Dark Love
AN: Harry will seem cynical, this is because betrayed people tend to be.
AN2 i had a brain fart with the description, if anyone has one better I'll take suggestions.
IMPORTANT AN: My friend whom betas for me, has been MIA on our chat program for nearly three weeks. So I am needing another beta for my stories. Mainly to find the misspellings I miss, grammar errors, and parts that don't sound quite right. At least until she comes back -_-
Chapter 2: Home is where the heart is... sometimes.
It had been a long few weeks, and most everyone was put off by Harry's new attitude. The pact, and what it was cerculated quite fast in the Hogwarts rumor mill.
As did the speculation of what he gave up. Many theories were put out, along with a betting pool on what it was. Several theories were dismissed quickly. These included the ability to love, trust, as well as many negative emotions. Although even though the consensus, many felt that he had lost the ability to trust anybody but his pact partner.
The fact that Harry had apparently 'gone dark,' also swept the halls. With everybody ignoring his explanations about the difference between the dark element, and dark magic.
Harry was coming to believe that the entire magical world gave up their brains.
There were exceptions, some didn't believe that he went dark. They didn't understand the difference between dark magic and dark element, but they could tell he was angry, but not evil.
Susan Bones was one of them, and she had contacted her aunt after hearing Harry ranting.
Thus, it came to this, a middle aged woman in red robes followed by a small group of other red robed people stormed through the entrance hall doors.
"What is the meaning of this!" Dumbledore shouted angrily.
"I have received information of multiple crimes. Theft, of both money, and far more serious, books from the library of an Ancient and Noble house. As well as people knowingly accepting said stolen items," Amilia Bones declared.
Dumbledore paled. The money was an easy thing to deal with, he would be able to burn a few favors and pay it back. He would include the Weasleys as well.
It was the books that concerned him. Those were very rare, and in a few cases unique, and from the Potter vaults. He, even as Harry's magical guardian, didn't actually have a right to them. The rules regarding such things were very strict. He was just glad the students would be leaving in an hour, he could avoid much of the public outcry, and perhaps prevent a young girl's reputation from being ruined.
The old man was so deep in thought he didn't notice Harry leaving for a half hour in the company of the aurors... or the angry expression of the red clad woman when she led a sullen Harry back into the great hall. The four aurors leaving was also unnoticed.
"Dumbledore, your office after the students leave. You are in serious trouble," she said, causing the old man to wince, and further when she added, "I am taking Harry into my home to prevent a child from reentering an abusive situation, temporarily at least. A hearing to choose proper guardians will happen later."
"But Amelia," the headmaster tried...
"No Albus. I already had some aurors head to his old home to interrogate the Dursleys. Actually Harry had an idea of a second place to go, where nobody could find him, and is covered by a very weird law, and yes I checked."
He was sweating now. The protections he set up would die in under two weeks, although it's odd that the device monitoring it was spinning so slowly now that he thought about it.
He barely noticed the students being led out and sighed in relief that the two students he was giving things to weren't being punished, he then noticed the woman's smirk.
"Those two will be spoken to... in front of their families," she said smugly. "Now your office."
As soon as she entered, she cast diagnostic spells on the odd devices, and she started spitting nails. "Dumbledore, why do you have illegal monitoring devices? I will have to confiscate them. Now tell me why you thought it was a good idea to steal, then give the items to others? Gringotts will be sending human representatives to find every missing Potter artifact and books, as well as any notes taken from the books, and erasing your memories of the books."
the old man sighed and he knew he had to talk fast, and he would still need to stand trial, or at least an inquiry. "Madam Bones, I need the information in those books. Is there anything I can do to prevent me loosing those memories and notes? And keep it from going to trial?"
She sighed shook her head. "No to either. The law is clear on these issues. Unless you have the permission of the head of house, no books are to be taken out of the family library, or read, and considering he heard you admit to them being stolen..." she drifted off while looking at the old man with pity.
"How about a plea bargain?" Dumbledore grudgingly asked. At her raised eyebrow he continued, "same number of books of the same value, non duplicates, to be transferred to him along with his books, from my privet library." he finished with a wince hating the idea of giving information away.
The woman nodded slowly as she replied, "I can work with that, he might add some conditions, but I will ensure they are fair, you do realize you'll have to give up magical guardianship of Harry correct? You committed crimes against his family, so you wont be able to stay as his guardian. Also you will have to give up the memories of the books contents." at the old man's nod she started to walk out but had some parting words before she left, "I would recommend keeping your nose clean, even with the deal you're going to burn a lot of favors."
The old man put his head into his hands, knowing that many of his plans were now ruined. He now had less than four months to come up with a new one. He was just glad she forgot about the trackers for now.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
Hermione was furious, Harry has struck her in the hospital wing, then had the nerve to be upset that she had the books. They would be more of use in her hands. Potter's grades showed that he was too stupid to ever appreciate them... not that she had the knowledge to understand them yet. They were now hers anyway.
After all, even if they were stolen, the hero of the wizarding world wouldn't do any thing wrong would he?
She sulked all the way home, and into the next day, when her summer got even worse.
An auror had arrived, on official business, and he was including her family in the discussion.
"You're a magical cop?" Hermione's mother asked, and after getting an assent continued, "Why do you want to talk to my daughter then?"
"Let me be blunt, we have evidence that your daughter knowingly received stolen property. And the generosity of the victim, allows us to offer her a choice. Turn over all the books, items, and notes that you received that were stolen from Harry Potter and given to you, the notes, allow us to remove what knowledge you gained from them, and give you a truth potion to make sure we got them all, or..."
Hermione's father looked like he had swallowed a lemon, and looked at his daughter in disappointment, "or...?"
Hermione shook her head and replied before the auror could, "No, those books are..."
She was interrupted by the auror, "Potter's, and the second choice is we tear the house apart looking, snap your wand, bind your magic, and erase the memories of the magical world from all three of you."
Hermione's eyes widened in horror. "But... But... but..." she stammered.
Her mother on the other hand was also disappointed at her daughter and answered for her, "She'll choose the first option. You have permission to search her room. I would normally trust her to retrieve them herself, but considering she completely threw away our lessons, I can't trust her to obtain them herself."
the twelve year old looked at her mother in betrayal, and opened her mouth to protest while the auror went upstairs to search her room and trunk.
She was silenced by her father, a man that had a high sense of morals. "Hermoine we taught you better than this. You should've returned the books and other items to their owner as soon as you received them. Why didn't you?"
"Those books are wasted on that moron, his grades are poor, and he needs my help on almost everything, so why should I give them back? Anyway they were given to me by Dumbledore himself," she spat venomously.
Her mother replied, "because it's the law? Because they belonged to him? Because it's the moral choice? Because it was what we taught you to do? Who cares if he can't use them right now. I recognize that name, you had claimed he was your friend. Your grounded until Hogwarts starts again. No library, the books in your room will be confiscated, you will be able to do homework for the summer, but after they are done we will lock those books away. In fact you won't be allowed to read... at all."
Hermione was shaking in rage, she wasn't supposed to be punished, she was just trying to allow the knowledge in the books to be used.
The auror came down then with a stack of parchment and a stack of books. Three drops of a potent truth potion had him trudging back up to retrieve a silvery cloak. A quick spell later he left a pissed off girl behind with her angry parents. It would be her worst summer ever.
Damn that Potter.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Early morning day later, at the Weasley residence, a young red haired man was receiving a personal howler directly from the lungs of his mother as an auror walked away with a hundred galleons. Well running away actually, that woman was LOUD!
It was fortunate for the family that it was just money and not important heirlooms, so they were in less trouble, but they knew that Ronald would be watched closely.
It would be the start of a really bad day for the Weasley matriarch.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
Harry's summer was going very well. He had, during the school year discovered a odd law specially made for underage pacts. He also found that he wasn't the youngest, that honor was Helga Hufflepuff whom made one with a unicorn at the age of eight.
He had also obtained some good clothes. All of them hand made by some elementals that make clothes as a hobby, and were perfectly glad to have somebody wear them. The set made of fire element made safe to wear and woven as fine as silk was being set aside for winter. It was amazing what the elementals were capable of. He had enough outfits to keep him supplied for at least a year. The darkness element cloaks for Hogwarts lined with fire element and some golden light element were his favorite though, well any darkness element clothing really. He didn't even need to pay as money was useless to elementals.
The law was simple in execution. If the pact partner was sentient, intelligent enough for it, and able to communicate on it's own, that the partner can act as a magical guardian for a child. Being able to pass as a human was appreciated but not absolutely necessary.
In Harry's case Leilah passed all four conditions. While people looking at her could tell something was wrong and unusual about her, she maintained a human form easily and could interact with normal humans without giving too much away. This, combined with the thefts removing Dumbledore from the magical guardianship, meant that Harry was relaxing in a place very few mortals ever entered. The elemental plane, literally the safest place to get away from humans... it was fortunate that he was a curiosity to the elementals and not seen as an invader. There was one problem though.
Harry sighed from where he was lying down on a grassy field. She was back... looking down he saw the light elemental cuddling him warmly. He couldn't understand it, why was she so insistent on being close? It was slightly irritating to him. She always vanishes giggling when he gets up, but seconds after he lays down she comes. Every damn time.
The elemental looked like a fifteen year old by her own preference, not that she actually was. She was wearing a sundress that looked to be made of pure sunlight, with long ankle length hair. She was gold skinned with a variable sunset of color giving her features more definition than is usual for a light element.
It pissed Leilah off intensely. A light elemental was horning in on her Harry. She was curiously pissed on why that was though. She was glad that Harry couldn't form a second pact so he was all hers. Although there were other bonding methods, that unlike hers would put the elemental at a servant level, and not a partner like her, and the method she used prevents the human from being the subordinate. She was mostly pissed it was a light elemental, her direct opposite, that might try it. Ice, water, and wind she could potentially allow, fire, earth, and lightning she might be able to tolerate despite being more closely aligned to the light elementals than the dark, but a light? No, no way in the abyss she'd allow it!
Although she was confused because all the light elementals are slightly chill like dark elementals, and a uniform color, usually white but others are possible. It was almost like she wasn't one, but that was impossible with how she instinctively recoiled from her. She also could swear she heard some woman chuckling every time she was close to the two.
The tattoo on Harry shined slightly causing the elemental to snuggle closer on that side, causing Harry to sigh again. It wasn't like it was uncomfortable, as the elemental dimension tended toward the fifty-five Fahrenheit (12.8 Celsius) in temperature, except in the areas that the fire or ice elementals tend to live so the extra warmth was welcome. Sighing again, he decided to nap.
His last thought as his best friend and partner joined him on his other side, was, home really is where the heart is.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
It was five days later that they found, much to Leilah's annoyance that the odd light elemental really was bound to Harry as a servant... by a third party. And whom that was was a mystery, as Leilah automatically disregarded Harry's theory of it being the fault of the ancestor that helped him in the pit of death.
It's impossible for the dead to affect others outside the pit, and no living mortal can affect someone in it. The fact that the elemental felt much like the ancestor is just a coincidence.
Harry wasn't so sure. He believed that his partner made one mistake in her assumptions. A single mistake that invalidated her arguments, one that he hadn't mentioned.
He didn't believe that that particular ancestor was mortal. The fact that she could talk to him was just the tip of the iceburg in why he thought it. There was also the fact that she was warm where his mother and father was ice cold, the fact that he knew instinctively not to look at her, and other signs.
On one of his regular trips back to earth he picked up several books on mythology, legendary beings, and creatures, along with books on magic to help him in learning new spells. He was so far out of the ministry's jurisdiction that he felt no guilt about learning and practicing magic.
It was not all studying and reading though. He made friends with other elementals and with some that are his own mental age. Some rivals, and some real annoyances.
And it wasn't all fun and games either, as he recalled how he obtained his new wand.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
Flashback!
It was a couple days after Harry arrived in the elemental plane, and one day before the annoying light elemental showed up, and he was back in Diagon Alley. He needed a new wand. His year old one simply stopped working for him entirely. He was looking for a custom wand as he had already tried every single one at Ollivanders . The only one he could find was in Knocktern Alley, the very front of it. After a quick trip to the bank for the funds, he headed there. It was his bad luck that a redheaded woman saw him entering the Alley with his elemental, and when she entered a shop, the door of which slammed shut to provide privacy to the customers.
Inside an ancient woman looked at Harry, and asked, "Why are you here? I don't mind more customers, but my wards detect that you already have a wand, and I can't sell another to one that have one."
"My wand ceased to work entirely after a incident, and before that it was starting to act up. So I need another to replace it," Harry explained.
The old woman frowned and ordered him to bring it out and hold it. She then spoke, "it looks like you are rejecting the wand. This only happens in a few circumstances. The first is that it wasn't actually attuned to you, and someone cast a spell to attune you to it, and the spell wore off. The second is similar to the first, but there was something else making you have a false connection. The third, and most unlikely, is that you rejected the source of the feather entirely. The last almost never happens as it is nearly impossible to meet anyone connected to the core."
Harry nodded, and asked, "So can you make me a new wand?"
The old woman shook her head and replied, "civilians can only have one, and it doesn't matter if it works or not."
Harry thought for a second, then asked, "and if it breaks?"
The old woman nodded, "then I can make you one..." SNAP. "she then stared at the boy in front of her that was holding two halves of a wand. "Well then, let's look for the materials shall we?"
it took an hour of searching through blocks of wood, a focusing gem, and lengths. The core was the easiest part, they took some of his pact partner's essence. Harry was allowed to watch in fascination as the wand was made. The ebony wood, and onyx gem combined with the strand of absolute darkness, created a wand of such blackness it looked like it was trying to suck out the light in the room with it's meager ten inches.
Once Harry's hand gripped his new wand the shop was engulfed in pitch darkness, and sunshine warmth for half a second. The price of the wand was only slightly greater than what Ollavander charges. The explanation was that Ollivander tended to gouge customers for his premade wand, all of which were between fifty and a hundred years old. Plus the fact that one of the materials was provided by Harry also cut the cost.
When he opened the door he was ambushed by a vaguely familiar redheaded woman. "Harry Potter! What are you doing here!'
Harry looked at her blandly and answered, "and what business is it of yours? It's none of yours, but I'll answer anyway, I was getting a new wand after mine broke."
"Young man, you will be more respectful of me! Come with me now!" the woman shouted at the top of her lungs and grabbed him.
"Leilah!" Harry said confident that she would be able to help him with the annoyance.
And she did, by grabbing the woman's arm that was holding him and snapping it like a twig in a nasty compound break. The pained shouts of the woman drew in a pair of aurors that patrol the first one hundred feet of Knocktern.
A quick explanation of what happened saw the woman being dragged off, as Leilah had been acting in defense of her charge, whom the woman was trying to kidnap. The woman would be put on house arrest until charges were formally made.
Shaking his head he let himself be dragged back to the elemental plane by the dark elemental.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
Flashback end.
Then came something Dumbledore hates. An idle mind that starts thinking.
Harry frowned as he remembered where he had seen that woman before. She was asking about platform nine and three-quart... he frowned. She had multiple children. Some that had been going for years, at least five for the oldest, the meant she had between ten and twenty trips there just with the current children attending. So why was she shouting about it on the non magical side.
He also contemplated on why Hagrid didn't tell him how to get into the platform, and was at least half sure it was intentionally ordered by his boss. The other half was that he was so scatter brained that he didn't think of it.
That led him to think of the train ride. How Ronald had found him so quickly. He then frowned as he remembered the boy had insulted in some manner everyone that came to his compartment. Almost like he wanted Harry to himself, well him being paid probably made that a guarantee.
This led him to think of Hogwarts.
The sheer amount of pointless points being taken off for a first offense, a dangerous mirror being left where students could find it... and why didn't he hear anyone else speak of finding it? Also why did Dumbledore explicitly state what it did to him? The detention in a dangerous forest where something was killing unicorns, and would make short work of four first years, the simple tasks to get to the stone, the mirror being there, a priceless stone being in the mirror.
The entire year was a set up, he thought his anger spiking.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
On earth an old woman examining a broken wand stepped back as the pieces ignited, and completely destroyed themselves.
"A possible number three," she mumbled, before answering her door. A supplier had come to sell his wares.
After that she intended to play a bit with some of the extra dark elemental essence she had. The stuff was fun, and acted a lot like clay.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
Harry shook his head to clear it. He would have to be on the ball in the next year, although if it was as dangerous as last year, he might have to look into changing schools.
A thought struck him and he retrieved some writing supplies, and wrote two nearly identical letters.
To: Deputy Headmistress McGonagall/Oliver Wood.
I am writing to declare that I am removing myself from the Quidditch team.
One of the main reasons I agreed to join was the hope that I would be able to find some new friends. This hope was in vain. The entire team turned on me at the drop of a hat. Why? Because of the excessive amount of pointless points that the deputy headmistress took off for a first offense. Fifty each? The twins told me that they had ten each their first offense, when I asked. While refusing to say my name as if I had turned into something horrible.
In short, I refuse to play with people I despise and can't trust. I truly believe that if I lost a similar amount of points, that the beaters will 'mistime' a bludger hit and kill me.
I will keep the broom as payment for the problems that were caused me by both the deputy headmistress and the team.
I would wish you good luck in finding a seeker, but the circumstances being what they are, I hope you find the shittiest one in the history of the sport.
In hoping you have a horrible day:
Harry James Potter.
PS: I am in a place that owls cant reach easily, can you send my book list with Hedwig?
Nodding in satisfaction, Harry arranged transport to Earth for himself and Hedwig and sent the letters off, knowing he was burning some very fragile bridges with napalm. He would return the next day for his owl, which had the booklist, and a pair of scathing replies, both of which would have told him they'd speak to him at school, if he had read them.
He burnt the replies without reading them, as he saw them as unimportant. Looking at the booklist he noticed he already had all but a set of seven books. The seven books made him frown, why seven books for one year? Was the new teacher a friend of the guy? Shaking his head he waited until a week before the new term, called over his pact mate and headed to earth for the final time before the school year started. He would regret not choosing another day.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
Harry left the alleyway he used as a landing point in his jaunts between realms, and started walking toward the bookstore, followed by Leilah and his light elemental. He noticed as he approached that there was a large commotion, and curious decided to see what it was.
It would be the reason why he would be seven books short for the year.
As he approached he saw what the commotion was about. It was a blond man promoting an autobiagraphy. He looked on in shock as he saw the man's name, it was the same as those missing seven books. He at this point was seriously giving consideration to not buying them.
What happened next would turn that consideration into a decision.
He was about to forge into the bookstore when he was grabbed and dragged to a different location, by the blonde man.
"See here! Harry Potter! He must be proud to have me a teacher for his next year at Hogwarts!" the man exclaimed loudly to the crowd.
"The reactions of the crowd changed when Harry clearly and loudly growled out, "Let go asshole."
"Now Harry, I can help..." the man started, but was interrupted by Harry smashing his elbow into his gut, which caused him to let the boy go, then kicked in the groin as hard as he could.
Then a blob of darkness coalesced into a girl, and picked him up, and giving him another boot to the groin launching him into the air, where multicolored light turned into another girl that booted him in the back sending him crashing into the ground unconscious, with a cracked nut, four broken teeth that he had accidentally swallowed, and a broken shoulder.
This one incident cheered Leilah up profoundly about the presence of the other elemental. She could work with one that could sync up that well with her.
The crowd was silent as Harry, and the two girls bulled there way out of it. Many could clearly hear him grumbling as he passed, "No way in the elemental plane am I buying his books, or even attending his classes."
If this had happened in another timeline he would've been scolded by a red headed woman for beating up her hero, but in this one she was otherwise occupied... spending six months in a ministry holding cell for attempted kidnapping.
The aurors observing the event were amused, and had seen the man grab an underaged boy that he had no reason to even be near as more than a fellow customer. They wouldn't arrest either of them, Lockheart because he was both too popular, and the fact that he had only dragged the boy ten feet, and obviously not going further, plus the fact that he had already been punished.
Harry because it was obviously self defense.
He did feel a book being slipped into his pocket as he walked past a man that looked like an adult version of one of his biggest irritants from school, and wondered what it was. He would look into it when he had time.
The blonde man was panicking though. He knew the boy knew whom put the book in his pocket, and his plans would probably be ruined, and he couldn't demand it back because he had been the one to slip it in. On the other hand he couldn't proceed with his first plan because Arthur Weasley had a last minute emergency and couldn't come today, and he had meetings for the rest of the week. Scowling he left for home, hoping the boy-who-lived would act according to his plan.
Only time would tell.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
A week later saw Harry staring at the entrance to platform nine and three-quarters, and he sighed. It had just opened, and he took a step forward into the station, he had a feeling that it would be a long and unpleasant year. The double hug of his elementals comforted him with one fact.
Whatever the future held, he would not be facing it alone.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
End chapter.