A pillar of flames burst to life, whirling in heatless blue. It only lasted a few moments before fading away, revealing…

It was a young man, looking to be maybe a sixth or seventh year. He had the wild hair and glasses of a young James Potter when the lad had last attended Hogwarts. Had Dumbledore not known better, he would have supposed the young man was the Potter in question. He even had the Griffondor robes on. However, there were a few differences that made themselves immediately apparent.

First the presence of a lightning bolt shaped scar over one eye, a scar that had been written and talked about over the years and attributed to the Boy-Who-Live-And-Vanished. The other was the adornments on those robes, as well as the staff the young man leaned against.

Upon each shoulder of the robe were what appeared to be a human skull. Runes of some kind that the Headmaster couldn’t make out from his position were etched upon the entirety of the skulls, glowing with a slight green light, one reflected in the eye sockets.

The staff was just as disconcerting. Another skull with similar runes adorned the top of the staff, seemingly looking out over the assembled students. Albus could have sworn it was scanning the rune, though that was unlikely, as it was merely a staff. Even that macabre detail paled before the rest of the staff. It looked to be made from a human spine, though elongated and woven into a wooden staff, various gems and pieces of etch metal scattered throughout.

Had the Headmaster not known they had all been hunted down, he would have thought the young man to be one of the dreaded Necromancers of years past.

Shaking away that frightening memory, he instead focused on the familiar. “Harry Potter?”

The young man smiled almost as widely as the skulls. “Well now. That is a name I haven’t heard in quite some time. There was once a time I was known by that name. Now I go by another, one I have a student to thank, as well as yourself, Headmaster.”

Dumbledore reached up to stroke his beard. That Harry Potter had been summoned was good. However, it would appear that this was not the Harry Potter he had hoped to bring to the castle. That the boy claimed to know of the Headmaster, not to mention some form of familiarity with him, spoke of something otherworld.

“Oh? Do tell, dear boy.”

The smile grew a little crooked before the young man turned away to sweep his own gaze over the students assembled in the Great Hall. Those green eyes settled on the Slytherin table, seemingly to focus on young Mr. Malfoy.

“Ah, it would seem he is still very much alive in this world. I had wondered if I would get the pleasure of seeing him again.” The young man turned away from his perusal to regard the Headmaster. “You see, it was Mr. Malfoy who gave me my new name and title. For years, he got away with teasing me, attacking me in the corridors, and calling me names. One that he was particularly fond of was Harry Rotter.”

Releasing his staff with one hand, the young man reached up to caress the skull adorning the staff. “At some point I decided to just accept the name and make it my own. So I’ve become Harry Rotter, once Harry Potter. Even had the family name changed. Though I supposed it’s more properly Harry Black-Rotter, but that is yet another story, dear Professor. I fear we have more pressing concerns than who I am. Such as why am I here?”

“Arrogant. Just like his father.”

Dumbledore suppressed a sigh as Severus injected himself into the conversation. He was about to turn and admonish the man when Harry Potter… Rotter… did it for him.

“Ah yes. The enabler. It shouldn’t surprise me that you’re still sticking your pointed nose where it doesn’t belong. Your opinion on my dead dad is noted and discarded. I care not what you think.”

The Headmaster switched his admonition to the young man. “Now Harry, my boy. You can’t be speaking to a professor like that. He deserves respect.”

The young man shook his head. “What he deserves is what I gave him after I dealt with the ferret. Which might happen again, since this clearly isn’t my reality and quite frankly, I doubt you’ve brought me here for a purpose I shall enjoy.”

Albus tried to catch Harry’s eyes, yet the young man refused to meet his gaze. Mentally sighing, he waved towards the doors to the Great Hall. “We have much to discuss, my boy. Let’s retire to my office.”

Harry seemed to look around the Great Hall, that same smile still adorning his face. “Looks like you’ve got something else going on. Given that seems to be the Goblet of Five sitting there, not to mention the students from the other schools, I’m guessing it’s the Tri-Wizard Tournament. Did you summon me as one of your challenges? I can assure you, that would go poorly.”

Severus stood from the table, his wand in his hand. “That was clearly a threat to the Headmaster. I shall enjoy this, Potter. Expelliarmus!”

While Dumbledore could have stopped his Potions Master, perhaps it would be simpler to deal with Harry after he’d been humbled. However, when the spell seemed to get sucked into one of the skulls on Harry’s shoulders, the Headmaster found himself hard pressed to not gape at the sight. That Harry hadn’t drawn a wand or made any sort of gesture made it even worse.

A soft chuckle began to echo from the boy, only to develop into a full blown belly laugh. The chatter in the Great Hall intensified. Albus watched as the expression on Severus’s face grew darker and he switched to another spell. “Stupify!”

Yet again the spell swerved towards one of the skulls, though it was the opposite of the first.

Before the man could cast something darker, Albus stepped between the two of them, his focus on Harry. “Those are quite the interesting artifacts you’ve got there, my boy. I don’t think I’ve seen the like.”

Harry finally stopped laughing, turning a squinty eyed gaze upon the Headmaster. “I would expect not, as there hasn’t been a proper Necromancer in the Black family in centuries. They fell out of favor before you were born. However, their tomes are still in the Black Library, locked to those of the bloodline. After you sacrificed my Godfather to your ‘Greater Good’, I became Lord Black. So more properly you should be calling me, Lord Black-Rotter. In so many ways, I owe you for helping me become the man that I am.” He paused to sketch a mocking bow, smile never leaving his lips.

“By both action and inaction you have shaped my life. I wonder what you might have done to my counterpart here, since I don’t see him.”

The more young Harry spoke, the more Dumbledore wanted him out of the room. “As I said before, let’s discuss this in my office. There appears to be much we need to discuss.”

“Given our history back home, I refuse to be anywhere with you in private. Therefore if you have anything to say to me, you can do it here before witnesses. I have nothing to hide. After all, this isn’t my world and I have no need to keep secrets from you all. I fully plan on going home as soon as possible, though more than likely someone else will bring me home first.”

Harry turned to sweep his gaze over the Great Hall, seemingly lingering on someone from each table, though the Headmaster couldn’t tell who specifically the young man was focusing on.

“Nevertheless, I must insist.”

“By all means, insist. I still refuse.”

Dumbledore never noticed Severus walking up until the man swept past, wand at the ready. “That is quite enough out of you.” With a swish of his wand, the man began sending a multitude of spells towards the boy. None of them appeared fatal and Albus was sure that with just a quick visit to Madame Pomfrey, Harry would be healed and ready to answer any questions put to him. Most likely with a more humble attitude as well.

Unfortunately, that did not seem to be the case. Albus watched in disbelief as the young man withstood the onslaught. Many of the spells were seemingly eaten by the skulls, not only on Harry’s shoulders, but atop the staff as well. A staff that was constantly on the move, impossibly parrying spells, many of which left scorches and other residue on the walls and floor.

Screams overtook some of the chattering as students scrambled to get out of the line of fire. Some of the foreign students had drawn their own wands and erected shields, especially the Durmstand contingent. They worked together to protect themselves, though they seemed content to watch the duel. The Beauxbaton crew had flocked to the back of the room, though some few did appear to have shielded a group of themselves and a selection of other Hogwarts students as well. Some of those students even looked to be aiming at the combatants, though it did seem that most were directed towards the Potions Professor.

The Headmaster frowned when he noticed some bodies had been left behind. What their status was he had no time to discern as he needed to focus on the duel, especially as Severus’s spells were growing darker by the moment. Just as he was deciding to step in and stop the duel things escalated, with Harry now casting spells from his staff, many just as dark as those sent by Snape.

Many times Severus was forced to dodge or even shield. A Professor should not have had this much trouble with a fourth yet. Then again, was this Harry really a fourth year? From what he had said earlier, not to mention how he looked, he could be much older. How much older was another thing to be learned as the spells placed on the Goblet did not seem to have done as the Headmaster had wished.

After a particularly nasty spell sizzled out of the duel, Dumbledore finally stepped in, the Elder Wand in his hands summoning a powerful golden shield that separated the two. Several spells from both sides impacted against the shield with a resounding set of gongs, though the shield itself didn’t even quiver. Turning away from Harry, Albus stared down his Potions Professor until the man put his wand away. Nodding in satisfaction, he turned to regard Harry just in time to see a noxious fog waft past him and envelop Severus.

Whirling to track the spell and begin to counter whatever magic it was, the Headmaster watched in abject horror as the man began to melt, wand suddenly in a shaky hand that tried to counter whatever it was that was rotting the flesh from his bones. Even the Elder Wand failed to retard the damage.

Albus turned back to Harry. “Harry! End this spell at once!”

The Boy was leaning on his staff with both hands, a cruel smile on his lips. “End the spell, Albus? Why would I do that? I merely protected myself as the law allowed. Your Professor tried to kill me, as is clearly evidenced by the spell damage all around us. Moreso, we have hundreds of witnesses to the assault who can all attest that the professor attacked me first. You can’t obliviate all of them, though I’m sure you want to.”

Resisting the urge to snap out, not to mention the quiet urgings of the Elder Wand, the Headmaster regarded the boy with narrowed eyes. He was broken away from his staring contest by Pomfrey’s voice behind him.

“Albus. He’s dead!”

***

Things could have gone incredibly wrong at that point. Albus had only belatedly realized that he’d just turned his back on someone who had just watched murder a man. Fortunately, Harry hadn’t seemed inclined to continue combat. He had even moved his hands away from the staff, though the staff had somehow stayed upright without support. Harry had also allowed Fillius to take away the staff and keep the young man under supervision at wand point.

Had things not been as stressful, Dumbledore would have found the conversation the two had had about spellcraft, charms, and enchanting to have been incredibly fascinating. Instead, he was trying to figure out Harry’s place in the scheme of things.

Harry was not the Hero of the Light ready to sacrifice himself for the Magical World. The boy was instead an unrepentant murderer. Thinking back over the earlier conversations, Albus realized that the boy had stated that he’d ‘dealt’ with the Potions Master before in a manner similar to how he had dealt with the ‘ferret’, whoever that turned out to be. Had Harry already been a murderer before the summons? Was this not an isolated instance of self defense, as had been professed?

Getting all of the students moved back to their dorms had been a trial. They were understandably scared and filled with far too many questions. The boy had been right though. There were too many for him to obliviate at once, especially with all of the faculty present. Too many to call them all to his office and obliviate one by one as well. Fortunately the mail wards would keep any news of the altercation from getting out. Even more fortunate was that all of the Ministry personnel had already gone to the Room of Champions right before Harry’s summoning.

Now they were finally in the Headmaster’s Office, with Albus seated behind his desk. Harry and Filius were seated across from him, with Madam Pomfrey and Pamona standing in the back of the room. Minerva had wanted to be here but he had been able to convince her to manage things with the Tournament. He’d had to promise to tell her everything he learned about young Harry. He was sure she would be satisfied with a heavily edited version of things. At least Moody had been running security for the Tournament and thus wasn’t present either.

Leaning back in his chair, Dumbledore considered the young man over the top of his half-moon glasses. There was no sign of nervousness, nor that of remorse. “Harry, my boy, I must say I’m disappointed in you. You have taken a life, an action most unforgivable.”

Harry snorted. “Unforgivable? That’s why you had a Marked Death Eater as a Professor? You do know what they had to do in order to gain the Mark, don’t you? How many more of those Marked Upstanding Citizens did you allow to go free after the last war?”

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

The Headmaster frowned. “Those men were all forced to do things against their will. However, their story is not yours. The circumstances are vastly different. You have murdered a man in cold blood, Harry. He had disarmed and was no threat to you.”

The boy snorted again. “You always were willfully ignorant about your pets. Do you have any clue as to what your precious Potions Master was doing with those love potions he’s always brewing? I caught him trying to use one on Ms. Greengrass. That’s why I killed him.”

Albus sighed. “What Professor Snape chooses to do with his personal time is no concern of mine.”

“So you did know. I had wondered. Your counterpart never admitted to that one.”

Dumbledore ignored the sharp gasps from the two women to focus on his best disappointed frown on Harry. “This isn’t about anyone else but you, Harry. You’re in a very delicate position here.”

That annoying snort. “Of course I’m in a delicate position. I’ve been kidnapped and assaulted, forced to kill in the first moments of my abduction. I’ve been threatened and coerced, lied to, and have been left mostly bereft of options.” Leaning forward, the boy continued. “The person who should have been protecting me, the so-called Leader of the Light, is foremost among my accusers. Why are we not focusing on who summoned me and why? We know it has to be for nefarious purposes?”

Filius spoke up before the Headmaster could answer. “Why would it have to be for nefarious purposes? Could it not have been an accident?”

That snort was starting to annoy the Headmaster. “You do not reach across the boundary between dimensions for anything less than nefarious purposes. There are forces beyond our comprehension that patrol that border. That work to ensure we stay apart. Those forces are now alerted to this world and possibly my own. You don’t invoke forces like that casually and only those with malice in their hearts would take such a risk. The question is why? Did they need me specifically or were there broader parameters.”

Before Filius could interject again Albus spoke up. “Again, that is not important. What is important is what to do with you? By all rights I should keep you here until the Aurors can be summoned.”

“Please do. Perhaps they will be willing to do the investigation you seem so reluctant to engage in. I’ll wait right here, in the presence of all these Professors, while the DMLE is summoned.”

The Headmaster tried to stare down the boy, holding that gaze for several minutes, ignoring the way some of the staff tried to get his attention. Especially Filius, who would no doubt be the most vocal in trying to get the DMLE involved. The halfbreed had always had a good relationship with law enforcement, as his status as a half goblin had led some wizards to think they could get away with challenging him as a way to commit legal murder.

Perhaps it was time to change the subject. “I’m afraid that I cannot allow the DMLE to interfere with the Tournament. A tournament which you are now involved in. With your name coming out of the Goblet of Fire, you are now magically bound to compete in the Tournament. To do otherwise is to risk losing your magic.”

For a brief moment the boy looked at him with wide eyes. Albus took that moment to try and read Harry’s mind, only to run into sturdy and violent mental shields. It was only his years of experience that kept him from reacting.

“A magic contract? That I neither signed up for nor could have even been present to agree to. You think it’s binding on me? I never realized what a jester you were, Headmaster, though I’ve felt you’ve been a joke in recent years.”

Even Filius looked uncomfortable with that comment.

“Nevertheless, my boy, I doubt you would be willing to take the risk. Now, Hogwarts will graciously house you during your time here, though I will have to ask you to remain in your quarters unless you are participating in the Tournament or a related event. Filius will escort you.”

Dumbledore finally took the time to offer Harry a grandfatherly smile. “I’m sure that by morning you’ll have calmed down and will see that I only have your best interests at heart.”

While Filius looked like he had several questions for the Headmaster, Albus brushed them off and motioned for the Charms Master to see young Harry to his bed. Once the duo was away, he set about making sure that the rest of the staff would fall in line. The Elder Wand truly was a wondrous thing, especially when used on those who weren’t expecting it and had been conditioned over the years to its use.

***

“You realize that he's going to bury the death of a Professor, do you not?”

Filius turned to regard the young man at his side as the two made their way through the empty hallways. Harry had been nothing but courteous in their conversations, regardless of the way he had dealt with Severus. Having recognized most of the spells that the man had used, he didn’t blame Harry for how he reacted once Albus had distracted the Potions Master.

One did not leave a lethal combatant able to continue the fight.

Harry continued. “For what it’s worth, I am sorry that things had to happen the way they did. While I don’t regret killing the man, I would have preferred to have done it in a different manner.”

“A different manner, you say? Like perhaps an official duel before witnesses?” Fillis nodded before chuckling. “From what I could glean from your earlier conversations, this isn’t the first time you’ve had to kill.”

“The way resumed in my world, Professor. Snivellous was heavily involved in many of the attacks by the Death Eaters, as one of the aggressors. The Headmaster could say it was to maintain his cover, but that doesn’t excuse assault, murder, and rape. He allowed his students to join him. I dealt with them as I would any enemy combatants. Some of the other Death Eaters though, the ones hiding as respectable members of society, I had to deal with in duels.”

Harry offered the Professor a crooked smile. “As you can, I’m still standing.”

Filius chuckled for a moment before nodding. “I should have thought of that myself. Albus was quick to convince us that those claiming the Imperius were victims and that we had to help them, forgive them for the wrongs they had no choice but to commit. But I’ve always had my doubts. Especially… well, regardless, this world is not at war. Your counterpart, wherever he may be now, rid us of that monster.”

“Did he, though? Was a body ever found? Or has he been biding his time until things were ripe for a return? I recognize this part of the castle, Professor, so I’ll see myself into the room. Please have an elf assigned to me so that I can see to my basic needs in this world that I’ve been kidnapped into. We’ll discuss more after Albus gives me more of his ‘I’m disappointed in you’ speeches in the morning. Good night, Professor.”

The Charms Masters watched in bemusement as Harry turned to command the suit of armor guardian his room to allow him in, acting with a familiarity that had Filius wondering what just happened in that other world and how it would affect things in this one.

Turning away after the door closed, Filius headed to his own quarters to do some serious thinking.

***

After dismissing the elf, Harry settled into the chair by the desk. With a wave of his hand and a pull of his magic, his staff popped into existence in front of him, hovering the same way it had in the Great Hall. “Ah, if only Tom had really understood the Soul Magic he was messing with. There are so many more possibilities to it than just a horcrux. Isn’t that right, little Dragon?”

The grinning skull atop the staff bobbed a moment before Harry’s own voice echoed from it. “You know, they say talking to yourself is the first sign of insanity.”

Harry offered the staff his own grin. “Ah, but then I’ve been talking to myself since I was a child, thanks to being on my own in the cupboard all the time. No one else to talk to, other than the spiders. They were nice enough to listen at least. Whereas you keep criticizing.”

“Yes, well, if you can’t trust yourself to tell you the truth, who can you trust?”

“A fair point. A fair point indeed.”

“And now that we’ve established you’re amazing and brilliant and all that other rubbish, which you wouldn’t be without Daphne and you know it, can we get back to the part where you’ve been dragged off to another dimension by those with obviously ill intent?”

Harry stared at his staff, who he’d named Dragon as a tribute to Draco’s contributions, namely the bones and life energy that helped bind everything together. “I was going to ask how you determined they had ill intent, but then realized we’re dealing with Dumbledore. Unless this one is a vast departure from our own, we know everything he does is for The Greater Good. Well, we had no intention of becoming a sacrifice in our world and we shall not become one here.

“However, we both know that even with the Elder Wand, there isn’t enough power in one person for a summonings like this. There has to be another party involved, even using the Goblet and whatever magics that thing is supposed to be made of.”

Leaning back in the chair, Harry turned gaze towards the ceiling. “I wish Daphne was here so we could pick her brain. And no, before you suggest it, I’m not going to go to the local equivalent. Not only would she have no reason to deal with us, she is not the same person and thus would not give us the same insights. Not to mention she’s barely a teenager here.”

“And our being a teenager mattered so much when we dealt with the others?”

Harry turned to glare at the grinning skull. “This is why most people don’t talk to themselves. It’s far more annoying than it’s worth at times.” Before the skull could reply he waved a dismissal. “No, you’re right and I just don’t like it. Which is why you suggested it rather than myself. Your perspective isn’t filtered in the same way as mine.”

Calling the elf back, he started giving it another set of orders.

***

Daphne Greengrass sat in her bed, her best friend and roommate in the bed across from her. They were discussing the fallout that would come from the death of the Head of House. Draco had lost a lot of his power without his Godfather around to enforce his will. Besides the changes in the dynamics of house power, there were the ramifications for how Slytherin would stand amongst their peers.

No other Professor would continue the blatant favoritism to which they had been accustomed. They would most likely lose the House Cup as the point system would stop being so egregiously manipulated.

However, the biggest concern would be if the students who had been most repressed by either the former Potions Master or the Slytherin students who had most taken advantage of their special status would be coming back for revenge. Daphne wasn’t worried for herself or her friend, nor for her sister, as none of them had ever engaged in the activities that seemed to amuse all too many of her fellow housemates. Especially Draco and his crew.

The bigger question was how it would change the dynamics of things within the house and who would be caught in the crossfire or even just collateral damage. The Weasley Twins especially could be brutal when they put their minds to it.

All thoughts in those regards were derailed as a Hogwarts Elf appeared in the room, presenting Daphne with a letter, proclaiming it to be from the new arrival, Harry Potter. She accepted the letter and dismissed the elf. Glancing at her friend, she could see the curiosity burning within her. With a roll of her eyes, she broke the seal, which she noted was a skull, and read the letter.

One eyebrow rose, then the other, as she read and then finished the letter. She then read it again before handing it to her squirming friend.

Harry Potter explained the circumstances of his life in another world and claimed to have been friends with her there. He asked for permission to meet and pick her brain on the status of things in this world, sharing with her some personal and intimate details that no one other than Tracy knew as evidence that he knew her.

Leaning back in her back, she waited til Tracey finished the letter. “Thoughts?”

“Oh you’re totally accepting that invitation! You saw what he did to Snape! He freed us, without even knowing it. Or perhaps with knowing it, who knows. The point is, he’s magically strong, knowledgeable, and seems to have a pre-existing connection to your life, even if only from another world. And doesn’t that seem strange! Something straight out of one of those fantasy novels my mother is always reading.”

Tracey smirked. “Imagine that power in our corner during the Slytherin Restructuring.”

Daphne tapped her lips before nodding, heading to her desk to draft her response.