An Out of Body Experience:
Harry let out the breath he had been holding as he blinked the green light from his vision, revealing a space that refused to define itself. Harry was sure he had seen it before. A soft moaning and whimpering echoed and distorted around columns of fog. Turning full circle, Harry finally recognised where he was. It was King's Cross Station, or it would be if the Station had been made out of bricks of condensed mist. Concentrating on the sound Harry thought that it was coming from under one of the nearby benches. Curiosity getting the better of him Harry crept towards the sounds.
As he got closer Harry had the distinct feeling that whatever it was, was in pain. As his scar twinged Harry backed the thought up that it probably deserved it.
Crouching slowly, like he would so as not to frighten a wild animal, Harry peered under the unsubstantial bench. The thing, there was nothing else Harry could think of to describe it, was a twisted mass of mottled red skin and stunted limbs. Harry knew that this was Voldemort. Or at least the part of Voldemort that had been lodged in his head.
Harry stumbled back as bile rose in his throat, death was a small price to pay to be free of that. Shuddering at the thought that he had been carrying that abomination around for seventeen years Harry wandered over to another of the unoccupied benches. Paying attention to the shifting of the fog and the swirling patterns it made in the shapes of columns and arches he forced the whimpers and moans to the back of his mind.
"Well, now what?" Harry asked the empty air, his voice distorting and mixing with the pain filled sounds.
"A good question." A feminine voice spoke from beside him, causing Harry to jump and stare at the sudden apparition in shock.
It was a blonde haired woman, in a simply cut dress that shifted colour as easily as the mist shifted forms. When she turned to look at him Harry saw that her eyes had no pupil and no whites. They were solid blue, a deep royal blue.
"Yes, but a better one is 'what do you want to do?'" she said again eyes flashing and shifting to solid gold.
"What?" Harry asked, desperately trying to catch up on what was being said. Distracted as the woman's eyes changed again.
"Or better yet, where do you want to go?" her eyes were a luminous green.
"But enough of that," the Blue eyes said. "Introductions."
With that, the woman looked at him expectantly.
Shifting uncomfortably from his spot on the bench Harry did the only thing he could think to do. He was very glad that his Aunt at the very least had gifted him with good manners.
"Harry Potter, pleasure to meet you." He contemplated briefly offering his hand but decided against it.
He had obviously done something right as the woman smiled benevolently at him. The Green-eyed lady laughing softly as she murmured softly.
"Oh, I see why you like him now."
Feeling more confused than before, if that were even possible, Harry looked at her with a puzzled expression.
It was then that the golden eyes turned back to him and extended her hand to shake. "A pleasure to meet you too Harry, I'm Gaia."
Harry felt a hard lump sit in the pit of his stomach as he gingerly shook her hand. He had always joked that Fate had something against him, but this was a little ridiculous.
"Um, I don't suppose you could tell me what's going on?" Harry asked, dreading the answer and certainly not expecting a straight one.
The green eyes grinned at him before tilting her head toward the source of the pathetic whimpers. "Well, you killed all but the last fragment of Tom Riddle's soul and yourself. You are currently in the Station, a sort of limbo if that makes it any easier."
Harry nodded, that did make some sort of weird sense. He wasn't quite dead yet then, but he was certainly close. The reminder that Voldemort was still running around, however, was not a comforting thought.
"Why am I here?" Harry asked, if he was going to get straight answers for once he was going to take advantage of it while it lasted.
"We wanted to talk to you," blue eyes replied simply.
"Ah. Any particular reason?" Harry asked, feeling surprisingly calm despite the fact that he was obviously talking to, either an incredibly powerful deity like being or, a complete figment of his imagination.
"Well, it has been awhile since anyone caught our attention," blue eyes stared off into the distance that was, in fact, the barrier to Platform 9 ¾.
Harry had to stop himself groaning. Attention for him had never been a good thing, he would have been happy to fade into the background and be forgotten.
Shifting uncomfortably on the wooden bench Harry struggled to find something to say. He was saved from his dilemma, however, when golden eyes flashed and took up the conversation if it could be called that.
"It's rare when someone has the potential to keep helping after they have already fulfilled a Prophecy."
Eyes turning blue Gaia shuddered.
"A necessary evil, I'm afraid." At this Harry cast her a disbelieving look, to which she replied, "I don't play games with people's lives, Harry, I only make the Prophecies when there is an evil that threatens the world. I set them up for the best possible outcome."
Swallowing thickly Harry nodded. He felt a little better that the situation with Voldemort was not just some joke to the woman, but that did not make it any easier to deal with.
The Green eyes sparkled, "The thing is, Harry, we have come to ask your help."
Harry frowned.
"Why do you need my help?" He asked, finding his voice for the first time in minutes.
"We need your help because you have the potential to save a lot of people in the future," cool blue eyes shone soothingly.
"Meaning that you can fulfil more than a single prophecy. Making you the ideal ally for us." Gaia added as her eyes swirled green and Harry realised that whoever or whatever Gaia was she had multiple personalities.
Harry nodded, absurdly grateful for the green-eyed presence. They, at least, spoke plainly.
So he had the potential to fulfil more than one prophecy. The way she - they? - were talking about it implied 'in the future', a long way into the future.
"Um, just 'when' do you need my help?" Harry asked, feeling foolish for asking the question.
Gaia's laughter did little to ease his nerves.
"Oh, I like you! Yes, the problem we need your help with is a long way into the future yet. At least three thousand years I should think," the frank green eyes supplied.
Harry stared, a dull ringing in his ears. Three thousand years and he doubted that he would find any way back to this time. His time.
"H-how would that work exactly?" Harry asked, cursing the hitch in his voice.
"A Crystal hibernation," the gold eyes shone as Gaia replied. "We would turn you into Crystal in which state you would stay until you were needed."
To Harry, that suggestion sounded ridiculous, but then how do you tell a divine being that it was ridiculous?
And what about his friends?
"What about the people now?" he asked, hoping for a straight answer.
"We would allow you to go back to ensure that Voldemort is taken care of permanently. So you can be sure that they will live in a safe world, of course as soon as that task is done the Crystal Sleep will call you," green eyes glittered, reminding Harry of Dumbledore.
Nodding his understanding, Harry stared at the stone platform of shifting mist thinking.
He could be sure that his friends would live a full happy life, he just couldn't live it with them. He would be sleeping until he woke up somewhere far into the future and then…
"What happens when I've helped with, whatever it is? What happens to me then?"
Green eyes smiled kindly before shifting to soothing blue. "We would allow you the life you want. We would grant you a happy life, it is the least we could do."
Harry swallowed again.
A happy life far in the future where he is guaranteed that nothing will even vaguely be the same. Or, death now. Harry had no illusion that he could be allowed to live in this time.
At least this way he could guarantee his friends a life of relative peace.
Nodding his head jerkily Harry opened his mouth to accept Gaia's offer when another thought struck him.
"Will anything change that I need to know about? How will I know who to help?"
"In the world in which you will awake Magic has changed much, it resembles little of what you know today. However all you need to know of is the Sorceresses. They are far more powerful than the average magic user and that power corrupts them. It is passed down from Sorceress to Sorceress and the taint moves with the power."
Gold eyes turned to blue.
"Those Sorceresses that do not carry the tainted power have Knights that anchor their power and act as protectors. You too will have a Knight. By their standards you will be a Sorcerer, your magic is compatible only with your Knight's. You will know him for he will be the only one who can wake you."
Gaia's eyes shifted back to molten gold.
"As you sleep your magic will grow and shift to accommodate the changes, when you wake you will be capable of both the magic you know now and that of the future. The average wizard of today could pass as a Sorcerer in the future, you will be more powerful still."
Green overtook gold.
"There will be beings of great power, Guardian Forces. When they recognise you they will help you."
The smirk that danced across green eyes was somewhat unsettling for Harry as he nodded his understanding. There was still a lot he didn't know and that irked him, but at least this way he could be sure his family lived.
As Gaia stood from the bench the moans of the soul fragment filtered into Harry's conscious mind.
Gaia stepped in front of him before he could move far and green eyes focused on him.
"When you go back to the realm of the living only moments will have passed. It will not take much for you to destroy what is left of Tom Riddle, a single spell and it need not be fatal."
Green eyes smiled again, adding, "Once that is done you will be placed under the Crystal Sleep, there will be only a moment for you to say goodbye."
Harry nodded mutely. He didn't want to leave his friends, but he didn't want a drawn out goodbye either. That could only be painful. But the chance to acknowledge he wouldn't see them again was more than he expected. After all, he had walked into the forest prepared to die. This way he could leave without regret.
With that Harry walked to the exit of the Station. The light and mist changed and became solid and dirty.
Stepping through the gate Harry felt himself fall and a great weight settled upon him.
Controlling his breathing Harry cracked his eyes open to find himself in the arms of a weeping Hagrid.
Listening to the scuffling and muffled cheering around him Harry guessed that they were still in the midst of the Death Eaters. And they were celebrating. Looking above him through slitted eyes Harry could just make out the sparse branches of trees at the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Even as he watched the branches thinned before dying out completely and Harry surmised that Voldemort was heading towards the castle.
Complete with his 'defeated' nemesis.
As Harry waited, controlling his breathing, eyes closed and listening intently to the sounds around him the cheers slowly faded.
Moments later the first scream rent the air. It wasn't long before shouting erupted and chaos ensued.
Only Ron and Hermione had known that Harry was going to the Forbidden Forest. And only they knew why. To everyone else it appeared that Harry Potter had given up.
With that thought Harry had to suppress a wince. So much for morale.
As the noise continued Harry risked opening his eyes again, Hagrid's sobs still shaking through his gigantic form.
Tilting his head minutely Harry watched with pride as Neville gave Voldemort a lecture on belief. His old dorm mate and friend had certainly come into his own this last year. Harry could hardly recognise him as the shy boy he had been at eleven.
As he watch the crowd of students and teachers across the courtyard from him Harry was surprised to see Draco Malfoy looking at him with despair.
As it was when Harry tilted his head again to focus more clearly on the blond while everyone was distracted, the youngest Malfoy was the only one to catch the slight movement and the barely slitted eyes.
Barely controlling his expression Draco watched intently as Harry twitched the fingers of his right hand, hoping against hope that the other would understand what he needed.
The slight nod of Draco's head was the only indication that the blond knew that Harry needed a wand as soon as he made his move.
Without waiting when he saw Malfoy pull the dark rod of Hawthorn from his pocket to hold loosely by his side, Harry leapt from Hagrid's arms raising a new chorus of shouts and screams. Not pausing for a beat Draco ran for Harry, tossing him his wand with a shout of 'Potter!'.
Barely registering that Ron, Hermione, Neville, Luna and Ginny were all in the courtyard Harry swung the wand towards the bane of his existence. But then, he expected to have a new bane in a couple of thousand years.
"Expelliarmus!" The shouted disarming spell echoed around the suddenly silent courtyard as Voldemort retaliated.
"Avada Kedavra!"
Gaia's words proved to be true however, the poisonous green light was quickly swamped by scarlet spell-light spewing from Harry's borrowed wand. As the combined effects hit the man once known as Tom Riddle, Harry began to understand what Gaia had meant.
There was only ever one spell that Voldemort would ever retaliate with and it wouldn't be strong enough to go against Harry. Not when he had lost the last of his soul-anchors.
Harry watched with everyone else as the body of Lord Voldemort hit the ground with a final thud. The breath that had been held by everyone was let out as cheers sounded.
Those Death Eaters and allies quickly divested themselves of their wands and surrendered, hoping for leniency.
Without pausing from the moment that Voldemort's body fell Harry whirled around and spotted the pale blond head of Draco Malfoy quickly. Passing the cheering students as they tried to slap him on the back Harry held out Malfoy's wand to be returned to its true owner. It would be of no
more use to him anyway.
A glance over his shoulder showed that Ron, Hermione, Neville, Luna and Ginny had followed him. Behind them stood Narcissa Malfoy, he husband lurking behind her trying to look as unobtrusive as possible. He didn't blame them, in the end. They had done what they had deemed necessary to protect themselves and their son. If nothing else Harry could respect that.
Whatever their feelings had been in the first war they had changed when Draco was born. A lot of people hadn't wanted to fight this war, Harry realised, as he watched the group rush towards him. The Malfoy's pushed past him with only a cursory glance and a nod of acknowledgement.
When his family was only a few feet away Harry turned back to the blonde haired family.
In a voice that everyone in the courtyard heard, though no one was quite sure how as Harry hadn't cast a sonorus charm, he said his last word to his old school rival.
"Thankyou."
It was then that Harry felt it. It began at his core and spread outward. It wasn't hot, nor cold, nor particularly painful. It was like his body was finally relaxing for a long sleep and it had been so long since he had last slept without nightmares that Harry found himself oddly looking forward to the millennia of dreamless sleep awaiting him.
Looking over at his friends, his family, one last time as everyone became aware of the magic swirling around him Harry smiled.
It was one of few true smiles he had had cause to give in the last few years.
"Goodbye."
No noise, beyond the stir of magic as it whirled around him interrupted as Harry Potter, slowly at first and then all at once, let the Crystal seep into his skin.
In the end there was nothing left but a Crystal statue that was in the image of the Boy-Who-Lived.