Chapter 19: 19. Heir Black!
Ryan appeared back at Grimmauld Palace, his recent place to stay at. A house elf appeared near him and spoke, "Welcome back, young master"
Ryan nodded and spoke, "Have you sorted away all dark artifacts?"
"Yes master, they are in the basement" The elf spoke of his task.
"Good work Kreacher" Ryan praised. "I'll be visiting Andromeda and her family for dinner, so take care of the house." Ryan had gotten Kreacher's allegiance thanks to destroying the soul shard in Salazaar's locket, which he kept with himself for research. Well, in reality he had actually destroyed a fake one with a similar signature. Ryan wanted to preserve the locket but he didn't have the capability to absorb the locket without destroying it as Gluttony had did with the ring. That's why Aria was researching soul magic a lot these days.
While Ryan wouldn't lose much by destroying the necklace, a part of him was appalled that he couldn't just extract the soul shard without destroying it, probably his draconic pride. And also his draconic treasure collector side didn't want to destroy something of value.
"The trai-"Kreacher was about to speak something, but he faltered due to Ryan's glare, who knew well what he was going to say, "F-Forgive me, master. It's a force of habit" He said and bowed.
"Correct it" Ryan spoke and walked to his office. His dress changed to be more comfortable as Ryan sank into his chair and sighed. Ryan was a bit glad at how things happened, as there were multiple instances where he wanted to use telepathy to guide them slowly, but he didn't need it in the end. If he had, Ryan knew he would always feel that his relationship with the Tonks family was based on lies.
Introducing the Tonks family into House Black was not initially his idea. When Aria presented it, he denied it since he was unsure if he could behave in the parameters of 'normality' among wizards. Not to mention, he had been doing things alone for a while, and more people might become a liability.
Unfortunately, he was shut up by Aria when she said, 'Of course, my loner, edgelord master has no need for a family. In fact, he doesn't need a girlfriend either, his hand is enough.' and lines like that. And here he was, trying to prove her wrong. He knew Aria was pushing him to have a decent life with real people, but Ryan still had a lot of reservations.
Plus, after comparing multiple instances, Aria came to his recent course of action as the most favorable, with him getting no inheritances at all second. He had shot down the second because Ryan didn't want idiotic purebloods to taunt him, not when he was changing into a dragon, which may cause some of them to disappear.
Currently, he was looking at all documents in his office and noticed many problems with them. Blacks had shares in all markets, but all shares seemed to be in control of one Narcissa Malfoy.
Ryan didn't have any problems with Narcissa's work. On the contrary, he could tell she was doing a much better job than he could ever, but Narcissa was probably doing this because she was expecting it all to go to her son.
"... Well, I will send her all her profits and compensation for her job. It should be more than enough. Ryan wondered what kind of reaction would people have knowing the Black family wasn't dead when he would start attending Hogwarts.
As for why he decided to attend Hogwarts, it was because of power. If he wanted to have an impact in the wizarding world, he needs to be someone with a name and accomplishments, not a nobody sneaking in the shadows. Plus, he was technically the 'Prince of Britain', so it was his job to right the wrongs of his land, right?
It may sound stupid, but Ryan wanted to try living a school life because he wanted to. He didn't want any regrets in this life and tried anything he found interesting. And he always wanted to go to Hogwarts in his past life, so why not fulfill the fantasy? If he doesn't like it at some point, he'll just transfer around or pass out early.
He had fulfilled his fantasy of living as an adventurer and mysterious powerhouse, and now he wanted to be an imminence in the shadows. Plus, he has not forgotten the little families that had caused him to spend his life in hell.
As for the last reason for choosing this path... Ryan didn't plan to be some background character. It may be his superiority complex talking, but he wanted to do this nevertheless
But first, he needed to prepare answers to the questions of the Tonks family. "Hmm, what should I wear?" Ryan questioned, looking at his wardrobe.
*Evening*
Ryan faded into the alley near Tonks's residence he had scouted while trying to determine what kind of people they were, and he was glad they were considerate people. He walked towards their house and rang the bell. Ryan heard the shuffling even through the wards isolating the sounds inside, a reflex of his to eavesdrop in the bases of dark wizards.
Ryan waited a few seconds and Andromeda opened the door. "Ryan, welcome to our home." She greeted him with a smile.
"Thank you for having me," Ryan said and gave her a bouquet he had brought, except all flowers were magical ones.
Andromeda was a potion mistress and recognized them all at once. She even noticed some exquisite plants from Italy and Russia. "This is..." She spoke, but couldn't speak more.
"Well, I couldn't come empty-handed," Ryan spoke with a smile. Andromeda accepted the bouquet and looked at Ryan with a complicated gaze. She felt it weird to hear it from someone who hasn't even got his wand yet.
"I'm aware I am more mature than my age might suggest," Ryan spoke and Andromeda activated occulmacy on instinct, thinking he was reading her mind. "No, I wasn't reading your mind. Your expressions gave it away." Ryan spoke with a sly grin, one that reminded her of Sirius when he pulled off pranks on her.
Andromeda could only chuckle and say, "Ah, please come in."
Ryan followed Andromeda inside and looked around. 'This... looks like a home.' He thought.
"It may be smaller than Grimmauld Palace, but what do you think about it?" Andromeda asked as she guided him to the living room.
"...I prefer this over a mansion filled with empty rooms" Ryan replied honestly, and it was evident from his tone. Andromeda and Ted heard this and finally realized that even if he was the heir to one of the most infamous houses, he was still a kid living alone in a mansion.
Andromeda also started worrying about his company since she was well aware Kreacher was not one, and his constant belittling about Purebloods and traitors would make a very bad impression, one the kids of his age easily pick up.
"So Ryan, tell us about yourself. We never knew there would be an Heir except for the son of Malfoy. Where have you been?" Andromeda asked, curious about the new addition to their family.
"Well, I... wasn't raised in the magical world," Ryan replied, shocking them.
"What? Then where did you live?" Andromeda asked.
"I lived with my maternal aunt." He replied, getting a nod.
"So, how did you find out about you being a Black? Were you always aware?" She asked curiously.
"No, I wasn't always aware of this. I know this because of the inheritance test." Ryan replied, getting a nod from them.
"And how are you finding your life now?" Ted asked, curious about his opinion.
"... Much better" Ryan paused for a few seconds and answered.
"Why? Was your aunt's family not well-off?" She asked.
"No, they lived in good conditions... only I didn't," Ryan spoke in a low voice. This was his plan, a play of words. Speak the truth, but not all truth. He didn't want accusations of lying in the future.
The couple paused hearing that, aware they were not going to like what they would hear if they pursued the line of questions. But Andromeda grew more concerned and pushed forward, "... What do you mean?"
Ryan looked at both of them for a few seconds, like he was wondering whether to tell them or not, and gave a tired sigh before continuing. "My aunt and uncle... were very conscious of how the society would look at them, so they never wanted themselves to be associated with anything out of the norm... or as they put it, 'freaky'"
Ryan paused and continued, "And I was exactly what they didn't want. The only reason I was even kept in the house was that I was her nephew." He answered. "From the last point I even remember, I was treated like a slave." He said, making the couple gasp.
"Locked inside a cupboard under the stairs, making food for all times, cleaning the house daily, maintaining their garden, and at night, back inside the cupboard... I was scolded harshly for every mistake, beaten every time they were angry for some reason as their method to vent their frustrations, punished through more work or no food for any error, whether mine or not." Andromeda's face was pale hearing this, and Ted couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"Every day I was belittled to be grateful to them as they provided me a place to live, something my drunkard parents who died in an accident couldn't do," Ryan spoke, leaning backward and closing his eyes. He opened them and spoke, "I was always told that my parents were drunkards and a waste of lives. But things turned for the worst after my first accidental magic happened"
The couple was just listening, unsure what to even say. "Things were going like just another day, and their son, who had taken a liking to getting me punished by doing stuff and blaming me. He did that again, and I started getting angry, which caused multiple glass objects near us to shatter... From then on, things took a turn for the worse." Ryan paused, then continued. "I don't remember much of those days, except pain. I was barely conscious those days. Everything I had faced till then worsened. I... don't even know how I was even alive. Things continued like this since then, it got worse whenever accidental magic happened... I cursed myself too and questioned why I was born a 'freak'" Ryan said and sighed.
"Freak... I actually used to think that was my name." Ryan spoke, trying his best to not meet Andromeda's tear-filled eyes. "I never knew it... until a few days before they finally got caught," Ryan spoke, and a conflicted smile appeared on their face. "They went in jail for child endangerment and abuse, making me free... but I had nowhere else to go." He paused again and took a sip from the glass of water.
"I roamed around the streets, looking for places to sleep, stealing for food and money." He said, reminiscing the time he had emptied a fridge of its contents in hunger, only to realize later he should have only taken one object from it. "I was able to get a place to sleep and also found places where I could get money to buy food. This continued for a while until I saw some people in pointy hats discussing things. I followed them, curious of what they were doing, and found Leaky Cauldron." He said, with a small smile.
"I learned I was a wizard and not some freak. I was able to exchange small savings to buy books to read and learn more about the new world I had discovered. It was after quite a while I had saved enough to get an inheritance test, having hope I could change my life... and I am glad I did." Ryan finished and showed a small smile, and then got grappled by Andromeda.
His head was sideways, so he didn't experience the fabled suffocation through hugs, but... he did feel a warm feeling. He had never received a hug since he was reincarnated, and his emphatic senses were also not helping him maintain a straight face.
He was aware he would get a reaction like this, and he thought he would be able to handle things, after all, he was manipulating the whole situation, and there was no way he would feel genuine emotions after doing this, but in reality, his hands were trembling and his eyes became moist.
He tried holding it in, he thought he didn't have the right to feel like this when he was manipulating them, but in the end, he was just a kid... and the dam burst open.
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