explained they would be starting the year leaning about the Memory Charm. A shiver runs down Harry’s spine hearing that, and his magic, which had settled back down into a period of calm, suddenly spikes back to life with alarm.

His head started to throb painfully again.

Professor Hyseni lectured them all on the Memory Charm and its counter spell, and then got them all up to come practice the Obliviate spell on a target.

Kasia notices how pale and unwell Harry looks and suggests he go to the hospital wing. After a moment of hesitation, Harry agrees and leaves the classroom.

Healer Nyström immediately takes him to a private room when she sees him, and scans him again. She concludes his headache has evolved into a migraine, and explains what this is. She gives him a more heavy-duty pain relief potion and explains the best thing to do now is the rest. The potion will also make him feel drowsy.

Harry wakes up a couple of hours later to Ezra standing outside his room. He learns he has missed his afternoon classes, and it is nearly dinner.

Alone with Ezra, Harry explains the strange behaviour of his magic, and Ezra theorises it might be his magic reacting to his illness.

Ezra suggests they find time that weekend for a meditation session, to get to the bottom of the behaviour of his magic. Harry promises to keep Ezra up to date on any changes to his magic, and to come to him if he needs to talk.

Harry takes his dinner in the hospital wing to avoid the noise of the great hall, and then walks back to the common room after being discharged.

He does his homework in the study area, and is joined eventually by the first years returning from dinner. Léna comes over to tell Harry Professor Falk wanted to see him and asked Harry to attend her office tomorrow morning before his first class.

That night Harry talks with Sirius and Arcturus, who are both very worried by his illness and the behaviour of his magic. They agree it is a good idea for Harry to have a meditation session with Ezra that weekend, but Sirius takes it further, wanting to get a second opinion if Harry’s headaches continue. Arcturus is able to diffuse the tension between them, with Harry not wanting to miss any more school and Sirius wanting to pull him out for medical assessment if he remains unwell.

After his conversation with his guardians, Harry writes to Tom. He informs Tom about missing classes that afternoon and the migraine. Tom shares that he has an idea of what might help.

Harry wakes up, realising he somehow fell asleep again while writing to Tom.

Fortunately there is no headache this time to wake up to, and the ever-present alarm from his magic is hushed to nothing more than a whisper at the back of his mind.

He continues to write to Tom, who asks what classes Harry missed that afternoon. Harry confirms he left during Charms and missed Transfiguration and Mind Arts completely. Tom comments that it is a shame, because Harry was particularly looking forward to Mind Arts.

Harry realised he was looking forward to it, and his earlier doubt about the subject seemed silly now. He couldn’t pinpoint what had him so bothered before about it.

Harry sleeps well that night, and wakes up still without a headache. After breakfast he visits Professor Falk in her office as requested.

She checks up on him, having heard he had spent time in the hospital wing. But then she admits she also needs to speak with him about the diary. She has not been entirely transparent with him, and she has been agonising over what to tell him over the past two days. There is apparently some terrible risk to those who know more about necromancy than the average person, though the teacher is vague on the details of this.

She stresses to him about the need for safe storage of the item, and confesses the real reason why she gave it back to him instead of keeping it herself, was because she is vulnerable to it.

People with light and neutral magical cores are particularly susceptible to necromantic influence. Someone like Harry, with a dark magical core, is protected from necromantic influence.

Harry learns necromantic influence can influence the behaviour of people. Even short exposure can be enough to have an impact. Professor Falk is already affected, and so she had no choice but to give it back to Harry.

Harry is worried about his roommate, Alexander, who has a light magical core. Professor Falk assures him as long as Alexander doesn’t know about the diary and it remains stored appropriately, there is no risk.

Harry feels guilty knowing the diary is not stored appropriately at all.

He attends Martial Magic first up with Ella, Luther and unfortunately, Finn. Astrid is in the class too, though she doesn’t interact with any of them during class itself.

Finn gets on Harry’s nerves, but the class is intense enough to distract Harry from his annoyance. They all freshen up after class, and Harry steps out of the change rooms to see Astrid exiting the girl’s area.

They formally introduce themselves to one another, and Astrid asks if Harry wants to walk to class together, as they both have Mind Arts.

He happily agrees, and the two get to know each other a bit more as they walk together.

Astrid mentions the War of Princes, and Harry recalls this is the name of the conflict that was ongoing in the region when Durmstrang was founded. He admits to not knowing much about it, and wanting to know more.

Astrid asks him if he wants to meet up with her in the library after school and she can show him some books she recommends and Harry agrees.

They arrive at the Mind Arts classroom and Astrid asks if Harry wants to sit with her, but he regretfully tells her his friend has saved him a seat, seeing the free spot next to Liam.

Harry sits with Liam and notices Christian and another boy giving him wide eyed looks. Christian tips his head towards Astrid meaningfully, and when Harry still doesn’t get it, Christian whispers to talk after class.

Kasia arrives and sees the only spot left is next to Astrid. Harry sees her face tighten and asks Liam if the two girls don’t get along. Liam admits he is not sure, but the two tend not to sit together if they can avoid it.

Professor Sylvan arrives, and she is not what Harry was expecting. She is younger than he imagined, in her thirties, with long red hair and unusual lilac eyes. She gets the students to resume the exercise they had been working on yesterday, and directs Harry over to her to talk.

Professor Sylvan is unimpressed that Harry was absent from class yesterday, and even though he tries to explain his absence, she does not want to hear it.

She instructs him he will sit the test he missed yesterday. It is tricky, and Harry does not quite finish it by the end of his allotted time.

He is made to wait while Professor Sylvan moves the other students onto the next part of their exercise.

Finally, Harry is able to sit down with the teacher to have his test marked. For any answers he got wrong she put him on the spot to guess again, and she picked apart his written responses.

It felt a bit like bullying, and Harry just wanted to join the other students to actually practice Occlumency.

Professor Sylvan made him take a seat again though as she moved the students onto the final part of their exercise, leaving Harry out of it.

For the final portion of class, Harry was permitted to join the others, as they were moving onto a new exercise.

After class, Professor Sylvan asks to speak with him again. She asks if he has any practice with Occlusion mediation, and when he answers no, she explains she guided the new student through the exercise yesterday. She tells him he can come to her office after school that day to be caught up on what he missed.

Harry is surprised at the offer from the acerbic teacher, and readily agrees.

Outside he finds Liam, Christian, and Christian’s friend waiting for him. Christian introduces his friend as Michael, and interrogates Harry about arriving to class with Astrid.

He learns from the boys that Astrid keeps to herself, and even though she is popular, she is quite unapproachable.

Harry has lunch with his friends. He spots Astrid and her friends Sara and Lucja getting up to leave the table at the end of lunch, and approaches them.

He notices as he does so there is a lot of attention on him from surrounding students at the table, who seem incredulous about him approaching Astrid.

Sara and Lucja seem cooly distant, but Astrid is as warm as she was earlier. Harry explains he has a catch up class with Professor Sylvan after school, so he can’t meet up with her in the library like they planned.

Astrid suggests they catch up tomorrow instead, and Harry agrees.

Dani corners him after Astrid walks away with her friends, and says they have a lot to talk about.

#recap #dark heritage

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dropsofnightshade · 8 months

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I’m halfway through ch 50 and ao3 went down 😭😭Really enjoying the fic though!!! Just being tortured by ao3 waiting to read the rest, you don’t happen to post anywhere else do you?

Hi there - gosh I feel your pain, AO3 shut downs are the worst! Unfortunately I don't post anywhere else these days. I used to post to Fanfiction.net when I was a kid but those days are behind me! I hope it comes back up soon. Happy to hear you are enjoying the fic xx

#thanks for the ask!#dark heritage

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dropsofnightshade · 9 months

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Hello ! How are you? I hope it's ok I had a question about a tag in DH, what does Dark Harry's tag refer to specifically? Soo to his magical core, his heritage or is it also linked to a personality development?

Hi there! I'm well, thank you - and you are always welcome to ask about the tags. The Dark Harry tag refers to both his magical core and his heritage. I know the tag is used in other stories to indicate the character's moral compass etc. but it is not the case for my story.

#thanks for the ask!#dark heritage

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dropsofnightshade · 10 months

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Hello! What are your favourite Harry Potter fics?

It has actually been a couple of years since I read any Harry Potter fanfiction! I find it tricky to read fanfictions in the same fandom I am writing in - I do read in other fandoms.

However, I have some classics I adore and would recommend to anyone:

All the Young Dudes by MsKingBean89 (Marauders Era - Remus/Sirius)

survival is a talent by ShanaStoryteller (Set during Hogwarts years - Draco/Harry)

Don’t Fuck with Florists (They’ll Fuck You Up) by MayMarlow (1940s - Tom/Harry)

the family evans by dirgewithoutmusic (One shot - Gen)

#thanks for the ask!#fic recommendations

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dropsofnightshade · 11 months

Text

Recapping Chapters 76 - 80

Day Six of the DAYS Gathering:

Harry attends his second Quidditch workshop in the morning, and then after lunch he has the second half of his Wandcraft workshop. The students go outside to conduct the ritual to attempt to bond their chosen core to the wood they have prepared. They encounter one of their hosts, Juliette Vayssière, who is there to guide them on where to conduct the ritual and also to witness it.

Harry is able to successfully complete the ritual, creating a yew wand with a thestral hair core. He is left exhausted from the process. Madam Alarie pulls him aside to talk — she tells him he has a gift for ritual magic. She offers him an apprenticeship with her, to commence when he turns seventeen. Wandmaking apprenticeships last for five years, which is a big commitment. Harry is not sure what he wants to do, but Madam Alarie encourages him to think on it — he has plenty of time to consider his options.

Harry is tempted to keep the wand he has created; he feels attached to it. However, he knows instinctively it will not work as well for him as his holly wand. He knows it is destined for someone else, and so he agrees to sell it to Madam Alarie.

That evening is the ball to wrap up the end of the DAYS gathering. Harry and his friends end up arriving later than planned, and they have to split up onto seperate tables. Harry and Daphne have no choice but to sit on a table with Finn Vogel, and some of his friends.

Finn behaviour continues to be frustrating, but Harry doesn’t actually mind the other boy’s friends. One of them, Jan, is a Durmstrang boy sponsored by the Sowa family. When Harry asks if he knows Kasia and Malina, he confirms he does. He mentions Kasia’s uncle Piotr Sowa is famous for being the youngest duellist to ever win the European tournament.

Harry and his friends have a wonderful night on the dance floor, and at the end of the evening Harry and Daphne take their time walking back. Mischa offered to take them to the after party, before realising they are probably a bit young.

Harry parts ways with Daphne, and heads to the boy’s section of the dormitories.

He encounters a shocking scene — Blaise has another Altomare-sponsored boy pinned up against the wall, wand in hand. When they become aware of Harry’s presence, Blaise is horrified.

After the other Altomare sponsored boy has left, Blaise letting him go, Harry presses his friend for answers. Blaise refuses to say anything, begging Harry not to ask him. Harry realises Blaise is scared.

They are interrupted by Liam coming out of the dormitory, having heard noises. Blaise leaves soon after — Liam checks in on Harry to ask what happened, but Harry doesn’t answer truthfully he doesn’t even know what happened.

Day Seven

On the final morning of the DAYS gathering, everyone gets up to pack and spend some final moments together before parting ways. Harry spends time with Daphne, her roommates, and his own roommates. They chat about birthdays, and Harry realises he never RSVPd to Draco’s birthday invitation. He could not attend due to being in France, and he had mentioned it in the last week of school to Draco. But he had not responded to the actual invitation. Harry feels terrible, and resolves to apologise to Draco when he gets home.

Harry also learns who sponsored each of his new friends.

There is a farewell lunch, and then everyone is saying their goodbyes to head home. Harry and Daphne need to find Karin Battenberg in the courtyard to be escorted back to their families, but Harry is on a mission to find Blaise before he goes. He tells Daphne he needs to use the bathroom and slips away.

He tracks Blaise down, finding him standing a short distance away from the crowd. He confronts Blaise, but the other boy implores him it is not a good time, and he needs to go. Harry is hurt, but he agrees to leave. However, before he can do so, a man and woman arrive.

Harry’s magic reaches out to both of them, and the closest he had felt such a feeling was around Blaise. He notices how scared Blaise is at their arrival, which raises his hackles.

He learns the woman is Amara Zabini, Blaise’s mother, and the man is Dante Altomare, Blaise’s sponsor.

Amara Zabini reveals herself to have the same ability as Harry; she has wandless magic like him. She also uses Legilimency on him to inform him telepathically, ‘I see you’.

Blaise insists Harry needs to go, and the adults allow him to leave. Before he goes, Blaise hugs him and whispers in his ear to stay away.

As Harry leaves, he feels Amara’s magic reach out to him and touch him. Her magical touch hurts, and as he flees through the crowd it’s almost as though he can still feel it touching him.

Harry arrives back to Karin, who takes he and Daphne back to the hotel in Paris their families are staying at.

Harry confesses to Sirius, Arcturus and the Greengrass family what happened, and they are furious on his behalf. Harry theorises Blaise and his mother might be related to the Altomare family, based on the fact their magic felt the same way to him as Dante Altomare’s did.

Sirius makes Harry promise him that he will stay away from Blaise. Daphne is expected to not see him outside of school.

Harry meets with Nikolai Drozdov, and sees Mischa again. Nikolai affirms he is happy to teach Harry, and Dora too for that matter. They eventually agree that Harry and his guardians will travel to Russia over the Yuletide school holidays that year for a couple of days, to allow Harry to begin his Metamorphmagi training. If all goes well, he might be staying with the family for a longer visit over the summer holidays next year.

Meanwhile back in Britain, Draco is aware his parents are fighting. He is also upset at Harry for forgetting to RSVP to his birthday invitation, and has been talking with Theo and Pansy who are encouraging his anger and resentment.

Narcissa and Lucius have a tense confrontation, where Narcissa is demanding an answer out of Lucius for an ultimatum she gave him. He had until Harry returned from overseas to decide. She is demanding he make an Unbreakable Vow, to do everything in his power to advocate for Harry, and to protect him. After her sister Bellatrix implied the Dark Lord might have returned, or be returning, Narcissa has been on high alert. She wants Lucius nowhere near Harry without assurances.

After a tense stand off, Narcissa agrees to compromise. She will not ask for the Unbreakable Vow, but she does ask that he sign a binding contract. If he harms Harry, aids another to do so, or stands aside knowing harm is coming to Harry, Lucius will surrender custody of Draco. He will also forfeit all assets to Narcissa. She threatens to walk out on him if he does not agree to her terms. Lucius, backed into a corner, agrees.

Once Narcissa has left, Lucius reflects on the diary on his study bookshelf, the strange item the Dark Lord gave him years ago. For a moment he considers moving it somewhere, but he quickly dismisses the thought.

It is revealed that the diary is attempting to influence Lucius, using his moments of emotional vulnerability to breach his Occlumency shields. The diary is aware it needs an easier target though.

Harry is back in England and aware Draco is upset with him. He focuses on his Runecraft intensive course with Rosie, and visits Neville too. Neville has decided to have a birthday party, and mentions inviting Blaise. He notices Harry’s strange reaction to the mention of the boy, and asks Harry what is wrong. Harry can’t tell Neville the truth, but he explains things are weird between he and Blaise right now, and he can’t see him. Neville is worried but understanding, and confirms he will let Harry know whether Blaise plans on coming.

A week after returning to England, Aunt Cass comes to visit Harry and his guardians. They inform her about the incident with Amara Zabini, and she agrees to share what she knows about the woman. However, because Harry has not yet learned Occlumency, he will not be allowed access to hear anything. He does though get confirmation from Aunt Cass that she believes Amara Zabini is part of the Altomare family.

A few days later, Harry wakes in the middle of the night to noise downstairs at Grimmauld Place. Narcissa and Draco have arrived seeking shelter for the night — the Ministry have raided Malfoy Manor. Sirius insists on travelling to the manor to assist Lucius, and Narcissa is extremely grateful for her cousin’s support.

Narcissa is convinced the raid has something to do with the Battenberg family. Arthur Weasley signed off on the raid, and his sister-in-law is Karin Weasley née Battenberg. The following morning the Tonks family arrives and Pollux Black too. They are all there to support Narcissa and Draco, and to wait for news from Lucius.

Harry and Draco are able to make amends, with a little help from Dora mediating.

Sirius arrives, and informs everyone that he, Lucius and Gareth Greengrass met with Amelia Bones to report the incident and lodge a formal complaint. Madam Bones was furious, however Arthur Weasley’s actions were technically legal. It is unlikely he will suffer worse than a reprimand.

Narcissa decides it is time to return to the manor, but Draco is reluctant to go. Narcissa lets him stay at Grimmauld Place, and goes home alone. She and Lucius discuss the situation, and Narcissa asks if Lucius does not still have some sway with the Minister. Lucius reveals any goodwill he had with Fudge was torn to shreds when the Battenbergs took aim at their family. Lucius has been trying, unsuccessfully, to meet with Fudge for some time. His attempts have always been rebuffed, and the latest excuse provided by his office is that the Minister is busy entertaining the chairperson of the Berlin Trading Board. That same organisation has all but blacklisted Lucius, on orders of the Battenberg family.

Lucius has realised how important it is to surround themselves with people they can trust and rely on. He agrees to sign the contract Narcissa has prepared for him, and Narcissa is relieved. However, Lucius thinks privately that Narcissa is naive to think the existence of the contract, and repercussions if Lucius breaches it, will satisfy the Blacks. If the Blacks find out they kept the return of the Dark Lord from them, they will not be forgiven.

Harry has an appointment with Specialist Healer Evelyn Byrne, to check if there was any damage from his encounter with Amara Zabini. At first, they try to keep the real purpose of the appointment vague, but when Evelyn pushes back about not continuing the appointment without good cause, Arcturus makes the call to tell her the truth.

He does not give her the name, but he confirms someone entered Harry’s mind without his consent recently. Evelyn presses for more information, and the identity of the perpetrator, but the Blacks refuse to say who it is. They insist the person is dangerous, and they do not know how far their influence reaches.

Evelyn lets it rest for now, but warns the Blacks if she has any doubts in the future that Sirius and Arcturus are not acting in Harry’s best interests, she will report them. The examination reveals no damage or lingering influences on Harry’s mind.

Harry enjoys Neville’s twelfth birthday party, as Blaise had replied to say he was still in Europe and unable to attend. On his own birthday, he does not have anything planned, but he enjoys opening his letters and presents from friends both near and far, including his new friends from the DAYS gathering.

Arcturus and Sirius were taking him to dinner and then a Quidditch match, and Harry arrives at the restaurant to find a surprise waiting for him; the Greengrass family, Ezra, Neville and Draco are present. He is touched, and excited to have dinner with everyone. Daphne, Astoria, Neville and Draco come with Harry and his guardians to the Quidditch match.

Shortly after his birthday, Harry has a sleepover with Draco at Malfoy Manor. Draco tells Harry that his parents have been fighting over the holidays, but they are doing a lot better now. He also tells Harry that his father has been struggling to maintain business connections around Europe, because he has upset a powerful German family.

Harry knew the Battenbergs had been displeased with the Malfoys and Notts for the ways their Heads had voted, but his guardians had kept him in the dark about the extent of the difficulty for either family.

That night, Harry struggled to get to sleep. He decided to get up and ask a house elf for either a Dreamless Sleep potion or some tea to encourage sleep. When he calls for a house elf, he encounters one that is familiar to him — Dobby.

Dobby appears to have some sort of meltdown around Harry at the simplest expression of kindness, and another house elf appears to send Dobby away and assist Harry instead. Harry asks the new house elf, Jaffa, if Dobby is normally like that. Jaffa admits Dobby is different, but that does not mean he is unable to serve the Malfoys. Jaffa does not seem to want to talk about it any further, and so Harry drops the topic. He asks for some tea, and Jaffa prepares it for him and leaves him.

As Harry drinks his tea, he becomes aware of his magic humming underneath his skin, acting in the way he had only experienced on sacred dats when near ritual magic. He pays proper attention, realising the restlessness tonight had something to do with the reaction of his magic to something in Malfoy Manor. He felt called, in the same way he had felt around Slytherin’s Locket.

Before he could explore it further, Draco and Narcissa come bursting out of Draco’s bedroom — another Ministry raid is about to happen and they have to leave now. Harry, Draco and Narcissa manage to leave without encountering any officials, Jaffa getting them out to Grimmauld Place safely.

Word arrived a day or so later that the Notts had been raided too that same night. There was an emergency meeting of Morgana’s Court called to discuss the matter. The debate had revolved around the Nott and Malfoy families’ belief that the Battenbergs were influencing Ministry politics, and the rest of the members of the Court evaluating whether there was any concrete evidence. Even if there had been something more than a suspicion based on Arthur Weasley’s involvement, there was arguably not a lot anyone could do if it was true.

Harry wondered though if his guardians and the Greengrass family too, might be able to persuade the Battenbergs to leave the Malfoys and Notts alone. It would have to be handled delicately though.

A letter arrived from Dion Lykaios, the boy writing to Harry as he had promised he would at the DAYS gathering. He asked how Harry had settled back home, what he had been doing on his holidays, and if he was looking forward to starting at Durmstrang. It was all very nice but generic, with the exception of the final lines of the letter, where Dion reminded Harry that if he ever visited Greece, he was welcome to visit Dion and be shown around by the other boy.

Harry arranged to meet up with Hermione and her parents to accompany the girl doing her Hogwarts shopping and catch up. No one could escort him though in his own family, and he agreed to go with the Malfoys, although he was hesitant at the idea of Narcissa and Lucius meeting Derek and Jean Granger.

On the day, Harry notices Lucius has the item on him that was calling to Harry the other night. Harry disguises himself with his Metamorphmagus ability, to avoid being recognised.

They get to Diagon Alley, and see the Grangers waiting on the steps to Gringotts. Harry has a bad feeling about introducing the Malfoys to the Grangers, and suggests they part ways so the Malfoys can get on with their shopping. Narcissa and Lucius readily agree, and Harry meets with Hermione and her parents alone.

Hermione’s parents are disappointed to not meet the Malfoys. Derek Granger in particular expresses his desire to meet Narcissa �� they are distantly related of course. Harry offers to make introductions later today if that is something they want, realising it is not his responsibility how either couple might react.

Inside Gringotts, they spot the Weasley family arriving, and there is a tense moment when Arthur Weasley notices Derek Granger exchanging Muggle money, and draws attention to it. He is reigned in by Molly though, and Harry and the Grangers make their escape.

At Flourish and Blotts there is a sign out front declaring author Gilderoy Lockhart will be signing copies of his book that day. Hermione is eager to go, and so they decide to come back later.

When they return, they find a huge line outside. Harry can also sense the presence inside the shop of the item Lucius bought with him, and figures Lucius must be at the bookstore. While they are waiting there is an incident inside the shop, and Lucius storms out with Draco in tow. Neither notices Harry in disguise, with the Grangers.

Strangely, Harry feels like the item is still within the shop, and not with Lucius.

As he leaves with the Grangers, he becomes aware of the presence moving closer to him. He spots the Weasley family nearby, and his attention zeroes in on the cauldron the Weasley daughter is holding. He realises the item is, inexplicably, in her cauldron.

Without much time to think about his actions other than the strong feeling he needed to seperate her from it, Harry’s magic instinctively heated the handle of the cauldron to force the girl to drop it. It rolled, books spilling out.

Harry moved over under the guise of helping her, attention on one book in particular. He noticed she seemed confused by the book, and it convinced him that the item was not meant to be with her.

He picks it up, and it is like a homecoming to him.

Harry tells the girl that he dropped it earlier in the crowd, and thanks her for finding it. She is very shy, and eager to know if Harry is attending Hogwarts. She is disappointed when he tells her he is not.

Harry gets away with the book, lying to Hermione too that he dropped it earlier. The Grangers escort him to meet the Malfoys, and seeing how upset Lucius was earlier Derek suggests they meet the Malfoys another time. Harry agrees.

Fortunately that decision was made, because Harry overhears Lucius speaking in a derisive tone, mentioning Muggles. He learns Arthur Weasley and Lucius had a physical altercation in the bookstore.

Narcissa and Lucius speak cruelly about the Weasley family, and Harry is uncomfortable.

As soon as he gets back to Malfoy Manor, he gets Narcissa to take him home to Grimmauld Place. Once he alone in his room, he investigates the book he picked up. He learns it is a diary, and despite trying numerous spells on it, it remains blank.

The magic coming from the diary was unmistakably dark, and it hummed strongly with ritual magic. The dark magic coming off of it also reminded him of the way Blaise, his mother Amara, and Dante Altomare’s magic felt to his senses.

Harry realises there is a sentient presence within the diary, and although he knows he should tell his guardians, he hesitates. He feels the diary could be connected to the Slytherin family in some way, as the locket was, and that could be the nature of the draw to both items for Harry.

He uses runecraft on the first page of the diary to see if he can uncover any more information, and is surprised when it disappears. Words appear, asking him if he is a descendant of Salazar Slytherin.

Harry feels vindicated about his suspicion that the diary is linked to the Slytherin family, and starts writing back.

He learns the presence within the diary is called Tom, and the real Tom created the diary to preserve memory and knowledge for the heir of Slytherin. Harry is curious about there being a possible claimant, but also wary it could well be Voldemort himself, if the theory is right that he is a Gaunt.

Tom meanwhile is troubled by Harry. He knows Harry is capable of wandless magic, like himself. He suspects Harry might be a relative of his, based on the other boy’s magical strength and his Parseltongue ability. He realises he needs a far more subtle approach than attempting to seize control of the mind of the person holding the diary. In this form, he had the ability to manipulate other’s emotions as well as the ability to skim the surface thoughts of anyone holding the diary, assuming they were not an Occlumens.

Tom learns much in his early days with Harry through these means, in particular about his future self. He learns about Slytherin’s Locket, apparently stolen from his future self and hidden now with the Black family. He learns his future self attempted to kill Harry as a baby, and did succeed in killing his parents. He learns Harry survived that night because his mother used blood magic to sacrifice her own life for Harry’s. He learns there is some sort of prophecy between he and Harry, but he is not sure of the specifics.

Tom offers to teach Harry about the Slytherin family, which Harry is eager to learn about. He tells Harry there is a portrait of Salazar Slytherin hidden at Hogwarts, but Harry is dismayed to admit he is attending Durmstrang. Tom is frustrated by this.

Tom also shares that Salazar Slytherin had an aptitude for blood magic. He offers to teach Harry how to practice blood magic, as a means of cementing his usefulness to Harry and keep the boy coming back to the diary.

With each passing day that Harry writes in the diary, Tom’s strength grows.

Meanwhile, Gareth meets with Lord Shafiq to discuss what happened with the intermediary who was meant to establish communication between the Drozdov family and the Blacks. He learns there was an administrative failure on the Ministry’s part, which resulted in the intermediary closing their file.

Gareth also learns that Fudge’s office has ben interfering in the work of the Department of International Magical Cooperation. The two men speak candidly about the need for the families of the Sacred Twenty-Eight to set aside old differences to unite against a common enemy. They both agree to endeavour to persuade their seperate camps to come to the negotiating table.

Sirius takes Harry to Berlin to be fitted for his Durmstrang uniform. There, Harry encounters Finn Vogel and an adult with him. There is no opportunity to properly speak, but Finn tells Harry he will see him at school soon. His attitude is just as challenging as it was at the DAYS gathering.

Harry says his farewells to all his friends and loved ones as he prepares to leave for Durmstrang. He is taking an International Portkey to Bergen in Norway with Arcturus and Sirius on August 30th. The ship for Durmstrang departs on the 31st.

It is hard to say goodbye to Daphne in particular, who he feels he has always had by his side.

The night before Harry leaves for Norway, Tom contemplates his plans for the future. He intends on building rapport with Harry, and continuing to glean as much information as possible from the younger boy. For now, he is content to watch and wait, his strength building with each passing day.

#recap #dark heritage

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