HARRY EBONY
Once upon a long time ago, in the far away kingdom of Gryffindor, there lived the good King James and his fair wife, the beautiful Queen Lily. The two were good and kind rulers, and the kingdom florished under their rule. Such was the splendor of this land that everyone, from the noblest lord to the poorest peasant, was happy. The only people who were not happy were the king and queen themselves, for although their subjects were loyal, and their land fresh and green, they had not been blessed with a child.
One day, Queen Lily sat by the window of her chambers and sewed. As she sewed, she looked out at the garden and sighed, for the gardener had brought his children with him to work. While the oldest child joined his father in work, the younger children played happily. From time to time, the gardener would pause in his work to watch them as they played with youthful glee. The sight of this happy family made the queen's yearning for a child grow even stronger.
"Oh, what I would give for a child with eyes as green as the cloth which I sew, skin as pale as the roses which grow in the garden, and hair as black as the ebony wood that makes my window frame." she sighed.
Perhaps the angels heard her wish, for a year later, Lily gave birth to a beautiful baby boy, with eyes as green as the cloth she had sewn the day of her wish, skin as pale as the roses and hair as black as ebony wood. As the king held his new son, he felt his heart swell with love.
"You shall be called Harry Ebony." he whispered to the slumbering child.
But while it was a day for celebration, it was also a time for grieving, for the queen had died in childbirth. Without her presence, the kingdom seemed less bright, and a hint of gloom seemed to fill the air.
The years passed, and Harry Ebony, or just "Harry" as he preferred to be called, grew into a lad much blessed in looks, and much more blessed in gentle nature. The people of the kingdom loved him dearly, for he was a friendly and pleasant child, and easy to get along with. But no-one loved him more dearly than his father, for the boy eased his grief after the death of his beloved wife.
Alas, such happiness could not last, for at some point, all kings must go to war. It so happened that one day, the king of Slytherin, King Riddle, invaded the kingdom of Gryffindor. Riddle was feared in his kingdom, for he was a cruel, cold man who possessed powerful black magic. It was rumoured by some that he was not a human, but a demon.
The sun never shone in the kingdom of Slytherin, and the sound of laughter, or even the merest glimpse of a happy face, was non-extistant. If this alleged monster was successful in the invasion, the same fate would certainly befall Gryffindor. King James lead his troops as long as he could, but in the end, although he put up a brave fight, he was slain and the kingdom fell to Riddle. The once magnificent kingdom became dark and grim. Where there had been joy and laughter, there was now darkness and despair.
Sadly for the young Harry, he had to face Riddle when the dark king occupied the castle. Fortunately, Riddle decided to keep the lad alive, but as a servant.
So it was that the once regal prince became little more than a servant, cooking, cleaning, washing and so many other chores that he lost count. He soon settled into his new routine, never once complaing or fussing, and as the years passed, he grew more and more handsome. The other servants grew fond of him, for he remained bright and cheerful regardless of how badly he was treated.
In his quarters, King Riddle had many magical objects, but the rarest and most wonderful object of all was a magnificent golden mirror. This mirror was no ordinary mirror, for it would truthfully answer any question it was asked. Riddle had made it himself, and inside resided a large amount of his blackened soul. Every day, he would stand before the mirror and ask:
"Magic mirror on the wall,
Who is the most magnificent of them all?"
And every day the mirror would answer:
"In all this land and everywhere,
No-one can, oh king, to you compare."
And Riddle would be pleased with this answer.
But one day, Harry happened to pass in front of the mirror while going about his chores. So that night, when Riddle stood before the mirror and asked:
"Magic mirror on the wall,
Who is the most magnificent of them all?"
This time the mirror answered:
"Oh king, you are magnificent, it is true.
But the former prince is more fair than you."
Riddle stood stunned at the mirror's answer. His shock quickly turned to anger. Someone was more magnificent than him? Well, he would soon see about that!
The next morning, Riddle summoned Rubeus Hagrid, the groundskeeper, to him. Hagrid bowed low as he entered the room. "Good morning, Yer Highness. 'Ow may I 'elp yeh?"
"Hagrid, you are to take the young prince Harry Ebony deep into the forest. Once you have taken him so fair it is almost dark...kill him."
Hagrid was shocked. He had often spoken with the prince, and was very fond of him. For the king to order something so monstrous..."But...but Yer Majesty..."
"DO AS I SAY!" roared Riddle. "Take him into the woods and kill him!"
Hagrid was aghast, but he could not disobey the king. As he turned to leave, Riddle made a gruesome request.
"To prove to me that you have performed this task, bring me his heart!"
After steeling his nerves, Hagrid located Harry in the garden, and invited him to walk in the woods. As they went farther and farther, the young prince looked worried.
"Hagrid, perhaps it is time we turned back? For if any harm should befall us, how would they ever find us?"
"Don't yeh worry about that, Harry. I know these forest paths well, an' I can promise yeh, nothing bad's gonna happen teh either of us."
Harry relaxed. "I am glad to hear that."
A sudden noise made the two of them look around.
"What was that?" cried Harry. "It came from over there." As he hurried toward the source of the noise, Hagrid followed, drawing his knife.
Scrambling through a clump of bushes, Harry gasped. A young doe had gotten caught in a snare, and every desperate struggle to free herself only worsened her plight. The young prince's heart went out to her.
"You poor thing!" he cooed softly, stepping through the bushes. The doe froze upon hearing him approach, but as he lifted his hands towards her, she seemed to sense that he did not wish to harm her, and allowed him to remove the snare from her neck.
Hagrid, watching all of this, knew at that very moment that he could not bring himself to kill someone so kind-hearted. As Harry watched the doe bound off, Hagrid let out a howl, much like a wounded dog.
"Hagrid? What's wrong?" Harry asked. He was feeling very worried, for Hagrid had not been this upset earlier.
"S-s-sorry," sobbed Hagrid, "But I g-g-g-gotta tell yeh. Before we left, the king - 'e told me to slay yeh and cut out yeh heart. But I can't do it. I-I just can't!"
Harry was shocked and terrified to hear Hagrid's confession, but he couldn't bear to see his friend so upset. "Hagrid! Hagrid, don't cry! The king will never know you spared my life! I will find a place far from the palace, where I shall never be found." Then a thought came into his mind. "But, what will you do?"
Hagrid took a few gulps to calm himself. "Yes, that's a good plan. An' don't worry about me. Just-just go. Never return to the palace."
Harry nodded. "Yes. Goodbye, Hagrid. I'll never forget you." And with that, he ran off.
On his way home, Hagrid killed a wild boar and presented its heart to Riddle. The king was pleased with the gruesome relic.
Meanwhile, Harry ran frantically through the forest. Night had fallen, and everything had changed. The trees, which had once seemed so warm and friendly, now seemed cold and dark. The moonlight shining through the branches threw dark, grim shadows everywhere, and the air abounded with eeiree sounds. Suddenly, his foot got caught in a root and he fell to the ground with a thud. Sobs tore from his throat, as he felt that this would be his final night on Earth.
Suddenly, he heard something which made him jerk his head up. The moonlight, shining through a gap in the trees, illuminated a young doe. With a start, he realised it was the same doe he had helped earlier. As he nervously got to his feet, the doe bounded a little way into the forest, then stopped and turned back at him.
"D-do you want me to follow you?" stammered Harry. The doe bowed her head slightly, then lifted it, in what he supposed was a nod. He took a deep breath, and nervously followed.
The doe lead him through the woods, then stopped at a clearing. As he stepped into the clearing, he gasped in surprise. There before him was a beautiful little cottage with honeysuckle growing around the doorframe. He turned to the doe, but she had already disappeared into the forest. After a second's hesitation, he walked up to the cottage and knocked.
Nobody answered, so he tried the door. To his surprise, the door swung open, so he stepped inside. Lighting a candle, he saw immediately that the inside of the cottage did not match the outside. There were unwashed dishes in the sink, cobwebs everywhere, the floor obviously hadn't been swept for months and a thick coating of dust covered everything.
He briefly wondered if children lived here unsupervised, but he decided not to dwell on it, as he was growing tired. Carefully manuvering his way through the jumble on the floor, he opened a door on the opposite side of the room, he found himself in a room with seven small beds. He was too tired to wonder why there were seven beds, so he blew out the candle, lay across the beds and fell asleep.
An hour passed, and soon the inhabitants of the cottage returned home. They were seven house-elves, who made a living for themselves by doing any odd job they could get, from chopping wood to watching the baby. They were never paid much, for like all house-elves, they were more happy working than being paid, but the little they made was more than enough for them to live on.
As they entered the cottage, the light of their lantern showed that their bedroom door was open. They knew that none of them had left it open when they went out that morning, so that left only one possibility. "We has an intruder!" one of them squeaked. Gathering up what makeshift weapons they could find, they tiptoed into the room, ready to do battle.
Imagine their surprise when they found not a bloodthirsty brigand, but a slumbering Harry. They were astounded to find that they had a royal prince in their room.
"Who is he?" they wondered. "How is he coming to be here?"
The lantern light quickly roused Harry. As he sat up and yawned, the elves squeaked in surprise, startling him. "Oh! What's happening?"
The house-elves looked at one another, then one said, quite boldly, "Excuses us, sir, but who is you, and what is you doing here?"
Harry took a deep breath. "Well, my name is Harry Ebony, although I'm usually just called Harry, and the king has ordered my death, so I have run away so that he will never find me." A thought crossed his mind. The house-elves looked friendly enough. Would they mind if he stayed?
"M-may I please live with you? I promise, I will earn my keep where possible."
The elves consulted one another briefly, then the one who had spoken first nodded.
"Yes, young sir, we is quite happy for you to be staying here with us. If there is anything else we can be doing for you...'
"Oh, no." Harry said. "I am capable of doing things for myself. I'll repay your kindness by tidying up tomorrow."
"Thank you, Harry Ebony, sir. We is spending so much time on chores for other people, we has no time to attend to our own."
So that was Harry's new life, taking care of the house-elves' cottage while they were working everyday. The years he had spent as a servant in the palace certainly helped, and he soon had the place spotless. When he had finished working, he would wander in the woods, enjoying the splendor and the company of the animals. Every evening, after dinner, he and the house-elves would share jokes, stories and general small talk. These were pleasant and happy days, indeed.
Meanwhile, in the palace, several months had passed since Riddle had consulted his magic mirror, for he now felt certain that he was the most magnificent in the kingdom. But one day, a small seed of doubt appeared in his mind, and he stood before the mirror once more, and asked:
"Magic mirror on the wall,
Who is the most magnificent of them all?"
Imagine his shock and fury when the mirror answered:
"Far in the heart of the woods,
A small cottage does stand.
Therein dwells Harry Ebony,
Most magnificent in the land."
Riddle was absolutely furious to learn that Hagrid had deceived him. He now knew that if he wanted to get rid of his rival, he would have to do it himself, for as long as long as he was not the most magnificent in the entire land, his jealousy would not abate. He thought for the longest time about how to do it, and then into his mind came a most evil plan.
In his most secret room, he created the foulest, most dangerous sleeping potion in the world: the Draught of Living Death. Once ingested, it would cause the victim to slumber in a sleep so deep, they would appear to be dead. The only way to break the spell was to receive a kiss from one who truly loved you. This Riddle knew, but he believed that the house-elves, upon seeing Harry Ebony in a state resembling death, would bury the boy alive.
Then, taking a beautiful red and green apple from a basket, he sliced it in two and covered the red half with the sleeping potion. With a simple Repairing Charm, he rejoined the two halves.
The next morning, Riddle transformed himself into a peddler. Then, upon checking that nobody would see him, he left the palace and headed into the forest.
Meanwhile, the house-elves were leaving for work. Before leaving, they gave Harry a warning.
"The king is probably still looking for you, Harry Ebony, sir. So, after we has left, you must be shutting the door and not letting anyone in."
"I will remember." promised Harry. "But I see no reason to worry. He cannot possibly know where I am."
After the house-elves had left, Harry set to work cleaning the house. He hadn't been cleaning for very long when there came a knock on the door.
"Who could that be?" he thought to himself. Remembering his promise to the house-elves, he didn't open the door but looked out of the window.
At the door, there stood an old peddler with a basket of apples. "Can I help you?" called Harry. "I can't let you in, I'm afraid."
"Quite alright, dear boy." chuckled the peddler good-naturedly. "I am simply an old peddler making a living by selling apples. Can I interest you in one?" He held up the basket.
"They do look good," Harry admitted "but I have no money to pay for one."
"No trouble, dear boy. I shall let you have one for free, as you are such a sight for weary eyes." The peddler held out the biggest of the apples. Noticing the hesitation on the boy's face, he chuckled. "Come now, dear boy, there's no reason to be so worried. I'll prove it's safe." Taking out a small knife, he sliced the apple in half. He bit into the green half and held out the red half.
Seeing no harm in accepting something from a harmless old peddler, Harry took the apple half and bit into it. The moment he did so, the sleeping potion took effect, and he collapsed in a death-like sleep.
Riddle hurried back to the palace and removed his disguise. Then he hurried to the mirror, and asked:
"Magic mirror on the wall,
Who is the most magnificent of them all?"
The mirror answered, with a hint of sadness in its voice:
"Oh king, gone is Harry Ebony,
And you are most magnificent, I see."
Riddle smiled coldly. "Finally." He finally felt at peace, for he was now certain that there was no-one more magnificent than himself.
When the house-elves returned home that night, they were dismayed to find Harry on the floor, looking for all the world as though he were dead. Try as they might, they could not arouse him. Their sorrow was so great, they wept for three days.
They could not bear the thought of burying him, so they created a beautiful glass coffin in which to place him, upon which they wrote his name in gold letters. This coffin they placed in a beautiful forest clearing, and every day and night one of them kept watch over him.
One day, the beautiful Princess Ginny of the kingdom of Hogwarts happened to ride by with her attendents. When she saw the coffin, she halted her pony, dismounted and approached the house-elf keeping watch. "What is this coffin doing here?" she asked.
"This is being the final resting place of the prince Harry Ebony." answered the elf. "He is being killed by the evil king who rules this kingdom."
Ginny looked into the coffin and saw Harry. At once, her heartbeat started to quicken, and she felt herself blush. As impossible as it seemed, she had instantly fallen in love with the boy in the glass coffin.
"Please, will you remove the coffin lid so that I may see him properly?" she asked. The elf was surprised at such a request, but he obeyed. Ginny lowered her hand into the coffin and stroked Harry's cheek. Then a thought flashed across her mind, and before she could stop herself, she leaned in and kissed him on the lips.
To her surprise, there came a small moan from the boy's mouth. As she pulled away, she gasped as he slowly opened his eyes and sat up.
"What's going on? What am I doing in here?" he asked, looking around. He did a double-take when he saw Ginny. "Who are you?"
"I am Princess Ginny." she said. "I saw you in this coffin, and, foolish as it may be, I fell in love with you the minute I laid my eyes on you. But I must ask, how did you come to be here?"
"Well, Your Highness, it's a long story."
"Then you must tell me at once. Before you do so, however, I have another question. Will you return to my palace with me? And please, just call me Ginny."
"Of course, Your Majesty-I mean Ginny."
So, after helping Harry out of the coffin, Ginny took him back to her kingdom. As they rode alongside each other, Harry told Ginny of how he had come to be in the forest, beginning with the king' plot and ending with the kiss.
By the time they arrived at Ginny's palace, they both knew that they had fallen deeply in love with each other. As they dismounted from their steeds, Ginny turned to Harry. "Harry, perhaps this is a foolish request, as we have met but today, but I feel I must confess. I love you, and want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?"
"C-certainly, Your Highness." stammered Harry, looking into her beautiful face and feeling pangs of love.
Almost at once, a magnificent wedding was planned for all the kingdom to attend. All anyone could talk about was the princess's marriage to this unknown prince, for none of Ginny's subjects had seen Harry before.
News of the wedding reached Riddle's ears, and he feared that perhaps this mysterious prince would be far more magnificent than him. So once more he stood before the mirror.
"Magic mirror on the wall,
Who is the most magnificent of them all?"
The mirror answered:
"The most magnificent, I see,
Is the young groom, Harry Ebony."
Riddle was apocalyptic with rage. Seizing the mirror, he threw it onto the floor, where it shattered into a million pieces. But as it contained a good quantity of his own wicked soul, he died the minute it shattered.
With the death of the king, the kingdom regained its former beauty and splendor. The people decided that the former prince must once again rule, for they had no idea of the king's evil plot, but they did not know where to find him. Then, one day, a beautiful white owl arrived at the hut of Rubeus Hagrid, an invitation to the wedding of Harry Ebony and Princess Ginny in its mouth. Hagrid was delighted to learn that his young friend was still alive, and he immediately set off for Hogwarts.
Upon seeing Harry, Hagrid told the young prince of Riddle's death, and how he, Harry, was now king. Although he was pleased to hear this, Harry could not help but worry, for while he loved Gryffindor, he had come to love Hogwarts as well, and did not wish to choose between the kingdoms. When he confided his worries to Ginny, however, she dismissed his fears with a light wave of her hand.
"Don't trouble yourself about that, my beloved. If you cannot choose, we shall simply combine our kingdoms. Your kingdom is not far from mine, and I do not believe anyone would mind."
When Harry heard this, he felt happier, and he now knew that he would wed a woman of great beauty and great intelligence.
The wedding was a most magnificent affair. All of both kingdoms attended, as well as the house-elves. As the happy couples said their vows, there was much clapping, and when they kissed, the cheers were so loud they could be heard outside the church.
And they all lived happily ever after.
THE END