Chapter 21 Mind Games

Months passed and nothing was found on the Dark Lady, whose name they still didn't know. There were no reports of anyone mysteriously missing, though there were a few on people with suddenly changing personalities. One minute the person would be happy and bubbly, the next they would be sad and depressed. At first it was thought they were simply suffering from mental illness, but that was quickly discarded upon examination. There was a spell on them. Why someone would want this was the question. How would it further a goal to have depressed people? St. Mungo's was trying to come up with a counter curse.

There was nothing tying these people together, except they were magical. Men and women were affected, though no child was hit. They came from all walks of life, Pure-blood, Half-blood, and Muggle-born. They were shop owners, politicians and housewives. It was as if the person casting the spell just picked someone randomly and fired. The DMLE was investigating.

In those months Hydrus and Grace's relationship grew. She had accepted the fact that he wasn't always an upstanding citizen, but never targeted innocents. She thought of him as a spy, giving him that mysterious feeling that she adored. Grace told him of her childhood and about her uncle who was caught being a pervert. He never did anything to her, but it still hit her hard since he was her favorite relative. That was her secret that she wanted to share.

Hydrus shared a few more stories of his own childhood, still letting her believe that it was in the orphanage. He kept most of his secrets and tried to keep the conversations in the now. He made sure to take his monthly aging potion. He didn't think he would ever reveal he was immortal; magic was one thing, immortality and time travel were different. The fact that he couldn't die would cause undue stress on the woman he cared for.

They still used the London flat, and spent a lot of nights there.

Harry was doing great in his schooling. If he were in a school he would be top of his class. The inventions and Hydrus's own future college education went a long way to making the child a smart boy. Thanks to never having met his mum's sister and her family, he never felt depressed or repressed. He was in no way a genius, but still doing very well.

They tried to get all the kids together in non-magical parks a few more times. Each time someone lost their temper and accidents happened. So they were discussing having play dates by alternating wizards and the Grangers houses.

The calls from the Granger parents petered off, now that they felt better about Hermione being magical. They still had some doubts on the wizarding society, but the men were quelling them the best they could.

One day the men were sitting in the living room going over their plans for the day, like they did every day. "I am thinking of breaking one of my rules," Hydrus said suddenly as he finished reading The Times and put it on the table.

"Which rule would that be?" Remus asked as he grabbed up the newspaper, beating Sirius to it. He did separate the sports section and hand it to his friend.

"I'm thinking of selling a few of the twins' products, and some of the things me and George worked on," the immortal sighed and ran a hand down his face. He had been debating this in his head ever since the reports on the new spell came out.

"Oh, which ones?" Sirius asked, perking up at new joke products. Hydrus never let him play with the twins' stuff.

"Down boy," Hydrus joked, making the other man pout. "No, not joke items, but things like the shield hats. They stop up to medium level curses and I can tweak them to cover the whole body. If we can get people to wear them then maybe we can reduce the amount of people hit. And a few of the other war based ones."

"That is a good idea," Remus said, ruffling the paper, "though I would make them better looking." He smirked over the top of The Times.

"Yeah," the time traveler smiled. The hats were pretty hideous.

"You could make them more stylish and keep them funny. Sell the stylish ones to Madam Malkin and put the funny ones in Fun For All Pranks. Maybe even make some gloves," the dogman suggested.

"Good idea," Hydrus said thoughtfully. "If I sell the patent for part of the profit, I can still deposit it in the Weasley vault."

"What if whoever is working this spell finds a way to get around the shield?" the werewolf asked, folding the paper and giving his full attention to the discussion.

"I'll just keep upping the protection. I'll do some research on the spell and see if I can't find that Dark Lady while I'm at it," Hydrus answered with a shrug. He still had all the books from the future on his book-reader and laptop. He also had many of the books he raided from the Death Eaters' houses that he had never read. Maybe the curse was in one of them. He might have to cut back on his dating time to start studying them.

"I can help with that," Remus said, pulling the immortal out of his thoughts. "The book store runs well without me, and I am sure if I ask Sarah, she would be more than happy to help in her spare time."

"I can help, it's a slow time at the Ministry right now, but Laura is busy, plus she's not much of a researcher," Sirius added, waggling his eyebrows.

"Give me your book-readers and I'll download some of the books I brought from the future. Sirius, I've got the entire Death Eater libraries on my laptop, so you can look through them with me. Remus, I'll give you the stuff I got from Flourish and Blott's." He waited until the two men called up their readers.

Remus had finally figured out how to make the pocketspace. His was over his left wrist, so it looked like he was conjuring something or to non-magicals it would look like it had been in his hand the entire time. Sirius decided he wanted his over his right hip, so he could look like a gunslinger when he called something up.

"I want us to increase our time at the gym," Hydrus said as he took each reader. "If there truly is a Dark Lady, then we need to be prepared. So far there's nothing indicating that she is after a particular group of people, but still…" he got up and started to the study, the other two followed. When they got to the room, Hydrus booted up the laptop and waited.

"That'll mean less time with the ladies," Padfoot whined.

"And less time with Harry," Moony added.

"We can take him with us, and we can go in the mornings so it won't interfere with our dating," the immortal said. "There's a daycare at the gym, they actually have the kids do simple workouts in the form of games," he added as he started downloading the books he wanted. It would do Harry good to get some exercise.

Finishing up, he handed each man back their readers and headed back to the living room, stopping to check in on Harry. The child was sitting on his floor reading his child's reader. If Hydrus remembered right, he would be working on the different ABC learning books and how they used other words for each book. Like A is for apple in one or A is for alligator in another.

"Doing okay, Harry?" the oldest uncle asked as he leaned in the doorway.

"No, not really," Harry pouted. "I don't get some of these words." He was getting better, but he was no Hermione.

"Write down what you don't understand, then come and find me and I'll explain them," Hydrus said with kindness. "This way you can practice your writing and learn to spell some bigger words." He hadn't expected Harry to understand all the books he had assigned. But, he wanted to make sure that his younger self would ask for help, unlike how he was as a child.

"Okay, Uncle Hydrus," the child said, though you could see he really didn't want to, but Hydrus had made it very clear that there would be no whining about school work. If he did well then he could fly in the back yard and help more in the lab. His uncle was letting him make small toys that he could give to his friends.

"Find me when you're done," the immortal said and turned to leave.

The three men made it back to the living room and settled in their chairs.

"Do you not think you are being a little hard on him? I mean, some of those books are way past his reading level," Remus asked.

"Not really, I told him just to do his best and read any word he knew and we'd talk about those he didn't." Hydrus shrugged. "I'm keeping it to children's learning books, so the words are small and there are pictures to help."

"Maybe," the ever cautious werewolf said.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to mark him down on what he gets wrong. It's a learning exercise," he defended himself. "The assignments for homeschooling are stuff he does in the classroom. This is like homework. He'll do fine."

"Alright, I will take your word for it," Remus conceded.

The three men settled more in their seats and started reading the old books on their readers. They spent an hour going over the information, learning some forgotten things, but nothing about the new curse. Harry came in after that hour and Hydrus pulled up the children's dictionary on Harry's reader and they went over the words. The day was spent with everyone working on their own thing until the afternoon, when Hydrus declared it was playtime.

After an afternoon playing in the sun, they ate a Beef Wellington dinner and enjoyed movie night. Harry was sent to bed at eight and the three men started research again.

"We should start looking into anyone who disappeared in the last ten years," Hydrus said, breaking the silence. "The DMLE hasn't found anything, and I'm thinking it's time we help. I was hoping they would apprehend this woman before now, without our help." He had been hoping to stay out of this fight. All he wanted to do was raise Harry, settle with his girl and live a happy life until he started his other plan.

"Why?" Sirius asked, looking up from his research.

"It's how Dark Lords operate, they disappear and then reappear with an agenda," the immortal shrugged.

"How will we do that? There are thousands of magicals in the United Kingdom. How will we know who to look for? And if the DMLE cannot find them, what makes you think we can?" Remus asked with a puzzled look on his face.

"Well, Sirius is still in good with the Ministry, he can grease some palms. I can get my private investigators on the case. You still have ties with people like Mundungus," he ticked off the possibilities.

"I have not seen Fletcher in years," the werewolf said. "Not since I moved in here. Well, there was one time I ran into him in the Alley, but that was years ago."

"You don't have to if you don't want to, it was just a suggestion," Hydrus all but snapped. Sometimes Remus was annoying with the way he debated everything. The immortal knew it was just his way, but did he have to make an alternate point on everything?

"I did not say I would not help. I just said that is an avenue I might not be able to use," Moony defended.

"Then do what you can. Besides, Fletcher will do anything for a price, use the bribe money and ask him to look into it. I only ask you to get in touch with him, because I might have to hurt him for what he tried to do to me," Hydrus said in a bitter tone.

"What did he do to you?" Sirius asked. He always liked that petty thief, but he never really trusted the man.

"When the goblins put a price on my head, he tried to wiggle out of the vow I made him take and get the bounty. He died for his efforts, but still he tried. So if you do contact him, keep my name out of it. I don't want to have to see him."

"Oh, I will see if I can get a hold of him," Remus said and then looked back to his research. He was fascinated on all the updated spells from the future.

"Remember, we're looking for a woman," Hydrus stated, and then went back to his own reader.

He got two nods in return and silence fell once again. They kept at it until midnight, not finding anything on what they were researching, but plenty of good things they might be able to use in the future. This set the rhythm for the next few months.

A few busy days passed and little was found, the looking into the people missing and reappearing was a bust. Hundreds of witches left the country ten years ago and many of them returned and were all doing normal things, like working and raising a family. So this Dark Lady was still a mystery, if she even existed at all. It was something they were debating, because there was no word of an uprising in the darker parts of the magical world. No recruiting, no propaganda, nothing that would indicate someone trying to take over. The only thing they had to go on was Hydrus's stalker, and they didn't know if she was one and the same. Not wanting to take that chance, they continued researching.

It was Saturday and Hydrus and Sirius were having one of their public lunches. They tried to be seen in public a few times a month, so there was reason to talk about one another at their jobs. They had just finished their meal and were walking to the Apparation point when out of nowhere Hydrus was hit with a Killing Curse.

Once again finding himself in a grey space, Hydrus said, "Well, this sucks. Death, are you around?"

"Yes," came the succinct answer from behind him.

Hydrus turned and saw the deity in all his gloomy glory. He waved his hand and conjured seats. "Will I always meet you here? I mean, can't I just drop dead and then jump back up?" the immortal asked as he sat in on of the chairs.

"I needed to speak with you," the very thin man said with a shrug of his shoulder, taking the other chair. "You will usually heal right away, unless I am in need of you."

"Really that takes a load off my mind. What do you need to talk to me about? Is it about whoever killed me this time?"

"Yes, this Dark Lady of yours does not like you. I believe you are the reason she is around. I cannot tell you who she is, but you have personally affronted her. While she is not a major threat to the citizens, she will still come after you until you die or you neutralize her. Since you cannot die…" another shrug of the shoulder.

"Great, my own personal nutter, guess she can't really be called a Dark Lady. Hmmm, wonder who I slighted so badly?" Hydrus sighed and ran his hand down his face. "Is Harry in danger?" something he was very concerned about.

"Only from crossfire. She has a thing for children. She will not harm them intentionally," Death answered in is stoic voice.

"And Grace?"

"It might be best that she carries protection, though I don't think she would hurt her too bad. Once again she has a soft spot for non-magicals. This woman is not like your Voldemort. This is a personal vendetta," the tall thin man warned. "You would do well by looking into all you have done since you came back. The reason she is after you is hidden in plain sight."

"Anything else?" Hydrus asked as he stood. He really hated those riddle like answers. It reminded him too much of Dumbledore.

"No," was the answer as the deity stood as well.

"Well thanks for the tips. Can you send me back now, we were in a busy area and I don't want to be known as the Boy Who Lived again."

With a wave of his arm Death flung his soul back to his body. Hydrus woke with a gasp, sat up and looked around. His forehead furrowed; he was on a table, in a dusty room made of wood in what looked like the back of an empty shop. There were bits of broken furniture and piles of discarded parchment. The afternoon sun was the only light, shining through the broken, dirty windows. He seemed to be alone, but he could hear someone coming, so he whipped out his Cloak and moved to the furthest wall, wand in hand.

Sirius came into the room and looked around, wand in hand. "Wonderful, first he dies on a full street and now he disappears." He threw up his hands and was going to walk out.

"Padfoot," Hydrus said, taking off the Cloak, "what happened?"

"Hydrus!" Sirius shouted as he twirled around. "You had me scared half to death. You got hit with a Killing Curse right in the middle of the pavement. I knew you didn't want people to know, so I disillusioned you as soon as you fell and drug your heavy arse in here." Which was sort of a lie, since he levitated him.

"Did you see who hit me?" the immortal asked as he put away his Cloak. "Was anyone hurt?"

"Nah, it came from behind us. I ducked and looked, but everyone was running at that point. So I disillusioned you and made like I was taking cover. After you fell, there were no more curses thrown."

"Oh, okay, and thanks for that. Did anyone see me get hit?" He sat on the dusty table he had woken up on.

"Merlin, I hope not." He shuddered thinking of all the press that would happen if that occurred.

"You and me both, Padfoot, you and me both," Hydrus sighed, thinking the same thing. He then jumped off the table and went to the door. "Well no time like the present to find out." He opened the door, his wand at the ready, and saw a lot of confused people milling about. Many of them had wands in hand and were looking around for an enemy, which was a far cry from his timeline when they just ran and hid. It made the time traveler feel better about the populace that they were ready to defend themselves.

He stepped out the door, Sirius right behind him, and went to the nearest man. "Did you see what happened?" he asked the alert person.

"Someone fired a Killing Curse, but we don't think it hit anyone. Can't be too careful, what with rumors of a Dark Lady floating about," the man said, looking Hydrus up and down as if to make sure he was a man.

"That doesn't sound good. You don't think anyone was hit? That's a relief. I wonder who it was," the immortal feigned innocence.

"Yeah, it is. Only a wacko would fire a curse in the middle of Diagon Alley. I'm sure the Aurors will find them," the man said, pointing to the red clad people flooding the street and then clapping Hydrus on the back, pocketed his wand and walked away.

"Thanks," Hydrus called and then turned to Sirius. The two Blacks shrugged and started to the Apparation point again.

"Sirius, my boy," came the call from behind. Both men groaned, pasted on innocent looks and turned. "And Hydrus," Dumbledore said as he walked to the two men. "Terrible business, Dark curses in the streets. Thankfully no one was injured. Alas, I had thought that the Dark times were behind us," the headmaster said, stroking his beard.

"Albus, what can I do for you?" Sirius asked pleasantly.

"I was simply wondering if you knew what had happened," the old man said in his grandfather voice, twinkle going full force.

"Not really, we were just leaving when the curse flew over our heads. So we ducked into a storeroom and tried to find the shooter." He was very glad both he and Hydrus's minds were protected.

"Well, it is very fortunate that neither of you were hit," the Headmaster said kindly. "If such business continues, I might have to call old friends together. Will you be willing to join us?"

"Only if the wording of the oath is tightened," the dogman said with a bit of a bite. "We had spies the last time our 'old friends' convened." His face flashed with remorse at the reminder of the death of his friends and the betrayal of Wormtail.

"Yes, I will endeavor to rectify that," Dumbledore said seriously. He patted Sirius on the shoulder in a fatherly fashion. "And you, Hydrus, my boy, would you be willing to help?" he asked as he turned his attention to the older Black.

"I'll have to see what my schedule is like," was the vague answer. Hydrus didn't see much point in the Order, they really didn't do much in his timeline when Voldemort rose the second time, but he knew they did well in the first war. However, to have a leader that withholds information was detrimental to any vigilante group.

Dumbledore looked disappointed, but he knew this young man didn't hold him in high regard so it was expected. "Talk to Sirius and Remus, if you must, let them tell you how our friends operate. If you change your mind, you would be most welcome to join us," he replied. "Now, I must be off. It was good to see you gentlemen again." And with that he turned and went to talk to the Aurors that were questioning the public.

"Will you really join up again? Knowing what you know about Dumbledore," the immortal asked his cousin.

"It would be expected, but I won't take any vows that'll hurt the family," Sirius answered in all honesty. "I wonder if the old man still thinks it's Voldemort."

"I wouldn't doubt it, which is one of the reasons I'll stay away from the Order. Once that man gets an idea in his head it takes a massive act of magic to change it." They were stopped and questioned, their wands checked. When they gave their story and their wands were cleared, they continued on. They got to the point and Apparated home.

Hydrus sent Harry to his room to work on his books and asked the two men to sit. After they settled he put up a silencing charm and told them what Death said and about all the times he felt like he was being watched.

"So you have a personal stalker who is crazy and only after you? Why the curse to make people depressed then?" Remus asked, sitting back in his comfy chair to think.

"Well, if I remember my psychology, then it might be that she is making people feel the way she is," Hydrus said, going over what he remembered studying when he started therapy.

"So we're looking for a depressed, crazy, stalker lady, who feels you did her wrong. Since it's personal we can't really call her a Dark Lady. Maybe just a Dark Nutter," the dogman said, echoing Hydrus's statement and also thinking over this new bit of information. "Let's see who we know. Rita, in prison. Dolores, in prison. Carrow, dead. Bella, dead. Narcissa, wouldn't get her hands dirty. Who else do we know?"

"When did Carrow die?" Remus asked.

"The Aurors got her when she was fighting them after the war. Her and her brother," Sirius answered, still going over the women they knew.

"Well, it must be someone you guys don't know then. Since, I technically didn't exist until right before the end of the war, I'm going to go out on a limb and say it's someone who is pissed about the changes."

"You might be right on that. You weren't a big part of the war, and no one knows about you and the Death Eaters. So it's sure to be a Pure-blood," Sirius said thoughtfully. Now he was thinking about anyone who had been making a fuss in the Ministry, but he couldn't place his finger on anything.

"It could even be a foreigner, you brought those shops to the continent," Remus added his two Knuts worth. "They have even set up squib orphanages in those countries that still banish squibs."

"Well that's just dandy. We have no idea where to start." The immortal threw up his hands. "And this time I don't have my own personal connection to the lunatic." He looked at his watch and saw it was time to start dinner. "I'll think about this later. What do you want to eat tonight?"

"Pizza," Sirius said quickly.

"You always want pizza," Remus said with a chuckle.

"I like pizza," the dogman pouted.

"Come on, Padfoot, we'll make homemade pizza. Go get Harry and he can help." Hydrus got up, dispelled the silencing charm and went to start the fixings. They had fun creating a massive meat pizza, which everyone enjoyed.

Hydrus called Grace and let her know that there was someone out to get him personally and that they might not want to be seen in public that often. He made arrangements with her to pick her up via Apparation and take her to the flat. He thanked Merlin every day that he had such an understanding girlfriend. It was one of the major reasons he cared for her so, she accepted everything about him so far, even his darker past.

The next morning the headlines in The Times read:

Killing Curse Fired in Diagon Alley

What followed told the story of what had happened and praised the Department of Magical Law Enforcement for being on the scene as quickly as they had. It commented on how the public took cover and tried to defend themselves. The article suggested that everyone brush up on their defense. There was also the standard request that anyone with any information contact the DMLE.

The Daily Prophet's article was different.

Rumors of the Dark Lady are True

This article brought up stories of the Dark times that had just passed and tried to create fear and chaos. It said that the Dark Lady must be a Death Eater trying to resurrect He Who Must Not Be Named and continued on that vain. The article was full of rumor and speculation.

The Times' next issue got quotes from the Ministry to support their story that is was a single person. The Prophet did the same, and still tried to instill fear. The two papers once again battled it out for a week, until the Prophet's subscribers dropped. No one wanted to listen to rumor when they were given hard facts. This time the Quibbler didn't offer an opinion.

The next Saturday Hydrus was sitting in his office at Fun For All, drinking a cup of tea, when the tea vanished and the leaves read, I Know What You Are. He dropped the cup and looked around; people were looking at him curiously, wondering what caused him to make a ruckus. There was no indication of anyone doing anything malicious.

This is not good. Did someone really know? Was this a joke? I trust these people. Where is this woman? were some of the thoughts rapidly filling his mind. His breathing became erratic and his heart started beating faster. He needed to get out of the store. Taking deep breaths and slowing his breathing enough to talk without sounding panicked, he turned to his manager and said, "I've got to go."

"But we have to get set up for Christmas. You promised you'd help instead of hiring a temp," Ellie said firmly, looking up from her paperwork. The last temp they hired was a disaster; she had made the schedule so bad that it took two days of confusion to straighten it out.

"Something came up," he answered as he stood. His breathing was becoming uneven again. What if she hurts these people? Do she really does know my secrets? Once more calming himself he focused on his manager.

"How? You've been sitting here the whole time and no one has talked to you in the last half hour," she questioned with an arched eyebrow, and a hint of worry, wondering what has come over him.

"Well, I had a sudden thought and I need to check on something at home," was the excuse.

"Hydrus, we have to get this done soon. The Christmas rush is already starting and we need to get the employee schedule out before tomorrow. Not to mention you need to get with Jesse on inventory."

"I know. I'll be back in an hour. I promise," the immortal said as calmly as he could as he walked out of the office. He left the store and ducked into the alley behind it, donned his Cloak and went to the Apparation point. He popped in to the house and called to see if anyone was home. Sirius came down the stairs.

"What happened now?" the dogman asked, seeing the look on his cousin's face.

Hydrus told him about the tea leaves and ran his hand down his face, taking deep breaths.

"That's weird," Sirius said, taking his seat.

"I need a Calming Draught. This is freaking me out," the time traveler replied, his paranoia getting the better of him. "I didn't want to have some kind of episode in the store. I haven't had a panic attack in years. I don't want whoever this is to see me have one now." He called Tippy to bring him the potion. She popped away and was back in seconds.

"Well, according to my therapist, it's to be expected," Sirius rationalized. "Stress is always going to cause some type of reaction."

"I know," Hydrus said, and then downed the Calming Draught. "That doesn't mean I have to like it. It always makes me feel weak to have one." His shoulders slumped as the potion did its job. "I'm going to have to start meditating longer and carrying my potions with me, just in case."

"Well, you didn't have a flashback, so I think you did pretty good," the younger cousin said still trying to make Hydrus feel better.

"I'll call the clinic tomorrow and set up an appointment. Mr. Noble needs to know I have a nutter after me anyway." Now that he was calmer he stood and said, "I have to get back to the store, I promised Ellie I'd help her with the scheduling. I'm not sure when I'll be home."

"Alright, I'll see you later," Sirius said and stood with him. "I'll have Tippy cook tonight and we'll save you a plate."

"Uncle Hydrus, you're home," Harry said as he ran into the room, fresh from his nap.

"Sorry, Harry, but I have to go back to work. I had to talk to your Uncle Padfoot about something, now I have to go," he said as he picked up the five and a half year old.

"Aw, do you really?" Harry pouted.

"Yup, but I'll try and be home before you go to bed," the uncle said, tweaking the child's nose.

"Fine," the little boy pouted and then demanded to be let down. He went to his other uncle and stood by him with his little arms folded in anger. "Bye, Uncle Hydrus," he said sullenly.

"I'll be home as quickly as I can," Hydrus said kindly, knowing he was disappointing his younger self, but it couldn't be helped. He went to the child, kissed the top of his head and popped away. He thought about putting his Cloak back on when he reappeared in the Alley, but realized whoever sent him the message did it while he was in his office.

He made it to the store unmolested and went back to work. His eyes kept darting around the room, making it hard to concentrate. He messed up the schedule three times before he got it right. When he went to help Jesse with the inventory, his attentiveness was so unfocused that the man chased him out of the area. Seeing that he was little help, he went home early.

He was just in time to eat the nice roast beef dinner. After that they settled down for a night of video games. Harry did his best to play the grownup games, and had fun trying to beat Sirius. When the five and a half year old went to bed, Hydrus and Sirius told Remus what had happened.

"So our mysterious lady is playing with your mind, which makes sense if she's the one behind the depression spell and your feeling of being followed," the werewolf said thoughtfully. "She might not even know you're immortal, she might just be saying something to see how you'll react. You might have just played into her hands."

"It was either that or have a full-on panic attack in the middle of the store," Hydrus defended himself.

"I am not saying you did something wrong. I am merely pointing out that now she knows how to push your buttons," Remus said, hold up his hands in a compliant gesture.

"No, you're right; I need to have better control than that. It's just been so long since I've had anyone target me. I mean, the Killing Curse didn't faze me, because I know it really won't do harm. But, if my secrets get out, then I'll have to leave. I don't want to do that," Hydrus said, slumping in his seat. "I've worked hard for everything I've accomplished since I've been back. It took years of preparation to get me here."

"You didn't see anyone looking suspicious?" Sirius asked, leaning forward.

"No, they were all looking at me to see why I dropped my cup, but everyone's face was simply curious," he answered.

"You didn't get any bad vibes, like before?"

"Nope, everything was normal."

"Well, damn."

"Have we looked at the wives of the Death Eaters that died?" Remus inquired.

"According to the Black women, none of them are doing anything shady," Sirius said. "It was one of the first things I asked about when all this Dark Lady stuff came up. I'll ask them to keep watching. I can even order Cissy to give me the gossip."

"Well, damn. I have not heard anything from Mundungus either. There's no word of anyone trying to rise," the werewolf said, running a hand through his hair.

The three men sat in silence, trying to figure out how to cope with this new development. They brought out their book-readers and researched more. They went to bed in the wee hours of the morning, finding nothing. The next day being Sunday they spent the day at the house relaxing.

Weeks passed and the hats and gloves went on sale just in time for the Christmas rush. They were hot sellers in the prank shop; the hats didn't do as well in Madam Malkin's, but the gloves did. Hydrus also marketed the Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder, which also flew off the shelves. There were a few of the shock mines and the alarm system that he sold as well. He set the alarm system up in Grace's flat and in his stores.

The Weasleys were once again getting income they couldn't find the source of. If this kept up then there would never be second-hand wands in that house again.

The cure for the spell was in one of the Death Eater books, so they made sure that the unsigned note writer sent it to St. Mungo's, which started the newspapers fighting again.

Hydrus took to carrying a gun in his pocketspace, in case he needed to defend himself in the non-magical world. He had to go to the continent and buy it off the street, but since it was well hidden he didn't feel the need to let anyone know he had it. So far, nothing had happened since the tea episode and he was busy with his stores, teaching Harry and taking care of his investments. Soon it will be Christmas and he needed to do his shopping. He hired a private investigator to watch his back and completed his shopping without incident.

When he got home he called to see who was there. His entire family came into the living room. He looked at their smiling faces and realized this was the reason he would fight this Dark Nutter. He would protect them with his… well, life. Smiling back at them, he settled down for a relaxing evening.