Harry lay on his bed, trying to fall asleep but unable to do so for some reason. It was beginning to irritate him, as according to his clock it was close to two in the morning. Something just hold him that it was important for him to be awake a bit longer.
He yawned and, since he wasn't able to fall asleep, his mind went to something he'd been looking forward to since his birthday. Soon the Weasleys would be picking him up to stay with them, and they'd all be going to the Quidditch World Cup shortly afterwards. He grinned to himself, eagerly imagining such an event, well aware that nothing he came up with would be likely to match reality.
He was surprised out of his thoughts when there was a tapping on the window. He got up, looking over to find a bird he could tell was brightly colored even in the dark. That could only mean one thing, which made a grin reappear on his face.
He quickly got up and opened the window, letting the bird flutter in. Hedwig hooted slightly in disapproval at the bright intruder, who seemed to ignore her displeasure, holding out a small parcel with a letter attached to Harry, who quickly took them from it.
"Thanks." He said, offering the bird an owl treat and some water. It disdained the treat, but eagerly partook of the water, which didn't surprise him too much. It had obviously travelled a long distance.
Shortly after the bird had left back into the distance Harry closed the window and turned to the delivery while turning on his lamp. He grabbed the letter and opened it first, smiling when he saw he was correct and it was from his godfather.
Harry,
Thank you for your last letter. I'm glad to hear you're going to the Quidditch World Cup. Sounds like it'll be a lot of fun, so make sure to enjoy yourself.
That isn't the main reason for this letter, though. In the package is something that belongs to you. It's been in your family for generations, and James entrusted it to me in case of any issues. I'd proceeded to hide it at my current location and forgot about it till I came across it by chance. It is more than just a trinket, however.
From what James told me about it, it is a powerful magical item created some time ago by one of your ancestors during a time that the Potter family was in a blood feud, just short of an all-out war, against another, very large and powerful, family. Battles between the families were common, and left devastation in their wake. I don't know the reasons for the feud, though from what I know about the other family, I'd say it's something they did.
In any case, your ancestor was a brilliant woman, probably the most brilliant the family ever produced. The item she created apparently gave her command over something immensely powerful which allowed her to end the feud with the opposing family by all but rendering them extinct. She was seemingly invincible. When the conflict was over, she stopped using it, deeming it no longer needed. But needless to say, nobody else messed with the Potters from that point forward out of fear of bringing that same power down on their heads.
What exactly the power that woman summoned was is currently unknown. Even James didn't know. All that's passed down is that it's "The Strength of Ages". It goes without saying that other Potters tried to use the artifact after that, but nobody knows how to. James tried to summon that power as well when your family was being hunted by Voldemort, but unfortunately he couldn't. Him and your mother thought there was something that you had to do to activate it, and then a certain amount of power the person activating it had to have. Neither James nor Lily were slouches when it came to magical power, but they thought that it still may not have been enough. So, in the end, they gave it to me to make sure there was no chance of Voldemort getting his hands on such a powerful artifact.
I don't know if you'll be able to activate it, Harry. But with Wormtail's escape I'd prefer you have something to back you up. Besides which, it's rightfully yours anyway. Take good care of it, and if you manage to get it to work, let me know. I'm curious as hell as to what it actually does.
Best wishes,
Sirius
Harry set the letter down and looked at the small package with curiosity. He was now intensely interested in what was in it. No matter what it could do, it was a family heirloom. An important one, from the sounds of it. Quickly he opened it, letting the contents drop onto his palm.
It was a heavy ring made up of what appeared to be silver. It was made of bands that twisted together in an intricate pattern that looked like a crown of some sort when looked at from a certain angle.
He sat down on his bed, observing the ring from every angle. The low light didn't let him get a good look at it. Eventually he set it on his bedside table and lay back down, deciding to study it more in the daylight. He closed his eyes as his mind churned with what he'd learned.
An amazing power that only a single woman had ever wielded and had the potential to help the user win a war. It sounded amazing. He went to sleep with a smile on his face, imagining capturing Wormtail with a towering monster that made a dragon look tame.
The next day Harry was in the kitchen making himself some bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwiches. Thankfully for his sanity the Dursleys had left for the day, leaving him on his own after a surprisingly small amount of persuasion. He'd only had to use the 'escaped convict godfather' card once!
He'd spent the morning studying the ring he'd received. It had a lot more intricate detail than he'd realized when observing it in the dim light of his lamp. The entire surface was covered in miniscule etchings that it took him a bit to realize were runes from when he'd seen Hermione working on them the previous year.
He was amazed at the work that must have gone into the ring. The runes were etched in parts of the ring he didn't believe possible, even when factoring in magic. He knew that if he showed it to Hermione she'd be liable to start drooling.
He wondered what one had to do to activate it. What could his parents have tried? He began to imagine the complicated spells they likely attempted, probably things that he hadn't even begun to learn yet. From everything he'd heard the two were highly intelligent, so he didn't doubt that they knew some secret, super advanced spells that would make his brain hurt to comprehend.
"Ouch!" He said as he cut his thumb while he was slicing the tomato. He scowled at himself for getting so distracted he did something like that. He quickly moved to the tap and got ready to wash his thumb when he stopped and looked at it speculatively.
There was no way it could possibly be that simple, could it? Wouldn't someone have tried it before?
He considered that. From what Harry had heard before, anything involving blood when it came to magic was both extremely powerful and more often than not illegal. So it was possible that others may have dismissed the possibility as a matter of course.
But what about those that didn't? There had to be at least one person that tried it.
Well, maybe they didn't meet the power requirement for it Sirius said his parents had said there might be. But surely that meant that he didn't meet the criteria. Right?
He looked down at his bloody thumb before shrugging. There was really no harm in trying.
He quickly began to make his way up the stairs to his room, leaving the food where it was for the moment. He reached his bedside table and picked up the ring with the hand that wasn't bleeding. He held it tightly and pressed his blood covered thumb against the ring, holding his breath.
Nothing happened.
Harry frowned before sighing, unsurprised. It was a longshot anyway. He cleaned the ring with a nearby tissue and went to set it back down before pausing once again. He felt like he was missing something. He looked at the ring before blinking as he realized that it was a ring, but he wasn't wearing it. Maybe it had to be worn to take effect? That would make sense.
He licked his lips and put it on his right hand's ring finger. Once on it resized itself to fit him perfectly, something he checked by moving his hand and fingers around, making sure it wouldn't interfere with his dexterity. Once he was satisfied he brought the ring up and once again pressed his bleeding thumb to it.
For a moment nothing happened. Then he suddenly gasped as he felt the ring start drawing on his magic. It began to draw huge amounts of it, more than he'd ever used before, even when casting the patronus against the dementors, making him start feeling weak and lightheaded. He moved his thumb from the ring to see the silver absorbing the blood as well. Then words entered his head, and he knew he had to speak them now.
"I announce." He said, the words spilling from his lips almost before they entered his brain. "Your self under me, my fate is in your sword. If you abide by this feeling, this reason, then answer. Here is my oath." He felt a small thrill of terror at the word oath. Everything he knew about magical oaths was bad. He could only hope this was not a literal one and just part of the chant. "I am the one who becomes all the good of the world of the dead, I am the one who lays out all the evil of the world of the dead." A magic circle the likes of which he'd only seen in non-magical media so far appeared on the floor, glowing a strong blue color. "You, seven heavens clad in three words of power, arrive from the ring of deterrence, O keeper of the balance!"
There was a flash of light and a burst of energy somewhat different from the magic Harry was used to. He closed his eyes at the flash, but opened them quickly when a new voice spoke. He looked up to see a beautiful blond girl in a blue dress with silver armor over it standing before him. Her hands were set in front of her, as though gripping something invisible that was planted against the ground.
"From the Throne of Heroes I have come to your summons. I ask of you, are you my Master?" She said.
Harry gulped. "Hoo boy…"
In a location far from Britain, in the forests of Eastern Europe, stood an old tower. Nobody local had approached it for decades, as stories said that anybody who got near experienced a gruesome death.
Inside the highest room in the tower, a crystal ball began to pulse with a red light, its mist filled confines swirling maddeningly. A figure turned and gazed at the ball, surprised, before slowly approaching. "Intriguing…" The figure said in a sultry, feminine voice. "It seems my counterpart has finally activated the gate again." A grin stretched ruby red lips almost inhumanly wide. "Finally, this hunt can end…"
Laughter rang out in the tower as a smooth hand caressed the crystal ball, a ring just like Harry's adorning its finger.
Welcome, one and all, to my HP/Fate fusion story! *fireworks go off in the background*
I know, I already have plenty of stories to work on, but this one just wouldn't let me go.
Yes, having Arturia (or however it's said, there's so much contradiction on her name) as his main Servant is a bit cliché, I admit it freely, but it just fit so perfectly. And this is going to be a bit like Grand Order with Harry being able to command multiple Servants. So he's not stuck with just her.
To those who follow my other HP story, this is basically the story challenge I posted back in chapter five of that, with a few changes that occurred to me since then. That doesn't mean the challenge isn't open. Anybody who wants to try their hand at something similar to this is welcome to try. All I ask is that they let me know they're doing it so I can give it a read, and credit me with the original idea.
That said, the Nasuverse is not involved in this beyond the Servants, the Throne of Heroes, and some mechanics. That means no Clock Tower, Dead Apostles, or other such showing up. Although I wouldn't be surprised if Zelretch managed to poke his head in just to be a troll.
Because of this, some Servants might have their backgrounds changed slightly to accommodate the different setting. Otherwise they'll be essentially the Nasuverse versions of themselves.
I think that's all I have to say for the moment. Please leave me a review letting me know what you think of this. Don't know what I'll work on next, so keep an eye peeled. Till next time. Bye.