Now Ace considered himself a smart man, arguably he thought himself as smart as a suitcase when he attended school originally, but those fifteen years around the world really sharpened his mind… and certain other areas that he could thank a veela colony for helping him with.
But even Ace had to do a double, and then triple, then quadruple, and then finishing it with a quintuple take inside his mind when Dumbledore spoke those words to him.
"Sir if you don't mind me asking… how do you know what a Rebirth is?"
Taking that answer as a confirmation to his worries, the Headmaster leaned back in his sizable chair and pulled off his half-moon glasses and rubbed his tired old eyes as a new wave of worry washed over him.
"Because Mr. Potter… I am a victim of a Rebirth as well"
Thankful for his many years of training in controlling his emotions, Ace didn't betray anything upon the news short of a raised eyebrow and a weird little grin that quickly turned to a frown.
"What happened that resulted in you getting sent back?"
"Sigh It was in my youth and I walked down a dangerous path, in the end it saw me killed at a very young age by a man I trusted with my life. I was returned as I had a greater part to play so I was given that second chance to correct my mistake… sadly I did not correct it as much as I wanted to"
Ace looked pensive for a moment before he snapped his fingers.
"Gellert Grindelwald, he was the one that killed you"
"Nod Indeed it was Gellert who took my life originally. But I managed to avoid it the second time around, though sadly Gellert still ended up becoming a dark lord"
A peaceful face came over Ace as he looked lost in a memory shortly before he refocused on Dumbledore
"If it helps you any sir, Gellert did or rather do regret his action at least a little bit. Before I was sent back he intentionally lied to Voldemort to protect you"
It was oddly pleasing to both Ace and Vanessa to see the look of relief and joy that came over Dumbledore as they saw his eyes grow slightly misty. He pulled out a napkin and dried his eyes with a smile.
"Thank you Mr. Potter… that means more than you will ever know"
Ace nodded in response and waited as Dumbledore gathered his thoughts once more.
"Perhaps you could tell me how young Miss Weaver fits into all this?"
Vanessa blushed ever so slightly as she looked over at Ace who nodded calmly and returned her smile with a bright one of his own.
"Well sir… back before everything happened I was Ace's girlfriend and partner, we have been together some five years before we were sent back"
Dumbledore released a hearty chuckle at Vanessa's expression, he could see that the love was definently there and would remain strong… it was what he had hoped he and Gellert could have had all those years ago.
"Well had we not been blown up you would actually have become a bit more than my girlfriend…"
Vanessa snapped her head and stared at Ace wide eyed
"Y-You mean?"
"I was going to propose when we went to Paris later that month…"
"… I'm going to kill that bitch"
At this point Dumbledore coughed loudly
"Not to interrupt, but perhaps it would be to our benefit if I was filled in on just how you came to die? If it is okay with you Mr. Potter I would like to view your memories of Hogwarts and perhaps your death"
Ace didn't looked too happy about having Dumbledore mess around in his head but he knew there wasn't a better way as he couldn't properly convey just what transpired in those seven years.
"Very well… but only my school years"
"Of course Mr. Potter"
The two wizards stared each other in the yes and Ace felt Dumbledore enter his mind, he guided him to his minds castle and placed him in a long corridor dedicated to his memories around Hogwarts.
To Ace's surprise Dumbledore walked calmly down the corridor and stared at the many memories as they passed, not once did his face change from the passive calmness it displayed.
It took a good half hour for Dumbledore to witness it all and when the two once more entered the real world Dumbledore's serene face contorted into one of anger and disappointment as he leaned back in his chair and placed his glasses on the desk.
"Stubborn old fool…"
The headmaster mumbled as he stared down into his desk. He sat like that for a good long time as Ace and Vanessa held a small conversation between themselves regarding some off topic things, like the ring Ace had chosen for Vanessa.
"Mr. Potter?"
The two young ones stopped their talking and turned to look at their headmaster as he suddenly bowed his head down in a deep bow.
"You have my most sincere apologies for what this foolish old man has forced you to endure because of my ignorance… to think everything went so astray…"
Now Ace was really confused, he really didn't know what to do in this situation as he never expected to see Dumbledore bow and apologies like this to him.
"I-It's okay sir, I mean you haven't done any of it yet and now you know right?"
"Be that as it may Mr. Potter I still regret having put you through all that… what was I thinking when all this happened?"
"You always think of the greater good, sir"
It was visible that the older wizard was rethinking that entire concept if "the greater good" led young Harry such a dangerous path, just look at his first year for merlin's sake! Keeping the real Philosopher's Stone in the castle, what the hell was he thinking?! Well at least here, now, the stone was hidden away safely somewhere no one would ever find it again.
"Headmaster…"
"Call me Albus, I believe we are far past titles by now"
"Then I insist you call me Vanessa"
"And I suppose you can call me Ac… Harry…"
Ace felt Vanessa's hand on his arm giving it a comforting squeeze
"Ah yes that interesting moniker I have heard Vanessa call you by, however did it come to be?"
"That is a longer story Albus, one we don't have to time for currently. I think we need to focus on the bigger things, like why I was sent back"
Albus leaned forward slightly and rested on his desk as his expression turned serious.
"Yes let us start with that"
"The reason I was sent back was because, back in my time, I removed the Horcrux in my head and attached it to a regular stone, I then ported that stone to the bottom of the ocean. After I defeated Voldemort it then resulted in his spirit seeking out his last remaining Horcrux, which just means he was left stuck beneath the ocean to never escape again"
Two sets of eyes locked onto Ace and stared, one with barely concealed amusement and another in utter shock. As it was it was Vanessa who broke it first by snickering.
"Hahahahahahahha!"
The old Headmaster reeled back and roared in laughter. It was an odd thing to witness, especially for Ace who had never heard the headmaster truly laugh, and certainly not a warm hearty laugh as this.
"Ohh sweet merlin, Harry you just made an old man's day" Dumbledore wiped his eyes from the tears that had gathered "To condemn Tom to spend eternity under the sea, what a very amusing idea"
"Ehh… to be honest Albus I thought you would be disappointed in me for not trying to forgive him…"
"I sprouted that sort of nonsense before?"
A singular nod was all the confirmation he needed
"Well Harry I can tell you that that is a load of tripe, Tom might have been redeemable back when he first began his decent into madness but he is simply too far gone now… Horcruxes of all things! No there is only one last thing that can be done with Tom; he needs to be killed to ensure the safety of both the wizarding world and the normal world"
Vanessa nudged Ace in his side before grinning wildly
"I like this new Albus, he is so much more fun than the one you told me about"
Ace could only nod in acceptance as he stared with a bemused expression at Dumbledore who returned the gesture with a sly little smile that the Marauders would have been proud of.
"Thank you Vanessa. Now about the first and most obvious issue, Harry's residence… obviously I am not letting you return to an abusive household that simply will not do. So we need a different set of accommodations as I highly doubt you would wish to spent your summer here at Hogwarts"
"What about my home? I'm sure my parents won't mind"
"No offence Vanessa but I was scared shitless meeting them when I was older, I am not meeting them while I am still eleven"
"Oh come on daddy didn't mean it when he went to get the shotgun…"
"No? Then why did I hear the damn thing being loaded in the next room?"
"Cough Returning to the matter at hand, perhaps Harry you know someone who would take you in?"
Ace gave it a round of thought and he came up with a few names that could work, then some of them quickly disappeared again when he remembered that they were still in first year so he hadn't met Andromeda or Fleur yet… hmm this was a bit of an issue, there was his sister but…
"Well Albus there is someplace I could go during my summer's… I just don't know if you will like it"
"I'm listening"
"I guess I should start by asking just how much you actually knew about my Mother"
"Lily? I like to think we were friends but I must sadly admit I was closer to James, I know some minor details about her regarding small events in her life but for anything more you should ask Minerva as the two remained good friends even after she left Hogwarts"
"So you didn't know… damn…"
"Know what Ace?"
Ace turned his gaze upon Vanessa
"Remember how we met, who introduced us?"
"Yeah it was… ohh… oh shit"
"Exactly"
"I take it this is a great deal more serious than just accommodations now?"
"Yes, yes it is… you see the people I could stay with would be my mother's sister…"
"Harry I'm confused, are you not already living with Petunia?"
"Gulp I'm not talking about Petunia… I'm talking about their half-sister, my grand-father apparently wasn't the most loyal of husbands and it resulted in a child with one of his mistresses"
Dumbledore was speechless to put it mildly. He had researched extensively around Lily's ancestors for anyone magical as she had asked him to, he had found a few lesser witches and wizards many years ago but not someone of note… he however never looked into her father beyond just that, her father.
"And what would I not like about you staying with your aunt?"
"Because sir… sigh she is part of the MDA, one of their head trainers around this time if I am not mistaken"
"T-The MDA… Magical Death Association, Harry those are some rather gruesome people…"
"I know Albus… but after I escaped the Wizarding world I was wounded, my Aunt and Cousin led me to them and they took me in and trained me for ten years, trained me to survive"
"Did they induct you into the order?"
"No they didn't, my Aunt didn't want me to be a part of that"
Dumbledore mumbled a few things to himself before he looked pensive and stared throughout the room.
"Are you certain they would allow you back now, in this time?"
"I'm certain, if anything my Aunt would allow me to live with her over the summer in their home and not in the Order's headquarters"
"Hmm… then perhaps that would be our best choice"
"Ace you do know realize that, by going to your aunt this early you are going to have to deal with Ameline that much sooner?"
"Groan that little tidbit slipped my mind… I'll find a way to live"
"Ameline?"
"No one of importance Albus, just a girl with a slight case of hero worship"
"Nod Very well. On to some other matters, how had you planned to go about dealing with Tom?"
"Truthfully I hadn't granted it much thought… you see I was quite of mind to take revenge long before thinking of dealing with Tom… but seeing as you have turned out to be quite a bit different than the Dumbledore I know, I have had to put that on the backburner"
"Chuckle quite so? Then may I suggest dealing with that little piece of dark magic on your forehead?"
"You knew it was there?"
"Save the glares Harry, I knew it was there but I had my reservations. You have displayed tremendous magical power, so now I won't have to fear for your magical core if we extract the Horcrux"
"Wait are you saying that removing the Horcrux could have damaged my core?"
"Sigh Harry, a Horcrux is extremely dark magic. In the few instances I have come across them it has always been on inanimate objects, you are the first living Horcrux I have ever encountered so I had to take as many precautions as I could"
"Hmm… best wait then, though my magical power is massive, I will admit, I am still eleven in body so we don't know just what it could do to my core if it was taken out before my magical maturity"
"Quite right Harry, quite right. I'm happy to see that it was justified you ended up in Ravenclaw… don't tell Minerva but I did so hope you took after your mother. Though I liked your father a great deal, I could do without the second generation of the Marauders on top of the Weasley twins"
"Chuckle I can assure you sir, pranking is one of the last things on my mind"
"Though it is on your mind, forgive me for saying this Harry but my other self-had at least one thing right. You have a chance here to lead a normal wizards life, however short that little peaceful time will last it is still worth chasing… enjoy being alive, Merlin knows I never did"
"And on that depressing note… what about Quirrel?"
"An excellent question… I will admit to not knowing whatever he is actually possessed just yet, or is going to be in the future… I suggest waiting until we know more"
"I agree Albus. Though that leads me towards something else, the stone?"
"Locked away safely with Nicolas and his wife, the one in the school is purely a fake. A very convincing fake but a fake none the less"
"Then, headmaster, forgive me for perhaps being a bit of an arse. But why then keep all the protections around the stone, a fake stone even, and then simply tell the students "the third floor is forbidden" and hope no one goes to investigate?"
Dumbledore looked quite thoughtful at that. In fact he almost looked shocked. No scratch that, he looked like someone had just told him that in fact he wasn't a wizard and this was all just an elaborate hoax for one of the muggle T.V programs.
"Merlin's beard! Please tell me that my counterpart didn't leave the door unlocked?!"
Both Harry and Vanessa were surprised by Dumbledore's sudden outburst, he seemed genuinely horrified that his other self might have done something so careless.
"Hermione Granger unlocked the door with a simple Alohomora"
"Alo-Aloho…ALOHOMORA?! Morgana's tits what was he thinking?!"
Dumbledore's mouth shut with a loud "pop" as he realized what he had just said. Though he knew Harry and Vanessa were both much older than they looked, he still didn't feel like he was justified in swearing profusely around youngsters.
Harry's face was redder than red as he tried to contain the laughter. The repeated snorts and small chuckles revealed how that endeavor went. Vanessa on the other hand, well, she had no such reservations.
"pfft hahahahahahaha! Oh sweet god, my sides!"
Vanessa soon hit the floor of the office and was holding her sides while trying her very best to regain control. It didn't help when Harry couldn't restrain himself any longer either, and joined her on the floor adding his own joyous laughter to hers.
Behind his desk sat a slightly embarrassed but thoroughly amused Albus Dumbledore.
"I must take it I rarely swore in the past?"
Harry nodded and climbed back into his chair, though he was holding his sides in an attempt to stem the laughter.
"You were always the image of serenity, with the exception of a few moments"
"I see… but returning to the topic at hand. Quirrel will be dealt with when the time is right. What troubles you faced in second year I think we will deal with then, for now I think you both need to return to your lessons. Unless of course, Harry, you have more to tell me?"
Vanessa had managed to climb back into her own chair and was back to holding her beloved's hand. Harry though was looking like he was scrambling through his memories. So many of them had been locked away so they wouldn't haunt him at night, unlocking them all was a tedious process.
"We have a few moments to ourselves, Albus. When Ace gets like that he usually stays still for a few minutes"
Albus nodded, then turned his entire focus onto young Vanessa.
"So Vanessa, I would like to hear just what it was you and Harry did before you came back… and perhaps what has left Harry with such a deep hatred in his heart"
Vanessa took a deep breath. This was going to be hard one to explain, she only had second-hand knowledge from Ace but it should be enough. She just hoped the old man's heart could hold to learning about their occupation.