Chapter 16
'Do I really have to do this?'
'Yes,' Loki insisted. 'Unless you would prefer to be in the heat of combat when you find out whether or not it works.'
'Can't I take it off first?' Harry pleaded.
'Without your magic running through it, it will not work.' Impatience was obvious in Loki's tone, 'Now hurry up. I will numb the pain.'
With a sigh, Harry pressed the gun to his side and pulled the trigger. A brief pain shot through him, as though he had been punched, but Loki immediately did away with it. It hadn't been as bad as things that Harry had previously experienced, but if it hadn't worked, healing the wound wouldn't be a pleasant experience if the bullet remained inside him.
Looking down to his side, he grinned. No blood flowed from his side, and as intended, his skin-tight undershirt hadn't been penetrated. That had been its purpose, after all. As a result of the encounter with SHIELD, Loki and Harry had decided to set in place better countermeasures for the weapons of muggles, Loki deeming Harry now powerful enough to create a method more efficient than just pouring power into his skin.
This had resulted in the spawning of what was essentially a skin-tight layer of clothing split into leggings, a top, and matching gloves covering all of Harry's body but for his head. It was carved with a range of near invisible runes, each working together to make it resistant against damage – and of course to make it cold and comfortable. It would not stop the large majority of spells, but making a magic-resistant version would consume too much power and would need to be made out of special metals or other powerful materials.
Unlike a real metal suit of armour, his "armour," as he mockingly called it, was easily hidden under normal clothes, so he also wouldn't have to walk around looking like an Asgardian soldier – a great advantage when trying to blend in.
As he grew more powerful, he would be able to afford to put more power into his armour to the point where he wouldn't even be staggered by sniper rifle rounds – provided that they didn't go through his head, of course. That was a problem he would need to fix. Loki could heal wounds on his body anyway; the armour just greatly decreased the needed energy. A serious brain injury was another matter entirely.
Loki lived within his mind, his soul, and if they were destroyed, he would most likely go with them. Nonetheless, wearing a helmet would be too attention-drawing to do, and in a few years he would be naturally bulletproof anyway. For now, it would be best to stay out of trouble. Unfortunately, he wasn't very good at that.
A few hours later, Harry found himself starting a brawl against a few muggle thugs to test out the effectiveness of his armour. Well, brawl implied that there was a chance of either side winning, when it really consisted of him standing there deflecting blows that came at his face and laughing as the fists of his opponents broke against his armour without harming him in the slightest.
'I feel like Superman or something.' Harry paused. 'Do you think there's a laser vision spell?'
'Probably, but it doesn't seem like it would be very convenient.'
Harry glared at the now fleeing muggles, willing his magic to surge up and raze them in a blast of red-hot light. Suffice to say, it didn't work.
'What about flying?' he asked. 'Flying would be convenient.'
Loki sighed. 'That's what they have broomsticks for, but it would be unwise to trust mortal enchantment – especially if they thought that broomsticks were the best objects to make fly.' Disdain was clear in his tone. 'I suppose that it will eventually be possible for us to achieve flight. No wizard has managed to, but that isn't saying much. I highly doubt you will be breaking the sound barrier any time soon, however.' He paused for a moment. 'I think I have an idea about what we need to enchant next, and no, it's not to do with flying, or laser vision.'
A black-cloaked figure stood over a table, a razor-sharp knife gleaming in his hand as he carved into the object below him. If his face had not been concealed by a gleaming white skull mask, his maniacal grin would have been visible. Red eyes shone from within the mask, staring down upon his work.
"Yes," he hissed. "My precious."
Suddenly, something in the air around him seemed to shift, his magic-enhanced senses the only thing allowing him to sense the minor change. He looked up for a moment, searching for any unseen enemy, and that was enough to distract him, causing him to let go of the tight leash he was holding upon his magic in order to power the runes.
A bright gold light burst from the object upon the table, the power in the unfinished runes exploding outwards and throwing the figure backwards. He crashed against the wall and felt his magic flare slightly as it flowed through his clothes and protected him from the impact. Nonetheless, he let out a groan.
'Loki, what the hell was that?'
For once, the god sounded confused. 'I'm not really sure. It felt almost as if there was a tug on your magic, but I cannot sense the intent behind it.' He paused as he racked through his brain for more information. 'The closest thing I can think of is an attempted summoning ritual, but you cannot summon a mortal.'
'Perhaps they were trying to summon you?' Harry suggested.
'I do not think so. As far as I am aware, there are no rituals to summon Asgardians, but perhaps because I am a spirit….' he trailed off. 'Anyway, start working on your wand again, and for God's sake take off that Halloween costume; that ridiculous mask is blocking your vision. You're too old for trick-or-treating anyway, and no one even does it in England.'
'Oh relax, killjoy. You're never too old to go around terrifying people. My costume is awesome enough, and with illusions added to it….' Harry cackled in a decidedly Loki-esque manner.
'Whatever. Now finish the runes on the wand if you want to get out.'
'Fine, fine,' Harry thought, moving back to the table only to find it smashed with his wand lying unharmed amongst the wreckage. Casting a quick repairing charm, he got back to work.
A few hours of inhumanly precise and elaborate carving later, Harry stood in the middle of relatively undamaged room holding his wand, a few more runes now carved into its surface.
"Here we go," he muttered, and then began to channel his willpower into it, willing the new runes into action. For a moment it glowed a gentle gold, and then elongated into a spear of Asgardian design.
Harry sighed in relief, willing it back into its original form. 'Are you bloody happy now Loki? I have a spear, but no idea whatsoever how to use it.'
'It is rather simple,' said Loki. 'You point the spear at them and then use it to defeat them in combat.' Harry snorted. 'Anyway, you go and enjoy your Halloween. Strike terror into the hearts of mortals.'
That night, many muggles would go on to experience terrifying "hallucinations," varying from being swarmed by hellhounds to getting sexually propositioned by zombies. Some would also report the Grim Reaper himself cackling nearby, clad in a black cloak with a spear rather than a scythe. All of these accusations wouldn't be taken seriously of course, classified as people getting a little too drunk at Halloween parties, and that was exactly what Harry had wanted.
The morning afterwards he awoke rather late, having only gotten to bed in the early hours of the morning. Entering Diagon Alley, he suddenly paused as Loki said, 'Stop,' just as he passed a store selling newspapers. 'I think I may have found the source of last night's magical pull.'
Harry stared at the headline of the Daily Prophet, fighting down the maelstrom of emotion that had just formed within him. 'I think I agree.'
Upon the front of the news paper read: Does the Boy-Who-Lived still live? Harry Potter selected for Tri-Wizard Tournament.
A few minutes later Harry was back in his room, reading the paper as fast as possible. It detailed how the night before four champions instead of three had been chosen for the Tri-Wizard tournament, one of them being him.
'How the hell has this happened, Loki?'
'I don't have a bloody clue,' hissed Loki, 'It obviously wasn't us who entered, but who has the power to enter us into a contest that takes our magic if we don't compete? They would have to use a conduit like….'
'What?' Harry demanded.
'Blood.' Loki's tone held a sense of condemnation that Harry most certainly didn't like. 'Blood would work, but not any blood produced since I have inhabited you, which would be the only type the wizards would possess anyway. Asgardian and Jotun blood is too powerful to use in a vow or contract-like ritual, so it would just be mortal blood.' Loki frowned. 'I estimate that it has the potential to rip any mortal magic from your body.'
For a few seconds Harry was silent. Wizard magic was the most vital part of his power. Losing it was simply not an option. 'So I guess we're competing now.'
'Fear not. It could have been much worse if our enemies had been smart enough to enter us into a contract that wasn't a contest designed for children,' Loki sneered. 'Nonetheless, I will ward us so that it does not happen again – not that our mysterious foe will be able to do anything like this again after our wrath has been imparted upon them, and their body is too mangled to bury.' He hummed thoughtfully. 'I suppose your true identity was going to have to interact with the world at some point, and why not upon a stage where you can demonstrate just how powerful you are to these mortals?'
Harry grinned at Loki's tone. Perhaps - and that was only perhaps - this might be a good thing. 'Would this be an appropriate time to cackle?'
'Yes.'
'Manically?'
'Most definitely.'
Albus Dumbledore was more confused, surprised, and – dare he say it – scared than he had been in years. These feelings were not rivalled by even the events that had occurred in the previous few schools years. Quirrel's attempt at stealing the Philosopher's Stone had been rather pathetic, given the fact he had kept the real one in his pocket the whole time. A Basilisk roaming the school? Not a problem. It wasn't difficult for one of his resources and ability to find a way into the Chamber of Secrets. Sirius Black's rage about him managing to lose Harry had been much scarier than the fact he had been in the school in the first place, even if Dumbledore knew that the man was no match for him in combat.
No. This turmoil boiling within his gut was almost equivalent to the terror he had felt when he first sensed the fall of the blood wards around Privet Drive. With no sign of Harry Potter, and the Hogwarts letter leading to an empty room – surely a mistake – he had assumed the boy dead. If he was dead, however, his name wouldn't have came out the Goblet of Fire.
Harry Potter being alive was arguably worse than him being dead. Who knew where the boy was? The Hogwarts letter would have found his real address if he hadn't been hidden behind a ward, so he had to be with a witch or wizard. This was the source of Dumbledore's horror. No ally of his would hide the boy from him, so it was likely the child was with a dark-orientated family. Who knew what fate had befallen the boy there? Torture? Or perhaps being raised to be a follower of Voldemort? At this point, he didn't know what was worse.
Nonetheless, Dumbledore felt immense relief at the fact the Boy-Who-Lived continued to live – and that disgusted him. How far had he fallen that he would wish even the chance of torture upon a child if it meant the Chosen One continued to live? It was for the good of the wizarding world, he assured himself, but that only magnified the disgust as he was reminded that had been the motive of both Grindelwald and Lord Voldemort.
Whatever Dumbledore thought, it didn't matter, for Harry Potter would be forced to come to Hogwarts by the magic of the tournament, and who knew what awaited him there? After all, someone, had to have put his name in the Goblet of Fire, and Dumbledore only knew of one man – one abomination – with the motivation, knowledge, and power to do it. And if he still lived, the prophecy was still in motion.
A/N: Sorry about not uploading yesterday, I just straight-up forgot that I was meant to. Anyway, tell me what you thought!
