More of a "I'm tired of having all these ideas, and I need to upload something in hopes that someone will do something with it." So, here is the start of a story idea that I would really like for someone to be inspired by enough to continue. It is unedited, just wrote it in the past few hours after thinking about it for ages.
This is meant to be a humorous, adventure story (so, please no in depth romance), focusing on Harry and Forge exploring the world. This is merely the prologue and background into the story of immortality.
Summary: After the final battle, Harry finds himself going a bit mad. Turns out he's immortal, his dead relative won't leave him a-bloody-lone, and what it all comes down to is that him and Forge are going on (mis)adventures. So, really, life could be worse.
-/- Harry Potter and Forge Weasley's Misadventures in Immortality -/-
"Merlin," groans the teenager, drawing up for air as he continues to cradle the porcelain bowl. After a few more unsteady moments, he starts to lean back, only to surge forward again to vomit into the toilet: head pounding, eyes burning, and body aching.
"Unpleasant, isn't it?"
Harry leans back quickly, wand drawn, only to immediately tilt forward again back towards the toilet from the quick movement. In his peripheral, he sees a translucent figure float beside him, moving to hover-sit beside the toilet to look at each other eye to eye. Harry groans, rubbing his stinging eyes harshly before staring at the ghost. He is a younger looking man with wavy curls falling to his shoulders and aristocratic features. His full lips pull up at the corner with a hint of mischief and his clothes are simple, though noticeably wealthy.
Then, he notices the stack of Hallows once again beside him on the floor, and he drops his head to rest against the toilet seat with a groan.
"You won't be able to get rid of them," the spirit states amused.
"And, why bloody not?" Harry inquires, though the dread he feels to his bones makes him think the apparition correct. "And, who the bloody hell are you? I've never seen you in Hogwarts before."
"Of course you wouldn't have," dismisses the ghost, waving an elegant hand. "Not every ghost is bound to a location, you know. Sometimes we are bound to an object or people or a bloodline. Like you, my many times great grandchild. I am Ignotus Peverell."
Harry's blurry eyes squint at his ghostly relative, taking in the cloak and comparing them to the non-translucent version resting beside him on the floor. There is only one appropriate response to this type of situation.
"Fuck."
And, he promptly vomits into the toilet again.
…
"So, you are telling me," Harry drawls an hour later in recap, leaning against the tub now. "That after your brothers died, you avenged their deaths and became 'master' of the deathly hallows?"
"Correct," Ignotus nods from where he is floating cross-legged in front of Harry. "And, thus why I appear so young, as my visage in death is the age when I gained all three hollows."
Harry ignores the continuance. "But, because you never died willingly with all three hollows in your possession, you never became immortal." Ignotus nods pleasantly. "But, during your life, you had all the abilities I am gaining. The whole, seeing spirits and death dates and blah, blah, blah."
"Well, that is the short of it," grimaces Ignotus at the vastly different and shorter summary.
"And, I am stuck as an immortal myself, with only those reluctant to pass on for company?" Harry groans, slouching to slide onto the cool floor, feeling fantastic against his heated skin. He throws an arm over his eyes.
"Unless you find someone already touched in death as your own is. Then you can tie your soul and theirs," Ignotus tacks on helpfully, making Harry really wish he could punch his dead relative.
The door bangs open then, Harry moving his arm out of the way slightly and squinting at the person who dares to enter. At first, he only sees the depressed form of George; the lone twin had been a ghost himself over the past week since the battle. Then, Harry blinks a bit more and squints a bit more, tilting his head and rubbing his eyes to finally believe what he is seeing. George had not just been acting as a ghost, but a ghost was overlapping with George.
"Come on, Georgie, I'm still with you. Perk up buttercup," Fred's spirit coos and prods at George's cheek, sticking out his tongue at his twin and making silly faces. "Tough crowd."
"How fortuitous," mutters Ignotus in awe. "Magical twins; one soul in two bodies, half touched by death." Ignotus gives Harry a suspicious gaze. "You've been doused in luck."
"Both good and bad," admits Harry at a mutter before surging at the toilet once more, all conversations fading into the background as he once again empties the contents of his stomach. He feels Ignotus's chilly hand on the back of his neck and leans into the welcome, cold touch against his fevered skin. Finally, he stops vomiting and sits back, eyeing a silent George, and Fred floating beside him.
"You need me to get mum?" George offers awkwardly, sounding rather hoarse during the longest sentence he had spoken since Fred died.
"George," Harry declares, pointing a shaky finger at him. "Would you consent to be forever tied to me if you go to talk to Fred?"
"You're talking crazy," George deadpans, but his eyes are hopeful. After all, that is an impossible statement, and impossible and Harry Potter go hand and hand. "I'll get mum. You're so sick, you're delusional."
"No, I'm not," Harry mumbles in protest, and seeing George go for the door, he wishes he had his want to shut it so that George could not get out. At the thought, the elder want lit up briefly and there was a click of a door shutting and locking. Harry blinks. "That's handy."
"It's sentient, tied to its master," Ignotus states in explanation.
"Wait, you can hear him? See him?" Fred interjects, looking honestly surprised and excited at the revelation. "And, how could I talk to George?"
For the moment, Harry partly ignores Fred to focus on a scowling George. The expression did not fit the redhead's features at all. Harry opens his mouth to speak before promptly turning to vomit into the toilet. "You're getting the short version, because the longer version would be interrupted by me sicking up."
"Seriously, mum should look at you," George deadpans instead, looking slightly concerned.
"See that pile of stuff," Harry points at the Deathly Hallows, ignoring George's comment. "These are the Deathly Hallows. Yes, from the children's story, they are real. Apparently, I am their new master, so my magic is changing to accommodate the title. Which means that one of the things I can now do is see souls, and you have Fred as half of yours."
"… I don't believe you," George finally states after a long moment of silence, causing Fred to throw his hands up in frustration before brightening.
"Tell him the one time we both slept with Oliver Wood on the same night," Fred offers something only George would know. At Harry's curiously look, Fred elaborates. "Oli thought it was just one of us coming back for more, he was so sloshed. George and I didn't know that we both had concocted plans to sleep with him that night in our drunken states. Lucky Oli was so pissed, didn't remember a thing in the morning."
"You and Fred slept with Oliver," repeats Harry, surprised. He knew the Quidditch after parties got crazy, but anyone under thirteen was sent off before the booze was brought out.
George's mouth drops open. "The fuck- only Fred." George cuts himself off, groaning. "Okay, I believe you."
George collapses to sit beside Harry, looking at peace as it dawns on him.
"So, Fred is really with me, yeah?"
"Yeah, he's current trying to give you a noogie," Harry states, watching in amusement as George's face turns indignant and Fred pauses to grin, moving his hold to rest in a lose hug across George's shoulders from behind.
"You were saying about Fred and me?" George asks after clearing his throat. Harry notes his eyes are a bit misty and promptly decides not to comment.
"You are one half to a soul, tied together. Since Fred is the other, by anchoring your soul to mine, Fred should be able to merge his soul into your body. Two consciousness, with you in charge," Harry repeats after Ignotus diligently.
"What's the catch?" George presses.
"Well, since your souls would be anchored to mine, you'd become immortal as well. And, since your souls would be part touched by death, you'd develop similar abilities to mine, such as seeing souls," Harry lists.
"If Georgie agrees, I'm game," Fred consents immediately, nuzzling his twin closer. After all, he had nothing to lose.
"Is this permanent then? No dying?" George hesitates.
"You'll be tied to me however long I'm alive," Harry states, breathing heavily through his nose as his stomach turns again, hoping to hold off to finish the conversation. "The other option to see Fred all the time is to kill yourself. But, I'd honestly miss you and that'd probably upset your family."
"Oh, alright, it's not really much to think about. I'm living with only a half life anyways, without my other half," George concedes. "What do you have us do?
Harry grins as Ignotus whispers the instructions in his ear, grabbing each of the twin's heads and bonking them together inelegantly. He watches as his magic takes hold and begins to merge the two together and anchor them to him. It takes all of a minute, and when it is over, he can still see Fred's spirit overlapping George, but it is more as one. He sees the spirit in charge flickering for a moment between the twins, before ultimately settling on the 'submissive' spirit as the one with both ears.
Then, Forge is shoving Harry aside to vomit in the toilet.
And, Harry? Well, the sudden movement has him sicking up on the floor. He groans quietly after they are both through.
"Forge, you arsehole."
…
Harry gratefully collapses on the sofa, Forge falling sprawled a top him after the apparition and their belongings falling in a pile on the floor of the flat.
"We probably should have left more than a note saying 'Going to George's flat. We'll be in touch' with a little winky face," admits Harry lightly after a moment, getting a breathy laugh from Forge, who shifts slowly till they were comfortably sharing the sofa.
"I'd rather… not explain why… we're sick," Forge intones, and from the very slight pauses, Harry is amused that Fred and George are still switching mid-sentence.
"True enough," concedes Harry before asking as his stomach turns again. "How close is your bathroom?"
Forge – the lazy sod – apparates them to the bathtub, Harry muffling a thanks before scrambling to worship the porcelain throne. After another sick up, he calls out. "Hey, Ignotus, how longs this supposed to last?"
"Not a clue," Ignotus smiles at the two, both scowling at him. "My body never had to go through the immortality process, and I was only sick a week for everything else."
"You suck, go 'way," slurs Harry, Ignotus laughing and vanishing.
"Who's that wanker again?" Forge requests sleepily from the tub, having conjured a bucket for himself. Harry blinks, good idea. He crawls back to the tub, fitting the other end to face Forge and conjuring his own bucket. What nice tub…
"My many times great-grandfather, Ignotus Peverell. He was the last person to have possession of all the Hallows, so he can visit through the items without side effects however long he wants."
"What a wanker," Forge repeats again.
And, they both promptly vomit in their buckets.
-/- EXTRA SCENE -/-
"You know," Bill starts in surprise as he walks down Diagon Alley with Percy and Charlie. "I think this is the first time I am going to the shop."
"Me, too," Charlie agrees after a stunned moment. "Seems like something I should have done sooner, but with work and war and-"
"There wasn't a good opportunity," Percy agrees with a nod, as he had not been either. "I haven't been the best brother, or Weasley rather, in the past few years."
"You're here now, Perce. That's all that matters," Bill grins, pulling the younger man into a one armed hug around the shoulders before stopping. The curse breaker stares stunned in front of the monstrosity of a prank store. "Merlin, I'd really underestimated them. The magic here…"
Charlie nods, eyes wide. They enter the shop after another moment, seeing the last few shoppers browsing before closing.
"Oh, would you look at that," comes a drawn out, croaky voice from above. The three eldest Weasleys look up to see a balcony with two crotchety, old puppets peering over the edge. The one who spoke has blue eyes, freckles, short white hair, and curly queue mustache with a monocle. "We've got us some Weasleys in the building."
"A sight for sore eyes… or does it cause sore eyes, all that bright hair," bounces the other puppet with Einstein gray hair and green eyes.
"I'm surprised the walls haven't blinded you," the mustached puppet jibes, the two drawing into whispered insults.
"That's fascinating spell work," Percy blinks at the two.
"It was Harry's idea," comes George from beside them, sneaking up while they were distracted. "Apparently there is something in the muggle world he got inspiration off of… Anyways, between the two of us, we got them charmed up right only this past week."
Suddenly, the indistinguishable squabbling cuts off, the Einstein haired puppet points at a young toddler pocketing a product. "Thief!"
"Off with his hand!" follows up the mustachioed puppet. George gives a halfhearted smile to the embarrassed looking mother as she tries to negotiate the soft toy away from the babe.
"Don't worry about it," George says to her, insisting. "He looks like he already loves it."
With a few grateful words of thanks that George brushes off, he turns his attention back to his brothers. "They're a neat security system, aren't they? Since anti-theft charms aren't full proof, they are an extra set of eyes. The hair is Jim and the mustache is Abe, you know James and Fabian."
A cuckoo clock strikes and the last of the shoppers are guided out by the store clerks and the three Weasley brothers wait patiently, wondering around the products, while George closes up shop.
"Come on, then, I'll get some tea started," George offers, guiding them behind the counter and up the back stairs to the flat. As they enter into the living room, they watch as the puppets begin to stretch and yawn.
"Look at the time, Abe, I think someone needs their beauty rest."
"Definitely you, Jim," responds Abe, both puppets going off to the side and into their magical charging beds in the corners of the balcony.
"The wall is charmed to look like curtains from the shop side, and the real curtains are to close out noise from the shop. When someone is on the balcony or after hours, the puppets make an excuse to nap," explains George idly, putting a kettle on for tea before he walks over to the wall besides the balcony and knocking in an odd pattern. The wall shimmers out of view to reveal Harry sitting next to a warding stone, drawing runes with his wand (elder, as its sentient nature won't allow Harry to use his holly want). Ignotus, unseen to the elder Weasleys, is teaching Harry beside him.
Harry looks up at the four Weasleys, blinking in surprise. "That time already?"
"Yep, eight o'clock, Hare-bear."
"Oh, right," trails off Harry lamely, standing and stepping out of the small room. The wall becomes a wall again behind him. "Hullo, Bill, Charlie, Percy."
Getting various greetings in response, Bill continues. "This place, if I am not mistaken, is more secure than Gringott's."
"Even our secret passageways have secret passageways," Harry grins after a glance at Forge, who covers a laugh.
-/-
Okay, that's it for now. I don't have time to write full stories right now, so I am hoping someone will like this idea enough to make it a story. If so, here were the thoughts for where I hoped it would go:
-Percy figures out that Forge is Forge, because Forge calls Percy a name only Fred ever used.
-Percy takes over managing the shop while Harry and Forge go on misadventures around the world (sometimes random, sometimes crossovers, sometimes interacting with other characters like Bill and Charlie and Oliver and Newt Scamander-whoever)
-There should not be a focus on romance, though brief relationships are okay (remember, they are immortal – nothing serious). This was meant to focus on humor and adventure.
-I'd prefer Harry and Forge to be the main characters, so no Ron or Hermione or anyone tagging along. If someone does tag along, it would be brief or on one adventure.
Anyways, if anyone does want to pick this up, please leave a review with your username letting me know, because I would love to read it.