Disclaimer: I do NOT own Harry Potter!
A/N: After so long, I have finally begun rewriting one of my first fanfiction: "Harry Potter: Rising from the Ashes" or now simply known as "Rising from the Ashes". This time; however, "Rising from the Ashes" will not be restricted to the HP Universe alone but instead linked with others, such as 'Arrow', 'Supernatural' etc. The full, uncensored version of the story will be posted on hpfanficarchive [D O T] C O M(no spaces). So here it is – the rewrite of "Rising from the Ashes" which begins three weeks after the end of the Second Wizarding War. However, this Universe is where EVERYONE Harry loved and cherished is dead, and Ginny had cheated on him!
WARNING: Incest, Femslash, Multi-pairing, Impreg, Body Modification, and a whole lot of other stuff! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
The smell of death and decay filled Harry's nostrils, as he sombrely walked through the vast and empty graveyard of Godric's Hollow, until he reached their graves.
Once he had done so, Harry gently placed the bunch of lilies, which he had been clutching tightly on to for hours, in front of his parents' graves. The lilies were personally hand-picked by Harry, who could not help but sigh and rub his temples.
"I hope you like them," Harry spoke softly, for the sound of silence which filled the graveyard was, although disturbing and lonesome, also comforting and felt right at the same time.
"Remus told me that dad would get you these for your anniversaries."
Saying the name of his ex-DADA teacher and fallen friend made Harry's eyes water, as he reminisced the painfully-limited number of fond memories with the man – especially when said memories of Remus caused the knock-on effect of Harry remembering everyone else who had died in the war. However, what hurt the most was the little metamorphmagus boy who was still probably crying for his parents at his grandmother's house.
"Too many lives," Harry stated bitterly and clutches his hands into fists. "So many lost years…"
The vicious, ice-cold wind howled furiously at the same time that Harry fell to his knees and did the same whilst tears fell down from the once-bright green eyes of the Boy-Who-Lived-To-See-His-Friends-Die.
"It's not fair!" Harry shouted and then punched the snow-covered ground beneath him. He then turned his head towards the night sky with his face contorted with newly-released rage.
"They are GONE, but I'm still FUCKING here! THOSE WHO ARE ALIVE MERELY EXIST IN SUFFERING AS THEY CHOKE IN THEIR OWN GRIEF! WHAT TYPE OF UNIVERSE DOES THAT!? WHY DOES IT PUNISH THE GOOD MORE SO THAN THE EVIL BY TAKING AWAY ALL THAT KEEPS US ALIVE!?"
For the next twenty minutes, Harry wept as the floodgates were destroyed and all the suppressed emotions were released in agony, which was only furthered exacerbated by what Harry imagined his life could have been like – what he wished it was like. This included no life with the Dursleys but rather his parents, younger siblings who Harry would bicker yet ultimately protect with his life, a happier and healthier Sirius and Remus with their own families, and so much more.
But the truth was colder than the sub-zero temperatures; for Harry knew that this was not possible and took out his wand from his left sleeve before throwing it into the air in frustration.
"What good are you!?"
What Harry did not expect to happen was someone catching his holly-and-phoenix wand – more specifically a man with reasonably-long, dirty-blond hair and was currently sporting a mischievous grin on his face which intensified the mysterious aura around the stranger.
"C'mon, Harry, throwing your wand like that is a no-no," the stranger remarked teasingly whilst waggling his finger at Harry, who was alert and on-guard against the stranger. "You could get attacked."
At this statement, Harry narrowed his eyes suspiciously whilst simultaneously surveying the area for any escape routes and field advantages. The fact this stranger was grinning his face off like there was no tomorrow only served to aggravate Harry and fuel his anger.
"By who?"
"Mysterious forces of darkness!" the stranger stated over-dramatically with unnecessary hand gestures to add to his effect and then winked. "I'm just kidding… mostly. Anyway, want a jelly baby?"
The stranger took out a small bag of jelly babies from one of his inside pockets, only to receive a terrifying glare from Harry, which usually would make people afraid or intimidated. Unfortunately for Harry though, the stranger didn't seem fazed at all by it and instead shrugged before munching away at the remaining jelly babies.
"Suit yourself. I thought you Brits would like this stuff – especially with Doctor Who an' all."
"Who are you?" Harry demanded in a low, deadly voice. "And what are you doing here?"
Harry gritted his teeth when he saw the stranger smile mysteriously at him.
"I've got loads of names – like you – most notably The Trickster, Loki, The-Most-Awesome-Being-In-The-Universe, or simply... Gabriel," the stranger, Gabriel, answered in a way which made his "names" sound like major blockbusters. Gabriel then added once he noticed Harry's unconvinced expression.
"What? Don't believe little ol' Gabe. Fine, let the Archangel/Trickster/Pagan show you that he is telling the truth."
Before Harry could even react, he suddenly found Gabriel standing right in front of him and then placing a hand on his forehead. Once this had happened, Harry could only gasp and almost want to claw his eyes out when what seemed like flashes of Gabriel's memories appear spontaneously one after the other in an overwhelming 'clip show'. After it had all finished, Harry stared wide-eyed at the Archangel before him, whose dark eyes were noticeably shrouded with a façade of joy and mischief.
"When life shoves bitter, nasty things down your throat – it makes sense to crave something sweet," Gabriel stated with a slight frown, as he gazed down at the graves of James Potter and Lily Evans-Potter and then took a bite of a chocolate bar.
Harry nodded in understanding, and despite knowing that God and all these powerful beings existed out there, it didn't make him angrier. It made him feel empty.
"Yeah, Dad does that with His beliefs on free will an' all," Gabriel said with a roll of his eyes, although Harry could see the look of betrayal in the Archangel's ancient eyes. "Humans think Dad's always right in terms of the 'big picture' crap, and I believed that for a very long time. But now, I see that even my Dad isn't the omniscient being you guys think He is. Red vine?"
Although still rather cautious, Harry took the offered red vine from Gabriel and gratefully ate it whilst savouring its sweet taste. In some ways, its sweetness did make Harry feel slightly better albeit even if it were only for a few minutes.
"Why are you here, Gabriel?" Harry questioned curiously. Why would an immensely powerful Archangel want to talk with such a speck of dirt in comparison?"
"Because such a 'speck of dirt' deserves better after all the crap he's been through," Gabriel explained with air quotation marks, and before Harry could interrupt, the Archangel continued: "And don't even say you don't deserve it. After losing your parents-"
Gabriel cringed painfully at the word 'family' as the memory of Lucifer stabbing him with his own archangel blade came flooding back to him.
"-as well as anyone else you considered as family like Remus and Sirius, along with finding that whore of a girlfriend *cough* Ginny was cheating on you – it's the least of what most importantly I can do for you."
At this, Harry couldn't help but smile, to which Gabriel grinned back.
The feeling was indescribable that some being like Gabriel cared enough to offer Harry something in return after years of tragedy and the aftermath of the war. However, there was one thing Harry wanted to ask.
"What's the catch?"
Harry's smile faltered when he saw the flicker of a silent apology in Gabriel's eyes. After all, there was always a catch to something that sounded too good to be true.
"You'll have to leave this Universe and NEVER return," Gabriel informed and added with an uncharacteristically serious voice: "Also, there are genuinely dark forces, Harry, which threaten the entire multiverse – you need to gather your harem to stop them."
Harry blinked a few times in shock. His harem?
"Don't sound too shocked, Harry. All the famous multiverse-travelers have great, powerful harems to aid them in more ways than one," Gabriel winked cheekily, which amazed Harry at how easily the Archangel could change. "And that's about it, really. No other catches."
"I'll do it."
Gabriel furrowed his eyebrows in slight worry that Harry was rushing into things, only to be interrupted by him.
"I've got nothing else here. No family, no friends, and no girlfriend. Trust me, Gabriel, I do not want to stay here any longer – I just can't do it anymore."
It was as if time had suddenly slowed down to a halt, as Harry felt the comforting glow on his forehead from Gabriel's palm and felt the unrestrained power of the multiverse course through his body at the speed of light. Harry witnessed the rapid birth, death, and rebirth of stars in a blink of an eye and gasped when the feeling he had never felt at the Dursley's and almost at the Burrow filled his magical core: the feeling of home.
A/N: I hope you liked the first (albeit relatively short) chapter of the rewrite, because there is more, longer chapters to come – but only if you guys review, favourite etc. Furthermore, if you have any ideas for the story, then please feel free to say so, and I'll see what I can do. Thank you!