Dear Readers,

Thank you for reading and reviewing! Onto the next chapter without any boring monologues from me, then!

Sincerely,

Karldin.

CHAPTER 25

"Are you joking?", asked Harry incredulously. "I was going to do that anyway, Langtry. Come on man, drive a harder bargain!", he urged. "You can do better than to ask me to finish Voldemort once and for all on behalf of your Council; Or just go there and finish up yourself, will you? I can see the kind of power you wield, and I know Voldemort can be swept aside by you like yesterday's trash", he said, mind running various scenarios of just what the Merlin was playing at.

Arthur Langtry looked far from amused. "I am in no mood to banter words with an overly clever stripling. I have had enough with Dresden and his 'wiseassery'", he said with his cold blue eyes flashing. "If I am to vouch for you, you must agree to our terms. Oh, and remember, Harry Potter. If you will become an Unseelie Accord Signatory, you cannot harm us openly either. I will not allow another Arcturus Peverell to defy the council and its sacrosanct laws", he stated frostily.

"Indulge me in my youthful curiosity", Harry snarked at him, noting and enjoying the man's irritation. Harry my dear, murmured Evolette, that is the Merlin you are talking to. Try not to antagonize him too much, she told him sweetly. Harry found he could care less; he greatly respected Langtry's power, could see why he was widely believed the strongest Wizard on the planet. He cast his gaze around the huge and white roof of the Opera House, and beheld several Wardens of the White Council circling the entire place. His eyes flickered back to those of the Merlin.

"Why Voldemort?", he asked again. "You could get a lot more from me at this point than some ceasefire and a promise to do what I want to do anyway. I want to know", he said firmly. The Merlin looked highly annoyed at this persistence, and sighed after a moment.

"It is simple, Potter. Your so-called Lord Voldemort has broken the Laws of Magic an uncountable number of times; normally we would not enter what is clearly a matter of the wand-users", here he sneered a bit. "but the problem is he knows to use Evocation as well. And now we have received intelligence that he has become Mab's emissary on your side of the fence", he said. "He must be ended. And you will be the one to do it"

"Send in your Senior Council chums", said Harry, interested despite himself.

"We cannot. Ideally, I would send in Ebenezar McCoy or perhaps even Rashid to deal with your 'Dark Lord", he said in a voice like chipped ice. "But the boundaries and treaties between our worlds are complicated. We cannot touch a wand magician, and they cannot touch one of ours. Thus, we are deadlocked on the matter of Lord Voldemort. Unity is out of the question too; such things require enormous protocol and ceremony the Council just is unprepared to deal with at the moment."

Harry tilted his head, joining the dots in an instant. "So you whistle me up. Someone just like Voldemort, who is a fence-sitter just like him and able to use the magics of both worlds. At the same time you ensure with your vouching that I am no threat to you like dear old Arcturus, and form a debt of goodwill with me", he said almost admiringly. He had to give it to these old people; they certainly knew how to manipulate the hell out of a scenario and eke every last drop of benefit out of it and more. But Langtry was at least better than Dumbledore…he at least made sure there was no doubt that he held Harry in wariness.

"Well-reasoned. That is all we require of you. Are we agreed?", replied the Merlin with an raised brow. Harry was just fine with manipulation if it benefitted him. He bowed back slightly, soothing Evolette at the involuntary anger that flowed through her. No harm in being polite to this bloke, Evolette. I bet even Voldemort would be polite to him, he said jokingly, and got a slight laugh in return and the dissipation of the hate. He met the Merlin's eyes with his firmly, and extended his hand.

"We are agreed", replied the Merlin, and grasped his hand briefly and let go as if he were embarrassed to be seen with Harry. "I expect results, Potter. I don't care how powerful you are or are not. I will vouch for you, and you will finish off Lord Voldemort in return. The Council will keep in touch with you", he said shortly, and tapped his staff on the floor. The roof of the Opera House seemed to shimmer like a heat wave, and Harry heaved an inaudible sigh of relief when the Merlin and his entire covertly invisible entourage disappeared.

Finish off Voldemort as if he was one of Dudley's video game villains?, thought Harry incredulously. What the hell? I don't want to get my ass handed to me by him, it does horrible things to confidence, he said as the others appeared around him. Nicholas and Perenelle smiled at him, "So the Merlin agreed. Excellent, Harry Potter. We will vouch for you as well, no strings attached. Have a good Holiday", said Nicholas cheerily and disappeared with his wife with another flash of light.

"And I will vouch for you too. But with more than a few strings attached", said the Archive dryly, with Kincaid standing lazily beside her. Harry saw Sirius and Vector taking in the stunning view from their location some yards away, talking in whispers to each other quite conspicuously. "My part of the deal is done. You will be expected to keep yours as well", she said solemnly.

"Can you clarify that obligation part for me again?", asked Harry as he saw Kincaid unzip his backpack, drawing various knives and bladed weapons that had a less than savoury look. Ivy followed his gaze and grinned genuinely for the first time.

"Certainly", she said, rubbing her little hands as if in anticipation. "All oaths you have made till now, you can keep. All prophecies that require your participation, you can fulfil. But the 'working at my side' part starts when I say it starts", she said and Kincaid finished laying out a veritable arsenal of lethal weaponry on a black canvas he spread on the white tiling of the Opera House roof. He could feel Sirius and Vectors' gazes on him, and his apprehension at the day's events faded knowing they would at least watch his back. "But not to worry, it won't be anytime soon", she said in finishing, running childishly to join Sirius and Vector and leaving room for Harry and Kincaid to begin. The tall assassin strode with a lethal grace towards Harry, who gulped a little at the sheer tension and power in the man's gait. Kincaid was most definitely not human.

"Catch", he said, tossing a curved sword at Harry that he caught out of sheer reflex of the Sharingan. "Now turn off your eye technique, boy. If you want to learn, you must learn how to face someone clearly far more skilled than you. You need to know improvisation, and think in a fight", he said coolly, twirling his own curved sword easily as it caught the Australian sunlight. Harry frowned…he pretty much kept the Sharingan activated every second, moving on to the Eternal Mangekyo when the situation got really dicey.

Do as he says, Harry, said Evolette softly. The man speaks the absolute truth. You can never learn the true way of the sword or the hand with the Sharingan. Train your natural body first, then your gifts. You have a long way to go before you can face Vampires of any court in pure physical combat.

Very well, he acceded reluctantly, sighing slightly as his vision went drab and dull from the deactivation of the Sharingan. Kincaid and he began circling each other, the city of Sydney waking up in earnest below and all around them. "You want to fight in the real world, boy, against opponents whose physical strength and prowess far exceed your own? Then you must learn", said Kincaid with a bloodthirsty grin, "to bleed."

Harry knew he was screwed in ten different ways when Kincaid simply seemed to disappear from sight, so fast was the mercenary in his run. A faint blur in the air in front of him, and he fell forward weakly as he raised his sword in some defensive move which it probably was not. A line of pure pain lanced from his chest, and he felt it with his palm. It was red with his blood.

"You have become far too dependent on your Sharingan, and forgotten that it is but a tool like that sword in your hand", said Kincaid from behind him, and he turned to see the man's sword-edge coated slightly with red. "Tools are just tools, even if they are part of your body. You are you. Ready yourself, and at least mount some token defence", he snarled with a curled lip. Harry felt white hot anger take him, and Evolette sighed.

Beloved one, this will be a health to near death story. You really do have quite a ways to go.

…..

A cracking sound echoed through the Main Hall of Chateau Potter, and an instant later two figures materialized in its midst. Strictly speaking it was three, for Sirius was holding a limp and extremely blood-stained body in his arms and Vector was looking quite desperate at the situation. "Quickly, lay him here", said Vector, conjuring a simple bed with a wave of her wand. Sirius rushed forward, the instinct to appreciate Septima's effortless spell a distant footnote in his memory now.

"Is she coming? How soon is she-". Said Vector faintly, unable to take her horrified eyes off the bloody battered form of Harry Potter. Before she could complete her sentence, another crack occurred in the Hall drawing their attention to an extremely worried looking Lily Potter. The beautiful red-haired woman was in official dress robes, and did not even react to Sirius' leer at her. "I got your message. Who did this to him?", she questioned as she stood stunned over her son's form. "Who tortured him?", she asked again, turning to Sirius as her voice gained intensity.

"Lily, hold your hippogriffs", said Sirius as Vector simply sat at a chair beside Harry, watching him breathe unevenly with a terrified look on her face. "The Kid decided to take lessons in unarmed combat, he brought this upon himself. He is a real Gryffindor, I will give you that", he said proudly and Lily just stared at him for an instant before making towards her son. "He had the balls to turn off the Sharingan in a swordfight with the Archive's mercenary. I couldn't say I was ever prouder of the kid, not even when he faced down Voldemort at that Graveyard", he said with the pride literally shining out of his face.

Lily's face whitened and her wand dropped to the ground as she finished cleaning the blood from Harry's body. She turned shaking to not to Sirius, but to Vector, "Septima, you and my daughter have long been friends. Irrespective of what you have concluded about me and my husband, remember this; you must not let Harry go near Jared Kincaid ever again. The man is a monster", she said with a clench of her fists. "A monster. He is called the Hound of Hell for a reason!", she snarled and continued healing her son with the practised ease of a highly experienced healer.

Numerous hideous sword-cuts seemed to fade into scars, and the room was filled with the cracks of broken bones mending and setting themselves at the coaxing of healer's magic. Vector watched with relief and no small amount of gratitude as Harry seemed to breathe easier, his face and shredded clothes revealing scars aplenty. Lily sighed in relief, stowing her wand back into her robe pocket. She seemed fearful as she bent down, kissing the peacefully sleeping Harry on his brow and turning back as Vector spoke.

"He has had enough of other people making choices for him, ", she said firmly. "If he wants to get cut up into ribbons, then it is his choice. I will only support him, advise him and heal him…besides", she said sucking in a deep breath as the memories of Harry's 'training session' with Kincaid rushed through her mind, "he is in fact in the right this time. He is hunted and marked, and his lineage will see that it remains the case for the rest of his life. He has the power to defend himself and he will use it!", she said emphatically.

"You don't know about Kincaid!", Lily said in a hushed voice, ignoring Sirius' warning shakes of the head not to proceed. "Do you have any idea who he used to work for before taking the contract for the Archive recently? He was Vlad Drakul's right hand man and assassin!", she shouted. "Vlad Drakul, Septima! Do you have the slightest idea what he is capable of? It was enough that he did all those things to me, but-", she trailed off with downcast eyes, wiping a few stray tears from her face.

"You know the bloke?", blurted Septima, both women now ignoring Sirius' frantic signals. Lily nodded stonily, "It is a private matter. I foolishly encountered him in my youth when I went as a message bearer to Vlad Drakul from the Department. But", she said grudgingly, "Harry can find no one better to teach him. He is the ultimate assassin. And you should put dittany on my son to remove scarring", she said as if closing the subject of Kincaid.

"Kincaid is certainly scum, and he seemed to recognize me from the old days. He knows I can take him on if I really have to", said Sirius suddenly, breaking the silence that had fallen ominously in the Hall. "But our Harry is rising in the world. He just struck a deal with Arthur Langtry, Flamels and the Archive to enter the Unseelie Accords", he said admiringly. Vector stood to freshen up, shooting a tired glance at the peacefully sleeping Harry and leaving Sirius and Lily with him.

"So the White Council has finally entered the game", replied Lily tiredly, plopping herself down on a cushioned chair. "They all want a piece of Harry, and they know he will far surpass Arcturus one day. Is it true that Voldemort has become Mab's emissary in her dealings with us?"

"Voldemort is no one's bitch", said Sirius with a shake of his head. "He only makes deals. Nick told me Elliott ranks him high on the danger scale…perhaps as much as Perenelle or Nicholas. And with whatever power of the Winter Sidhe he has borrowed from Mab, I think I can safely say that either of the Flamels could beat him, but only by a close margin."

"Elliott", she murmured angrily. "I would rather never have met that man and had him prophesize to me. What a mess!", she growled frustrated. Sirius chuckled humourlessly at her, pouring himself a glass of wine from a nearby table. The house was quiet as ever but for their talk, and Harry's smooth breathing was quite audible.

"To be fair", he said with a dead humour, "Winter did send us its demands and tried to bully us into surrendering Harry to them about two years ago. Only when we refused did Maeve go and put Voldemort back together; If only Dumbledore hadn't panicked and cast Harry into Azkaban in an effort to prep him up. The Old man deserves what is coming to him, that's for sure", he said with satisfaction.

"I need to go get dittany for my son, Sirius. Care to accompany me to the basement?", she asked tiredly as she stood up. Shaking her head at Sirius' disgusting wink and nod, she proceeded to apparate them both out of the room. Harry opened his eyes slowly at their departure, feeling the lines and scars Kincaid's sword had carved into his face. He wasn't sure he wanted them removed, they did have a certain-

Typical male bravado, said Evolette disdainfully. Harry relaxed as he felt the comfort and affection seep into his being from hers in a soothing wave, truly grateful for her presence. Scars are not a sign of strength in our world, dear one. They are a sign of weakness that says you got cut and could not heal yourself. I must start teaching you battlefield healing; it is, I fear, one of the subjects where my knowledge is inadequate. But what I know will be enough to heal cuts and fractures.

That would be good, admitted Harry as he sank deeper into the couch, staring listlessly at the chandelier below which his couch lay. Interesting conversation though, wasn't it?, he asked, pondering what he had just heard. I mean, why would the Winter Sidhe ask for me to be surrendered? You told me the Sidhe cannot involve themselves in Mortal affairs without some sort of bargain made. So for them to mess around with me, that implies…

Someone of your blood must have involved you in their affairs, concluded Evolette. It is no great mystery, really. Father was once a member of the Unseelie Accords as well because he was part of the White Council before we seceded. In a certain dealing with him, the Winter Lady Maeve bent the truth with him like all Sidhe do. My father did not like being manipulated, just as much as you do.

He kicked Maeve's ass, concluded Harry with no small satisfaction. He still could not really grasp how skilled Arcturus had been…other wizards were one thing, but Maeve was Sidhe Royalty. The least of the immortals but an immortal still, wielding enormous strength.

He did. Maeve is the Lady of the Winter Sidhe, and she has a long memory. A connection was forged between Father's line and the Unseelie when that little fight happened, and it was not a pleasant one. Maeve probably hates you with a passion unrivalled, beloved one. But she cannot act directly, which is why she has collaborated with Voldemort, explained Evolette. Harry cursed mentally; there could not be a more dangerous team up of opponents. Atleast it was good that Queen Mab was above her daughter's schemes in the world.

Which means I should become like Arcturus, he concluded. What's up with the regret?, he asked, feeling the emotion rise up in her.

It is a pity your journey to the magical arts should be through violence. At least Snape gave you a solid theoretical foundation, and you read the right books as well. My point is that you must not think of magic as some weapon…this is just one aspect of it, she warned him. Harry accepted her concerns, they were actually quite valid. But then, he needed to live against the myriad enemies he seemed to gain by the hour.

"You're awake!"

He got up slowly, turning as he heard Vector address him. He could smell a floral sort of scent she seemed to be really fond of, and she was wearing a casual looking white shirt and jeans. "You look good", he said appreciatively, noting her curly blonde hair sleekly falling to her waist. She blushed slightly, and caught a bottle of Dittany as it came floating towards her.

"Your mother. We called her to heal you", she said apologetically. Harry shrugged, he was done bursting into paroxysms of rage every time he saw his parents. He had better things to do. "Give me the dittany", he said, extending his hand peremptorily. Vector shook her head. "Watch this", she said mischievously, murmuring a spell followed by a simple wand movement. The dittany in the bottle flowed out in a pasty ribbon, shaping itself into a wriggling sphere and then expanded into a sheet.

"Fucking-", exclaimed Harry as his shredded robes disappeared entirely, leaving him bare chested and in his boxers. The sheet of dittany floated towards him seemed to meld itself to his form like a swimmer's suit, sitting like a slushy second skin on his skin. Despite himself, he sighed as the stinging of the varieties of scars on his body lessened to a very faint amount. He saw Vector sneaking a glance at his body. "You like?", he asked smugly. Vector shook her head slightly, a wondering smile on her face as she met his eyes, which alone were ignored by the onslaught of the healing paste.

"I thought you'd look a little…manlier", she said with a giggle. Harry was offended at that; Evolette had told him he had a toned and excellent body for his age, helped along unwittingly by the strenuous chores at the Dursleys' and then wittingly by his regimen of exercise for the last year. As he felt his scars closing completely, he looked at Vector with a miffed expression.

"Oh, don't be offended, Harry", she said hurriedly. "I mean, the way you work magic and fight I just expected…something else. Now that I think about it, you are just a teenager like me! I'm making a mess of this, aren't I?", she asked despondently after a few moments. Harry opened his mouth to reply in a confused manner, when he felt Evolette interrupt.

She really is, sniffed Evolette. I will translate for you. She means to tell you she has come to view you as a full grown man, but is quite surprised at the reminder your uncovered body is giving her. Young girls; intelligent or otherwise they are all shallow to a certain degree.

Oh, said Harry in comprehension. Why are you so irritated?, he asked obliviously, not understanding the spikes of annoyance coming from her. The spikes of annoyance now shot at him, and she replied with no little frustration: Let me include young boys in that category as well. You will win no prizes in understanding the obvious, Harry Potter, she told him pertly.

"Whatever", he said to Vector and Evolette, more than a little confused by the whole thing. Best to move on, he thought, and snapped his fingers. "Shit", he said with annoyance as his body coat of Dittany splattered all over the furniture and a shocked Vector, who seemed to be fixed on to his scantily dressed and completely healed body. It is unseemly to leave yourself in such a state in front of others, Evolette scolded him frostily. Cover yourself, Harry.

Uh…fine, he said and he was dressed suddenly in his robes of black, looking and feeling like his normal self instead of a mannequin that had been wrecked by a villain. "Evanesco", he said carelessly and all the splattered salve disappeared leaving the place spotless. "So…Kincaid", he said and Vector's attention snapped back from her daze to his face.

"Yeah. Sirius told me about him while you were being turned into chopped liver", she said. "He's the real deal. Assassin, warrior, hand of Vlad Drakul and all that. Fate seems to favour you, Harry", she said. "Or perhaps hates you. Depends on how you look at it", she said with a rueful shake of her head. "Anyway, Sirius and I had a little discussion", she informed him.

"Oh?"

"You will take your NEWTs in Arithmancy, Transfiguration, Defense against the Dark Arts, and charms. You will take OWLs in Potions and History. It never hurts to get your talent certified, and it might help in some other ways as well", she said. Harry was surprised; He knew he was ready to take those exams even now. He had copied and understood, and was able to cast spells well beyond those levels. But…

"Exams, Septima?", he asked drily. "While Voldemort is teaming up with the Winter Lady, and everyone else is eyeing me like a piece of meat? What matter if I don't get a few NEWTs? I know what I know", he stated. Vector shook her head.

"Our world is different from the Raw Wizards', Harry, in that we have bound ourselves with strictures of considerable detail even in daily life. To acquire rare materials we need NEWTs. To apply for certain positions, we need NEWTs…not to mention you can leave Hogwarts behind with a sense of closure. I know how much the school means to you; you might as well take a few days to leave as a gifted prodigy, rather than as a budding hate-filled thug", she told him seriously. "You said it yourself to me that day. It is all about perception."

Now she speaks sense, Evolette said to him. Make that a NEWT in History and Potions as well, Harry. I can help you out quite a bit there. If you are going to exit without a care, then let us make it a good one.

Fine. Thanks Evolette!, replied Harry amused. "Very well", he acceded without further protest. Vector smiled, and floated a few forms to him with a summoning charm. "Fill those up. The next round of the examination for independents is held from the coming Monday; I have decided on an excellent revision routine for you, Harry", she said with glinting eyes.

She's just like Hermione with all this learning stuff, he muttered. "What?"

"I am going to fight you. You have a tremendous aptitude for magic, but you appreciate it far more when it is used in combat", she said with a grin. "So I will from now teach you in that context. Kincaid, even if a monster, had a point. The best way to learn about something is to learn how to use it…barring theory for theory's sake of course", she murmured but then shook her head.

A slow grin spread across Harry's face. "Septima, you are a fucking genius", he praised her. "When do we start?", he asked eagerly.

Vector smiled back with the same eagerness as she began walking out of the sunlit hall. "Right now. I am going to change into more suitable attire, and meet you in the lawn", she indicated the rolling green lawns of the estate. "Perhaps I can begin teaching you how magic can be used delicately, instead of being smashed around like a mace", she said with another uncharacteristic giggle as she walked out of the hall.

And then, said Evolette firmly in his mind. You will go to your room, where I will begin teaching you how to truly use the Kamui. After which you will train till midnight with Eternal Mangekyo. How do they say it these days?

Say what?

Ah, yes. 'The Kid Gloves are off', I believe, is the proper term. With three of us teaching you the entire day like this, your Sharingan and inherent talent will grow exponentially. Half the battle is won with the proper instruction, she told him. Beloved, she added softly, and Harry shivered as the love and affection flowed through his being from her with the potency of some coveted ambrosia.

He reached out, summoning his wand easily to his hand and swirled out of the room with Kamui.

….

Severus Snape stood at the edge of some nondescript lake in the city of Munich, watching the ebb and flow of nature, enjoying the simple isolation of the park. The cold power of winter had begun to influence his thinking already, perhaps because he was much like the Winter Sidhe beforehand. Yes he did have emotions, but when it came down to it he always chose logic to accomplish his goals. The chill in the air troubled him not.

"Orchideous", he said, drawing upon the power of Winter Sidhe, and driving it with his own magic. He watched wistfully as beautiful creepers of lovely lilies crept along the green grass, made entirely out of crystalline ice. Though his life had been one long expression of pain and enslavement he found himself looking at it distantly, but far more viciously. Like a predator; it did not feel dark or evil, this inclination. Instead it felt…natural.

An extremely cold wind blew over the gloomy park, so cold that even he warmed the air around him. The icy flowers suddenly seemed to bloom larger, and the entire lake froze with frightening abruptness. Before he could react, Snape's attention was held by the voice of a young woman speaking from behind him.

"Impressive. You can do this much with only a sliver of Winter. He is indeed as skilled as you say, Lord Voldemort", she said as Snape turned slowly to see a woman of breathtaking, alien beauty in robes of silver and Voldemort standing coolly beside her. The woman looked sixteen or seventeen as far as age went, her form so unnaturally alluring that he was sure it was not human. The Dark Lord's reply confirmed his suspicions.

"Indeed. Severus Snape, this is Maeve, Lady of the Winter Sidhe, daughter of the Queen of Air and Darkness", he introduced politely. "She has been quite helpful to me recently as an ally. My Lady, this is unarguably my foremost Death Eater Severus Snape. I believe he is exactly the one you require."

A slow feeling of apprehension began to make itself known to Snape, gradually displacing the awe he felt in the presence of the Winter Lady. "Severus Snape at your service, My Lady", he said with a courtly bow. Maeve exhibited a cold, alien smirk that concealed unknown and unspeakable emotions, and Voldemort chuckled mirthlessly.

"Yes you are", she said. "Lord Voldemort has seen fit to honour his side of the bargain in a most fitting manner. Yes, I believe you are most suitable for my requirements. Unlike my mother's knight, the Winter Knight, my vassal will be deadly. Not a knight, but a weapon. The sword of Maeve", she said with glinting eyes. Snape looked with a growing horror not at Maeve, but at Voldemort.

"My Lord-"

"Severus, I require your obedience in this", he said coldly. "I did not give you the power to have you turn into a mediocre whiner. I henceforth release you from my service to the hands of the Winter Lady. Do not shame me, Severus", he warned and the icy wind grew slightly colder, the subtle magic grew more forceful. Snape stood stunned.

He was being pawned off to the Sidhe Lady like a horse, to be her weapon. Ice cold rage surged through him like arctic fire, obliterating every other sense. "This is your retribution for my betrayal, is it not?", he asked snarling. "This is what I get for placing my faith in you. I should have known", he said with a bowed head. Suddenly he lashed out with a sweep of his wand, and the creepers of ice he had created stirred slightly, and rushed towards Voldemort like winding snakes of death.

Voldemort did nothing, only watched assessing. It was Maeve who stepped forward, and the attacking creepers burst into shards of ice that fell down to the grassy ground like glittering rain. Snape was beyond reason now. His laudable Occlumency was ground out by the instinct of the Winter that Voldemort had placed within him, and he felt a need to simply tear his enemies into pieces.

"Avada Kedavra!", he ground out, slashing his black wand at the coolly standing Winter Lady. The death giving bolt of green light blasted towards Maeve, who stood still and unconcerned. The green light withered into faint motes and oblivion before it struck her; she spoke a word quietly, and the power behind it struck Snape's mental barriers with shattering force. He tried to fight back, but he might as well have fought back at the tornadoes or waves for all the good it did.

Maeve's will was so enormous and compelling that he could only stand in awe at it. Even that awe lasted for a single instant before pain took him. Pure, sweeping, heart-rending agony that seemed to stab at his brain with needles of ice. He sank down to his knees, lost in that world of misery and agony as Maeve simply rushed through his mind unmindful of the damage caused. He knew she had processed his entire life within the few seconds she was inside.

I own you now, Severus Snape, she told him coldly. I will break you first, and then build you back into what I want you to be, she said and the pain grew to such levels that he knew even the Dark Lord could not deliver its like. He wanted it to end, wanted to die. He knew his mouth was making several less than masculine sounds, even that was a peripheral thought. You betrayed Voldemort and I cannot risk the same. Do you want the pain to end?, she asked in mock concern.

Snape did not answer. Some people just ask for it, she said, and he felt her dig into his vulnerable mind cruelly. This is just a taste, she said warningly as he felt the betrayals of his life play again and again clearly in his mind's eye. It was unendurable, the emotional and the physical agony combining to eat into him. He felt blackness take his mind slowly…he was fraying at the edges. Suddenly Maeve's mind retreated from his ravaged consciousness, and he opened his eyes blearily while taking large breaths. The pain was but a memory now, but he remembered. And knelt silently at Maeve's feet.

"I am satisfied", she said to Voldemort, who nodded in acknowledgement. "You say he taught Arcturus' heir?"

"He did", replied Voldemort, glancing down at Snape who was panting like a dog upon the ice strewn meadow. "He knows how to fight the boy. Ah, I can feel Winter's power leaving me", said Voldemort with a faint hint of regret at which Mab smiled. "Using me, who has had previous dealings with you, as a conduit to transfer the power to Severus here was a most cunning idea, my Lady. But then again you know how to circumvent the constraints of the Sidhe against mortals."

"That I do", she said with a laugh. She smoothly reached into her robe pocket and withdrew a black box she presented to the Dark Lord. "As agreed, the item you demanded in exchange", she said with a smile. Voldemort inclined his head and received the box with an uncharacteristic respect. Snape had managed to get up on his feet, heaving as he observed the Dark Lord's actions over the corner of his eye.

"You bartered me for that?", he asked between breaths, no longer apprehensive of the ones who stood before him. He was resigned to his fate; Voldemort had opened the box, and withdrew a dull bladed knife with a black handle.

"Morgana's Athame", said the Dark Lord softly, staring at its blade with an open reverence and awe. "Yes, Severus", he said as he placed the Athame back in its box gently. Snape shivered as he met Voldemort's crimson rimmed eyes. "I could trade far more than you quite easily for this, but the Sidhe want what they want. You have been most useful, and letting you go has been far easier thanks to your treachery", he said with a frosty smile. "Our business is concluded?"

"It is", replied Maeve. "Good day, Lord Voldemort", she said, and Voldemort disappeared after briefly returning the goodbye. Snape held in an involuntary shiver of fear as Maeve appeared in front of him with a swirl of ice, staring deep into him for an instant. "Kneel", she said with a smile, and Snape knelt. The predatory rage of winter was gone, and back was the control. Going up against Maeve was utter insanity, especially when he had been tricked into accepting Winter.

"Persuading the Leanansidhe to give me the Athame took some effort, but it was well worth it", she murmured. Snape hissed as manacles of blue fire bound him hand and feet, burning him where it touched. Maeve gestured and the air split cleanly, forming a doorway into pure blackness. "We are going to Arctis Tor, Severus Snape, to the heart of Winter", she said with a curl of her lip as she stared down at a writhing and screaming Snape.

"Oh, we are just getting started, Severus. The next few months will be quite fun. I will have quite the time training you to be my personal hunter", she said with satisfaction. "You won't have that much fun probably…you will be far too busy screaming. But what do the mortals say? 'Break an egg to make an Omelette?' Perhaps a little too literal in your case but it will do", she commented, but Snape was still in the throes of terrible agony as the burning ropes of blue flame ate into his body. Maeve floated his thrashing form into the air with another flick of her hand, and stepped through the portal into the Nevernever. Snape's screams echoed and faded into silence as he too followed into the Nevernever. The ice lilies left behind had were melting back to water, and the portal closed with a terrifying finality.

…..

Albus Dumbledore stood calmly upon the Astronomy tower. The damage Harry had wrought was still there, a quarter of the forest was burnt down to the ground. The Library he had healed back with difficulty, but its precious books were all gone; the treasures and portraits of his office were also lost forever in that all-consuming black fire. A crack of apparition alerted him to Croaker's appearance behind him.

"Do you have it, Croaker?", he asked. It was time to pull out all stops now; Harry, he had thought perhaps naively and foolishly, would be able to push aside his trauma for the greater good. But then again, what he had done was abominable and he had received no little punishment. The scars that adorned one half of his body was testament to that fact.

"Do you think you can withstand its assault?", asked Croaker seriously as he walked to Dumbledore's side. "This might be a greater gamble than anything else we have made till now, Albus. This may mean you are sacrificing your chance for salvation, heaven or any peaceful afterlife. I think we should give Potter more time", he said in a distantly pondering voice.

"Harry, I believe, has become a fence-sitter just like Voldemort. He is of no worlds and of both", said Dumbledore in reply. "I got word that he will enter the Unseelie Accords. But the real issue here, Croaker", he said, turning to face his longtime friend and fellow apprentice to the Flamels. "is Tom. Just because I do not use Raw Magic, does not mean I cannot. I used those repugnant arts to reach into the pit. I summoned Azorthragal, and he told me certain interesting things. Regrettable, sad things", said Dumbledore with downcast eyes.

"What things?", asked Croaker in a low voice.

"That poor Severus has become the Winter Lady's plaything. That Voldemort used that trade to gain some weapon that is a counter to Amoracchius", said Dumbledore, and watched as his friend staggered. "Tom no longer has Winter's power. He cares not for any power but his own…it was all a ploy to get what he wanted. Things are looking desperate, my friend", said Dumbledore in a dead voice. "Our gambit with Harry may take too long to come to fruition, and the Flamels will not intervene. Our world is open to Tom's depredations with no check on him. That is why I have made you the request I have."

"But is this worth this, Albus? We have prepared decades for this, yes", said Croaker in a shaking voice. "But are you willing to sacrifice your very soul to do this? The coin had been put in Maximum Security for a reason. You say he whispers to you even from there; Is this you talking or have you succumbed to his insinuations?"

"This is me, my friend", said Dumbledore softly and held Croaker's gaze. "What you have there in that box", he said looking at the box in Croaker's hand, "it is our final defense against Voldemort. Voldemort, who was so steeped in a darkness that sparked revulsion in a fallen angel. I remember that day…the Suffolk massacre. He had killed hundreds, but he was not yet strong enough to stand up to me and the Elder Wand. I wrested this from him", he said and the box in Croaker's hand opened, and a single coin of Silver floated into the air.

"The Coin of the Fallen Angel, Armaros", whispered Dumbledore. "The resolver of enchantments…the enjoyer of Magic. He tells me even now that our arrangement need not be permanent, that we would have an equal partnership like Anduriel and Nicodemus Archleone. That he would swear a thrice bound oath to the effect provided I do the same. Voldemort tricked him, I believe. Used him to learn centuries of knowledge and cast him away in horcrux-driven madness", he said, gazing intently at the Coin that was slowly revolving in the air, bearing the Sigil of stars and sun.

Croaker gasped again, also staring at the Coin.

Albus nodded, "They are Angels, even if they are Fallen. It is almost poetic isn't it, Croaker?", he said wistfully as he raised his hand towards the Coin. "I have also been decried as Fallen, for doing the right thing. Perhaps it is fitting that I take up this coin. That I become like the Denarians. For the Greater Good", said the old scarred Headmaster as his hands closed around the Coin with a snap.

It began as a low rumbling sound, and the Tower began to shake violently as Dumbledore threw his head back as if in ecstasy. The air took on an undefinable darkness and gloom as pure force seemed to reverberate around Dumbledore. The Forest was filled with despairing cries of the Centaurs, and Dumbledore's mouth began moving, mouthing words of a strange language. Croaker saw Dumbledore's scars fade into nothingness, leaving behind the old familiar visage of the Headmaster of Hogwarts.

"It is but a glamour", said Dumbledore, opening his eyes.

"How do you feel?", asked Croaker, his hand snug upon the Dark Artefact in his pockets they had made for this very contingency. An artefact he would use to ensure that the being within the Denarian coin would never subvert his friend. "The Soul Bind tells me it is still you. Do I need to use it?"

"It is already being used, Croaker. The Soul Bind is our way of making sure Armaros gains no foothold upon my mind.", answered Dumbledore with an incline of his head. "I am no novice in the Mind Arts, and I know what I want; Even a Fallen Angel will have trouble in seducing me to the Darkness with the precautions we have taken", he said calmly.

He looked at Croaker with a sudden amusement. "I am a Professor, am I not? I think I am overdue for a long sabbatical. I believe it is time for Minerva to step up to the task and take my place in Hogwarts, Croaker. I wouldn't trust myself around the poor children anymore. I will be sorry to see Hogwarts fade from my life", he said with a sorrowful smile.

"You are a good man, Albus", said Croaker in a thick voice.

"Thank you, my friend", said Dumbledore gratefully. "I think it is time for me to go back to the pursuits of my youth. Travelling around the world without any care but scholarly learning is something I have always wanted to do. Granted, I have Armaros in me, but that will only enrich the experience as he tells me."

"I will take care of the formalities, Albus", said Croaker, and shook Dumbledore's hand firmly. "Professors Flamel refuse to act as usual; You have to lead us on the frontlines for a long time to come yet, I think. Will you go after Potter?"

"No. Those bridges are burned", said Dumbledore with a shake of his head. "The next few months I will dedicate to myself, Croaker. But I will be on call for my duty. If Voldemort strikes, directly or indirectly, I will be there to help the Department to stop him. I may have been a teacher and scholar for a long time…but in truth I always belonged to the field. Goodbye, old friend, I will keep in touch", he said as he disappeared with a crack without a care for the Hogwarts wards.

"Goodbye, Albus. May God be with you", said Croaker in a heavy voice and disappeared as well, leaving behind an empty Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

….