Title: Harry Potter and the Mark of the Acromantula
Author: Joshua
Disclaimer: JK Rowling has Harry, and whoever else from the books show up in these plots. I don't own either and I'm not making any money from all this, so don't bother suing me. I'm basing this on equal parts from the book and the movie, the Harry Potter book and movie that is. The book goes into more detail, but some parts of the movie are... better I think. In particular all the scenes involving Luna.
Summary: HBP-AU Not a Marvel Crossover...yet. Aragog is dying and makes a last request to Harry Potter. The request is to accept his Mark and take his power before his offspring steal it. It gives Harry great power, but also a greater responsibility.
Story:
Harry awoke on a Sunday morning in his bed in Gryffindor Tower. Yesterday, Saturday, had been September Seventh, and a hell of a day as it was his first lesson with Dumbledore. He'd been expecting special magic lessons or some other means of bettering his admittedly grim chances in the coming war. Instead, he'd been taken into Dumbledore's Pensieve to learn about Voldemort's parents and his family's issues. It had left Harry with a foreboding sense of anxiety about his own future, and as such he didn't get much rest during the night. Therefore, his intention for today was to get as much sleep as he could and unwind from yesterday's issues.
Unfortunately, the sun wasn't cooperating with his intentions and no matter what way he turned, it was shining in his eyes until he knew he wouldn't be able to get back to his dreams. He wiped the sleep from his eyes as he considered what exactly to do with his day of relaxation and unwinding. A consideration that was taken away as soon as he opened his eyes. Frowning at what he saw, he tilted his head this way and that to see if he was just seeing things, or if what he was seeing was really there.
He looked at it from three different perspectives. It was practically a three dimensional image, as it was the same from all three.
There, right above head in the canopy of his bed, spelled out in clear English, yet written in spider-silk as part of a very intricate spiderweb, was the sentence; "Harry Potter Come See Me At Once You Will Not Be Harmed Bring No Others With You"
Harry considered his options. When he saw ten little spiders hanging on strings around his head, framing the message, he reconsidered those options and spoke aloud, but in a soft whisper, "Tell Aragog I'm on my way."
He waited for them to climb back up to the canopy of his bed and then let out a heavy sigh and got to his feet. He was about to wake Ron, regardless of what the message said, but the very loud snores coming from behind his friend's curtains changed his mind. When Ron was still at that volume, waking him would be next to impossible.
He washed the rest of his sleep away and got dressed, in old clothes he didn't much care about, as well as some heavy duty boots that were good for running through the forest. He knew where he was going and dressed appropriately. He also made sure his wand was within easy reach.
As Harry made his way out of the Castle and started towards the Forbidden Forest, he considered getting at least Hagrid to come along. Sure, the message said to bring no others, but with Aragog, Harry felt that Hagrid would always be the exception. Unfortunately, it wasn't an option as Harry could see through the window, after knocking on the door, that neither Hagrid nor Fang, Hagrid's cowardly pet boarhound, were home at the moment.
He almost turned back, but the same ten spiders, he was sure of it, that had left the message were crawling through the grass and heading into the forest. He took one last look around, and saw that nobody was nearby. In fact, it was safe to assume that nobody was even looking at him or knew where he was, as it was still early, but at least the sun had come up a while ago.
Harry turned and followed the spiders into the Forbidden Forest, just as he had his Second Year. This time though, he promised himself, he was going to make sure he had 'protection' leaving before discussing anything else with the Lord of the Acromantula colony.
A couple hours later, Harry found himself at the heart of that colony.
"Harry Potter," an old, hissing voice gasped from the shadows.
Harry nervously glanced around at all the cold, beady, inhuman eyes staring at him from all directions. Literally, there were just as many in the trees above him as there were all around him. He decided to err on the side of caution and stepped closer to the hollowed out tree that was Aragog's den.
"You asked to speak with me, Aragog?" Harry replied. "Before anything else... I need your word of your protection to leave here in peace. I'm not here as a meal, like last time. I'm here because a friend of Hagrid's asked to speak with me, and left me no other choice. So as I came, I want to leave the same way, as friends of Hagrid."
"You have it..." the giant spider gasped, moving into the light, "...for whatever it may be worth."
Harry frowned as he noted that Aragog looked... older than the last time he'd seen him. His fur... hair... whatever, was all gray, making him look almost silver, if not for the lack of the sheen of vitality that had been there the last time. All of the old spider's eyes were milky white now, and he was staying on his belly. Even when he'd dragged himself into view, he'd been on the ground, crawling on his belly rather than lift himself up with his eight spindly legs.
"Are—are you all right?" Harry asked, taking a step closer.
"I am dying," said Aragog. From the sudden hissing this statement elicited from all the other Acromantula, Harry knew this to be rather important news.
"I'm—sorry to hear that?" he shrugged.
The old spider made a modulating hissing sound. It took Harry a few seconds to realize it was the magical creature's laughter. "It is my time. Though in the spirit of being friends of Hagrid, I will say that I appreciate your platitudes. I have called you here because I am in need of your aid, Harry Potter."
Harry frowned, crossing his arms. He then asked, "What do you need me to do?"
Aragog made that hissing laugh again and even tried to lift his head up a bit. From the way his legs were shaking, it was clear he couldn't get it up far.
"Yes, you are the one. You have so much potential. I see that in you, so much potential. And truly the best option. Yes, you are the one."
"The one what?" Harry asked.
"I will explain," said Aragog, settling back down on the ground. "I am the oldest Acromantula there is. My mate died many years before we ever officially met. Since then, while I have grown older and physically weaker, I have also grown wiser and more powerful, magically. Being the oldest of my kind, I have been granted certain gifts, certain powers that my children do not. When I die, those powers would be granted to my oldest offspring. I have hundreds of children that are all the same age. Do you see my dilemma?"
"The Acromantuala version of a civil war?" confirmed Harry after a moment to think about it. "But... oh! The basilisk is dead. So then that would mean... oh. Are there other enemies that they could, I don't know, work together to face or something like that? Would it have to be war?"
"It already has been," Aragog let out a slow, rattling breath. "I used to have thousands of offspring. They will fight until there is only one left, so that he can have all of the power. I have but one option if I do not wish for my kind to kill themselves in my passing. As novel an idea as it is to rally them all to be against a common enemy, the only enemy of such strength is not one you would appreciate, I am sure."
"Who? Who is it?"
"Wizards."
Harry blinked, and then paled drastically at the implications. "Oh."
"Yes," Aragog agreed. "Which brings us back to the aid I seek. I will bestow upon you the Mark of the Acromantula!"
From the level of noise this generated amidst the trees and underbrush, it didn't take him long to figure out that this was a pretty big deal.
"What is the Mark of the Acromantula?" Harry asked, nervously eyeballing his surroundings.
"I won't confuse you or bore myself with the long history or complicated details of the evolution of magical creatures, and tell you the short of it. It is something very similar to the scar you already carry. The one you obtained the night your parents were murdered. Your Curse Scar." Aragog resettled a bit before continuing, in spite of Harry's horror.
"You can view it as a curse, or more likely perhaps a blessing, but regardless, what I offer to you, what I need you to accept from me, is power. A great power that holds with it a greater responsibility. That is something I have learned for myself through much pain and hardship. It is why I need your aid now."
"Why not Hagrid?" Harry asked the first thing that came to mind. "Can't he... aid you?"
Aragog just stared with his blind eyes.
Harry sighed and hung his head. "It's because he's half-giant. That part of him would resist this... mark?" The rattling hiss he heard as reply was answer enough. "What does this... involve? And... OK, I know why me, but why at all?"
"This power I offer you will have a very different effect on you than it will my offspring," answered Aragog. "With my children, they would gain all of my power as spider king and would be virtual gods to my kind. Also, you should know, some of my more—rebellious sons have made efforts to contact the one no other human wizards will name."
"Voldemort?" Harry exclaimed, panic settling in. Aragog just made that same rattling hiss again. "Bloody hell!" He shook his head at the implications. If whoever, or whatever inherited Aragog's powers made an alliance with Voldemort, all the Acromantula of the Forbidden Forest would be added to the Dark Lord's forces. Harry couldn't allow that to happen.
"Merely an incentive," Aragog mentioned, "In your case, however, when you take the Mark of the Acromantula, it will be Yours! And yours alone. Even if all my children were to chase you and take every part of you and got all the wizards of the world to aid them, they would never be able to take the power from you for themselves. And even if they did or somehow could, it would be the power as it is in your hands, not as it is in mine."
Harry was silent for a moment, digesting all that he'd been told, and then finally he asked, "All right. What exactly are we talking about here? What is this power? Exactly?"
He somehow got the sense that Aragog was smiling at him.
"You will have all the powers of the Acromantula race, but in the body of a human. You will be as strong, as fast, as agile, and all of our more unique abilities as well. You should know, Acromantula silk is highly prized by your kind. But we don't just shoot out webbing just like that. We have glands that secrete the web fluid, and then through unique techniques that we have adapted to in our surroundings and with our bodies, we process that fluid that gives us different kinds of webbing, based on our needs. Hagrid and his Headmaster have gotten rather rich off the 'excess' we leave behind everywhere."
Harry blinked, not having known or suspected that about Hagrid and Dumbledore.
"Part of the Mark will be all my personal experience and knowledge about the different webbing techniques, though I do not know how you will be able to utilize it. As I said, you will be stuck in a human body. Any other powers you gain will be due to your uniqueness. Also, you should know, my Mark will override the one you already bear."
Harry frowned. "Mark I already bear?" His hand went to his forehead, "You mean my Curse Scar? It will... you'll get rid of it?"
"Not quite," was the quick reply. "By override, I mean it will not only replace it, but also absorb and take only the strongest parts of it into the Mark itself. Anything unwanted or damaging or incompatible will no longer remain. I remember the wizard that gave you that scar. He liked his snakes. Snakes are our greatest enemy, but just the same we know their language as they know ours. Your ability to speak and understand them will not change, but the link to that wizard, and the darkness I feel coming from that scar, those will be cast out, like a diseased infection."
Harry could only stare. So far, he was not hearing the downside. Just as he opened his mouth to ask what they were waiting for, there was a sudden noise from above and the next thing Harry knew, an Acromantula about half Aragog's size dropped down from the trees above and reared back on it's back four legs.
"FATHER! What is the meaning of this?" the younger Acromantula screamed.
"Hmph," Aragog scoffed, "I have made no secret of my intentions, Gargrog, as you have. This human is here to take the Mark of the Acromantula from me. He has my protection while he his here, and for as long as he is in the forest."
Harry gulped, nervously looking between 'father' and 'son', but he made it very clear he was not pulling out his wand just the same. No need to escalate things after all.
"Are you serious?" the younger Acromantula, Gargrog, exclaimed as he settled back onto all eight legs. "You will give a human wizard your power, rather than allow it to go to your children? Your heirs?"
"Yes."
Harry blinked and did a brief double-take. Out of all the response he'd expected, that simple reply had been... a little simpler than he'd thought it would be.
"Then you will have to pick another one!" Gargrog growled, charging towards Harry.
Harry's wand was in his hand before the giant spider had even taken one step. "Tarantallegra!" he cast the jelly-legs curse at it. It was the first spell that came to mind. All at once, Gargrog could no longer control his many legs and as bad as it was for humans hit with it, it was so much worse for a spider that had nothing but legs! At the same moment, Harry caught sight of two other Acromantula, each about the size of a dog or wolf, dropping down on silk lines from the trees up above. They were aiming to land on Aragog's back, and their mouths were dripping with some black venom.
Not thinking, just reacting, Harry spun his wand around and cast, "STUPEFY! STUPEFY!" He hit both spiders and they were knocked back off their lines and to the ground, unconscious.
Unfortunately, this seemed to have stirred up the nest somewhat, and Gargrog had managed to throw off the curse while Harry was distracted and was charging once again.
"Stop! I don't want to do this! Just stop!" Harry backed up, trying to shout down the spider. When it became clear it wasn't going to stop, he made up his mind and actually took a step forward and shot out the best dueling spells he knew in rapid succession. "EXPELLIARMUS! LOCOMOTOR MORTIS! INCARCEROUS! STUPEFY!"
Of course since the Acromantula attacking was so big, it was really hard to miss. Gargrog went flying back, end over end and slammed heavily against one of the other trees at the same time all his legs snapped together and could not be freed. A moment later, magical ropes bound him in place, hogtying him against the tree before he was knocked unconscious.
"Yes, you are definitely the one," Aragog's voice said over the rising noise of all the Acromantula hissing and calling for Harry's death. When it looked like they were about to strike, Aragog actually got to his feet and all the silver hair over his body stood on end and a vibration shook the forest all around. Harry had no other word for it.
Moments later, all the Acromantula curled up and rolled over on the ground, for all intents and purposes asleep. There were a few lonely thuds from the ones that had either been precariously perched or hanging by their threads when Aragog did whatever it was he just did.
Speaking of whom, after the vibration had passed, he collapsed back to the ground and Harry, against his better judgment, went to him to see if he could help.
"You see now—what the power is—in the hands of an Acromantula. It will be—different for you. You will have no loyalty from my tribe here. What just happened here is evidence enough of that. Do not look for aid amongst my children. And as for my protection... I am afraid that once I pass the Mark of the Acromantula to you, I will no longer be able to provide it. I can guarantee you—perhaps a minute—perhaps less. You will need to hurry back to the Castle. And not just because you will have an entire colony of Acromantula chasing you through half the forest, but because of the—side effects of the Mark. You will lose consciousness for about eight hours, during which the Mark will grant you its powers. You will be incredibly vulnerable during those eight hours, and it is the only time during which my offspring may actually succeed in stealing the power away from you. You will need the protection of other wizards, at the least."
Harry nodded. "OK, I understand. Let's," he gulped and took a deep breath, "let's do this."
Aragog lashed out with his left foreleg, striking Harry in the head, hard enough to draw blood.
"Argh! OW!" Harry stood to his feet and held his hand against where it hurt the worst, where Aragog had just hit him. "What was that...?" he stopped his question part way through as he pulled his hand away and saw his blood there... mixing with the blood of an Acromantula. Red and blue, swirling about, but not actually mixing together. "What?"
"Go—Hurry—Run!" Aragog gasped, his hair already up and the vibration already going strong.
Harry didn't need to be told twice as he turned and he ran as fast and as hard as he could for Hogwarts Castle. He never made it of course.
The spiders started to follow just after a minute of heart-pounding silence, and then the first of the traps sprung up in his way. He was already sweating and nearly missed it, but a quick cutting charm got it out of his way and thankfully he was past it before the first of the string shots had caught him. Realizing they were in the trees, he started to duck and weave, using the trees themselves as shields against the Acromantula web shots. He just kept running.
He wasn't sure when the surroundings changed, but the next thing he knew, there were no more web traps waiting for him, and the trees were more green and there was actual sunlight coming down through the canopy of leaves. Unfortunately, that did not mean the Acromantula had stopped chasing him.
At some point, he couldn't say when but for all he knew it could have been the moment Aragog gave him the 'Mark', his head had started pounding and there was a ringing in his ears. Worse than that by far, he was extremely disoriented and it took all his concentration just to put one foot in front of the other and not run into every tree in the forest at least once. But he knew if he stopped running, he was dead and he couldn't let that happen. Too much depended on him not dying!
Suddenly he tripped, and that's all the Acromantula were waiting for.
Thirteen of them pounced on him all at once, all as big as Gargrog. Heck, for all he knew, Gargrog might have been one of them. He tried to shoot off a curse, or at least a protection shield, but all he felt from his magic was... pain. So he tried a different tactic, and punched and kicked and tried to get up to run again.
They had him tied and strung up in a matter of seconds after finally subduing him. They all contributed their webbing to cocooning him, though they left his face and forehead clear, for obvious reasons, as they needed him alive, for now, and they needed access to the Mark of the Acromantula that was now where his Curse Scar had been.
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a flash of white. Confused, he turned to see, but all he saw were more flashes of white. The Acromantula were no longer crowding over him. There was some noise. Hissing, sounds of fighting, hoof beats? The centaurs?
More flashes of white all around him and the sound of Acromantula screaming. And then... And then... And then nothing.
He awoke briefly and saw trees passing by overhead. It felt like he was on a horse's back, but he was still cocooned. If it was the centaurs, why was he still cocooned? He passed out again.
Some time later, and he had no way of being able to tell how long exactly, he saw that he was surrounded by unicorns.
"Uni...?" he croaked, his throat dry and disoriented.
Hush now.
He heard a voice. He couldn't begin to describe it.
Relax. You are safe now. The spiders will not harm you while you are here.
"Where...?" he tried to ask but that was all he could get out. He felt like he was sick.
Do not try to speak. We rescued you from the offspring of Aragog.
Another voice spoke, as indescribable as the first, but just as clearly a different unicorn. Harry couldn't begin to understand how they were communicating with him in the first place.
We know what it is Aragog has done. We also know that he could not do it without consent.
You are the one that has slain the one that has slain our brothers.
This voice was new, and it sounded older, much older, than the other two.
This has put us in your debt. We repay this debt now. Saving your life for the lives you have avenged.
Harry frowned. They must be talking about Voldemort and Quirrel, when the former DADA Professor had killed and drunk the blood of unicorns to sustain the Dark Lord in spirit form.
We do not do this lightly, Harry Potter. We do not save your life only to have you turn dark or squander away your existence. We do this so that you may save more lives with this new life.
Sleep, Harry Potter.
This was the first voice that had spoken.
We will watch over you, and when you awaken, you will have the Blessing of the Unicorns.
The elder voice spoke next.
This Blessing will mix with the Mark you now wield. It will increase your agility and speed and grant you a power the Acromantula could not. The power to sense nearby evil and danger and the instincts in how to best avoid it. It will also remove the last of the taint from you cursed scar and improve your healing. There will also be another effect that will make itself clear in time.
Sleep now.
Harry slept.
He had some weird dreams though. Some really weird dreams. One of them even had him having a conversation with Professor Dumbledore in a pure white version of King's Cross Station, but no part of the conversation made sense. Not even what he was saying. And then it changed to him and a young Aragog talking about some kind of drawing Harry was working on. He was on his broom. No, he was hanging by a rope from the side of the castle. No, that's not right, he was... swinging? Swinging between the towers before crawling down to the dungeons. All of a sudden, his perspective was that of a common brown spider's, and he was crawling and swinging on webs all over the place. Eventually, he made it back to his bed in Gryffindor Tower and saw—himself lying there, still asleep! He climbed into bed and closed his eyes. And then opened them.
"Aaahh!" Harry screamed and fought himself free of the covers that were smothering him.
Only... they weren't covers. It was an Acromantula silk cocoon, and he'd just torn his way out of it like—well, like it was just a bunch of cotton sheets.
Still breathing heavy, he took a few moments to get his bearings and figure out what was going on. Seeing all the unicorn around him, and that he'd just basically ripped himself out of a spider cocoon... and all his clothes... his next words were merely stating the obvious.
"Oh god, it wasn't a dream at all, was it?"
The unicorn next to him, and nearest, sympathetically shook its head. It then reached out and placed it's horn against the bare skin of his arm.
How do you feel, Harry Potter?
Harry blinked and stared. He almost stated the obvious again, but thankfully stopped himself in time to keep from embarrassing himself further. He then considered the question itself.
"I feel..." he clenched both his fists and watched the muscles in his arms coil and contract beneath the skin. He could feel the strength surging through him and it felt... "I feel great! Is this...? Is that because of the Blessing, or the Mark?"
Perhaps a bit of both. Are you well enough to stand?
"Uh, yeah, it's just, well, I don't, er..." Harry hesitated to stand as all of his clothes has been ripped to shreds by his sudden awakening.
You think we care what humans look like at all?
Harry blinked and shot a look at the unicorn that was still touching him. "OK, fair point. Mind? Just don't want to, you know?" The unicorn removed it's horn from his skin and he hesitantly stood to his feet. He stretched a bit, enjoying the feel of the muscles beneath his skin. His magic was back to normal as well, he could feel it. Concerned, he started looking about for his wand. Thankfully, it was there, still stuck in the tattered webbing.
Harry then considered his options. He shrugged, figuring that the worst that could happen is he would fail and he'd be exactly where he was right then anyway. He transfigured the webbing into some trousers and a loose t-shirt. To his immense pleasure and satisfaction, they transfigured wonderfully, but more surprising was that they didn't change substance. Also, they weren't exactly what he'd pictured either.
Instead of a pair of jeans or khakis or anything he was used to, some leggings with matching boots appeared. And instead of a simple short sleeved t-shirt, a full sleeved shirt with gloves and a full face-covering hood attached to it appeared next to the pants. Picking it up, he saw that it was the same silvery white color Aragog's hair had been the last time he'd seen the giant spider.
"Huh, not what I was shooting for, but beggars can't be choosers," he said and quickly put on the outfit. It was a perfect fit. A little too perfect actually, as it was skin tight, even the boots fit like... well, like a silk glove. He left the hood off for the moment and looked around as the unicorns milled about the clearing. Looking up at the sky, he saw that it was close to dusk, meaning it was getting pretty late in the day. He needed to get back to the Castle.
"So—what now?" he asked with a shrug in his new skintight suit.
The same unicorn as before reached over and lay its horn on his shoulder.
You are your own person, Harry Potter. Aragog will soon pass away and none of his children hold loyalty to you. We did not save you just to control you or turn you into our slave. We saved you so that you could save others. All that we ask is you do your best to bear this responsibility as well as you can.
Harry nodded his head, understanding what he was being told. He then asked, "I meant, what now as in, how can I get back to the school?"
A couple of the unicorns neighed, sounding a bit like laughter, while he got a sense of embarrassment from the unicorn speaking with him.
Your powers should now be fully evolved. I would think a quick run through the forest should be all you will need to figure out how to use them. I can lead you in the right direction, at least as far as the forest edge. It will be up to you to keep up.
Pulling the hood over his face, he was surprised to find he could still see and breath normally. In fact it felt almost natural, more so than his school robes ever did that's for sure. "Ready when you are," he shrugged, now fully clothed.
With no more warning than that, the unicorn took off like a shot through the foliage. For a stunned moment, Harry just stood there, looking after it. Then he too was off and running.
To his mounting shock, he soon found himself catching up with the unicorn!
Running through the underbrush, dodging trees, he found himself as nimble and agile as the unicorn itself, almost as agile as he was on his broom even! Then they came to a rather sudden gorge, a small dip in the ground where one of the tributaries feeding the Black Lake had eroded away the ground. The unicorn jumped it like it wasn't even there. For Harry though, he knew it was too far, so he planned on just jumping down into it and then climbing back out. Only, when he jumped, he didn't jump down, he jumped up! Way up!
He found himself going through the air like he was rising higher on his broom, until he actually broke through the canopy! Then gravity asserted itself once more and Harry was reminded rather abruptly that he wasn't flying, he was falling!
He fell back through the leaves and saw a rather large tree branch zoom up at him. Afraid he was going to hit it and break every bone in his body, he clenched up with fear, only for that fear to do something else entirely with his body. He suddenly found himself doing a mid-air flip and landed on the balls of his feet, his legs easily absorbing the impact. His body kept up the momentum however and he jumped again, forward this time instead of just up. Another branch appeared before him, he landed on it and jumped again, treating it like it was a stepping stone or something.
After the fifth such leap, Harry finally caught on with what he was doing and the next one he intentionally did a couple of back flips and let out a loud whoop. He went a bit further down among the branches until he'd caught sight of the same unicorn, and found himself easily catching up and keeping pace with it. His next jump took him over the canopy again, but that was because of the sudden dip in the height of the trees.
He did another mid-air flip and landed solidly against the trunk of the larger of the remaining trees. They were close to the Castle now, he could see it and the Lake. It was only after he actually started moving that Harry realized he was still up against the tree trunk. Upside down. And not hanging on to any branch.
Looking down at himself, Harry saw that his hands and feet were sticking to the tree like, well like he had permanent sticking charms on the palms of his hands and the soles of his feet. A bit of experimentation and he found himself completely at ease with the odd positioning of his body, and furthermore he wasn't slipping or falling. He crawled all the way to ground level where the unicorn waited, his flanks wet with sweat and his lungs gasping.
"You all right?" Harry asked. The unicorn reached over and put its horn on his shoulder again.
You are very hard to keep up with. When you disappeared into the trees, I had to run full out just to catch up with you. Take care of this power you now have, Harry Potter. Take care of this great responsibility you have been given.
Harry nodded and patted the unicorn along its face and mane. "I will," he said, "I promise. Do you need a, what do they call it, a rub down? I can find my way back from here."
I will be fine. There is a stream not too far away. I will leave you now to find your way back.
"Thank you, for everything."
You are welcome, Harry Potter.
With that, the unicorn turned and ran off. Harry turned the opposite direction and took a running start before leaping up into the tree branches once again. He had no idea what the future would hold for him after this, but he had to admit, as he flit through the trees like a spider across it's web, it was looking a whole lot better than it did the day before.
End? (Whether End of Chapter or End of Story is up to the readers' reviews)