16-20

Ch.16 - Sixth Year in Hogwarts (2)

When the school term resumed, Alex had become more elusive. It was rare for the students to find him outside of class. He was always staying in his dorm room alone. His birthday was coming up and his friends were starting to worry.

He was finally cornered by Clay and Katie who wanted to celebrate his birthday, but, he excused himself and asked them to leave him alone for at least a week. When asked why he just told them to trust him. His friends respected his decision. Alex had always been able to take care of himself, so they didn't press him.

Alex was actually very busy doing some last-minute arithmancy calculations for a ritual he had been planning. He had been researching this particular ritual ever since last term. He had all the things he needed for the ritual, all of which were just mundane everyday things.

On the eve of the 24th of January, his 17th birthday, he snuck out of Hogwarts and went to the Forbidden Forest, to the spot where he had died before. Alex had never believed that time was just reversed for him. He was convinced that the life he was living was merely the continuation of his existence. To him, it was, in fact, his 33rd birthday. [AN: He was 27 when he died.]

With a simple flick of his wand, he cleared a circular area of the grass and weeds with a fire spell. After the vegetation was burned off, he cleared the area of all the ashes and debris with a flick of his wand. Another quick spell work and a symbol of an equilateral triangle was inscribed on the ground.

On the corner of the triangle that pointed East, he placed a candle and lit it. On the North-West corner, a simple rock the size of his fist. And on the South-West corner, a metal cup filled with water from the lake.

He sat cross-legged at the centre of the triangle, hands partly raised to the side with thumbs touching the middle finger. He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. He went over the details of the ritual in his mind for the last time.

The ritual he devised was largely based on his understanding of the ancient beliefs regarding the cosmic order and the magical power of the number three. Past, present, future. Heaven, earth, hell. Earth, water, fire. Father, mother, child. The number three could be seen anywhere in the universe. Three plus one equals four, a complete cycle. Therefore, finding one's place within three anchors would make one closer to a perfect being.

That was the theory anyway. He couldn't be sure of how the ritual would turn out. However, he felt that it was the time to be bold. He started chanting the words of an incantation while stirring the power within him.

"I call upon the rising Fire, who Taketh to himself the brightness of the stars, seizing glory from those who sleep, to shine over me."

The fire on the candle became larger, more vibrant. He could practically feel the warmth coming from it.

"I call upon the giving Waters, whose Floods send us balm, bearing rule over precious things, to flow through me."

The water in the cup started overflowing as if there was a spring inside the cup.

"I call upon the enduring Earth, that Mounts over the tribes that thou has cradled, protector of the kingdom of the pious, to stand under me"

The rock started vibrating. The ground around it rose to form a small mound with the rock on top.

He repeated the words over and over while going deeper into his meditation. The ritual he was doing was meant to help him truly look within himself, to see the source of his magic. It was his hope that learning the nature of his magic would allow him to get stronger in time. Using the guidance of the elements, he wished to better understand the inner workings of his magic.

Although he was interested in making himself powerful through rituals, he didn't want to become like the Dark Lord. He still remembered the raw power which Voldemort displayed with a single spell that had broken down the Hogwarts defences. However, based on his current knowledge of rituals, he knew that the Dark Lord had probably sacrificed many aspects himself to gain his power. His ritual, however, was not asking for power. He merely wanted to understand something he already possessed.

And then, he found it, or them. There were two orbs floating there in the place where his magic sprung forth, perhaps the very container of his soul if the magical theory books he read were to be believed. The two orbs were orbiting one another like a pair of twin stars, constantly pushing and pulling at each other. One was a crystalized orb with a soft blue light coming from within. This was his magical core, he understood this from how the magic felt. It was stable and dependable. The other was an orb made of fire and it was powerful and wild.

He was mesmerized by the fiery orb. He felt a great temptation to reach for it, but he stopped himself. It was dangerous and it hungered for his life, he knew this for certain. It seemed familiar like he had seen it before. But how exactly could he recognize a ball of fire, he thought.

And then, he came to the realization. He almost broke his trance with the shock. The fiery orb that he was looking at was the cursed flame of a Fiendfyre. And not just any of its kind, it was the same Fiendfyre that he used out of desperation while fighting against a whole army of Death Eaters before he died. It was the same Fiendfyre that killed a lot of Death Eaters, werewolves, giants, acrumantulas, and perhaps Voldemort himself. And most importantly, it was the fire that killed his previous self.

For some reason, the fire came along with him to this alternate reality. He didn't understand how it could be possible for a magical fire to be contained within himself, but it did happen.

When he came out of his meditation, the candle had burned out, the water in the cup had all spilt, and the rock had eroded to sand. After checking the time, he realized that he had been in a trance for over 2 hours.

He was cleaning the area to remove all the trace of himself when he heard the steps of a centaur. His left hand twitched and something small and quick had flown away from inside his sleeves.

Then, he heard a deep voice from behind him. "You shouldn't be here, wizard."

Alex turned around and saw a blacked skinned male centaur standing there.

"I won't ask again. Leave now," said the centaur who took out his bow with his left hand.

Alex was irked at the attitude of the centaur. "Wherever I go is none of your concern, centaur. And the moment you notch an arrow to your bow will be the moment you die. This is your only warning," said Alex half-mockingly.

The centaur was incensed. How bold for a wizard to come in centaur territory and even suggest that his arrows were slower than a wizard's spellcasting, he thought. He looked at the wizard and by impulse, he had taken out an arrow from his quiver.

Before the centaur could draw the bow, he heard a swish and he felt a slight push on his chest. He looked down and saw a gaping hole where his heart should be. Before he could fully realized what happened, he collapsed and darkness was all he saw. He died with a confused expression on his face.

Alex could only stare at the corpse of the centaur. He didn't even learn his name and he had killed him. The moment he heard the footsteps of another centaur, he simply had to make a small gesture with his left hand and his enchanted dagger had flown out of his sleeves toward a small bush where it could remain hidden.

With his improvements to the dagger, it was faster than a crossbow bolt and as silent as a whisper. When the centaur made a move he made another quick movement with his left hand and the dagger flew from where it hid straight into the chest of the centaur. The dagger had come out from the other side with a line of blood behind it. It had pierced the centaur as if it didn't meet any obstacle in its path.

Another centaur had arrived. This time it was one with blond hair and tanned complexion. Alex was ready to attack once again if ever he needed to.

"Stay your weapon. I've seen what happened. My name is Firenze and the one you've killed is called Bane. Let us end the hostility with this," said the blonde-haired centaur.

"I warned him fairly, he forced me to act. I will leave you to tend to your brethren" said Alex.

"Wait, I have to tell you something. Bane may be arrogant, but, he is one of the few centaurs that have actually chosen to foresee their own death. He was not supposed to die anytime soon. You've managed to change that

Centaurs' predictions have been wrong before. But when I look at you, the stars, they tell me nothing. It is a curious thing. "

Alex didn't bother saying anything. He had also tried to predict his far future and failed to see anything. Even Prof. Trelawney never mentioned him in one of her ramblings. He left the forest and sneaked back inside Hogwarts.

×××

A few weeks later and it was time for their quidditch match against Slytherin. Alex was talking to his teammates before the game.

"All right. It's the last game of the season. The Slytherin team has also won their other two games. And if we want the Cup, we have to win with over 120 points.

"Beaters, one of you will always remain by our goals to help our Keepers. Coordinate with one another to intercept the Quaffle. Chasers, stay within the passing range of one another all the time. Every time we got the ball, we attack with all we have. I will be joining the offensive when I have the chance. Everyone got that?"

"Yes sir!" said his teammates.

His team was a well-oiled machine. All the training had paid off.

When the match started, the Slytherin team got possession of the ball. They went on the offensive with little resistance as only one Beater was chasing after them. They didn't expect that the other Beater was already by the goal post.

It was a sudden pincer attack, the Chaser holding the quaffle was forced to pass the ball to avoid a tackle from his front and back. But the Beaters of Hufflepuff reacted quickly. They had been trained to follow the quaffle and not the player.

They successfully intercepted the ball. A few short passes and one of their Chasers had possession of the ball. He was on the offensive with the other Chaser flying on a parallel path. They dived low, using the gravity to boost their acceleration.

The leading Chaser went on an attack vector only to pass the ball to the other Chaser when he got close to the opponent's goals. The Slytherin Keeper had expected the move as he adjusts his position in anticipation of the attack.

When the quaffle was thrown, it had missed the goals. The Keeper didn't even have to intercept the shot. But the play was not over yet. Alex was there to receive the quaffle. He didn't even bother to catch it as he just punched the ball toward the goal on the left side. With him on the team, the Hufflepuff had three Chasers practically.

The Keeper was speechless. Hufflepuff had taken the first point.

The game went on and Alex was always moving about. He was always ready to help with the action. He had developed a reputation with his dynamic style of play as a Seeker that only a few players in the world were able to execute successfully. Some professional team scouts were there to see him in action.

Slytherin was fighting hard as well. The lead had changed sides at least ten times in the last half hour. The players were beginning to show some exhaustion as the game got even more heated up.

Frustrated at how the game was turning out, Angus Travers had dived toward Alex when he saw the player's back was turned to him. But unexpectedly, Alex had managed to dodge with an agile spin not unlike how a matador avoiding a charging bull.

"Getting jumpy, aren't we?" said Alex.

"If I take you out, your team doesn't stand a chance," Angus said.

Alex wondered why the Slytherin always had to say exactly what he was about to do. He avoided another tackle and flew away from where the action with the quaffle was happening.

Angus had gotten hold of a Bludger and used his bat to shoot it toward Alex. He really should have led with this move. Now that Alex was wary of him, he didn't have a chance of hitting him with anything. Of course, Angus was beyond being rational at that point.

"Hufflepuff scores again!" they heard the announcer said.

Alex just smiled at Angus. Luring Beaters away was one of the basic plays that Hufflepuff had frequently used since he had joined the team. His teammates knew exactly how to take advantage of an absent Beater in the opposing team.

"Get back in position, Travers! Or you'll never play again!" said the Slytherin captain. They had gone into this game with a lead of more than a hundred in points. And now, they were in danger of losing should the other team Seeker catch the snitch. And after Angus's blunder, his frustration was solely focused on the guy.

In actuality, Alex thought that Angus had the right idea for once. With him out, the Hufflepuff stood no chance. The other team would only wait them out until their Seeker managed to catch the snitch. That was why he had been watching the Beaters extra carefully since the beginning of the game. It was also why he had mocked Angus and acted like the Slytherin Beater was doing him a favour.

Once Angus had gone back to join the hustle, Alex had spotted the Snitch, finally. He accelerated as fast as he could, not bothering to make any feint. The other Seeker was not paying much attention to him with how he was acting during the entire game.

Alex had gambled, he knew that. But, catching the snitch when his team was at least 40 points in behind would not win them the Cup, so he decided to help his team out a lot in their scoring.

He flew behind the stands where the Snitch was and started the chase there. The snitch used the structure of the stands as obstacles to hinder him. Everyone watched him chase the snitch. The other Seeker had joined the action. His teammates went on to their protective positions to make sure no Slytherin could interfere with the chase.

The Snitch had managed to get away toward the Slytherin goalposts on the pitch. Alex and the other Seeker were bumping on each other as they chase the Snitch. Once it passed the posts, it made a sharp turn to the left making the post itself an obstacle between it and the Seekers which forced its pursuers to slow down or go around the long way.

The Slytherin team had flown past the goalposts choosing to maintain his speed rather than slowing down. However, Alex had grabbed one of the posts with his left hand, and using it as an anchor, he was able to counter his inertia and he made the sharp turn.

With a newfound momentum, he lunged after the snitch while barely holding on to his broom. It almost got away from him again, but he managed to secure it with his hands.

"Hufflepuff has won the game! With 310 points for them against 160 points from the Slytherin team, Hufflepuff has secured the Hogwarts Quidditch Cup for the 5th consecutive time! Hooray for Hufflepuff! Hooray for team captain Alexander Grey, the best Hufflepuff Seeker in history! Yeah!!!" shouted the announcer who was actually a 4th-year Hufflepuff.

"Badgers! Badgers!…" the students chanted. It was deafening. They had just played the hardest game in the year, because of the points deficit they had to overcome for them to win. Even the Gryffindor students were joining in the chant, happy that the Slytherin team didn't win the Cup.

After the game, he was interviewed by some scouts and journalists. Asking him about his plans after Hogwarts and his story. He merely said that he would be open to play professionally, but he said that he still wasn't sure of his plans. It was pretty much the expected answer for him to give.

The Daily Prophet and the Observer even ran an article about him the following day, but only the Observer had an exclusive interview in their paper.

For the remainder of the school year, there was a celebratory atmosphere in the Hufflepuff common room. The silver cup was proudly on display. This year had been special. Alexander Grey, star Seeker, was finally the captain of the team. And he closed out the quidditch season with a dominant performance. The sixth and seventh-year students still remembered how he had turned the team around since his very first game. The younger students, however, had only known their house team as the winning team.

Ch.17 - Less Restricted

Now that he was finally an adult, he would be more able to act freely in the magical world. With that in mind, he went to Gringotts Bank to finally make his own account. He felt a certain relief that he could move around more without a disguise. Of course, he also found a certain freedom when hiding behind his mask. But, one of the benefits of finally being able to move around without a guise was entering Gringotts Bank.

He walked to a teller and asked to see the person who could help him set up his vault. He was shown into a private office to the left, where he waited for the assigned goblin to show up.

The Goblins certainly enjoyed making wizards wait on them. A lot of goblins have strong opinions regarding the Ministry and their restrictions on non-human creatures. But Alex knew that the Goblins were indeed legally subservient to wizards. Alex had entertained the thought of creating an alliance between the Order and the Goblins, but he didn't know how steadfast the goblins as a whole was, and he suspected he would be giving more than he would be receiving with such an arrangement with the goblins.

It was a good 15 minutes later when a male goblin entered the room. It marched its little feet behind the desk and climbed the elevated chair with a small hop. Alex had watched the entire thing silently. He didn't want to give the goblin any satisfaction by acting impatient.

"How can Gringotts serve you, young wizard?" said the goblin after settling down.

"I would like to open an account. Please explain the options to me," said Alex in a very business-like tone.

"There are 7 levels in the cavern of Gringotts. The ones on the deeper levels are usually reserved for our wealthiest clients."

"And which would be more secure?"

"All vaults within Gringotts are secured, young wizard," said the goblin with a laugh.

"And yet, some vaults are more secured than others. Which one would be appropriate for a personal vault?"

"Vaults in the level 1-5 are usually used by an individual witch or wizard."

"I'd like to open one in the third level. Let's talk about the rates."

"Gringotts vaults are rented in exchange for a fixed monthly rate depending on its size. For a typical vault on the third level, the rate is 3 Galleons and 8 Sickles."

After that, he filled out the paperwork and signed the agreement regarding the usage of the vault. For a vault that was relatively near to the surface, only wizarding currencies could be stored. The vault rent would be automatically deducted from its contents. He also had to choose what level of security he would prefer to use. Alex had chosen the minimum level of security, meaning anyone with his vault key could withdraw up to 1000 Galleons at once.

Alex didn't plan on depositing a large amount of money in his vault, so his initial deposit was just a thousand Galleons. He just wanted to have a Gringotts vault for personal business. If he wanted to take a job as part of his public persona, there would be a Gringotts vault that could receive his salaries. He would be storing the money he earned from his businesses in a secret vault.

His other businesses with Gringotts were being handled by Mr Baxter. One of their dealings with the Goblins was actually exchanging wizarding currencies for British bills. Every year, a number of muggle-born and their families would trade their British money to the bank. It wasn't much, but Gringotts would use this money to buy precious metals from the muggle market, therefore bringing the muggle currency back to the muggle world. Mr Baxter had offered to exchange for the money instead. The Goblins happily agreed as it reduced their work.

The banking services that Gringotts offered were very simple due to their lack of competition. There was the storage vaults for rent. There was the checking service for withdrawal or payments. And, they could lend a person money with a fixed interest rate. Their income was supplemented by their metal works and archaeology digs in Egypt.

They wouldn't pay their customers interest on their deposits no matter how big. The money in the vaults wouldn't be circulating as they stay secured in their vaults. It was the main reason why the value of Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts stayed the same for the last thousand years.

Alex would rather keep his money in the muggle banks where it was constantly earning him an interest. It was also easier to invest and let the money grow by itself in the muggle world. The members of his Order had taken to doing the same, only keeping a minimum amount of wizarding currencies for their expenses in the wizarding world. In fact, most transactions between Order members were done using muggle money.

Some day in the far future, they would have to revolutionize the banking system in the British Wizarding World. In fact, they could even abandon the Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts all together and just use British currency. It might cause deflation in muggle U.K. when a large amount of money was suddenly removed from their economy, but it would only be temporary.

He left after his vault was properly set up. Within the same week, he had gotten his license in Apparition. Now, he felt like an adult once again. Being a restricted child again was truly difficult even when he could just disguise himself.

[AN: We don't really know the operations of Gringotts from the canon. We know that muggle money that is exchanged in Gringotts is somehow recirculated back to the muggle world and Ludo Bagman got in trouble with the goblins for borrowing money which he lost in gambling.]

×××

Back in muggle London, Alex decided to raid the bases of organized criminal groups in the city. Now that the Trace was no longer a concern for him, he had less restriction in his use of magic in the muggle world. As long as he didn't use any powerful spell, he should be able to avoid detection by the Ministry of Magic.

He started with the drug traffickers. After reading the minds of a few peddlers on the streets of London, he had learned the locations of their suppliers. Repeating the process and eventually, he found out the location of the bases where they count all the money.

He was like death himself. He came unseen, struck unseen, and left unseen. He was using an invisibility charm and a shield charm on his self constantly. Other than that, he only used the occasional unlocking charm, human detection, and some Legilimency. All the killings were done with his flying dagger which was fast and precise. After the killings were done, he left a circle written in blood on a wall at each site.

He had collected over 150 Million GBP, all in cash. If he didn't have an expanded briefcase, he would be swimming in paper bills. He was surprised at how much cash those criminals were keeping. He just had to gradually put the money into his fake accounts so no one could trace it to him.

A few days later and the news was wild with speculations once again about the elusive syndicate called 'The Circle'. The public's opinion was divided on the matter.

He had killed a ton of people within the span of a couple of weeks. He figured he was doing the city a favour. But, something was bothering him. During his attacks, he felt a certain push inside him. It happened every time he had killed someone. As his attack went on, his methods had become more violent.

Using his Occlumency meditation, he examined where that impulse had come from. And just as he suspected, it was from the orb of fire beside his magical core. It was wilder than before. He could only assume that the cursed fire had affected him. And, he knew that he must learn to control it.

He examined it closer. Then, as if by instinct, he willed the orbiting of the orb of fire around his magical core to be faster. With each revolution, he felt his core getting stronger by a small increment. His magical core was slowly assimilating the cursed fire. If he had to guess using its current rate, it would completely absorb the fire in twenty years. But, he didn't want to wait that long. As long as that fire was there, he could become more impulsive as time went on. With his meditation, he could make the process faster. From that moment on, he spent all his free time meditating.

[AN: There was an article from the Guardian that says that the money spent on cocaine in London was about 1 Billion Euros per year. So it's not completely unthinkable that the MC could collect 150 Million by raiding drug syndicates in the '80s.]

×××

He apparated in Diagon Alley to meet with Clay and Katie. It was the first week of July and it was once again time to do their school shopping for their last year in Hogwarts.

While walking around, he spotted a couple of closed-off buildings that were closed off for renovations. These were the buildings that Mr Baxter had purchased for him. They would serve as the location of his businesses in the future.

One would be the communications company that he had planned. That was set to open during the holiday break. And the other was for a realtor's office. The housing industry in the magical world was not as developed as in the muggle world. A lot of people were still finding it hard to have a permanent home in the magical world. With space expansion, a two-story building could have 4 or more families living in it. And with that, the rent would also be much cheaper. It was a good business idea that was helpful and profitable, and, it came from one Order member who had experienced being homeless before. As a reward, he was assigned to oversee the project and lead the company in the future. Several properties within the magical communities all over the U.K. were already under renovations during that time.

After Alex and his friends had finished their shopping, they agreed to Katie's invitation to visit the AIM Building and check it out. Once there, they checked out all the programs that AIM was offering. Alex had also taken the chance to examine the place.

The three of them registered as members of the Association. Registration only cost them 1 Galleon each. That was enough to give them access to most of the information and resources offered in the Association.

There were a lot of seminars on the schedule board, some were regarding the Ministry's Laws and others were about certain trades and crafts, and most were free to all members of AIM. There was also a job listing board were people could find available jobs or apprenticeships. The most amazing to Alex was the incentives offered to those who would be willing to lend their help, like Potions Masters who would be willing to teach a seminar. AIM had always encouraged people to be proactive in helping other people.

For students like them, they could also visit AIM on certain days during the summer and Christmas break to practice their magic in a safe environment with the presence of a tutor. AIM had also started a circulating library for its members. As it turned out, the three of them were not the first student members of AIM. Student membership was offered the first summer after AIM had gone public.

Up to this point, no one in AIM, except for those who were also members of the Orders, knew of the identity of Xander Greywolf, the elusive founder of the Association. All they knew about him were the couple of books that he self-published and that AIM was initially funded solely by him in the beginning. Naturally, a lot of the members of the Association were curious about him, their benefactor. There were even rumours that he was some prince-like figure from a muggle aristocratic family.

Alex had liked what he saw from the Association. Everyone was doing their job properly. It was even bringing in enough income to keep itself running. Knowing the near future expansions of AIM, like branch offices in other cities and the Business Funding Program still in its planning stage, Alex was assured of the prominence that AIM would achieve. Fortunately for him, he had no shortage of people he could trust with the works as the Order members were handling almost all of his operations directly. Mr Baxter was only involved with the funding aspect of his different ventures.

Ch.18 - Seventh Year in Hogwarts

Alex had reunited with Katie and Clay at the Hogwarts express just as they did in the past years. It was the last year of their schooling finally. Alex was actually excited.

He was not selected as head-boy despite his performance in the last term. That distinction went to Bill Weasley who had a more consistent academic record. In his earlier years, Alex avoided the top spot of the class, except in Charms. He wanted to appear like a smart muggle-born student who was still learning. He steadily increased his performance every year. And, he was successful in that regard based on his observation.

Alex, Katie, and Clay were excitedly talking about their plans after Hogwarts. Then suddenly, Angus and his entourage had barged in their compartment uninvited.

"Excited on your last years in Hogwarts, Mudbloods?" said Angus.

"Sod off, Travers. Get back to your own kind," Said Clay.

Despite Alex being the one who had humiliated Angus multiple times. It was Clay and Angus who had a bigger rivalry between them. Clay used to be meek and gullible, and Angus was the treasured son of the Slytherin House. Now, it was Clay who was the prince of his own Hogwarts House and Angus was the outsider. He envied Clay, who was also the heir of his family and leader of his own house. Unlike him, who was the second son and the topic of humiliating rumours among the Slytherin students.

"You best be careful, Rosewood. Or you'll be known as blood traitor like your father," said Angus threateningly before shutting the door close leaving.

"Why would he call your father a blood traitor?" asked Alex.

"I don't know, he's just spouting nonsense," said Clay.

"What's a blood traitor, exactly?" asked Katie.

"In the classical meaning, it means a pureblood witch or wizard who married a non-magical person. In the past Wizard War, the Dark Lord and his followers had used the term liberally on any purebloods who didn't share their beliefs," explained Alex.

×××

During the welcoming feast, Alex and the gang were enjoying their dinner when a first-year student interrupted them. It was a little boy who was wearing Hufflepuff colours. On his hands were a journal and a quill.

"Excuse me, Alexander Grey. Could I have your autograph?" said the boy.

Everyone who heard the boy had to stop and look at what was happening. The article that the Prophet and the Observer had published about Alex was popular among the younger readers and quidditch fans in the wizarding world. Apparently, the boy in front of him was one of his fans.

"Um… Sure thing, kiddo. What's your name?" he said.

"It's Cedric Diggory, D-I-Double G-O--"

"I can spell, Cedric," he said with a laugh.

"Sorry," said the nervous boy. He felt embarrassed as the crowd laughed at him.

In the journal was a news clipping with the article about him from the Observer. He had let them take better pictures of him. He signed the opposite page, "To Cedric Diggory, future quidditch star. He who asks is a fool for five minutes. He who does not is a fool forever. Best, Alexander Grey".

"What does it mean?" asked the boy.

"It's an old Chinese proverb, it means, do not be afraid to ask questions. You were embarrassed after you asked me for an autograph, but if you didn't ask me, you would have never gotten it," said Alex. He was totally playing the part of a wise senior student. Clay and Katie were smiling at his act.

On the next day after class, he was called into by Prof. Sprout's office. She told him that Headmaster Dumbledore had decided to offer some select students an introductory course in Alchemy. Should enough students express their interests in the course, the classes would take place every other Saturday. Alex said that he was interested. Learning alchemy from Dumbledore was a precious opportunity. There was no reason to say no.

In their first class, it turned out that only eight students chose to take the course. It was probably the bare minimum of students required. Bill Weasley was there and so was Katie. It looked like having an O in both Potions and Transfiguration O.W.L.'s were required for the class.

The lecture took about four hours. Alchemy had become an obscure subject in the wizarding world. It wasn't even a core class offered at Hogwarts. Practitioners of Alchemy are concerned with the experimentation of substances to discover their inherent magical properties, permanent transmutation, and creating panacea. Unlike Potions, however, its processes where less methodological. It relies heavily on the metaphysical attributes of the substances rather than their actual observable traits. It was certainly an interesting area of study and Prof. Dumbledore waa a great teacher, however, Alex couldn't see using the knowledge anytime soon in his life.

×××

Alex was walking through a known shortcut from the library to the Hufflepuff common room when he overheard two people were having a heated discussion. One of the speakers was Clay.

"How would you even know that?" said Clay.

"I had my ways. You don't know the kind of powerful people that my family is connected to," said the other haughtily who turned out to be Angus.

"Well, it's not true! You're lying!" retorted Clay.

Angus laughed. "You think anyone, especially your father, could deny the Dark Lord? Do not be naive. Everyone has to take a stand. It's already happening. My father had received some words. It is time to fight back and drive them off from our world, Rosewood. Don't make the same mistake as your pathetic father and grandfather did. You are now the Lord Rosewood, pathetic though your family may be. If you make the right choices, you could restore your family's wealth and prominence. How many generations has it been since the last Rosewood occupied a seat on the Wizengamot or become a department head in the Ministry? It could be you," said Angus not realizing how insulting his words were.

"Shut up, Angus. You don't know what you're talking about. You've never accomplished anything on your own. You think success and glory will be yours just because you're from the right family? Many families have fallen and risen in our long history. You are the one being naive. And do not talk about my family ever again!"

"The consequences will be on your head. Remember who was the one who tried to warn you! Soon enough you'll learn where your loyalties should be," Said Angus before leaving in a hurry.

Alex stepped out from behind the corner wall. He looked at Clay with a raised eyebrow not even bothering to hide the fact that he was eavesdropping on their conversation.

"What was that about?" he asked.

"Oh. It was just Travers being the usual ass. I swear I don't know how he could even strut about so haughtily. Isn't he bothered by the huge prick up his ass?" said Clay, clearly trying to avoid the topic with jokes.

Alex decided not to press anymore, but, there was something that Angus said that bothered him. The Slytherin was clearly assured that 'something' was about to happen, a certain agenda at play. Cooperating could help the Rosewood family and, undoubtedly, it had something to do with muggle-born and pureblood relations.

He would have to investigate this, perhaps he should order Mr Grant to assign some people to shadow all the members of the Travers family. If he remembered correctly, there were only Angus's father and older brother. Alex was confident that his people could trail the Travers family without being spotted.

The 'Arms' had more than 50 capable wizards and witches, and, each of them was at least as competent as a trained Hit-wizard. Some were even specialized in working in the shadows. And, there were more recruits still in training each year.

"Well, you shouldn't be meeting with him alone. You know what he's like," said Alex.

"I know. I know. It was just something stupid," said Clay weakly.

"Try to always stay with your cult when you are outside the common room, okay?"

"It's not a cult. It's more like a student outreach group, completely innocent."

"Speaking of which, are you thinking about who would take over the leadership of your group after you graduate? You should really formalize it so they would fall in line next year."

"No, not really. Do you have any recommendations? I know that you pay a lot of attention to us. Always making sure that we don't do anything stupid."

"Anything 'too' stupid, you mean. How about Tonks? She has been part of your gang ever since her second year, she's a fighter, and, she got enough friends to support her."

"But shouldn't I entrust it to a younger student. Someone who would become the leader for more than a single school term. She will be graduating after us."

"They won't be respected as you. You were able to convince the older students to follow you because you started the group from nothing."

"I guess that's true. I should make it so only 7th years can lead. But, what about after Dora?"

"How about writing some by-laws that can help decide the group's leadership in the future. It should also have a list of rules for all members to follow. I'm planning of doing the same with the quidditch team. It will include guidelines and traditions that will be observed by future members. Hopefully, it can help the Hufflepuff team to stay dominant in the future," explained Alex.

"Yeah, that could work. I will get started on that as soon as I can."

[AN: Even with a Hogwarts education, not everyone has the aptitude for fighting. From my understanding, Hit-wizards are like medieval city guards who were law-enforcers and defenders of the Ministry. Aurors are more like knights or agents of the realm who specialize in hunting dark wizards or doing anything the Ministry requires them to, therefore they require a more diverse set of skills, like knowledge of Potions and disguising abilities.]

×××

After Christmas break began, Alex checked with Elysium Housing Corporation, his housing company that was started about a year ago. Everything was going smoothly in that regard. They had apartment buildings all throughout the U.K. even Ireland. All transactions and inquiries were done through the office in Diagon Alley. At the current season, they were renting out about 200 apartment units, the prices of which range from 30 Galleons to 90 Galleons per month.

The business had also sparked some competitions with other enterprising people with wealth to invest. Soon enough, housing will be less of a concern for all citizens of Magical Britain.

As for the new Hermes Telecommunications Company or HTC (^_^), the initial sales of the mobile communicators were outstanding. The first and currently only model of communicators was on sale for 20 Galleons. It was a rectangular 1/4 inch thick slab of frosted glass that was about 5 inches diagonally in size.

The glass communicators functioned by voice command of whoever was holding it. They simply had to give the command and say the 5 character designation or the saved contact name of the intended recipient of the call. Answering the device was also done with a voice command, so as blocking unwanted callers. A security lock was also available for those who chose to make their artefact private. It was also enchanted to be hard to break and to be unnoticeable by muggles. After that was the layers of protective charms that prevent anyone from learning the core enchantments or tampering with the artefact in any way. A self-destruct charm would be triggered should any of the protective charms fail. Production of the artefacts was carried out by trained enchanters that were hired from the Association who all signed a very strict contract to prevent the leak of any information about the company and its products and services.

Using the services of HTC required a subscription of 7 Galleons and 7 Sickles. With that, a person could connect to anyone with a communicator as long as they know the right designation. They could talk face to face with the person on the other side of the connection. The connection facility was hidden and untraceable as part of their trade secret. A crystal ball in the centre of that facility that was about half of a yard in diameter made all the connections possible. It could handle about a hundred thousand calls simultaneously, although he doubts that the calls would reach that volume anytime soon.

Alex had bought a communicator as well. It would be the one he would use as Alexander Grey. As for his Order communicator, they were connected to a separate network that was inaccessible from the rest. Its physical form was also different as it was discreetly hidden as the glass face of a pocket watch. The same watch was given to every member of the Order.

With these two businesses, he knew that he was well on his way to becoming the richest man in Wizarding Britain even without counting his muggle businesses. Should the time come that he had to reveal himself as the leader of AIM, he would make sure that he was too big to mess around with. But, he had no desire to let that happen anytime soon. Being hidden behind his 'Grey' persona gives him the opportunity to accomplish many things without many obstacles. It was peculiar to actually use his birth name as the mask to hide away his 'real' self.

×××

During the later week of January, Bill and Alex were studying together. They were reading some materials for their Ancient Studies class.

"Hey, Alex. Can I ask you a question?" said Bill cautiously. He thought that he might be opening a discussion that could be a sensitive issue with Alex.

"Of course, Bill. Just ask away," Alex said.

"Um… It's like this. You've probably heard about AIM, right? Do you think anyone can become a member of that organization? Even those who are not muggle-born?" said Bill.

"Of course. Anyone can register as long as they are not against promoting equality among all wizardkind. I'm already a member, so as my friend Clay Rosewood. He's pureblood."

"Really? Rosewood is a member? How does a member benefit from the Association?"

"They have a library, quite useful for students during the breaks. They also host a lot of seminars where anyone willing could get started on learning a trade. Also, they can connect you to available jobs or apprenticeships. Most of them are available to any members, some seminars and lectures have an admission fee, but they are not expensive," said Alex. He hoped that Bill would become a member of the order, but, he also knew his entire family was attached to Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix.

"That sounds good. Actually, it's my father who is thinking about becoming a member, but my mother said he should think it over some more. They had an argument during the break over it," said Bill obviously expecting his opinion.

"Why is your mother against it?"

"No! I didn't mean it like that. She just worries that dad might endanger his position at the Ministry. He works as the Head of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office. To be honest, there is a general suspicion regarding the Association in the Ministry according to my Father. My mother is worried that he may end up isolating himself in the Ministry if he joins the AIM."

"I don't think he had anything to worry about. I don't know how much they pay him in the Ministry, but there are a lot of jobs available in the Association especially for an experienced Ministry worker like your father. Your mother might also find something in there for her. Maybe you could write to them about it."

Bill thought about what he said. Hopefully, he would write to his father about it. Alex knew that the Weasley's were not wealthy based on his old memories. They also had seven children to look after. It is one of the reasons why Bill was so hard working in the school, so he could help out as soon as possible in their house.

If Mr Weasley becomes a member of the Association, Alex might be able to help his friend's dad. Later on, he decided to write to Mr Baxter, telling him to inform their people from the Association so they could keep an eye for Mr Weasley.

×××

The end of the school term was quickly approaching. For the seventh-years, it meant the N.E.W.T.'s. A lot of students were dreading it. It might just be the most important test in their entire life. Even if remedial tests were allowed, the first result would still be in their records.

Alex had finished his preparations and was already thinking about graduations. He had already compiled a guidebook for the Hufflepuff quidditch team and the Charms Club. He was also satisfied with his chosen successors in those clubs.

When the day of the exams had finally arrived, he signed-up for Charms, Transfiguration, Potions, Herbology, Astronomy, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, Ancient Studies, and Divination. A total of 10 exams. There was no exam offered for Alchemy.

Passing the N.E.W.T. exams were equivalent to partial mastery in the subject. Other tests not offered in Hogwarts were available at the Wizarding Examinations Authority.

For the seventh-years, the examinations took an entire week. The professors of Hogwarts acted as proctors for the written portion of the exams. For the practical portion, some representatives from the W.E.A. were sent as the evaluators. He performed well in all of his exams but, he still could not be sure of his results until he got his evaluation card.

After a week, all the students got their exam results via post. A summarized result was also posted in the common room of each house. For Alex, he got an E.E.'s on Astronomy and Herbology, O's in Transfiguration, Potions, and Ancient Studies, and O's with distinction in Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, and Divination. It was an amazing result, probably one of the best records in Hogwarts's history.

Katie had eight N.E.W.T.'s, Clay had six, which is not bad at all, and Bill had 9. They all performed greatly. Alex and Bill had the best record for that school year.

Ch.19 - Graduation From Hogwarts

After he had gotten the result of his exams, Alex and his friends celebrated until midnight. There was a crazy atmosphere in the common room. Emotions were high. People were relieved and sad about their upcoming graduation.

The next day, Alex received words that Prof. Flitwick was expecting him in his office in the Ravenclaw Tower. He hurried along as he didn't want to make his favourite professor wait too long.

He knocked on the door. Then, he heard the professor's voice telling him to come in. He opened the door and saw the small professor behind his desk. There were tall stacks of books all over the room. No doubt, the professor had to use magic just to remove a book from its place.

"Professor, you sent for me?" asked Alex.

"Yes, yes, Mr.Grey. Come seat," said the professor.

Alex obliged. "What can I do for you, professor?"

"Let's get to the point. You have performed very well in Charms all throughout your Hogwarts years. Quite the talent, if I do say so myself. I invited you here to formally extend an invitation for an apprenticeship position with me as your master," said the professor who could barely stay on his seat.

"I'm honoured, Professor. But, I thought Hogwarts professors do not take in apprentices."

"Not normally, no. After all, we're busy teaching all of the students in Hogwarts. However, as Masters, we still have the right to take in apprentices. We just don't do it normally."

"Professor, I'm truly honoured. But, I plan to do a bit of travelling after I graduate. It has been a dream of mine for a very long time. Would it be possible to accept your offer at a later time?"

For a minute, Prof. Flitwick thought that Alex would turn him down just like the last person he offered an apprenticeship to. Alex's talent reminded him of Lily Evans, a muggle-born witch who was especially talented in charms. He offered her an apprenticeship after her graduation from Hogwarts in 1978. But, it was a time of chaos and she got involved with the Order of the Phoenix. Soon after, she had married James Potter, and that was the last he heard of her until the news of the Halloween of 1981. [AN: Prof. Flitwick was not a member of OoTP, but he probably knew about it.]

"Of course. Of course. A young man like you needs to spread his wings. I totally understand. When I was younger, I was also quite the adventurer."

"Thank you, Professor. I'll be sure to write to you and tell you about my adventures," said Alex with a laugh.

"I wish you all the luck, then. Oh! Before you leave, the Headmaster would also want to see you. Go ahead to his office. The password on the staircase is 'Lemon Sherbert'," said the professor.

He said his goodbye to the Charms professor and walked to when the staircase to Dumbledore's office was located. He wondered what Prof. Dumbledore could possibly want with him. He had been careful not to attract his attention, but, he supposed it was unavoidable with his N.E.W.T results.

When he entered the Headmaster's office, he was amazed by the collections of Hogwarts artefacts and other curiosities that the professor must have collected throughout his long tenure as the headmaster of Hogwarts.

"Prof. Dumbledore, are you in?" he yelled.

"Just a minute. I'll be right with you!" he heard a voice say.

Then, a phoenix had flown toward him a landed on a table beside him. It was his first time seeing a phoenix. It was as big as a swan with long red and golden tail feathers. He felt awed at the creature as it stared him up and down as if evaluating him. Then it trilled a sweet-sounding chime. He reached out and touched the head of the phoenix, petting it like how a person would a dog. The bird seemed to enjoy it.

"Ah. I see you have met Fawkes," said Dumbledore as he approached Alex. "Phoenixes, they are an amazing creature."

"Yes. He truly is. You called for me Headmaster?" said Alex.

"Indeed, I just wanted to talk to one of our brightest students before you graduate. Come and have a seat," said Dumbledore as he guided Alex to a chair by his desk. When Alex was properly seated, he continued, "I was wondering what are your plans after graduation."

"I want to travel the world, sir. See a whole new place," said Alex.

He felt a thug on his mental defences. Dumbledore was undoubtedly using a passive Legilimency on him. He had felt the same in the few times that he talked to Prof. Snape, so he was always prepared every time he talked to a Hogwarts professor. In seven years of training plus his recent meditation routine, he had become quite good with Occlumency, probably master level. He was able to control what surface thoughts were readable by a mind-reader. So, he was creating a show for Dumbledore, allowing him to see what seemed like the innocent dreams of a talented student.

"What about employment? Have you given a thought to what you might be doing for a career?" asked the old man.

"I've had some offers to play quidditch professionally, also Prof. Flitwick offered me an apprenticeship under him," said Alex. There was no harm in telling Dumbledore as much, he thought.

"Good. Very good, my boy. Prof. Flitwick is not a man who is easily impressed. Quidditch would also be very exciting also. I personally think your prospects are very high."

"Thank you, Headmaster," he said sincerely.

"Of course, it is our obligation to apply our selves to the betterment of all. In recent times, there had been some changes in our world. But oftentimes, it is the things beyond our control that we end up regretting the most. In times of uncertainty, I hope you will not lose your way as many others have done in the past," said Dumbledore solemnly.

"I'll keep that in mind, sir. I'll find some ways to use my abilities to serve the greater good," said Alex.

Dumbledore was stunned for some reason. Alex didn't think that he said anything that might have alerted the old man, and he knew that his metal shields were unpenetrated.

He was right to protect himself from Dumbledore, but, he still respected the man. He didn't even have to outright lie. In fact, he was quite honest with their conversation. But, Dumbledore was from a world where the good always triumphed over evil. Alex lived a life where the powerful could decide what was good or evil. He remembered the criminalization of being muggle-born. People like him had to give up even their rights to be called witches and wizards or face prison time. That was the future he was given the chance to change, and he will do just that, for the greater good.

"Sir?" asked Alex. Dumbledore hadn't said anything for a few seconds.

"Hm? Oh. Right. Old age must be catching up to me. Well, that should be enough for the day. I wish you the best in the coming years. I know you'll make Hogwarts proud. You may return to your dorm now and join your friends," said Dumbledore.

Alex had thanked the headmaster one last time before leaving the office. He had also said goodbye to Fawkes, the phoenix. It seemed the right thing to do.

After Alex had gone, Dumbledore was left alone in his office. He just sat there in deep contemplation.

"What do you think of him, Fawkes?" he asked the bird.

The bird trilled a cheerful sound.

"I hope your right, my friend," he said. "hm… the greater good, huh," he mumbled.

×××

On graduation day, Alex, Clay, and Katie were dressed in their complete uniform, with robes and hats, in the Great Hall with every other seventh year students. All the other students have already left the school the day before. So, it was only the Hogwarts faculty and the graduating students who were there.

The headmaster had said his final words to them. It was short and sweet with the usual optimistic message that the headmaster was known for. He wished all the students good luck before finally sending them off.

From there, they marched to the boathouse. The same place where they all entered Hogwarts the first time. The three of them, Alex, Clay, and Katie, decided to ride on the same boat together. It was a symbolic moment for the students. They arrived at Hogwarts by boat and now they were leaving the same way.

When they got to Hogsmeade, their possessions were already prepared for them. Some parents were there waiting for their newly graduated children. However, there was nobody there for the trio. Katie's parents would be waiting in London, and Clay's mother and grandmother do not have the habit of going out of their home.

Unlike the usual end of the year, riding the Hogwarts Express was optional for the students. They were no longer Hogwarts students. The train was there to take them to London should they choose it. If not, they were free to make their own arrangements. The three of them were going to London, so, they decided to take the train one last time.

They spent the train ride reminiscing their time in Hogwarts. They laugh and laugh. And they promised one another that they would make the effort to stay in touch. The most formative time of their youth was now at an end.

×××

Early July in the middle of the night, Alex was meeting with Mr Grant in person in some undisclosed location.

"So, what have you found out?" he asked.

"They met with some other prominent families three times since the beginning of the month. I fear they are truly a part of a certain scheme," said Mr Grant.

"And who were they meeting with?"

"It was Crabb and Goyle. Malfoy was suspected to have joined them."

"So, the Death Eaters are meeting again. Even without their Lord, they are still dangerous. Very well then, we'll deal with the target once and for all, learn what they know and remove them from the game board."

×××

A few days later, ten wizards of the Order, masked and dressed in all black attires, were flying on their brooms in some rural area in Scotland. They surrounded a certain plot of land and deployed some portable anchor stones that was Alex's invention. The first set of stones placed a Magic containment and Muggle-repelling ward around the property. The second set of anchors created an Anti-Apparition and an Anti-Portkey hex. The third set of anchors was to create a faulty ward that continuously drained all the wards within its bounds.

They waited for about ten minutes until the protective wards on the area were completely drained. First, they used a set of detecting spells to find all the people and elves living there. There were no House-Elves and they found their target located in separate rooms on the second floor of the solitary building on the property. They were most likely asleep.

"No. 3 and 4, as fast as you can, on my 'go', you will blitz through the house and find their Floo fireplace. Guard it, make sure no one gets in or out. No. 5 and 6, No. 7 and 8, and No. 9 and 10 find the father, elder son, and youngest son, respectively. Stupify them, take their wands, and tie them up. No. 2 and I would follow you later. Go!" said Alex.

The eight wizards moved out as ordered while Alex and Mr Grant walked leisurely. When they finally reached the house, everything was already quite. Alex went toward the biggest bedroom in the house where the father was most likely located. Two of his men were there guarding a bound wizard lying unconscious on the floor. It was the patriarch of the Travers family, Angus's father.

Alex had revived the stunned wizard. He pointed his wand at the wizard and said, "Tell me what you are planning with Avery and Goyle. 'Legilimens'!"

Then, he learned the answer to his question. Crabb and Goyle had been planning to attack the AIM building and burn it with the office of the Observer. The wizard in front of him and his son were supposed to draw the patrolling Hit-Wizards away from the area while Crabb and Goyle got to work. Lucius had decided to keep his hands clean, but, he assured them that he would be handling the fallout in the Ministry after the attack.

"Good. Now for my next question. What do you know of what happened to the previous patriarchs of the Rosewood family? 'Legilimens'!"

It was one of the things he was curious about. Angus Travers had alluded to knowing about what truly happened to Clay's father. Alex was surprised at what he learned. Clay's grandfather was approached by the Death Eaters and had turned them down. The Dark Lord's followers didn't take too kindly at that. He was tortured and killed shortly after.

Then there was Alex's father who managed to track down his missing father's last whereabouts. He was killed by the very wizard kneeling in front of Alex.

"So, it was you, after all. 'Crucio'!" exclaimed Alex.

He tortured the wizard until he died on the floor. Since he got what he wanted. He ordered his men to kill the two sons in the other rooms. Alex thought about his order that would kill Angus, one whom he always thought of as a child. He had to remind himself that the wizard was no longer a child. He just entrusted the task to his men, he didn't want to look at Angus's dying face.

After the deed was done, he ordered them to make sure that there was no trace of their presence there. He emphasized that it must appear as if the family had simply chosen to leave town. His men knew exactly what to do, they packed some trunks with clothes and took the wands while creating the right kind of disorder in the rooms. The corpses and the trunks were transfigured to small trinkets so they could get rid of them somewhere else. Alex instructed Mr Grant to assign someone to watch the house for the next week from the shadows so they could learn who exactly would decide to snoop around when the Travers's absence was finally noticed.

And just like that, the Travers family was extinct. Alex thought about Angus. But, he didn't regret what he'd done. Angus must have known the matters of Clay's father disappearance, at least since the beginning of the last term.

Crabb and Goyle might decide to postpone their attack when they realized that the Travers had gone missing. Or, they could go ahead with it. The plan was already set up and they no longer required to meet with the Travers another time. Alex had to figure out how he would deal with it as soon as possible.

Ch.20 - Summer of 1989

'FORMER DEATH EATERS ATTACK A.I.M.' by Francis Dewey, Senior Correspondent and Co-Editor of the Observer.

Diagon Alley, London — An attack on the Association for the Integration of Muggleborns (A.I.M.) centre took place last night, 1:00 AM on the 28th of July. The assailants were identified as Vincent Crabbe Sr. and Gregory Goyle Sr.

After the two assailants had destroyed the storefront and set fire to the building, they were caught in the act and apprehended on location by a patrolling squad of Hit-Wizards who were alerted by some witnesses passing through the alley at the time.

The resulting damages would cost around 5,000 thousand Galleons to restore according to estimates, even with the use of Reparo charm. Fortunately, there were no people in the building at the time of the attack.

The assailants, Mr Crabbe and Mr Goyle were among the former Death Eaters who were acquitted from all crimes during their trial after they claimed to be under the effects of the s 'Imperious' curse during the war.

To our readers who may not know, the Imperius curse, one of the three 'unforgivable' curses, takes away a person's free will. However, there are observable signs when a person is affected by the curse, such as milky eyes and gaps in memories.

This time, however, the Hit-Wizards who made the arrest stated for the record that they saw no signs on the assailants of being imperiused.

Members of the A.I.M. are demanding that the assailants be put on trial and sentenced with the appropriate punishment according to the letter of the Law.

Some citizens in Diagon Alley stated that the attack on the Association reminded them of the Death Eater raids during the reign of terror of 'You-Know-Who'. The Minister has not yet released a statement regarding the attack and is unavailable to our journalists at the moment.

In the meantime, the Association and the Observer will be relocated to an adjacent building temporarily until repairs are completed.

For those who are planning to attend one of the Association's seminars or lectures, they will be held in a different venue as scheduled. Details are available on-site or through their Hermes communicators which the public can reach via the designation A-1000.

×××

A week ago, moments after the attack on Travers family house, Alex and Mr Grant returned to the 'Arms' base. Alex had explained what he found out from the Travers patriarch about the impending attack they were planning on the A.I.M. centre in Diagon Alley.

Apparently, some purebloods were unhappy regarding the development of the Association in recent years. They were also unimpressed about their steadily dwindling profits when their businesses were losing customers due to the Association's endorsements of their rivals. So, Travers proposed a plan to destroy the A.I.M. building and make their position clear and warn its supporters. He was also hoping that the attack would endear him to the other Death Eaters families.

"What do you intend for us to do, Archon? Should we increase the guards? Perhaps we could strike them first," said Mr Grant.

"No, we'll let them attack," he said smiling. "Since they volunteered to help our agenda, it wouldn't be good to turn them down.

"You will inform the administration of A.I.M. and Mr Dewey from the Observer tomorrow. I want them to relocate anything of true value to the second floor of the Elysium Housing. I want any documents copied, and any on-going transactions uninterrupted. No personnel is allowed to stay overnight in the Association building.

"After that, you will contact Mrs Pearce to tell her that we need to have our Hit-Wizard agents to make sure at least two of them will be present in any night patrol on Diagon Alley. Your men will keep watching around the building every night disguised as passers-by. When they see our guests, they will call the patrolling Hit-Wizards and lead them to the attackers. They will only help the arrest if, and only if, the Hit-Wizards are having difficulties in catching the attackers.

"After that, Mr And Mrs Dewey will handle the rest. You men will watch the other members of the Crabbe and Goyle family just in case they make any sudden movements."

Mr Grant had listened patiently to Alex. "What about Malfoy? He must be involved in this plot," he asked.

"Yes, he must be. But, he is still too close to the Minister of Magic. We can't risk the success of this operation due to his relationship with the Minister. However, if it's just Crabbe and Goyle, I think the Minister can be pressured to act for us. There will be a time in the future to deal with Lucius Malfoy," explained Alex.

He knew that Lucius Malfoy was one of the Dark Lord's lieutenants. He will surely have to remove the man from the scene in the future. However, taking him out too soon might result in some paranoia among the purebloods. Alex had the mind of a hunter when it comes to Death Eaters, and just like a hunter, he didn't want to scare off the herd before he had properly cornered them like the animals that they were. At the very least, he had to maintain some time in between his operations against the pureblood supremacist to avoid creating a pattern that could lead to any suspicion about the existence of an organized group with plans against them.

The disappearance of the Travers could be left as some unexplainable occurrence. Unless people were absolutely sure about their fates, it would take a huge leap before they could suspect anything that could lead to them. Alex had also instructed the some of the people from the shadow team of the 'Arms' to spread around some rumours in Knocturn Alley that the Travers were spotted approaching some black market 'Portkey' maker. With luck, the purebloods would just suspect that the Travers had just run from the country for good.

When the Observer article was published the next day, a lot of muggleborn sympathizers visited Diagon Alley to offer their help any way they could. The Association's people in Diagon Alley were doing what they could to garner more support regarding the incident. Their point was this, if the Association was not safe, then no muggleborn was safe. With the public sentiments on their sides, Alex hoped that could pressure the Ministry to take their side in the matter.

×××

A group of people had also gone to the Ministry H.Q. to protest the Minister's lack of response regarding the attack against the Association. The article from the Observer had brought to the attention of the public that the assailants were former Death Eaters who were acquited after the Dark Lord was gone, much to the Minister's annoyance.

Even those who were not members of the Association were troubled by the implications. What if these wizards were trying to start something again? Everyone would surely be paying attention to how the Minister of Magic would handle the situation. It wasn't too long, when the minister himself, Cornelius Fudge, made an appearance to appease the crowd.

"I would like to inform everyone that the matter in Diagon Alley is being investigated by the Aurors under my order," he said aloud. "We will do whatever we can to determine the truth being this horrendous attack. I advise everyone to go back to their homes or to their job and put their trust in the Ministry."

"Hooray for Minister Fudge!" A voice shouted suddenly.

"Yeah, with the minister himself making that promise, we can be sure a fair trial will be conducted!" said another voice.

"Yes, trial for truth! Minister Fudge will surely bring us justice!"

"Fudge for Justice! Fudge for Justice!" they began chanting.

Cameras were going off. There were journalists that witnessed the entire thing took place. In the next day, the news was heavy with articles about Minister Fudge and his uncompromising attitude to the pursuit of justice. For once, the Daily Prophet and the Observer agreed on their articles. From how it sounded, the minister had promised to conduct a proper trial for the assailants to determine the truth about the attack.

The Minister was conflicted when he read the newspaper. He surely didn't promise a trial of all things. He figured that with the right compensations to the affected parties, the matter would resolve itself quietly. After all, no one was actually hurt. But now, he was reported in the papers that he would bring justice for the victims of the attacks. He was really beginning to doubt his memories of when he addressed the crowd.

However, he had also never experienced such accolades before. And, he felt good. He was known as a great compromiser. It was probably the reason he was elected as the Minister of Magic. When the ministry was in chaos with everyone throwing blame at one another after the Dark Lord's demise, he had stepped into the limelight promising that he would restore order and preserve the dignity of the Ministry. He had delivered on that promise, in a certain way. Shortly after his rise, the ministry was back to functioning properly, at least from the outside. Any scandal or controversies were swept under the rug and any outstanding trials were summarily concluded.

Now, however, they were calling him a 'Bringer of Justice'. To be perfectly honest, he enjoyed his newfound reputation. He felt respected and powerful, something he has always envisioned for himself.

Fudge knew that he would have to retire someday. It had been almost ten years since he first stepped on to his current position. He was more and more concerned about what would be the legacy of his tenure as a Minister of Magic and what would be his life like after retirement. If he could not be remembered as a great public servant, he would make sure to make his life as comfortable as possible.

Perhaps he had made too many deals early on in his career, but they were necessary at the time. Who gave Crabbe and Goyle the idea to do something stupid like attacking the Association. They weren't even considerate enough to die on the spot. Instead, they let themselves be arrested so that be he, the Minister of Magic, had to deal with the headache.

[AN: In the movies, Fudge pretty much disappeared after the fifth movie. In the books, he was the one who told the muggle prime minister about the death of Amelia Bones, his successor.]

×××

The newspaper articles the following week had the same type of stories. They reminded everyone of what had happened in the last war and what could happen again if no actions were taken to bring the assailants to justice. They also liberally praised the firm stance of the minister against the prejudicial injustices in the wizarding world.

Alex was not above using a little bit of fear-mongering to get the reaction that he wanted from the public. For that matter, he also didn't mind making the Fudge as his unwitting hero. If the expectation of the public could force the minister to take the proper course of action, then it would be all worth it. The possibility that it could drive a wedge between the minister and some of his pureblood supporters was a bonus. Should that happen, Alex was prepared to have the Association declare their support for the minister.

He had given careful instructions to Mr Dewey not to lose the hard-earned reputation of the Observer, telling them to only use actual quotes from the minister. To effectively implicate the minister in their scheme, they used the reaction of the crowd or some public opinion to paint the minister as a muggleborn rights supporter. Of course, those people in the crowd that cheered for the minister were instructed to do just that prior to the protests.

On his own matters, Alex was also very busy. He had arranged an apprenticeship for Katie under a Potions master member of the Association. Katie was happy to share the news with him via owl post when she had received the offer. Of course, she didn't know that it had been arranged for her, after all, it was also due to her talent. Alex couldn't really force anyone to accept an apprentice in the Association unless they were actually members of the Order. Katie had gotten the offer due to her own accomplishments in the study of Potions not to mention her short tutelage under Dumbledore in the field of Alchemy. Alex merely had to put her name forward. He didn't mind doing as much for his friend.

Alex and Katie had gotten close throughout the years. To other students of Hogwarts, the two of them always seemed serious. Alex had the mentality of an adult due to his circumstances. Katie has always been mature mentally for her age. She had very few friends in Hogwarts and only spent her time doing what truly interested her. She was very comfortable in her own skin and never bothered to change her attitude to be more pleasing to others.

Alex had always admired that about her. Mentally, he was an adult, with cynic tendencies, who had experienced dejections and hardships in his life. He was glad to see a clever girl who acted prudently for her age.

She had grown into a beautiful woman. She had plenty of would-be suitors when she was in Hogwarts. Smart and beautiful, she was the ideal girl for many Hogwarts boys. But, the only boys that she hanged around with were Clay and Alex. One is the leader of the Hufflepuff gang and the other was the illustrious captain of the quidditch team. It would certainly be intimidating to any boys to even think about asking her out.

If at first Alex had treated her as a child with good prospects, now, what he felt for Katie was a genuine friendship. Perhaps, even more than that. Even he wasn't immune to her charms.

She was tall and she had a slender body. Her facial features were fine and her blue eyes were stunning. Her skin complexion made her look delicate with the redness of her cheeks and nose. Her red hair, in contrast, was wilder and she kept it in a simple tie most of the time, not hiding how her jawline meets her slender neck.

What made the most impression on Alex most was the redness on the back her fingers and on her collarbones. Also, she always seemed focused when speaking to him, always on point, and always looking at him eye to eye. [AN: See my note regarding characters appearance.]

As for Clay, Alex had arranged a business agreement between the Derbyshire Farms and the Rosewood Farms that would let the two farms profit for years to come. Clay was also taking advantage of his membership in the Association. He had invited the other members of his Hufflepuff gang to join A.I.M. Some of them were purebloods and halfbloods. They attended as many seminars and lectures as they could.

Soon enough, Alex expected Clay to gain a leadership position in the Association even if only among the younger members. He had gotten closer to Nymphadora Tonks during the last term as he guided her to take on the leadership position of the Hufflepuff gang for the next school term. Alex was happy for his friend. Also, he was hoping this could change Tonk's fate in the future.

As for Alex, he had moved permanently to his country house in Norwich where Mr Baxter could take care of his everyday needs. He had given Grandpa Joe a retirement fund so the old man could spend his remaining days with ease. He had a closer relationship with his grandfather than he did in the other timeline, perhaps it was the unusual maturity he possessed. However, he also knew that he couldn't take his grandfather in the new stage of his life. The old man was set in his ways and it would not be kind to drag him in Alex's ever-changing life.

Alex's time was spent in quidditch practices. He had also made some progress in studying the orb of cursed fire orbiting his magical core with constant meditation. From his observation, he learned that the fire was partially self-aware. It rewarded him every time he had acted on his violent impulses. In this way, he could absorb the fire into his own core quicker. Alex certainly understood the necessity of acting with violence at times, but doing so just to please the fire would adversely change his personality in the end.

He had to force the orb of fire under his control or risk losing control of himself. So, he started researching a method, a ritual or a spell, that would help him to safely integrate the power of the cursed fire into his own.

END OF CHAPTER