Harry Potter: Hydrus Black

"Okay, orphanage, going good. Newspaper, flourishing. Bookstore, doing well. Your store, making a huge profit. Harry, growing every day and well loved, so the wards are strong. Death Eaters, dead or in Azkaban. Politics, many allies. Chocolate Frog book, at the publishers. My therapy, down to once a week," Sirius said, ticking off everything. "I can't for the life of me think of anyone you've offended that's not in prison or dead. The only downside I see is You Know Who; we have no idea how to kill him off."

The time traveler waved that off and stated, "The spirits tell me he weakens every day, so we might just have already solved that problem. No, it's something else, something I've forgotten."

"As much as I hate to bring it up, have either of you heard about Umbridge or Skeeter?" Remus asked mildly.

"Now that I think about it, no, I've not heard a word about either of them," Hydrus said a bit shocked. Maybe it was one of them following him, which would make sense.

"Umbridge works for the Improper Use of Magic Office. Didn't I tell you? She's the one who drafted the werewolf restrictions," Sirius added.

"No, you didn't tell me, but I should've known. I better keep an eye out for Dolores causing trouble, that office would be a bad place for her to work. I wonder where Skeeter is," the immortal thought out loud. He had been so caught up in moving things along that he had forgotten about those two. Well Skeeter didn't become a reporter until 1989, when she appeared out of nowhere. He'd have to hire an investigator to see what they were up to and dig up as much of their past as possible. He could just pop over to Umbridge's family house and take care of her now. Something to meditate on.

"Sirius," Hydrus asked, after another thought came to him, "have you heard from Dumbledore?"

"Sure, I've talked with him a few times. He seems happy that Harry is growing up well. He did ask how I got the pictures and I told him that I was in touch with the Dursleys, but that I could only see Harry at his daycare. He just nodded and twinkled at me," Sirius said, thinking over the few times he had run into the Headmaster. "Though he did ask if I was the one to cast the Fidelius Charm, and I told him they asked to be hidden from the magicals and I complied." He really hated to lie, but needs must. He thanked Merlin that his Occlumency shields were at their fullest now.

"Did he ask about me?"

"Only once, he asked if you were the owner of the appliance and entertainment store and expressed his opinion on it. I had to tell him you were, since it's a well-known secret. He thinks it's a marvelous trend. He went on and on about how he had bought a telly and VCR and some of the movies. He was even suggesting getting some for the common rooms at Hogwarts. He said something about having to get the Board's approval."

That made Hydrus feel better. When it came to the Headmaster his emotions were still conflicted. While he was sure the man had done some shady things to keep his secrets, he couldn't help but think Dumbledore truly believed it was for his Greater Good, and that that belief was his way of helping all magicals. Besides, he really couldn't throw stones, since the things he had done since he'd been back, stuff he still planned on doing and what he had done in his timeline would border on the darker Grey side. Though the immortal still thought the old man had too much power, he didn't think he was nefarious. How the Headmaster reacted to what was happening in the world today would go a long way in settling those opposed feelings.

"What about you, Remus? Has he contacted you?" Hydrus turned to the werewolf.

"He wrote me a letter expressing his concern that he could no longer contact me through the Floo. I wrote him back and informed him that I was no longer living in a magical house and that I was doing well. I have not heard from him since."

"Well, it seems that Dumbledore is placated for now. We'll still keep an ear out, that man is tricky," Hydrus said thoughtfully.

"Can you think of anything else?" Sirius asked in trepidation. Now that he thought about it, the time traveler was right, things were going too well.

"No, that's what is so frustrating, I can't think of anything that would hinder our plans," Hydrus said, shaking his head and running his hand through his hair.

"Well, the only thing we can to do is continue on as planned and fix whatever pops up," Remus suggested mildly.

The other two nodded and the conversation turned to other things. They soon went to bed, the next day being Saturday none of them had work until the afternoon, when Remus and Hydrus would make visits to their stores.

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