All Hail the Dark Lord, Or Something Idiotic Like That

The Black Family Tree pt5

A/N: Not my story! Original available on ao3

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Severus,

I was just thinking about writing you. I would love to get dinner with you in Hogsmeade next week. I will have to check with my partner to see if he is free, but I can at least commit to dinner. I believe Thursday would work best with my schedule. Would 8pm be acceptable?

I understand my cousin's circumstances and obligations, and I am not seeking to cause any problems. I also know he doesn't have any family he is in touch with besides me though, and I would like to see him some. I know a very little about your past history, mainly only that you do not get along. I hope my relationship with my cousin does not need to affect our friendship moving forward.

Hadrian Black

Harry sat in an empty compartment on the Hogwarts Express with Sephie purring in his lap and wearing a soft, pink jumper he'd asked Hermione to knit for her for the occasion. He did not tell Hermione the color was in honor of their late-almost-professor that would most assuredly not be teaching DADA this year though. He got a whole lot of sick joy out of the pink jumper in honor and memory of Umbridge though...may she burn in hell...or a lake of inferi.

The door slid open and a familiar face smiled in. "Hey, Harry...how was your summer? Mind if I join?" Neville asked, awkwardly waiting for Harry to invite him in.

Harry gave his friend a smile. He didn't know how he would have gotten through the years without Neville. This teen had grown into his rock, a calm point in the middle of any storm. Also, thankfully, he happened to be a head auror that was perfectly fine covering over some little crimes and keeping Harry updated on where possible raids might take place. He was much shorter, less muscular, and a lot more timid than Harry was used to seeing him, but it was still Neville, and he still loved him.

"Come on in, Nev...I missed you over the summer. Mine was a little eventful with the whole dementor trying to suck out me and my cousin's souls thing...then the trial for underage magic, but whatever...at least I got Sephie here out of it all," he motioned to the cat in his lap. "How was your summer?"

At some point during Harry's rant Neville had sat down and started staring at him while turning a bit sickly pale. "Erm...did you say dementor attack?" He finally asked with a terrified look in his eyes.

Oh dear...Harry forgot Neville wasn't quite up to his level of crazy just yet. When had Neville decided he was a badass that would cast fiendfyre at a dementor to get its ashes for Harry? Well, he'd get there...maybe with a little less torture along the way though, Harry decided firmly. Neville would grow into the amazing person he was going to become without all the trauma, and if he was just a little less badass and fiendfyre wielding, well, Harry would still love him anyway.

"Right...let's start from the beginning...or maybe the end," Harry smiled at him. "This is Persephone, but I call her Sephie," he introduced his friend to the inferius cat in his lap.