Chapter 3 Pure Loyalty
Harry gazed into the eyes of Cedric Diggory, the first casualty of the Second War. "This is no simulation, Harry," Cedric said, cutting through Harry's thoughts.
"I guess this really is a place where the lands of the dead and living intersect." Harry replied, nodding at the archway behind him.
"It isn't the only one, Harry." Cedric said with a smile, "All of the other Temples also feature a location like this."
"So this isn't going to be a onetime occurrence then?" He said with an eyebrow arched.
"For me, perhaps, but there will be others."
"Others?"
Placing his spectral hand on Harry's shoulder, he said, "Yes, others. Try to think of people in your past who are dead that might represent Ferocity, Cruelty, or Truth."
Noting that the hand felt oddly solid, Harry shrugged, "Well, I have plenty of time to figure that out. So, what is this Guardian of Purity that I have to overcome?"
Cedric only laughed. Harry turned away from him, "The Guardian of Purity, if what you say about the other Temples is true, would be someone who represents a facet of purity. Whether it is purity of blood, purity of faith, purity of truth, or…"
"You see it now, don't you?"
Harry drew the Bone Wand, "Purity of loyalty. No one is the quintessential Hufflepuff quite like you, Cedric. You are the Guardian of Purity. Are you going to make this easy on me, or what?"
"You have to overcome the Guardian, so I imagine not. How do you want this? Do you want to fight me, or something to represent me?"
Harry smirked, "That's kind of an odd question. What do you mean?"
"The dead can take multiple forms, so, if it makes you feel better, I can fight you as some animal that also represents purity. Figuratively speaking, that is."
Harry nodded, "Let's go with the animal form then."
"It's been a pleasure to speak with you again, Harry. This is your last chance to turn back." At those words, a barrier of ethereal fire sprung up, leaving only a small gap at the very back. Harry smiled.
"I guess I will show you the purity of courage then." With that, Harry backpedaled away from the spirit of the boy he watched be killed.
Blue flames engulfed the spirit. When they faded, only a massive badger, of all things, remained. It was solid enough, and the glimmering electricity on its claws scared him. It wouldn't due to be hit by those.
The giant badger writhed like a dog out of the bath. It looked like it was shaking off flees, but grey smoke rose instead, and Harry found his vision obscured. He lunged to the left, barely dodging the claws. He ducked down, rolling under it, evading a surely fatal head bite.
Scrambling to the other side of the meadow, Harry took a breath to get his head straight. Alright, this isn't going to be easy. He's fast, almost too fast. He rolled away from the charging animal, definitely fast.
He threw up a shield to stop the badger in its tracks. It worked, but the badger jumped onto the shield, and flung itself off, landing at its starting point. Harry felt a jolt of electricity as this happened. Dropping the shield and looking around, he saw burn marks on the ground.
Smiling again, and trying to force down his panic, he began to try another plan. Ground residing animals generally did not like flame, so it would fit that fire would work here. He muttered Incendio, and lit the grass on fire.
It didn't have the desired effect. He found himself lunging again to avoid a charge from the giant badger. Now, smoke of his own creation was obscuring his view.
Grinding his teeth in frustration, Harry vanished the smoke. He dodged left and right, avoiding slashes from the badger as it swiped at him. He summoned a rock, and banished it into the badger's snout.
The behemoth recoiled back, and Harry noticed teeth lying on the ground. Confidence restored, Harry began to summon rocks, and banish them at the badger. It growled at him in fury, but was beaten back by the barrage. However, as Harry remembered Cedric being, the badger was smart, and quickly began to evade the rocks, even digging a hole in the ground to hide.
Harry looked around, knowing he'd have no indication of where the badger would rise when it came, and he damn sure wasn't going to fight it under ground. He walked over to the hole, and called upon a spell Hermione had taught him and Ron, but had never intended to use.
"Fiendfyre!"
Hellfire burst forth from his wand, and screamed into the hole. It was like an inferno, hell made real and called forth into reality. The Bone Wand transmitted the heat of the fire, burning and searing into his own skin.
Bloodlust from the wand tore at his mind, straining his tenuous control over the hellfire. It already threatened to wrench control away, but still he held on. He closed his eyes, but he could feel the heat in the meadow. He could almost envision the fire writhing under the ground beneath him.
Far across the meadow, a decidedly singed monster of a badger burst from the ground. A pillar of hell fire was only a few seconds behind it. Harry released the spell, and dissipated it. He took a deep breath, winded from holding the fire so long.
The badger reared up, and slammed its claws into the ground. Concussive force knocked Harry from his feet. He landed painfully among the boulders he had been slinging earlier. Sitting up, he saw it rampaging at him, "Impedimenta!"
It worked only enough, slowing the badger to allow Harry to skitter out of the way. It slammed into the boulders, howling in pain as the boulders bit into its haunches. Harry saw a victory.
Using Diffendo, he cut some boulders on his side into arrowheads and sharpened them. "Wingardium Leviosa!"
The boulders levitated as the badger shakily got to its feet. Harry noticed there was now red in its black coat, and he banished his ballistae heads at it.
There was an earth shaking roar, as three giant arrowheads bore into the equally massive badger. It collapsed to the ground, one sticking straight out of its back, having severed its spine. White mist began to gather around the black badger, and it slowly dissolved, leaving only Cedric's spirit behind.
"Well done Harry, I think you proved your pure courage, and some wit, today."
Harry smiled at the teen, "It was certainly tiring, if you want a concession. I hope this is the worst it gets."
"It isn't. I can't tell you who or what you will face at the other temples, but I dare say I was the easiest among them. You only knew me for a year or so, Harry, and we spent most of that year as opponents. It was a freak accident that caused my death, so there's no animosity on my end. However, I cannot say the same for those you may face."
"What do you think about the war, Cedric?" Harry felt himself asking.
"It is stupid. It is a war about stupid ideals, led by stupid men, over stupid traditions. There are some wars that are not stupid, but this is a really dumb war. The only one that might be worse is if a king decided to fight the mother of his illegitimate children over said children because of a slight insult at court."
Harry laughed, "When you put it that way Cedric, it makes a lot more sense. This really is a dumb war. Such a shame so many die for something so pointless, isn't it?"
"I know. Well, you've passed the test of purity, Harry. Step into the mist, and you'll be taken back to the entrance, and your map will be updated with the location of the Temple of Ferocity. That one should be pretty easy for you, as I hear the Guardian is very loath to fight you, and very angry with the powers that chose him."
"Have a good after-life, Cedric." Harry said with a sense of finality.
Cedric responded, "Live a good life, Harry. Pardon my crassness, if you would, but I don't want to see you again for a long time. A very long time, long enough for you to live my life too, if you would."
"Understood," Harry answered, walking into the white mist. It began to swirl viciously and words appeared.
"Congratulations on finishing the Temple of Purity. But, this is the first of many obstacles, and your choices will not always be this easy. Embrace the power of Runic Sight and Understanding."
Like in the stone village, the mist began to rush into him, and he felt a brief twinge of pain, before passing out.
(Spinner's End)
"I hope you appreciate what I am doing for you, Daphne, because if the Dark Lord finds out that I'm not simply 'enjoying you' nor am I trying to persuade you to his side, he will kill both of us, and it will be quite painful." Snape said with the worst sneer he could muster after a long day.
In his doorway, carrying only a small bag with a few pieces of clothing, was a thin waif with grey eyes, and golden blonde hair that used to shimmer in the sun. Now, it hung loosely in knots after what could only be described as "The worst days ever."
Snape brought the wards back up, and walked her into the living room, "Now, most of the time, I will be at Hogwarts. The Dark Lord is growing ever more suspicious of me being a traitor, and I daresay, he is right to be worried. However, that does nothing for my chances of survival."
"Don't worry, Professor, I won't betray your secrets." The girl said, her voice creaking a little.
"I'm sorry I couldn't gain custody of you earlier, but the Dark Lord likes to reward his faithful." Severus muttered, actually meaning those words.
"Thank you, Professor."
"There is food in the fridge, and fresh produce in the cupboard, but it won't keep forever. You best get around to eating it before it rots. I can't guarantee the next time I'll be able to sneak supplies to you, the Dark Lord has taken to monitoring all forms of communication, and even House Elves bear a small amount of risk."
Snape noticed she was shaking in the chair, "Again, I apologize that you had to suffer through that. However, I was unable to intercede."
"I understand. It doesn't make it any better. I can't stop it."
Reaching over and petting her on the shoulder, Snape responded, "Happy thoughts can alleviate the symptoms of the Cruciatus," Though I myself have very few such thoughts.
His words must have betrayed more than he thought, "Hollow words, Professor. All I can think about, all I can see when I close my eyes, is that fucker torturing them. That rat faced bastard tittering on the side like a chipmunk. And my own sister gloating over us, that's what, infuriates me the most."
Snape had been there, for the end she referred to, at least. He remembered the elder Greengrasses looking up at him as if he was the scum of their boots. Darius actually spit on him when he walked too close to him.
There were precious few people who could actually say they were even acquaintances with Severus Snape, mostly due to his more than prickly personality. Darius was different, he was the only Slytherin that didn't pick on him when he was at Hogwarts, mostly due to being younger than Severus. In fact, one might say that Snape rubbed off on the man, he went on to become a Potions Master, just like Severus.
His future wife, on the other hand, was one of Snape's most frequent tormentors besides James Potter and the Marauders. If there was anyone on Earth that Snape had ever hated as much as the Marauders and Harry Potter, it was Gwendolyn Browning. Gwen was three years older than Darius.
They should have been the best of friends; they both came from abusive families, they both excelled at potions and the Dark Arts. And, we both had amazing best friends that we lost because we made mistakes, Snape thought with a grimace, remembering Lily.
Collectively, they should have been kindred spirits, but they were not. Instead, they hated each other. Gwen was a Ravenclaw, meaning she saw Snape more consistently without having to seek him out like the Marauders did. She made his life hell, even after Hogwarts. She had been one of several "Star Witnesses" the prosecution had called at his trial. If it hadn't been for Dumbledore rigging the trial, Snape would have had a monkey trial just like Black. They probably would have shared cells.
Snape had enjoyed watching her die, while being pained at the death of the closest thing to an apprentice he'd ever had.
He couldn't tell Daphne that, nor could he turn away the tormented Slytherin who very much did not want to join Voldemort. He'd risked his life for less on Dumbledore's orders before, so this was nothing.
Snape had that feeling though. The same feeling he always had around Potter and his friends. The feeling that, although he guarded his secrets to the grave, that someone always knew. He knew, that somehow, Daphne knew.
Paranoia had served Severus very well throughout his tumultuous, treacherous life.
"I must return to Hogwarts before the Carrows go crazy. Fillius is not as adept as I at holding them in check."
After he vanished, Daphne muttered, "You'll get yours one day too, Snape. It just won't be from me."
A/N: Some people may wonder why I chose Cedric as the Guardian of Purity, you simply have to look at what he represents. He's essentially an innocent bystander who was killed only because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time, though a cynical outlook could be that he was killed because of Harry's grandstanding and refusal to take the cup by himself. That cynical outlook is represented by the Badger form he fights Harry in.
This is also the first chapter we see Daphne in.