Chapter 33: Lestrange Vault
"Woo. That should do it" Harry whipped out the sweat on his forehead.
In front of him was Bellatrix Lestrange. He had been rebuilding her memories. But only until her 7th year at Hogwarts. So right now mentally she was back to when she was 17.
"I also implemented some newer memories to her. What year is it, the result of the war, the situation of her family. Well let's try and wake her up" Harry watched as the pen wrote inside his notebook.
He keeps a record of all his experiments and his thoughts during them. Sometimes he revisits those notes with a new outlook that will solve the problem he had been stuck on.
Harry pointed his wand at her and cast the spell to wake her up "Eneverate"
"Huh?" Bella blinked a few times, and looked around. She saw that she was bound to a chair.
"WHAT THE HELL! Who the hell do you think you are?! I am Bellatrix Black! My Grandfather will have your head for this!! How dare you kidnap me"
Harry snapped his fingers and Bellatrix was silenced
"Shut it, I have loads of work to do. Try to remember. Look for new memories that don't belong to you." Harry ordered
Bellatrix frowned but did as this weird teen said. As someone from the Black Family. She had received Occlumency training since she was young. She could easily find the foreign memories.
She took a while to understand the situation. It was 1991. Her body was 40 years old. 23 years had passed. And she didn't remember a thing. Her previous self was a psychotic mass murderer who served an insane Dark Lord.
Harry Potter. The defeater of said Dark Lord had broken her out of prison and healed her mind. He was also her new Lord Black and the one who will decide what to do with her.
She also remembered the reunion she and her sisters had.
Bella gulped. "Umm, sorry" she apologized
Harry nodded "Apology accepted. Now as you know, I was the one to repair your mind. Quite frankly, it was a pain in the ass and I wasn't even sure it would work. But now that you are here let me tell you what I expect from you"
Bellatrix nodded as he vanished the bindings keeping her tied to the chair.
"First of all, you know that I am the Last Potter. I plan for you to bear my child, and in return, I will find a way to reverse your age. It should feel really uncomfortable being in such a older and damaged body"
Bellatrix let out a hollow chuckle "I got trapped in a marriage once and now that I am freed I will be trapped again? Who did I piss off in my past life. Fine, whatever" Bellatrix said as she sighed.
She was 17 and was already raised for something like this. She also had a good reason to do it. Who wanted to look old and ugly? The original Bellatrix spent years inside Azkaban. That stay had consequences on her beauty.
"After you are reverted to your youth. You will start training. You have a talent for the Dark Arts. One that you will use to your full potential without going insane. You will start with Intermediate Occlumency lessons. And I don't mean the things that your family has taught you. There are much better ways to do it.
You will also need to make a few public appearances. Quite frankly it's not really needed. But I just want to damage Dumbledore's reputation even more. It will allow the new Lord Black a lot more influence in the next Wizengamot Meeting. Your sister Andromeda will be representing me"
"Andy is going to be Regnant Black?" Bella asked before she burst out laughing "The girl who hated everything that had to do with politics is going to be representing the House of Black"
"Better her than me. I despise politics. Especially with people weaker than me. I see most wizards like monkeys with sticks."
Bellatrix shuddered "Yeah. I saw the memory"
Harry had put a few memories of himself. Testing out explosive magic, the Hado 90 and the Manticore. Safe to say Bella wasn't willing to make him angry. 'Whatever this Voldemort knows or can do. He is still a wizard. I don't see any wizard going up against this monster'
"Go and spend some time with Andy and her family. Rehabilitate yourself to this time. Once you do we will be heading to Gringotts. I will repair some more memories. Memories of Evil Bellatrix behavior. So that you can fool the goblins. But for now rest." Harry said to her and left the room
"If you need anything call a house elf or ask your sister."
Bellatrix looked at his retreating figure and sighed. 'Well, it couldn't be worse than what I possibly experienced with the Lestranges. He was kind enough to not give me those memories so I am thankful to him for that. But I still need to know some things. I'm a big girl, I can handle the harsh truth. Better go and find Andy'
Bella stood up and started walking. 'Where am I anyway?'
~ Harry's Lab #4
Manticore, perfectly dissected and stored in various containers. The eyes, organs, claws, and the giant stinger were in containers filled with preservation liquid and a strong stasis charm. The only things on the table were the skin/hide, meat, bones, and the most important part of the creature. Well, the most important for Harry.
The Heart.
Manticore's heart by itself wasn't that valuable. Sure it could be used as a potion or a wand component. But it's very volatile, as it embodies the aspect of that animal. That's why dragon heartstrings are used as a wand component. They respect the strong and produce powerful wands.
A manticore wand.. would just be useful for Dark Magic and killing. That doesn't suit even killers. They will kill the target but once they try to escape or use any other magic. The wand will fail them. And as a potion ingredient, it will just blow up.
Still, it does have some value to specific wizards who don't mind those things or it can be used for rituals. Just like Harry wants to use it for.
A ritual. A very old ritual.
The ancient hunter ritual. It wasn't actually completely magical. Humans have done it for thousands of years.
The hunter ritual only applies to hunters under the age of 18. And they have to fight their pray alone.
The ritual is between the hunter and the prey. Whoever wins and eats a piece of the other will gain an increase in strength.
The House of Belmont discovered this. Or well rediscovered this and has been using it for generations. Teenagers of the house traditionally hunted something in their late teens. A magical creature. It was usually some less dangerous magical snake or some boar-like beast.
Harry took a deep breath. "No guts no glory. I Hadrian James Potter, call upon the Rite of Conquest. I have killed the creature before me alone with no outside interference. I am calling for Magic to judge my Rite"
Harry put the heart in his mouth and bit down. He quickly swallowed the whole part down before, heat erupted from within his body.
"Fuck that hurts" Harry grit his teeth as he felt foreign energy move through his body.
Magic itself decides how much strength is given to the winner. How much weaker or stronger the pray is plays a big role. Despite Harry dominating the fight. He was only 11 years old. And was a LOT physically weaker than the manticore. A manticore is normally magic-resistant that's why it takes teams of wizards to hunt it down.
And magic had deemed it a great battle. It decides things based on a general outlook. Not specified on a case by case. To it, Harry wasn't a magical genius and a Mid-Class being. He was an 11-year-old boy, children were usually pathetically weak in wizarding terms.
Harry was surprised when the pain stopped and a gentle feeling washed over him, soothing his injuries. 'This feels nice. Guess magic deemed it a true Hunt'
Harry waited for the soothing feeling to stop before checking what had happened.
He had gained an 8% boost to his magic and a 15% boost to his physical strength. Magic decided that's what he lacks the most.
"Hmmm, that was unexpected" Harry looked at his hands and frowned "I got a much bigger boost than what I expected. In the books written by the Belmont's. The Hunters gain at most a 10 % increase in power. And those were rare cases"
Which was true. But Belmont only hunted in their late teens and against much weaker prey. That's why the gains were not as great as Harry's.
"Well not going to bother about it. I'm just going to treat is as a gift and that I'm just built different. Now I just need to rest up and then head off to Gringotts.
~
Harry and Bella go to Gringotts. Bella was wearing a strong glamor charm to make her appear as an ordinary muggleborn with brown hair.
Harry on the other hand was wearing cosmetics. Fake skin and makeup. Along with contact lenses. His aura was also dilled way down.
Bellatrix went to the head teller and whispered to the goblin. I would like to access the Lestrange Vaults"
The goblin snapped his head toward the woman and frowned deeply
"Only one person has the right to enter those Vaults right now."
Bellatrix scowled "I am well aware of that Goblin. Why do you think I'm wearing a glamor. Now, I wish to see my vault"
"And who is this?" The goblin asks Bellatrix
"He is nobody, a servant. You don't expect me to carry all of the items we will retrieve do you? Even if they go in expanded pouches. Someone still has to carry them" Bellatrix says dismissively as she glared at Harry who bowed slightly and acted afraid
The Head Teller smiled at this. He loved seeing humans do this to each other.
"Very well. Blackhook will take you down" The Head Teller pointed to the goblin by the sides. It was his shift to bring people to their vaults.
"Follow me" Blackhook said and started walking. Bellatrix and Harry soon followed. They got in the cart and rode all the way down in silence.
They soon passed the Thief's Downfall.
The goblin turned around and just as expected the glamor was washed away. Showing the insane Bellatrix Lestrange and her servant.
The Thief's Downfall does nothing to Harry as he wasn't using magic to disguise himself in the first place. It was all mundane cosmetics.
A few minutes later they arrived in front of the Lestrange Vault. The goblin opens the vault and steps away.
Bellatrix enters "Cover the entrance"
Harry hurriedly bows and conjures some blinds on the door and an area silencing charm, before entering the Vault
"Ugh, finally" Harry straighten up's his spine. No longer hunching like a servant
"Wow its just like in old Bellatrix's memories. It didn't increase at all in wealth in a decade? That's just pathetic" Bella looked around the vault.
"All three of you were trapped in Azkaban so no surprise there. Wait a minute" Harry waves his wand in the air and a pulse of magic washes over all of the items.
"I disabled all of the protective enchantments in the Vault. Now finally Harry pointed his wand at Golden cup, high above the rest, in the corner of the room.
The Cup slowly floated to Harry. This is the most valuable thing in the entire Vault, Helga Hufflepuff's Cup. Helga was the best at Herbology and Potions amongst the four Founders. It is said that her cup can help boost the effects of any potion by 5%. Lower level potions by even 10% and more complex potions by as much as 3%.
As well as clear any poisons from the drinks that were poured into the cup.
"Leave a single Knut and lets go. I have some tests I need to run. And you need to rest and start your potion regimen. That is if you want to get better"
"Yes my Lord" Bella bows while Harry shivered
"Okay, cut it out with that Lord crap. I feel like a freaking chuunibyou"
Bella was confused "What is this chuunibyou?"
"Its a teen or adult with the delusion that he or she is some great hero or anything else. People with an overactive imagination. That Lord crap just pisses me off, like most wizarding traditions. What kind of a Lord doesn't have land or people? Its a fake title that I honestly find degrading. How pathetic do you have to be to cling on to something like that so desperately to feel or prove like you mean something" Harry shook his head at wizarding stupidity
"Now hurry up, I got other things to do today"
"Yes" Bella started to float the treasures into a trunk. Harry had pouches all over his body to keep up the act, but were actually empty.
Both of them stored all the treasure except one single Knut. And left the room. Soon after, they were out of Gringotts a lot richer.
~ A/N
pat reon.com/alcoholic_panda
ko-fi.com/alcoholicpanda
Word Count 2265
~~
Bella was born in 1951.
Bella is mentally 16-17 now
They go and clear out the Lestrange vault
Harry wears muggle face disguise