If I'm being honest, I'm not happy with this chapter at all. It's far sloppier than I would have liked. However, t's been so long that I felt I needed to give you guys a chapter, and if I delayed any longer it could have been another month. I'm sorry updates are coming so slowly, but my increased workload and declining mental health aren't really great conditions for fic writing.
At first there was only the cold. The bone-chilling iciness.
Then there was pain. The frigid air nipped at him, biting and stinging his skin.
Then came the pounding headache, as if someone was hammering on his skull from the inside. The air was unscented and uncomfortable, and there was a deafening silence that gripped his head like a vice. He fought to open his eyes, crystals of snow melting onto his black lashes. He couldn't remember his name.
As he finally managed to pry his eyelids open, he thought for a moment that he might have gone blind. Or perhaps he had always been blind, he couldn't remember.
There was only a never-ending expanse of white towards the horizon. He turned around, and still there was nothing. Only the blankness.
Then he blinked, and he realized the white was ice and snow. Icicles clung to his hair and the corners of his mouth; he quickly wiped them away, shivering. He had never been this cold before - or maybe he had. Maybe he had grown accustomed to the glacial temperature. But it seemed impossible that anyone could ever grow used to this.
He took a step forward, the snow crunching beneath his boot, the sound throwing him off-kilter after the suffocating silence. Suddenly he felt a different type of cold wash over him. Before, the chill had seeped into his bones from the outside - but this was different. This was a cold coming from within.
A shadow flickered on the snow before him, but it was gone as quickly as it had appeared. Perhaps he had imagined it.
The cold from within strengthened, and he fell to his knees. It pulled at his chest, and he could barely breathe. His fingers pulled at his skin, and the pain slowly receded. He could breathe again. However, a sinking, black coldness remained, as if something awful had happened but he couldn't quite remember what.
The shadow flickered again, and a gust of wind blew past his ear. His headache worsened and then dulled as the shadow once again vanished.
He pushed himself back to his feet. The tips of his fingers had started to go numb, and he rubbed his hands together. He tried to remember something - anything - but he couldn't. He could feel his identity at the back of his mind, but the closer he got, the farther away it slipped.
He turned in a slow circle, surveying the seemingly endless landscape of snow and ice, when he caught sight of what looked like a trail of black smoke from the horizon. He blinked, and when he was sure it wasn't like the shadow, flickering in and out of existence, he stumbled towards it, his legs week.
It could have been hours or it could have been minutes later, but as he got closer, and the smoke became clearer, his forehead began to sting. The smoke was thick and jet-black, almost too solid to be smoke. He narrowed his eyes, his forehead stinging more and more the closer he got, adding to his already only just bearable headache. He brushed his fingers against his forehead and remembered the jagged scar carved into the skin there.
For a moment, he wondered how he had gotten it - and then the shadow reappeared. This time it didn't vanish immediately, and he looked closer - it was in the shape of a person. He tried to make out who it was, when a second gust of wind blew into him, nearly strong enough to knock him off of his feet. He could hear a murmur on the wind, as if it was speaking to him, and he strained his ears - but it faded away. He had a strange assumption he couldn't explain that the wind had just whispered his name, but he still couldn't remember it.
He turned back to the smoke, trying to get closer. The smoke was far too thick than it should be, he thought, and it looked like large black drapes hiding some strange evil. He was close enough to smell the foul, sickly odor emanating from the smoke when the pain in his forehead became too much, and he cried out, clutching his head. He turned away, and the pain lessened slightly.
The shadow was back, but it was no longer a shadow. It was a a tall young woman, looking barely of age. Her skin was pale enough to match the color of the icy ground that stretched around her, and her inky black hair and dark red lips stood in stark contrast to her white skin and the alabaster snow.
As he stared at her, the skin on the back of his neck rose. Her features were too perfect, and a voiceless thought screamed silently at him to flee. His legs were frozen in place as he stared at her. She opened her mouth and spoke, but nothing came out. An expression of worry and fear, so out of place on her perfect face, lined her features.
And then she was gone. The stinging in his scar had vanished, but the pounding at the back of his skull was back with a vengeance. He swore loudly, ducking his head and gripping fistfulls of his hair.
The wind blew harder, knocking him to the ground and whispering into his ears.
Wake up, they murmured. Wake up, Harry.
Was that his name? Harry? He couldn't escape a shiver of revulsion, although if someone had asked him why the word disgusted him he would not have been able to explain it. He supposed it must be his name, if it was the only one he could hear, but it just didn't seem like it fit.
The headache didn't relax, and he gritted his teeth as he was buffeted by another blast of wind.
Hadrian, you need to wake up.
Perhaps his name was Hadrian, then. He found he much prefered Hadrian to Harry; it didn't make his body convulse, but it also didn't seem as though it fit. He shrugged; perhaps names weren't meant to feel right. They just were.
The wind grew stronger, and he grew colder, his fingers digging into the snow. The weight in his chest became heavier, as did the headache. The eerie woman flickered back into existence.
"Hadrian, you need to wake up," she said, her voice somehow managing to be velvety smooth while still conveying worry. "Snap out of it."
"I - I don't understand," he rasped. His voice sounded like grinding rocks compared to hers.
"You're going to kill yourself, and Hero and I, if you keep channeling your magic inwards," she said. He flinched, and the painful hurt in his chest strengthened.
"I - please - I don't know what to do," he begged.
The woman held out her arm. "Wake up, Assassin," she breathed. At the name, it felt like all the puzzle pieces inside of him were finally set into place. The cold no longer seemed to affect him; he grabbed her hand and the icy wasteland vanished.
As Shade's body fell from the vampire's arms, Elena felt the room drop several degrees. She caught the gaze of the vampire and he glared back. Hero let out a piercing shriek, and Elena grabbed her wrist before she could run at Shade's attacker.
"That was an act of war," she hissed. If her heart were able to beat it would have stopped as she thought of Hadrian, and turned to look into the pit. She had prepared to see anguish, hate, grief, insurmountable sadness - but instead there was nothing. He had fallen to his knees and his eyes were glazed over. She could see his fingers turning blue, and he was clearly shivering.
By the time she had taken all of this in, nearly everyone had vacated the premises. Only Noir and four of his thugs, the one who had killed Shade included, remained. Hero was fighting her grip, still screaming Shade's name.
"She broke a rule, Elena," Noir said with faux regret. "I'm terribly sorry, but -"
Before he could finish the sentence, Elena attacked. She tossed Hero into the pit out of the way and grabbed the vampire closest to her and ripped his head off, throwing it at the tallest of Noir's goons. He ducked out of instinct and she used the time he was off-guard to knock him onto his knees and tear out his throat. She ducked underneath the swing of another vampire and kicked him hard in the groin, sending him flying backwards. Noir hit her in the chest too fast for her to react and she was flung backwards into the fighting pit with Sin and Hero. She growled and leapt out of the pit and latched onto the vampire that had killed the girl. She didn't kill him - she wanted to give Hadrian the opportunity - but she slammed his head against the ground twice as hard as she could, and though he was a vampire and had considerable endurance, her strength matched it, and he fell unconscious. She leapt onto the fourth vampire who had recovered from her kick and snapped his arm backwards, tearing it off. He howled in pain and she easily dodged a clumsy swing at her throat from his remaining arm. Her fingers dug into his bag and she ripped his spine from his body. His corpse collapsed at the muggle girl's terrified feet and Noir was gone. He was smart.
Hero struggled out of the pit and barely spared Elena a glance before collapsing down beside Shade's body. She rolled Shade onto her back, her mouth moving but no words coming out.
Elena stared at them, shoving down the twinge of guilt that squirmed within her. She had no connection with Shade, and she wouldn't have cared, but she knew how close Hadrian was to her. It wouldn't due to lose the little trust Hadrian had in her, but she wouldn't lose herself in a show of compassion.
Elena leapt down into the pit, taking Hadrian's hands in her own. She shook him gently. "Hadrian," she hissed. He didn't even blink. He had gone into shock. Elena knew some felt grief harder than others, but it had been decades since she had felt it herself. She didn't know what to do.
"Hadrian," she said again, as Hero's screams transformed into sobs. Elena gritted her teeth. She knew he might never forgive her if she invaded his mind, but he needed to wake up. They couldn't stay here. It was only a matter of time before Noir sent more of his thugs, and there would be more than four this time.
So she looked into his clouded green eyes and reached out gently with her mind, testing the waters.
Immediately she felt as though she had been plunged into the Arctic. She hadn't felt the cold since she'd Turned, and it was so jarring she nearly threw up. Vampires weren't supposed to be able to feel the cold. It was so… unnatural. She withdrew from his mind immediately, scrambling backwards.
"What the hell…" she murmured aloud, her eyes narrowing. The cold was gone, but the memory stayed. She gritted her teeth and knew she had to try again. Trying to ignore Hero's cries from behind her, she knelt before Hadrian again, looking into his eyes, and reached out with her mind, more firmly this time.
Again she was buffeted with cold, but she refused to give way. She forced herself into his head, not delving deep into his memories but staying on the surface, his current thoughts. Once she got used to the cold, she found herself in a frozen wasteland. It unnerved her; Hadrian shouldn't be able to formulate such a realistic place in his mind without learning occlumency.
She could see Hadrian in his own mindscape, which was another oddity that shouldn't happen. However, in this instance, she was grateful. It would be easier to reach him.
"Hadrian!" She shouted. He was close. He didn't appear to hear her, and he fell to his knees. "Hadrian! Wake up!" She shouted again. Nothing.
The cold grew stronger and she flinched back, withdrawing from his mind once more. Snarling, she tried again. She had to snap him out of whatever trance he was in.
She delved once more into his mind, ignoring the pathways that would take her to his memories and instead focusing on his current thoughts.
"Wake up," she said again. "Wake up, Harry!" She knew he hated the name, but perhaps it would trigger something. "Hadrian, you need to wake up." Nothing. As the cold grew stronger, a light inside her mind flickered on slowly, and she withdrew.
"Hero," she said, "We have to get out of here."
The girl ignored her. Her sobs were growing quieter now, and she had closed Shade's eyes. Elena nearly swore in frustration. She knew why Hadrian's mindscape had seemed so clear for someone who had never studied occlumency. He wasn't projecting an occlumency shield on purpose; he was channeling his magic inwards, and the mindscape was a survival instinct. A subconscious attempt of his mind so that he didn't kill himself with the overload of magic. But when he stopped channeling it inwards, and it was released… Elena did not want to be there for the fallout.
"Hero, Hadrian's magic is building up. If we're here when he releases it, he could kill us. We have to get out of here," Elena hissed again, but Hero only turned to snarl at her.
"Get away from me," she spat, her eyes swollen but no less hateful. Elena grabbed her wrist.
"Your family has already lost one person today," she said softly. "They don't need to lose another," she said softly. Hero yanked her arm back and Elena let go.
Hero glared at her, but said, "What about Sin? Won't he hurt himself -"
Elena shook her head. "He'll be fine. We have to go. Now."
Hero drew in a shuddering breath and scooped up Shade's body in her arms before staggering to the warehouse door. "I'll be right behind you," Elena called after her. "Get as far away as you can. And be careful; Noir's goons could still be lingering."
She watched Hero leave the building before kneeling down in front of Hadrian again. She had to snap him out of it. She'd told Hero that he'd be fine, but if he didn't stop directing his magic inward, he might kill himself. He had to let it out.
She reached out with her mind again. "Hadrian, you need to wake up," she said, managing to keep the desperation out of her voice. "Snap out of it."
Hadrian was convulsing on the ground, his body shivering. However, he seemed to hear her, because he looked up. "I - I don't understand," he said, and Elena breathed a sigh of relief. He could hear her.
"You're going to kill yourself, and Hero and I, if you keep channeling your magic inwards." He flinched at her words.
"I - please - I don't know what to do," he begged.
She had to get him to snap out of it. She braced herself, and then, throwing the full weight of her legilimency into each word, she said, "Wake up, Assassin."
She held out her hand, and he took it, pulling himself to his feet. She could feel the wasteland growing warmer, and the mindscape was melting around her. She had stayed as long as she dared. She withdrew from his mind and lifted the unconscious body of the vampire that had killed Shade over her shoulder. She spared Hadrian one last glance to confirm that the cloudy sheen over his eyes was clearing before turning on her heel and fleeing.
Sin drew in a shuddering breath as the cold vanished from his fingertips. His skin was buzzing, as if an invisible force hummed at the surface. He opened his eyes slowly, and the sight of the empty warehouse confused him. How did he get -
And then everything came flooding back. The fight, Anneith's cold body, the pain in his arm - the icicle was gone from the wound - Shade's scream, her attempt to help, and then -
And then that vampire had torn out her throat.
All of the wounds Sin had ever had had done nothing to prepare him for this pain. He couldn't breathe, he couldn't see, all he could do was cry out as the image of Shade dying played over and over again in his mind.
A scream tore from his throat and the humming energy beneath his skin erupted.
Hero laid Shade's body down gently on the worn cobblestones. Elena barely paid attention to the muggle girl, her gaze fixed on the warehouse in the distance. Nothing had happened, and for a moment she thought she had overreacted; however powerful Hadrian was, he was only a child… perhaps had overestimated his magical ability. She dropped the unconscious vampire on the ground unceremoniously, and Hero's gaze snapped to him. Her eyes darkened.
And then the whole world seemed to go silent, as if waiting for something. The air seemed to be listening, and Elena narrowed her eyes. She took a small step forward, and there was a low groan of wood, and the warehouse exploded.
The walls were blown to pieces and the roof collapsed inwards. Hero screamed, and Elena snatched her wrist again before she could go running back towards it. Her gut clenched slightly but she ignored it. Hero yanked away but Elena held fast until the dust settled, and there was nothing else to collapse. As soon as she let go Hero was sprinting down the alley towards the remains of the warehouse. Elena followed her.
A single wall remained, and pieces of the roof were littered around of the floor. The foundations had cracked, and the pit had large chunks taken from the walls. Hadrian was on his feet, swaying slightly. Elena was surprised he hadn't passed out from the amount of magical energy he had just expended.
Hero wasted no time in jumping down into the pit and wrapping Hadrian in her arms tightly. Slowly, he hugged her back, looking dazed. "Hero," he said hoarsely, "Shade - she - I couldn't save her." A single tear trailed down his face. "She came here because of me, and I couldn't save her."
"It's not your fault," Hero whispered back. "There was nothing you could have done."
Hero fixed Elena with a glare that indicated while Hero didn't fault Hadrian, she didn't consider Elena quite so blameless. Elena held the girl's gaze, expressionless.
She allowed the two a moment before interrupting, "We need to leave. The explosion isn't going to go unnoticed. I doubt Noir will return so soon, but others - including the ministry - will be enroute already. We can't be here when they arrive." Privately, she thanked Merlin that there was no way for the ministry to trace wandless magic.
Hero pulled back slightly and lifted Hadrian's arm over her shoulders, helping him to the edge of the pit. Elena held out a hand, but Hadrian ignored it. It didn't escape Elena's notice that Hadrian had refused to meet her eyes.
Hero helped Hadrian out of the pit and he limped along the alleyway to where Shade's corpse lay next to her murderer. Hadrian's eyes swept over them, and his blank expression slipped.
Sin felt like his insides were being boiled alive as he looked at Shade's body laying on the dirty cobblestones, her throat torn and the blood drained from her neck. Her eyes were closed, but he assumed that was Hero's doing. The image of terror in Shade's eyes as she had died was fresh in his memory.
He felt sick. Leaning against the wall, he bent over as his stomach spasmed. He could hear Hero sniffling behind him.
He straightened, using the wall to keep his balance. His body was exhausted, but as his gaze shifted over to look at the vampire sprawled on the ground he forgot his fatigue. All he felt was an icy, burning rage that ran through his veins and stung at his fingertips.
"Wake him up," he said softly. When there was no response, he turned to Elena, fury flickering in his gaze. Elena stared at him before nodding. She grabbed him by the throat and pulled him up, slamming his head against the wall. When that did nothing, she closed her eyes and paused.
She seemed to be concentrating on something, and whatever she was doing worked, because the vampire's eyes flew open at the same time Elena's did.
"Let go of him," Sin said in the same quiet tone. Elena did so, taking a step back. Her gaze didn't leave the murderer's.
"Sin," Hero murmured, "Be smart. Think about what you're doing."
Assassin ignored her. The vampire's features, which had been so full of arrogance, were now nervous. His eyes twitched to the right, but before he could run Assassin raised his hand and the vampire was thrown back against the wall. He struggled against Sin's magic but he couldn't move, as if his limbs were manacle to the stone.
Assassin's legs wobbled beneath him, but he ignored his exhaustion. "Do you know what it's like," he said quietly, his voice icy, "To have one of the people you care about more than anything in the world ripped away from you? To see them murdered right before your eyes?"
"Sin," Hero cautioned, but Elena cut her off.
"Let him be," she said, her voice as velvety as ever. As unbothered. It pissed him off.
"Do you know how it feels?" He asked, stepping closer to the imprisoned vampire. The creature struggled, breathing fast.
"I'll show you." He clenched his fist and the vampire let out a shriek pain a a bone in his forearm snapped. Sin gritted his teeth and narrowed his eyes as the vampire screamed louder as every bone in his hand cracked and snapped and grinded. The vampire's screams encouraged Sin. He needed to show this creature how it felt, needed to push every sting of pain he had caused back into the perpetrator's body.
"Sin, you can stop now," Hero said, her voice shaky. Assassin turned to look at her, confused. He didn't release his magic, and he could feel the energy draining from his body.
"He killed her, Hero," he said. How could she not understand? How could she not want to avenge Shade? "He ripped her throat -" his voice broke.
"I know," Hero said, a fresh tear sliding down her face to join the just-dried ones. "And I want him dead too. But - you do this, and there's no coming back. Don't let him change you, Sin. He isn't worth it."
"You would just have him go free?"
"No, of course not," Hero said softly, "But - we can leave him for the ministry to find, or -"
"He killed her," Sin cut her off, and he twisted his hand slightly. The vampire let out another screech as his ribs began to pull closer together, squeezing his insides. Black spots danced at the edge of Sin's vision. "He deserves it."
"I know, I know he does, and I want him to suffer too," she said hastily, "but you can't come back from this. You'll never forgive yourself for it. Don't let him change you."
Sin turned his gaze back to the vampire, who was still crying out in pain. No tears marred his face, though. Perhaps vampires couldn't cry. His gaze met Sin's, and suddenly the rage was back in full force. His body wobbled as he placed his hand on the vampire's chest and pulled at the remaining drops of magic within him.
"Please," Hero begged desperately, "Sin. Think about - think about Shade. She wouldn't want you to become this. You're ten years old, Sin. Please."
"Shade doesn't want anything anymore. She's dead." He pushed out with his magic and the vampire screamed as his ribs pulled closer and closer, crushing his organs and snapping.
Sin collapsed, and before he fell unconscious he noticed the differences in expressions between Hero and Elena. One face of anguish and fear, and the other of understanding.
Then everything went black.
I know it wasn't my best, but I hope you enjoyed it anyway. Shout out to iAmCon for the frozen wasteland idea.