Short chapter but this sets up a LOT for the upcoming year.
Disclaimer in Chapter 1. I also don't own the Guardians of the Galaxy.
Beyond the branches of Yggdrasil, in the deep dark blackness beyond the void, there sat a creature of immense power. This creature was a warrior, a war lord, something to be feared, something to be fought; a titan. A Mad Titan, to be exact. This wasn't any Mad Titian, it was The Mad Titan and that made him even more fearsome. The Mad Titan was rumored to be courting Mistress Death by killing his way through the star ways, spilling blood and rending souls from their forms.
He didn't seem to care that he had never met the 'woman'.
He didn't seem to care that she never responded to his 'presents'.
He didn't seem to care that all signs pointed to her hating his 'gifts'.
All he cared for was 'courting' her his way, no matter her feelings on the matter.
He certainly didn't know that Death scoffed at the mere mention of his efforts and that all the Reapers had a betting pool about how long it would be before Death moved from general displeasure to outright rage at the balance being thrown out of whack.
This troublesome titan sat far beyond golden sight, preparing and planning to sacrifice the rest of the universe in the name of his love.
Currently, said titan was sitting on his levitating stone throne, staring at the large golden glove that encased his hand. He was so very close to another stone, the Space Stone, a beautiful blue stone whose power he knew would fit perfectly in his glove, boosting his power once more. They had located it at last, on Midgard of all places. He did not see the logic in placing it there but he did not pretend to know the convoluted mind of the fool king in his golden palace and he certainly wasn't going to complain about its easy accessibility. He had run the numbers and knew that it would take, at max, a mere sixteenth of his army to retrieve the Space Stone from the little bit of rock it was on. From what his scouts had found, that world's heroes were few and far between and the few with any power to stop the retrieval would not be able to arrive in time, let alone hope to stop it on their own.
Not that he would be doing that himself of course.
No, it was not his time.
The mighty titan leaned back on his throne and looked to his currently empty court space.
He would be sending someone to retrieve the Space Stone for him. Someone that would be under Thanos' unbreakable control, a puppet for his every whim. For that he needed someone broken. Unfortunately, one such being didn't exactly come floating from the void, so never let it be said that he did not have to work to woo his beloved correctly. No, he would need to find one he could have made into his perfect weapon, a weapon that he could turn toward the task of retrieving the Space Stone at all costs and know without a doubt that the job would be done, that he would have the Space Stone in his hands.
"Lord Thanos." A respectful voice intoned, interrupting the titan's musing.
Thanos looked down at his recently resurrected personal servant, a recent set back that he had deemed necessary of the sacrifice of a particularly powerful artifact. "You have found her then." He said dully, sitting up.
The Other bowed at the waist, "Yes my Lord, though she may take more work than anticipated to return her to working order." He stepped to the side to reveal the broken and twisted form of a blue skinned female whose breathing was a bit raspy, misting blood every other breath. "Being in the Dark Aster as it crashed after fighting Gamora did not leave her much in the way of health."
Thanos let out a deep hum as his eyes settled on the broken heap before him, "Nebula." He rumbled.
The heap shuddered and a pained cry left the blue female's lips involuntarily as she managed to look up at him, "F-father."
Thanos stared at her impassively, "You have betrayed me and yet you still call me father."
Nebula shrunk back as much as possible with her injuries as long lost instincts leap forward in the face of a dangerous alpha, "F-father I-I…"
"Silence." Thanos said coolly, no emotion crossing his face but his anger clear for Nebula to see, having seen it before when tending to the titan. "You betrayed me for Ronan the Accuser, a mere boy playing at power, but I know that loyalty was never what held you here. However, loyal or not, it is time you see firsthand why none have betrayed me before and none will betray me after this day."
"F-ather plea-se…" Nebula choked, coughing up more blood.
Thanos' mouth turned up slightly in a grin that did nothing to help Nebula's terror, "Never let it be said that I am unmerciful. You will be punished for your betrayal and once I am sure you would never again think of betraying me, I shall bestow upon you a glorious purpose." He stroked the orange stone set into his mighty gauntlet, "A purpose that will further my goal and bring me a step closer to her." Nebula shuddered again, she knew exactly who he was speaking of. Thanos looked to The Other, "Take her."
Nebula's eyes widened, her eyes shooting up to look at The Other, whose specialty was well known. "No…"
"Yes My Lord." The Other said, bowing once more before bending and grabbing one of Nebula's nearly obliterated arms.
Nebula screamed in pain and fear as she was dragged away, "No!" she screamed, her struggling only making her wounds worse.
Thanos' smile grew and he set back in his throne, "Yes…a glorious purpose."
The realm of Asgard was a shining beacon, glittering like a jewel in the uppermost branches of Yggdrasil. This grand realm was home to many a great hero, dozens of beautiful woman who started wars with their mere presence, and powerful gods whose legends were told throughout all nine realms. It's capital, the grand palace, boasted more gold than you could shake a brick of gold at. Its forests were bursting with wild game so succulent that it was often deemed ambrosia by the honored guests that ate it. It was truly a place of beauty and wonderment, that many thought to be the glowing example of all things good.
However, many times a shining light can draw the eye away from the darkest shadows.
That was currently a case in the aforementioned grand golden palace where the King sat in his study; staring into the fire, thinking dark thoughts filled with phoenixes and ice.
Odin disliked not having the full picture. The full picture is what allowed him to play anything and everything to his favor. It helped to create both prosperity for his kingdom and an infallible image for himself; both of which he used like the weapons they were. He refused to fall from relevance for missing a single detail that could make or break the image he portrayed to his subjects.
That being said, the situation with the ice phoenix was driving him to distraction. All he could think of was unanswerable questions, swirling around in his mind and sending him spiraling down into a dark place. When would she come back to Asgard? What would she do next? Would she exact revenge against them for what they had done to Loki? Would she slaughter the masses? Would she freeze Idunn's Orchard in retaliation for past slights against Loki's brood? Was she going to try to take the throne by force?
That particular question hit him harder than any other.
A phoenix was certainly powerful enough to do so, especially if she had found her mate and their fire joined in the way of the phoenix. Their most hardened warriors could not stand against a determined phoenix set, they would have only a slightly higher chance against an unmated phoenix whose mind was made up. The only one who would really have a chance against such a creature was a powerful mage, of which Asgard had only two. Frigga, who was firmly on the phoenix's side at the moment, and Loki, who Odin had pushed too far, who would no doubt rather sit back and watch his former homes destruction than stop the phoenix who saved him. The only thing that allowed Odin to breathe easier was the fact that the phoenix seemed young, which allowed him the upper hand of experience.
Another question that rolled through Odin's mind fairly often was, what if she took Thor into her flock?
Odin knew that Thor having a place within the phoenix's, any phoenix's, flock was an honor and something that would prove to their people even more that Thor was worthy to be King one day. He also knew that if Thor and Loki were taken under her wings that they may as well just serve Asgard up to her on a silver platter with a tankard of mead. Odin knew enough of phoenix culture to know that the most powerful of the flock was the leader and could, and frequently would to assert dominance, demand any other member's property as tribute. (Odin knew that 'property' in a phoenix's natural habitat was usually food or treasured gems but he didn't doubt that it could apply to this strange ice phoenix with a bipedal form.)
Odin's jaw clenched as he stared further into the flames, second guessing his actions with Loki for the millionth time and cursing his past self.
He would not allow his kingdom to fall into the wings of a hatchling.
The King knew he needed more information to keep that from happening. He could not work with only half of the facts. He needed to gather information and then plan something beneficial to him.
His eyes falling on a small stack of recent enchanted item permits that he needed to approve, one such plan began to take shape.
For a moment, Odin considered Frigga's rage.
She had torn into him when she discovered that he had bound Sleipnir to his animal form, that he had imprisoned the snake and the wolf with the full knowledge that they could do the same. Frigga hadn't spoken to him for months after that, avoiding him and letting her displeasure be known to the entire realm. It had only been when the Kingdom began to suffer from anger that Frigga had shown quite visibly to all, making many doubt their King and his practices, that Frigga had toned it down.
Luckily for Odin, her displeasure had led to her scheduling a quite long trip to Vanaheim to see her family soon.
Normally, Odin would disapprove of such a thing but now, it left him the perfect opening.
After all, Frigga couldn't be angry with him if she didn't know about it.
Still, he would need more information while he waited for the supplies to enact his brilliant plan. "Huginn, Muninn." Odin called, his loyal ravens appeared from the shadows seconds later and alighted in front of him, "I have a mission for you."
Far, far from the blackness beyond the Void, in a place that lacked the grandeur of mighty Asgard, there was another who schemed far too much for his own good.
Albus was pacing frantically in his blessedly ghost free office.
The paper this morning had been most disturbing.
He had heard about the situation at Diagon Alley from his Order members but to see the picture in the paper was so much worse!
That dog, 'Snuffles' Albus thought with a disbelieving sneer, sitting next to his pawn could be none other than Sirius Black!
"That damn dog." Albus muttered. He didn't know how the mutt survived!
Albus had received a notification when the body was found in his cell in Azkaban and hadn't that been a wonderful day! He had had to keep himself from dancing a silly jig. The death of Black meant that his pawn was now worth even more! He knew for a fact that Sirius had made Harriet his heir with the goblins. That had meant, in that moment, that he would have access to the Black accounts, their artifacts, their grimoires. Of course that excitement had been slightly dimmed when the account manager had been changed but Albus had kept a pep in his step, his other plans had been going well.
Except now they weren't going so well.
That damn girl wasn't taking to any of his plans!
She hadn't befriended Hermione or Ron. She wasn't with the Dursleys. She wasn't timid. She wasn't desperate for approval. She didn't seem to respond to his many, many potions and charms that he knew where supposed to be topped off every other day at this point. She had somehow managed to get a restraining order against him(him! of all people)!She didn't even play the hero role he made for her correctly! According to the paper she had saved the sister of a Slytherin, who had parents that were both Slytherin! She was supposed to hate Slytherins! Not only did she not hate Slytherins, Hermione seemed to believe that Harriet seemed amused by Severus' verbal abuse in potions! He couldn't understand it!
Albus moaned slightly as he rubbed at his forehead, "That girl is giving me a migraine." He muttered quietly to himself.
He had to regain control. NOW.
That girl was getting too wild and unpredictable. Albus knew that he would need to breakout the more emergency oriented plans to get things back on track this year. He could not lose the girl, so many of his plans depended on her sacrifice to end Riddle and the benefits he would reap from that. What he would need to do would be drastic and he would have to alter many of the students and staff's memories to make the sudden changes went unnoticed, but it would be easier than if he had waited longer, a sudden change when the child was young could be explained away by any number of things, the least likely of which being the one he would be employing.
Lily was also a problem.
Albus had no idea how Lily had shown up this long after her death, but she could cause problems. He didn't know if she was haunting him specifically or if the entirety of the school would be able to see her. Albus knew he had to find something to bind her to silence…or rendered her invisible to most, there were many good rituals for that in the sixth Potter Grimoire. Albus knew that he needed to do this soon, he couldn't have her alerting the other teachers or, Merlin forbid, Harriet herself.
That is if Harriet didn't already suspect something.
'That damn dog!' Dumbledore snarled mentally.
He had no idea how Sirius had survived and escaped Azkaban but he could throw a major wrench in his plans. Sirius might have had hero worship for Albus when he was young, in school, and rebelling against his family, but Dumbledore didn't think for a moment that Azkaban wouldn't have darkened his view. There was also the fact that Sirius would know that Albus had left him to rot in that prison by not speaking up about the Potter's true secret keeper. Albus could only hope that Azkaban had addled the man's brain enough to keep him from opening Harriet's eyes. Dumbledore didn't know if he could come out of the full assault of a Marauder still smelling like roses.
'The Marauders!' Dumbledore realized, that thought sparking something in the back of his mind.
If Sirius was alive he didn't doubt that Remus was as well, Sirius would have made for Remus first to reconnect and get information about Harriet. Albus knew his wards would have kept them out of the Dursleys so the real question was exactly how long had they been in contact with Harriet, and he didn't doubt that they had found the girl. From the time the Potter elves had taken her to her Manor at the earliest.
Dumbledore cursed under his breath. He needed to find them and see how much they knew, what they had told Harriet.
Albus stopped in his pacing, his head tilting slightly as another thought entered his mind. 'Could James be…no. Impossible. I examined his body myself. I wouldn't have been fooled. Not by an Azkaban victim and a wolf.'
Dumbledore shook his head and resumed his pacing, the choppy gait smoothing out as he began to make lists and plan.
He would not fail now! This was for the greater good! His greater good! The world under his guidance!
In the North Sea, just off the coast, there was an island that was perpetually plagued by storms. No sunlight reached the little island, its solitary gray building never feeling the warm touch of light against its uniform bricks. No, there was no sunlight, that would have disturbed the stranger of the two populations that inhabited the rock pile. After all, Dementors wouldn't stay if it didn't have darkness to thrive in. They preferred the dark, obviously.
The second population of the island wouldn't have minded some sun so much, but they weren't really in the position to request such things now were they?
This second population all resided in the one building that stood on the island. They all wore rather strange clothes, all matching, because that's what was in now-a-days, right? They all had their own rooms, which may have seemed luxurious if it hadn't been for what each room contained; a single worn pallet, a threadbare blanket, and a pathetic beaten up bucket. These rooms also all had bars across the doorways, how barbaric!
A member of this second population had thought this all before and would think it all again.
What else did she have to do?
"My Lord will come for me." She hummed, picking at a split end idly. Surprisingly the food they served on this island getaway didn't support the health of her beautiful hair or nails. She pouted as she looked at the poor, grimy, chipped things on the end of her fingers, "Should get our money back."
A banging sound came from the dreadfully cliché bars and she shot up on her cot, grinning manically as she saw a guard standing there with a small bowl of slop held through the bars. "Food is here 93. Come get it while its cold."
She shot forward and grabbed the bowl while snapping her teeth at the guard, giggling when he reared back, quickly getting out of range. "Ah, you havin' trouble with little 'ol me?" she asked, twirling a frizzy strand of hair. "What a disappointment. I thought you were a real auror. Oh wait…"
"Just eat 93. I have things to do." The guard said, his jaw clenched in anger but managing to roll his eyes, he leaned against the opposite wall and pulled out a paper to read while she ate.
She pouted but slurped obnoxiously at the slop in the bowl, "Anything good?" she asked curiously, eyeing the paper.
The guard looked at her over the top before smirking, "Yeah, looks like you're a failure as well as a prisoner, 93." He turned the paper so she could see the front, "This is Harriet Potter." She snarled at the name and the guard grinned, "She saved a little girl yesterday, but before that it seems she was in the Alley with Frank and Alice Longbottom." The man tapped at his chin exaggeratedly, "Isn't that the couple you were supposed to have torture into insanity 93? Will your 'lord' come for such a pathetic…" the man cut off with a splutter when he suddenly had slop sprayed in his face. He wiped the slop off his face and glared at the prisoner, "Did you just…"
"My Lord will come for me! And I'll gut you first!" she raged, throwing the empty bowl at the guard and managing to hit him square in the forehead with a satisfying thunk.
The guard ripped the whole front page from the paper before crumpling it up and tossing it at the prisoner, "Enjoy your failure 93. And no dinner for you."
She snarled at the man and paced the length of her room like a caged animal.
She guessed she was.
Pouting she crouched next to the crumpled up paper and smoothed it out, reading over the whole article and sneering at the mention of the Longbottoms. She hissed at the picture of the Potter, the one who took her Lord from her, then something else caught her eye. The dog who was supposed to have saved the little girl with the Potter.
She knew that dog.
Her idiot cousin wasn't as subtle as he'd like to think.
She drew herself up, with the paper still in hand, as a wicked smile came across her face, "Maybe I should go meet my Lord halfway. After all, ickle Siri shouldn't be the only one to have some fun."
Lol Thanos wont take a hint.
Place your bets now!
No, Thanos doesn't know about Wizards and Witches. If Asgard can't see them, I found it very unlikely that he would find them.
The Other was resurrected by the Wand of Watoob.
Also, yeah, I had to jack around with the marvel timeline specifically so I could have the Guardians in a place where they could potentially visit but not so they would mess up my invasion plans.
Odin is a different kind of villain. Still a bloody villain though. The asshole.
No, Odin is not correct about a lot of the phoenix culture. He only knows what he thinks he has observed and drew conclusions about. There is also the fact that Harri wasn't born a phoenix, so...yeah, it gonna be a bit different anyway.
Lily is off learning from Peeves. I didn't want her disturbing our look into Dumbles thought process.
My, my, who could 93 be?
Next time: New Division, Professor X, New DADA teacher.