Chapter 9: Darker Side


"Hello, Harry Potter. Fancy seeing you again."

The temperature in the room dropped drastically, and the woman in the chair, the Demon smirked.

"Ruby." Harry spoke in a voice Bobby and Sam never heard before. "Never thought I'd have the honor of having you at my disposal." He said, and she snorted.

"Don't you know why I came here? Didn't they tell you I helped them?" She said and glared at Hermione and Bobby, who glared right back at her, while Sam stared at her in wonder.

"Oh, they did tell me." Harry spoke. His voice was deeper, and it was laced with a cold, deep hatred. "They told me a Demon showed up, and that she actually offered help. Now, if it was any other demon, I actually might have, for a second, given it the benefit of a doubt." As he spoke the temperature continued to drop, until their breath started coming out in puffs.

"Harry-"

"But when it comes to you?" Harry interrupted Hermione. He seemed to be unaffected by the sudden temperature drop, although his fists were shaking slightly. "I'm about ready to kill you on sight." Ruby laughed at that with her head thrown back.

"Kill me? Not even you can kill a demon-"

"Wrong." Harry hissed, and Ruby's smile vanished, only to be replaced by a frown.

"You're bluffing." She said.

"Take another guess." Harry said, and walked closer to her. Without even thinking things through, he walked inside the Devil's Trap, and leaned over Ruby. He placed his hands on hers, and leveled his scorching emerald eyes with her black ones. She hissed at him, and he smirked slightly.

"You can act tough all you want, Ruby. Fact is I've got a bone to pick with you. Now, you came here for a reason, and I know you helped Mione and Bobby to fix the Colt, but I also know that you have an ulterior motive. You will tell me what it is."

Sam, Bobby and Hermione stood to the side, completely still. For some reason neither one of them dared to move.

Hermione has seen Harry like this.

She saw what he could be like when he's pushed over the edge, and she didn't want to see what new tricks he learned in the years they were apart. He was frightening before; she would hate to see what he has become. The life of a Hunter was rough in on itself. Harry's life was never an easy one, and after years living as a Hunter, she was afraid of what has become of her friend and brother.

"Why would I tell you anything?" Ruby asked, unconsciously trying to become one with the chair. "You'll just exorcise me later."

"Oh, no, no, no, no, darling." Harry spoke in what sounded like a comforting voice. "I won't just exorcize you." He said. "I'll turn you into a nice pile of Demon ash, but not before I torture you just for the bloody fucking fun of it. And do you know why?" Ruby swallowed over a lump that suddenly appeared in her throat. "Because of Ginny, because of Draco, and because of every single sorry sucker out there you've tricked with your demonic deals and other bullshit. I'm going to turn your insides into a burning pile of ash, bleed you dry, only to heal you up and start over again, and again, and again, until I'm satisfied, and trust me deary I've had a couple of years to think of all the pretty things I'm going to do to you, before I finally kill you. You're going to pay the debt you owe me with interests, trust me on that." Harry said, pushed back, and stepped out of the circle.

Suddenly the temperature returned to normal, and Hermione, Bobby and Sam could breathe lighter.

"Now." Harry said, and pushed his hand into his back pocket. He pulled out a small box which he placed on the ground. He took a step back and the box enlarged, turning into a medium sized wooden chest. It opened with a flick of his wrist. He kneeled in front of it, and took out a bottle of some clear liquid. "Since I know you're nowhere near read to talk with me, I'm going to try something to convince you. We have a lot of work to do, and I don't feel like looking at you right now." The chest closed, shrunk and flew into his hand. He pocketed it, and then he uncapped the bottle.

He started muttering something the other three couldn't understand. All of a sudden, the liquid in the bottle started to shift. Seconds later it formed into something and started to slither out of the bottle. The other realized they were looking at a snake made out of actual holy water. The water snake hissed and started to slither around Harry's neck. It flicked its tongue against Harry's cheek, and he hissed at her almost lovingly.

"This is a Natrix." He said. "You might have heard of this beautiful sort of snake." He said and looked at Ruby. The She-Demon was pale, and slightly shaking. "But this one is really special. She's made out of holy water. What's best, since she's a snake and I am the only living Parseltongue in the world, she answers only to me." He said, hissed shortly at the snake, and smirked at Ruby. The snake hissed and slithered down Harry's front. "I believe we should leave you two to get to know each other." He said when the Natrix entered the Devil's Trap and slithered under Ruby's jeans. Almost immediately Ruby started to scream and twist in the chair, as the touch of the Natrix burned her.

Harry smirked, and turned his back on the screaming demon.

"Let's leave them to their business, shall we?" He said and walked beside the three horrified Hunters. A few minutes later they followed after him, only to stop in wonder when, the moment they closed the door that led to the basement, Ruby's screams stopped.

"He must have placed a Silencing Charm on the door." Hermione muttered, and made her way into the living room, with Bobby and Sam following after her, after they exchanged a significant look. They found Harry on the couch with a glass of scotch in his hand, and the bottle on the table.

Hermione was sitting in the armchair with her hands crossed over her chest.

"I don't remember you being like this, Harry." She said, while Bobby and Sam took seats; Bobby at his desk, and Sam in the free armchair.

"What do you mean, Mione?" Harry spoke lowly, almost tiredly, as he leaned his head back with his eyes closed.

"You were never this – I don't know – cruel." She said, and Harry raised his head to look at her with cold eyes. He straightened and placed the glass on the table.

"Cruel, Hermione?" He asked, and she tensed up. "You think this is me being cruel? You haven't seen anything, love. That little bitch is going to feel every ounce of pain she put Ginny through. She going to feel every sliver of fear, and pain, and panic she put Draco through, and once she told me everything I want and need to know, she's going to meet her maker in thenicest possible way. I haven't even started with her." Hermione paled during his speech.

"What happened to you, Harry? I don't remember-"

"You weren't there, Hermione!" Harry snapped. "You weren't there when the Hounds came for Draco! You weren't there when Ginny died, because of a damned deal she made with that god forsaken bitch! You weren't the one that died a horrible death because a bloody Demon wanted to have fun! Hell Hounds didn't come for Ginny, Hermione! She wasn't that lucky! She died choking on her own blood, gasping for breath while her lungs were torn inside out! You weren't the one who found her, as she screamed, until her throat was ripped apart, and she died!"

"No, I wasn't there, Harry!" Hermione screamed and stood up, Harry following close behind.

"Then don't go telling me that what I'm about to put her through is cruel."

"That girl is innocent!"

"That girl is long gone!" Harry snapped. "Do you think Ruby would still be in that poor girl's body otherwise?! She has been dead for years, Hermione!"

"You can't know that."

"Yes, I can, because I've spent years researching her!" Harry snapped, and Hermione flinched back. "I've done everything to find out who she was, where she came from, what she did, everything! The only thing I don't know is who she's serving!"

"Serving?" Sam interrupted them, and the two looked at him.

"She's a lesser Demon. Every lesser Demon serves someone. They don't know anything about free will."

"That means she came here to help us with the Colt on some higher up's order." Bobby said, and Harry nodded.

"Yes. Just like the Demon I took care off in Elizabethville, she has someone she serves. And I'm going to find out who that sorry son of a bitch is."

"Could it be Lilith?" Sam asked, and everyone looked at him.

"Lilith?" Bobby asked.

"Yes. The demon is Elizabethville said she's the one who holds Dean's contract." Harry said, and everyone looked at him. "She could very well be the one who Ruby answers to." Almost immediately, Bobby grabbed two books from his shelves, and threw them on his book and paper covered table.

"Bobby?" Hermione called.

"I've read about Lilith before." Bobby said. "I can't remember the details, but if I'm not mistaken…" He started shifting through an old looking book as his voice faded.

"What?" Sam asked. Bobby stopped and sighed. He took the book and brought it over to place it on the table.

"I'm not mistaken." He said.

"About what?" Harry asked as they all took seats and looked at the book.

"Lilith is the First Demon." Bobby said, and everyone looked at him in confusion.

"The First Demon?" Sam asked, and Bobby nodded.

"Yes. According to the Lore, she was the First Wife of Adam. God created her the same way he created Adam, and when he tried to make her subdue to his will, she rebelled and left Eden to live on her own. She is known as, and I quote, 'destroyer of children and seducer of men'." He snorted. "If that's what we're dealing with, then we're going to need a lot of artillery."

"The First Demon." Harry muttered, and turned the book towards himself to take a look at the drawing of a beautiful naked woman, with men bowing at her feet and a dead child in her hands. "This just might be bigger than we originally thought."

"How do you mean that?" Hermione asked.

"I've studied demons when I was researching the contract I made with Mike and Uko. Several times I stumbled upon some rituals involving the Blood of the First Demon. I didn't study them, because I have no use of them, but I did see that they are some nasty rituals."

"We have something else to focus on then." Hermione said. In that moment the phone rang, and everyone jumped.

"I'll take it." Bobby said, and walked into the kitchen, closing the double doors behind himself.

"I'm going down to visit, Ruby." Harry said, and stood up. "I'll try to get as much out of her as I possibly can."

"Harry?" Hermione called out to him, and he turned to look at her.

"What?" He asked. Hermione frowned and looked at the ground, deep in thought. She looked at him again, and her eyes were harsh.

"I'm not happy with this." She said. "But do what you must." Harry nodded at her and left. They heard Ruby's screams for as long as it took to open and close the door.

Sam looked at Hermione when she sighed, and ran her fingers through her thick hair.

"You don't like what he's become." Sam stated and Hermione snorted.

"No. I hate what he's become. On the other hand, I don't think I have much to hold against him. He was the one who found Ginny. He was the one who lost two lovers to Demons. I suppose I should cut him some slack. We all have our own demons to fight." Hermione said, and took a seat. She took the book with the lore about Lilith, while Sam observed her.

"You love him." He said, and she looked at him in shock.

"What?"

"You love him." He repeated. "I can see that."

"I do." Hermione said. "I do love him, and I'm sad to see what he's become. I'm sad to see that he lost what little innocence he had. I'm sad to see that he has no qualms about torturing a Demon. A few years back Harry could barely kill a Vampire, let alone torture someone."

"Do you think the job got to him?" Sam asked with a frown. "Do you think he's-"

"Lost it? No." Hermione said, fully confidant of her words. "Harry saw too much Evil, fought against too much Darkness to allow it to consume him. His philosophy has changed, obviously. I suppose he learned to fight fire with fire. But I know that under all that he is still the man that saved a werewolf cub and found a pack that would take it in, because it was the right thing to do. He is still the man that helped a Wicca witch to get a hold of her powers. He's still the same man I've always loved." Sam nodded his head.

"Alright." He said. The double door opened, and Bobby walked in.

"Dean called in. He, Neville and Ron are on their way to take care of another hunt in Sea Pines, Massachusetts. He said they'd come back here after they're done."

"Did you tell them anything?" Hermione asked when Bobby took a seat on the couch.

"I only told them to hurry back, and that we've found a few things that might help us." Hermione nodded and smiled at him.

"Very well. Let's leave Ruby to Harry, while we try to find as much as we can on Lilith, alright?" Bobby and Sam nodded.

"Sure."

Harry shivered as he walked down the stairs. Ruby's screams were tearing into his mind, reminding him of a lot of things he wanted to forget.

He stopped in front of her, sneering at her burned and already healing skin.

*Come back to me.* He hissed, and his little snake slithered from under Ruby's clothes. Harry summoned a chair over to him, flipped it around and took a seat, leaning his crossed arms on the backrest. Ruby stopped screaming the moment the snake returned to Harry.

*Return to you bottle.*

*Yes master.* the snake hissed and slithered back into the bottle Harry sat on the floor earlier. The bottle recapped immediately, and the snake turned to water again.

"You are one nasty son of a bitch." Ruby spat out, and Harry snorted.

"Coming from you, that's a compliment." He said, and she glared at him.

"What do you want?" She hissed, and Harry raised an eyebrow at her.

"What do I want? I want you to die the most horrible death possible. I want you to suffer. I want you to beg for death, just like all those people you've tricked. But first, I want information."

"What information?" She asked.

"I want you to tell me everything you know about Lilith." Harry said. For a second Ruby's eyes opened wide, but a moment later she frowned and bowed her head a little.

"How do you know about Lilith?" She asked, and Harry snorted.

"I know about her. That's all you need to know. I know that she is the First Demon, I know there are Demons out there who serve her. What I don't know is what she's planning, why she's the one holding Dean's deal, and what the grand plan is."

"Why do you think there's a grand plan?"

"Don't take me for a fool." Harry hissed. "Do you really think that after Azazel tried so hard to create his little perfect soldier that would lead an Army of Demons that now run free I wouldn't think there is a master plan? If he wanted so much to bring an army to Earth, he wouldn't try to create a General for them. Not when there are high ranking demons already in Hell, willing to lead any Army that would destroy human race. Now." Harry said, stood up, turned the chair around, and took a seat again. He leaned his elbows on his knees, and looked in Ruby's eyes. "I want to know what the master plan is."

"Why do you think I know about it?" She asked and Harry smirked at her.

"We'll get to that." He said. "First I want to know who you're working for." He said, and Ruby looked at him dully.

"Don't you already know?" She asked. In the next moment she was screaming since Harry flicked his wrist and the bones in her legs started to snap and crack.

"What the fuck was that for?!" She screamed, and Harry smiled at her.

"For being rude. Now. Who do you work for?"

"Lilith, damn you! You already know that! Why are you breaking my legs if you already know that, you stupid fuck!" Harry smirked at her, and the spell moved onto her arms.

"I just want to make sure you're telling the truth." He said, and Ruby glared at him, trying not to scream.

"I can't believe you." She growled, and Harry stopped the curse.

"Now." He smiled at her, but his eyes were as cold as ice. "I would lie if I said I'd be happy if you cooperated. That would mean I wouldn't get to torture you. On the other hand, if you tell me everything, I might, just might think of killing you quickly. So? What will it be?" He flinched back when Ruby spat at him.

"Why don't you just kill me right away, and do some research." She hissed. She paled when Harry's eyes darkened to almost black, and a positively evil grin pulled on his lips.

"I was hoping you'd say that."

Sam, Bobby and Hermione looked up when they heard a door open and close. Moments later Harry walked into the living room, wiping his bloody hands clean on a conjured towel. His expression was dark and worried, and the three stood up.

"What happened? Did you find out anything?" Hermione asked. It's been almost 7 hours since Harry left for the basement, and the three didn't dare go down to disturb him. Hermione was hesitant to see her best friend torture someone, and Sam and Bobby honestly thought that their minds were safer if they knew as little as possible.

"I have." Harry said. His clothes changed into clean ones, and he took a seat on the couch.

"Do you want to eat something?" Sam asked, and Harry snorted.

"I don't think I'd be able to stomach it." He said, and the three frowned.

"What happened, Harry?" Hermione asked, and Harry looked at her.

"To put it simply? We're screwed."


A Pairings Poll is available on my page now.

The Choices are:

Harry/Sam; Harry/Dean; Sam/Harry/Dean; Hermione/Sam; Hermione/Dean; Hermione/Bobby; if Cas is added Dean/Cas; if Cas is added Dean/Cas/Harry; if Cas is added Sam/Cas; if Cas is added Sam/Cas/Harry; if Cas is added Cas/Harry; if Cas is added Dean/Cas/Sam/Harry