Chapter 8

Summary:

Nick and Sean really seem to slip up a lot when it comes to Harry.

Notes:

SURPRISE!

Harry

Harry mentally cursed as his mind scrambled to find a way out of the situation that he's placed himself in. Sean's words about the original Wesen had struck a chord and finally gave him an answer to the pull he felt towards the man.

The question now was whether it was because Sean was the only Zauberbiest that was close enough to the original wizards or whether it was because his magic sensed that the man was in pain.

And the man was in pain, though it wasn't mental or physical, the man's soul was crying out in its fractured state and if he hadn't known that the magic to create Horcruxes didn't exist anymore, then he would've thought that the man had just tried to shoddily piece his soul together after reuniting all of the pieces.

He wondered whether it was because something in the royal blood forcefully tried to separate the two halves of the man, something similar to the reason why squibs were unable to access their magic in the past.

The thought made a shiver pass through him and had him glancing to the side, only for some inspiration to strike him as he spotted one of the heirloom necklaces of the Peverell family.

He nodded to Sean in affirmation of his request for proof and moved over to the piece.

The necklace exuded magic, but even though only those of the Peverell's blood could use it, he was sure that Sean would be able to sense the power it held within.

He gently held onto the piece and then subtly channeled his magic through his other hand as he focused on a nearby chair. He slowly levitated it before dropping it, allowing it to break into pieces and then fixing it once more. The simple first-year spells almost had him smiling fondly in remembrance of his years at Hogwarts, but he snapped himself out of it before he could lose himself too much.

He glanced toward the other two men and couldn't help but grin at their shocked expressions, apparently, first-year spells were all it took to give Sean the proof he needed.

As the magic stopped, he saw the man glancing hungrily at the necklace and he smiled wryly in understanding, "I know what you are thinking, but I doubt that it would work. This necklace only works for those of my blood. Besides, the rituals may just fix the part that you are missing."

Sean's eyes widened slightly in surprise, "What are the odds of it working against not?"

Harry shrugged, "About 3 out of 4. It just depends on whether the original Wesen energy would be able to fully synchronize with your own."

Sean stared at him for a moment, as if in deep thought before he voiced his next question, "And what would happen if the energy doesn't synchronize with mine at all?"

Harry blinked at him in confusion before he realized what the man meant. He quickly shook his head, "There are no negative consequences even if that were to happen. The rituals are meant to heal, not cause harm. The energy would simply disappear into the ground if it senses that it cannot fulfill its purpose."

He immediately noticed his mistake as he casually answered when Nick stepped closer with a frown, "You've used these rituals before? For whom? How do you know what happens if someone is not compatible?"

Harry pushed his panic down and simply raised a brow, "If you must know, both rituals were used on me." He closed himself off, not willing to say anything more so instead he turned and walked toward the designated ritual room.

He just wanted to get the rituals over and done with so that the two men could leave him alone. Nick's questions had yanked at barely-healed wounds of betrayal that he hadn't wanted to unbox just yet, but unfortunately, it seemed the time has come to face some of his past ghosts.

Nick

Nick regretted his question the moment he saw how closed-off Harry became, but he didn't have any time to try and soften his words as Harry immediately turned to lead them to another room.

The shadow that had entered the young man's eyes at his words left an unsettling feeling in his stomach, and his response even more so. Why had Harry needed the rituals in the first place?

He glanced at Sean, but the other man's gaze was firmly set on the retreating man's back.

Sean had told him a bit about his past, but it had only been the bare minimum to prove that he was different from the rest of his family, not that Nick had required it in the least, but still, it had left quite an impression on him.

Though he still struggled to sometimes look past the fact that Sean had tried to kill his Aunt on numerous occasions in the past, and that led to him second-guessing Sean's motives quite often, he knew that they had a better chance to survive if they worked together instead of alone.

They entered a near-empty room and for a moment Nick thought that Harry was trying to trick them again, but the humor that had been present in his gaze earlier was now nowhere to be seen as he turned and Nick wondered what had happened to the young man that enabled him to pull up such a practiced blank mask.

He stepped back as Harry pointed him towards the far side of the room and for a moment he thought it was because of what he'd said, but then he noticed the symbols on the floor and he took extra care to not step, or even get close to, any of them as he moved toward his designated spot.

He jumped slightly when a mostly transparent film sprang up around him the moment he entered the area and he just barely withheld the impulse to demand that Harry release him as he found that he couldn't step through it. So far they had greatly misjudged the young man at every turn and he knew that if they continued on that path, it might cause Harry to turn from them completely.

Nick moved to sit down on the chair that had been provided and as such he missed the relieved expression that crossed Harry's face, but Sean didn't.

Sean

Sean expected the Grimm to demand his release the moment the mostly transparent wall sprang up around him, but he was glad that he didn't when he noted that Harry's shoulders slightly relaxed and a ghost of a relieved smile crossed his face before he turned towards him.

Harry motioned for him to step into the area that was surrounded by candles and they immediately lit themselves as he did so. His mind raced as he wondered what else the original Wesen could do and whether Harry was able to use most of the power, but then he reminded himself that Harry had left the necklace at home, meaning that it probably didn't have enough energy to be used infinitely.

He listened intently to Harry's instructions as he explained what would happen during the ritual and then sat down cross-legged while glancing warily at the floor. Though surprisingly, there wasn't a speck of dust and he wondered how Harry kept the place so clean without any obvious help around. Surely he wouldn't use the necklace's power to simply clean a castle?

Sean froze as Harry got onto one knee in front of him. The raven-haired man looked slightly worried, "This might hurt you know. I don't know the extent of the damage that needs to be fixed so I cannot guarantee that it will only hurt a little either."

Sean studied the other man, trying to judge whether the man was simply worried about his reaction after the ritual, or whether he was simply just worried about him, "I've had worse."

Harry grimaced slightly, "I doubt it."

Sean wanted to say something else, but instead, he closed his mouth and nodded for the other man to continue.

Harry stood and picked up the book, which he'd left on the pedestal close to the circle of candles. The air around him seemed to change and for a moment Sean almost didn't recognize the man as his hair and clothes seemed to move with an unseen power.

Though it was his eyes that caught Sean's attention the most. The green eyes now seemed to glow brightly as if someone had lit a flame behind them and if he had to be completely honest to himself, the man looked extremely intimidating and very hot.