In a swirl of dizzying light, Harry slammed to the ground in front of a massive pair of iron gates. A high stone wall ran on either side of the gate, the area shrouded in mist, destroying any attempt to see beyond the gate. Harry swallowed back his nausea and pulled himself together with a small shake, righting his upside-down trunk.
“I need to speak with a Potter Family house elf,” Harry said uncertainly, glancing at the mist around him. A sudden pop in front of him made him jump back slightly in surprise before he managed to force his legs to stay in place. A small female house elf in a white toga-like wrap with a silver pin of the Potter crest stood before him, large blue eyes blinking at him.
“I is called Tibby. Who is requesting a Potter house elf?”
“Hello, I’m Harry Potter. I just found out about”
“Master Harry!” The house elf squealed in glee, bouncing in place. “We is hoping you would come home soon. The others will be so happy to see you home!”
“Um, thank you,” Harry said awkwardly. “Tibby, can you tell me how to get to the manor? I’ve never been here that I can remember.”
“Master Harry must say he is of the Potter line and ask for entrance while touching the crest," she said, pointing to the silver crest that sat at the center of the gate. A ruby-eyed griffon and dragon watched him slowly approach from the crest, metal claws glinting. Steeling himself, Harry stepped forward and rested his hand bearing the Potter ring on the crest.
“I, Harry Potter, of the Potter Family line, request entrance to the manor.”
There was a sharp sting in his palm before a flood of warm magic engulfed him, the house wards welcoming a long-lost master home. With a click, the gates slid silently open, the mist clearing before him, revealing the grounds and manor at the end of a long pebbled drive. He blinked at the dark stone castle-like structure for several moments before he turned back to gather his things. Right, his family owned a castle. Of course, no one would bother to tell him.
“Tibby will take your trunk to the house, Master Harry.” the house elf said, floating his trunk and shopping to her with a snap of long fingers.
“Thank you, Tibby,” Harry murmured belatedly as Tibby disappeared with a pop, taking his bags and trunk with her.
He started up the path with a small sigh. How was nothing in his life ever normal? He hoped Hedwig could find him through the manor’s wards. He’d sent her along with a letter to the Burrow saying that he was fine and asked her to find him in a few days once the message was delivered.
Once inside, he was greeted by four older house elves in togas of royal blue held up with a golden pin of the Potter crest. One stepped forward to greet him, the other elves trembling, nearly undone from tears of joy.
“Welcome to Potter Manor, Master Harry. It is so good to see the young Master finally.”
“Thank you,” Harry said with a small tired smile. “Please, I just found out about the manor and that no one has been informing me of my duties to the family. Can you tell me what are each of your names, and what do you do here?”
“Master Harry, we are the Head House Elves for the Potter Estates. We organize the elves under our care and ensure that the Potter properties are kept in the best condition possible. I am called Mathis. I manage the main estate and whichever homes are currently inhabited by the Potter family.”
He gestured to the elf next to him, a female elf who beamed at Harry with a happy smile. “This is Beryl; she manages the family lands that are under cultivation or being used as farmland. Next to her is Arrow, who cares for the animal reserves and livestock on the Potter lands. Next to Arrow is Jib,” he said, gesturing to a distraught male elf that was all but groveling. “He manages the Potter warehouses and docks.”
“I’m very sorry, Master Harry. The docks and island holdings are in a bad way. We repaired and cleaned what we could, but with no one to give permission, much of the docks are unusable.”
“It is alright, Jib. I only found out about how things had been left this morning. I’m speaking with Gringotts Account Manager Gold Kris in two days to review all the Potter family accounts and businesses. I will make sure that the docks and warehouse repair are added to the list.” Harry sighed and ran a hand through his hair, turning to the rest of the waiting elves. “I know many things have been left in disrepair or unattended to after the war. I will do my best to see this corrected. I need each of you to draw up a list of the top things that need to be worked on for your areas. Please feel free to come to me to discuss any problems you might be having. It’s going to take some time, but we will get house Potter back to the way it should be.”
“Thank you, Master Harry. We have kept the manor ready to receive guests, so your rooms are ready, and if you would like anything at all, we are at your service.” Mathis said as all the elves smiled widely.
“Thank you, Mathis. It has been a very long day. I have one question, and then I would like to go to my rooms.” Harry said, trying not to slump in exhaustion. “How secure is the manor? Can anyone else besides myself come here?”
“No, Master Harry. Upon the death of your parents, the manor and all Potter properties were placed into lockdown. Only direct blood relatives can gain entry. Headmaster Dumbledore has come several times over the years attempting to gain entry to the manor and other properties but has been rebuffed every time.”
“Has he tried recently?”
“No, it has been several years since his last attempt. If I may, sir, you can alter the wards should you like to grant or refuse entrance to anyone. There are instructions in the study attached to your rooms on how to control the wards and guardians that protect the Potter properties.”
“Ok, I might change it later, but for now, let’s leave everything in lockdown. I’m not sure who to trust right now.” Harry scrubbed a hand across his eyes, trying to pull himself together. “I have an owl, Hedwig, that needs to be allowed through the wards, but no one else should be coming until after my meeting at Gringotts.”
“We will see to it. Let me show you to your rooms; the Master is tired.”
“Thank you, Mathis,” Harry said, trailing behind the old elf as he was led up a main staircase and down several halls.
He had a vague impression of rich fabrics and paintings before he was shown to his room and the large bed that filled his sight. A nightshirt had been laid out, and Harry quickly changed, crawling beneath the cool sheets, and was asleep before his eyes had even fully drifted closed. Unknown to their master, the Potter house elves cleaned and scrubbed the various Potter properties in ecstasy. Their lost Master was finally home.
****
The next morning, Harry woke up not sure where he was until everything that happened the day before started to trickle back. He was relieved to find Hedwig on a stand with her head under her wing in one corner. She gave him a sleepy hoot when he came over to check that her dishes were full of food and water before tucking herself back into sleep, it had been a long flight to the manor.
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
Harry was surprised at how good he felt. He had not had such a good night’s sleep in years. He normally only slept without nightmares if he was so exhausted that his entire body and magical core burned with the strain. He spent many a night at Hogwarts in the Room of Requirement, casting every spell he could think of to exhaust himself enough not to wake the tower up with his screams.
At the back of his mind, he could feel a faint wash of warm magic pulsing through him in time with his heartbeat. The Potter family ring wasn’t done trying to heal him from the abuses he suffered in his childhood. Maybe he would even gain a small bit in height, he mused hopefully. He’d never minded being the smallest kid in his year, but if he could at least have a small growth spurt and get even with some of his year mates, it would be nice.
While tastefully done, the rooms still were opulent by Harry’s normal, frankly nonexistent standards. He had lived with next to nothing for too long to see the need for gold-covered lamps or marble-topped tables. The bathroom put the Prefects bath at Hogwarts to shame, having a natural rock wall waterfall shower and a more modern-looking tub that sported just as many custom taps and depressed buttons to push for soothing or pummeling jets of water in various rhythms. Harry took a long shower and spent a few minutes exploring the room once he was dressed. Several doors lead to other rooms, such as a small library/sitting room and a study with a massive desk.
Harry walked to the study first, hoping to find some of the documentation that would explain about the wards and how to change them. It was clear that this was his Father’s and probably his Grandfather’s study before their deaths. Papers and books covered the desktop in no foreseeable order. He happily gave up his search when a house elf arrived to show him to the dining room for breakfast. Once he was finished eating, Mathis returned.
“Master Harry, I have gathered for you some books on the wards and can show you where you need to claim them for the Potter estates.”
“Claim them?” Harry repeated, not understanding the phrase.
“You must do a ritual at the ward-stone. Right now, the wards are holding, but until someone of Potter’s blood claims them, they will never be at full strength. Once claimed, the Master will have full control over the properties and all they contain.”
“Right, let me go through the books, and then you can show me where the ward-stone is. It sounds like claiming the wards should be at the top of my list. Is there anything the other elves or you need before I start?”
“Master Harry...May we have permission to start production on the farms and other areas? Without new orders, we have been keeping to the last commands issued by your parents before their deaths to lock down all the properties and stop all nonessential activities.”
“As long as none of the house elves are overworked, you may start working the farms and other properties. I intend to bring the Potter household back to full strength, and having a well-run House is part of that.”
“Are we allowed to bring in new house elves to the house? Generally, your mother liked to meet with any new elves and bind them.”
“Bind them?”
“All house elves are bound to the families they work for. Without the bond, our kind wither and die.”
“Are all bonds the same? I know a house-elf from the Malfoy family and…”
“Many of the old families use bonds meant to punish, bonds of painful servitude. We elves are but slaves to them. They control how we live, eat, dress, and marry. Elves like those bound to the Malfoy family only get a small amount of magic for each task they complete, limiting their growth and strength.” Mathis extended one hand so that Harry could see the small runic mark that showed dark blue on the inside of his wrist. “As you must see, the Potter family elves are bound differently. We are bound to the family line and draw our strength from the family and the properties we live on. We are allowed to marry as we would, and if we wish to leave the estates to find another family, it is allowed, though few do so.”
“I’m glad,” Harry said in relief. “The two elves I knew seemed so miserable and broken. They found positions at Hogwarts, or I would have offered them a place here.”
“Master, your Grandfather forbid all Hogwarts elves from the properties several years before his death. Your father did not understand the command, but he did not change it either.”
“The more I hear about Hogwarts and the Headmaster, the more it seems that he has been lying to everyone around him for a very long time,” Harry said with a sigh. He wanted to be angry at the Headmaster for his manipulations and lies, but all he could feel was exhaustion. “Is there somewhere quiet I can read? I want to get the ritual completed today if it will mean the wards are back up to full power.”
“Of course, Master Harry. This way, please.” Mathis said, happily showing his master to the main library. With a snap of his fingers, the fire in a small seating area was lit, and a tray of tea and snacks appeared on a low side table. “Please call if you require anything, Master Harry.”
“Of course. Thank you, Mathis.” Harry said, pulling the first book forward and cracking it open.
There was so much for him to learn, Harry mused, eying the massive walls that soared around him covered in books. Glass cases to one side held the more fragile books and scrolls in the collection. Reading the books in this manor’s library would take a lifetime, even with a wizard’s long life.
He would need to start a list of projects and what he wanted to learn or work on. He already started marking down subjects at Hogwarts that he needed to review or to learn more about, he might as well keep adding to the list and then break it out into a timetable. Hermione would be proud of all the work he was doing. Living up to his potential and all that, he thought with a snort. He wished that he knew he could trust her. Everyone around him seemed to have some kind of agenda for the Boy Who Lived until he was completely sure of his friends’ allegiances, he would be holding his secrets close for now.
Four hours later, he closed the last book, setting it to the side. The complexity that could be put into wards, specifically blood wards, was staggering. The setting of wards was heavily based on the use of runes, however, and he would have to start from scratch in that subject. He suspected the ring was also augmenting his memory at the moment because he had never been so focused on his reading or able to recall complete paragraphs and chunks of material with such ease. Was this how Hermione thought all the time?
“Mathis?” Harry called as he re-stacked the books and the small stack of paper notes he had made.
“You needed me, Master Harry?” Mathis asked, popping into the room.
“Yes. Do we have all the supplies ready for the ritual?”
“Yes, Master Harry. Everything is ready and waiting for you.”
“Wonderful,” Harry said with a small smile. “It sounds like the ritual is going to be draining, so I want to go ahead and perform it so I have another day before my appointment with the bank. Once it’s over, can you pop me into my room? Also, I need an inventory or list of all the books in the manor. I will probably also need help organizing the paperwork in my Father’s old study tomorrow.”
“Of course, Master Harry. Mathis will take care of it.”
“Great. Can you show me to the ritual room? We might as well get started.”
“This way, Master Harry.”
The room was deep under the castle, the walls covered with lines of runes and Latin carved into the graceful curves and chains, swirling the text throughout the space. The center of the room held a stone pillar covered with gemstones of every size and color. Each gem pulsed with magic and power. Harry realized that his ring was pulsing in time with the gems, its ruby glowing softly. The largest stone was a massive ruby.
Harry carefully accepted the ritual dagger from Mathis and stepped into the inner circle of writing. Squaring his stance, he started the Latin chant required. It stated that he was of the Potter family and bloodline and swore that he would uphold the names, values, and magic of his family until his death. He carefully cut his right hand, the ritual knife biting with an aching cold instead of pain before pressing it into the large ruby as he chanted the final line of Latin.
A roar of magic flooded through Harry. He could not tell if he was screaming or not, all he could see, feel, and hear was magic. Magic tore into him, seeking out his flaws and weaknesses, flipping through his memories, and forcing him to watch as each was played out before him. It went on and on as the magic of House Potter judged its new Master. Finally, it settled on the conversation he had with Jib the day before.
“I know many things have been left in disrepair or unattended after the war. I will do my best to see this corrected.”
It pulled him back to the days after his godfather’s death and showed him again his vow to stand on his own, to stop letting everyone around him use him for their own devices, he had to do better!
Suddenly, it changed. Harry realized with a jerk that he could feel the ground around him. He was aware of every object and person in the manor, the state of the wards, and their weaknesses and strengths. He instinctively sent more magic and directed the wards to cover or repair the weakened areas. He marked out repairs the elves needed to work on and those he would need to attempt. Faintly, he could feel other property wards coming awake and linking into the network of wards, but his priority was the manor.
With an almost physical snap, it was over, Harry crumpling to the ground as the supporting magic left him. He had a moment of relief that the trial was over before he gave in to the darkness that was creeping over his vision. He knew Mathis would take care of him until he woke.