Amaranth gazed at the being in front of her. He was covered from head to toe in a cloak the deepest shade of black she had ever seen. The hood of the cloak was up, and all that could be seen within was a darkness that seemed infinite. The cloak flowed around the being, caught in the fingers of a wind Amaranth could not hear or feel. The edges were tattered, but not dirty, and they seemed to fade into nothing at the very bottom, almost reminiscent of the invisibility cloak. The only thing that could truly be seen of the being, was his hands, which were completely without flesh. In other words, they were entirely skeletal.
Despite the way he looked, Amaranth was not afraid. Most would be, in such a situation, but she knew there was no reason for her to be fearful. Death would do no harm to her. After all, she knew within herself, felt within herself, this new bond that had flared into existence the moment she had come into possession of the Deathly Hallows. The same Deathly Hallows that had now become a part of her, a part of the bond between her and Death.
It was for this same reason that she knew that even if someone else had collected all three, they would not have become the Master of Death, as she just had. 'After all," Amaranth thought wryly, "who better to chose the Master of Death, than the primordial being himself?"
And he had chosen her, since the very beginning, in fact. When the first worlds were just starting, and Amaranth's had yet to even be created, Death had enlisted the help of his sister, Time, to help him find the one soul who would call to him, who he would bow to and call Master. After finding her, far into the future, Death waited, painstakingly putting things into place. Three objects imbued with his power, given to three brothers whose actions would eventually lead the objects into her possession, which would give Death the conduit he needed to create the bond with her. Now, here they were, and Amaranth could feel that he was angry.
"What is troubling you, Death?" Amaranth speaks for the first time since entering this white likeness of King's Cross Station. She feels the anger is not directed at her, but rather for her, and she is curious.
Death remains silent for a few moments more, merely gazing at her. If she was not who she was, she would think that he didn't hear her, but she knows that is not the case, and so she remains patient.
Death speaks, his voice of a man's, deep and clear, with echoes layered underneath that ring throughout the space surrounding them. "I have waited a long time for you, my Lady, but in my focus on making our bond possible, I did not see the dark intentions of those surrounding you."
Death bows his head to her, his anger simmering within him as he does so, and remorse tangles within it "For that, I apologize most sincerely, my Master. I could have prevented it, if I had but watched more closely." He pauses, looking up at her once again, "You know of who I speak, yes?"
Amaranth doesn't look surprised, but a shadow of grief passes over her face, mixed with a grim acceptance. "You're talking about Hermione, Ron, Molly, and Dumbledore, aren't you? ….yes, I do know. I've known since almost the beginning. It's why I tried my best to avoid them as much as possible, however fruitless the endeavor was." She gave a dry, mocking laugh, "I truly hated being around those that wanted nothing more than to use me for their own ends. Luckily Molly was not seen often, I think I may have killed her if she tried to "encourage" me to marry Ron one more time so that she could get her grimy paws on my inheritance. It was difficult enough to be around the two that either wanted to use me to get access to the knowledge my families' held, or to have me as a trophy wife." Here, Amaranth grimaced in disgust, and pauses for a moment, a look of rage entering her eyes. "Worst of all, however, was being near the old goat that orchestrated the death of my parents, and used me as a pawn to defeat the Dark Lord he created. I've never been more glad to see someone die, truthfully."
Death spoke up once again, "I'm sorry to tell you this, my Lady, but Dumbledore faked his death." He continues even as she goes to speak, "In fact, he plans to brand you as the next Dark Lady, and get you executed so he gains complete control of all your families' money and political power."
Amaranth stares in shock for a moment, before bursting out in dry chuckles. "It figures that even after everything, I'm to still be put through more. I grew up in an abusive household, attended a school where I was equally vilified and worshipped in turn, Sirius, the only one who ever really knew the true me and cared for me, was taken away from me at the Department of Mysteries, I sacrificed my life for them, for all of this, and yet I get no rest?!?" She was yelling by the end of her rant, anguish clear on her face.
Suddenly, Amaranth was enveloped by darkness. Arms surrounded her, pressing her tightly into the very being that had told her of the further trials she would have to face. She freezes for a moment, before wrapping her arms tightly around him in return.
They stay like that for a few moments, before Death speaks once again, "You forget, my Lady, that you are now my Master. Ask of me anything you wish, and it will be done."
Amaranth remains quiet, still holding on to him for a few moments, before pulling away and stepping back, a look of steel, of determination, in her eyes, along with a spark of hope. Looking up at Death, she asks, "Can you send me away? A place they will never find me. Somewhere…somewhere I have the chance to find a true family."
Death is visibly gleeful, and Amaranth thinks if he could smile, he would be grinning as widely as he could. "I know of a place, my Master. It is another world entirely, one almost the opposite of this one. You see, my Lady, there's a certain power called the Flames of Dying Will, that are quite rare in your current world, but much more prevalent in the one that I am thinking of sending you to, if you so choose. Magic also exists in that world, but like Dying Will Flames here, Magic is quite rare there."
Amaranth looks curious, "Can you tell me more about these Flames?"
Death nodded his head to her, "I can do you one better, my Lady, I can activate yours, and grant you the knowledge all about them, and how to use them. With your permission, of course."
She smiles at him, and nods in assent. Seeing her acceptance, Death steps forward, reaching one skeletal hand out towards her forehead, and taps her lightly once right in the center.
Many things happen at once. Amaranth's eyes turned a beautiful, glowing orange with specks of violet visible within. Her Flames flow around her, the same colour as her eyes, and leap towards Death. Flames as black as his cloak leap out of him to meet her's half way, and there they spin and dance around each other, before they twine so tightly you can no longer tell where one began and the other ended. After this has all happened, Amaranth and Death's Flames separate, retreat back to their respective holder, and disappear from the visible spectrum completely.
Amaranth blinks rapidly as the orange and violet disappear from her eyes, and she comes back to herself. She reigns her Flames in with ease, keeping them closer to her, almost like a second skin, and examines what had happened. The bond that had already been there between her and Death was now deeper, and somehow felt more important. It's only because of the knowledge that Death had given her about Flames that she knows what had happened. Death was one of hers. One of her Guardians, as those in Italy liked to say. Amaranth didn't like that term though. In fact, she much preferred the idea of Death being part of her family.
Death doesn't know what to say, as he truly hadn't expected this turn of events. He mulls over what to say about it, but then Amaranth begins to smile.
It's a beautiful smile, too. One that she had no reason to have on her face before now, what with her circumstances. It's not a grin, or the small, polite smile that she used most often in Hogwarts. No, this smile is true and powerful. It radiates love and fondness and Death realizes absently that such an expression on her face could be a very deadly weapon. She almost glows with such a smile on her face.
She says something simple to express how she feels about their new bond, but it's the emotion, the love behind the words that strike Death the most, "Welcome home, Death."
He looks at her in shock for a moment, before softening, "Thank you, my Sky."
He reaches out to bring her into another embrace, and they stay that way for a while, simply reveling in their bond, in the sense of homesafetymineproctectionwarmthlove that envelops them.
Regretfully, however, there is still things to be done, so they eventually leave the embrace once again. "How will I be getting to this other world, Death?" Amaranth asks, "I'm sure you already have something planned, right?
Death smiles gleefully at how well his Sky already knows him, and tells her of his idea, "As I'm sure you don't want to live through your baby and toddler years with the mind of an adult, I would temporarily suppress your memories. Until you are about 13, perhaps? When you 'wake up', you will have all the memories your soul lived through from birth until then. That should help you not feel so out of place in the life that you were dropped into once your memories are returned. You will retain all your skills and abilities, and I will send you all your belongings from this world, such as your money from your inheritances, once you are awake."
Death tilted his head slightly as he paused, thinking something over briefly. "The only downside, my Sky, is that because of where I intend to send you, you cannot keep your current name or looks. Though, I will keep them as close to the original as possible. Also, because there is no Magical society there, like in this world, all your money from your inheritances will be converted into Muggle currency. And before I forget, because of the differences in the magic of this other world, you will not need a wand or incantations, simple intention will do."
Amaranth smiles at him, unperturbed. "That honestly doesn't bother me, Death. For a chance at a life of freedom and family, those are small things to give up." She pauses briefly, and then continues, "I do have a few requests, though. I expect the first two are something you had already planned, but for my peace of mind I must make sure. First, is that you make certain that Voldemort dies swiftly back in my world." Her eyes then darken with rage, "Secondly, if you could ensure that Dumbledore gets punished for everything he has done to me and those I hold dear, I would be immensely grateful." Her eyes lighten again, but now look melancholic. "Lastly, I would love it if my new name in this new world could give tribute to Mum, Dad, and Uncle Padfoot."
Death gazes at Amaranth softly, "It will all be done just as you said, my Sky. Now, are you ready?"
Amaranth smiles up at him, giving a firm nod, and with a wave of Death's skeletal hand, Amaranth disperses into multiple small lights of orange and violet, which group together tightly, and fly swiftly into the distance.
Death watches as his Sky disappears, excitement and fondness coursing through him, "Good luck, my Sky. I'm looking forward to seeing the differences you make in that world, Amaranth Astraea Potter...no, Yuriko Kuroshika."