Possession
Chapter XLI - In His Burning
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Harry floated. He was warm, he was comfortable and he was content. The worries he knew had been plaguing him were gone and he couldn't quite remember what it was that had been worrying him. It was quiet here and he could feel his limbs gently swaying as he lay with a languid calm. He sighed contentedly, prepared to drift into sleep when there came a sharp tug on his senses.

He didn't even think about it as he unconsciously swatted at the thing disturbing him but Harry was further surprised when his efforts were met with a laugh.

-Master... You cannot get rid of us like that...- The voice had many echoes, as if there was more than one person speaking but they were all amused.

Green eyes opened and looked around. There was nothing to see but he recognised where he was. He'd seen this nothingness before, felt the almost liquid resistance to his movements in the past... after Millicent had raped him... So why was he here this time?

-We brought you here,- the shadows said and Harry frowned. There was something else there.

-Sirius..?- He questioned uncertainly as he vaguely recognised the presence.

-Oh...- The shadows said in a saddened voice. -He will be changed by us, Master. We brought you here to save you and we can do that without changing you. We are sorry, Master, he has already taken us into himself and we cannot undo that... not without loosing you and we will not allow that.- The shadows made the statement with such force that Harry mutely nodded at them, accepting their words without question. -He will be changed.- They repeated although their entire meaning was unclear.

The presence that was Sirius was only faint, as if he wasn't fully here but Harry still felt his Godfather bob his head in recognition. -It's alright,- Sirius' voice seemed to come from a distance, echoing faintly. -But I would like to speak to you at another time,- his voice faded as his presence seemed to rise through the darkness, disappearing.

The consciousness that seemed to be the darkness appeared uncertain but Harry privately thought it would be useful for both of them. -As our Master commands,- the shadows then said after a slight pause and while all feeling of Sirius had vanished, Harry was sure that he had heard and he dismissed the matter, knowing that Sirius would not rest until he was happy.

-Save me?- Harry questioned as the implications of what the darkness had previously said became clear. -Why do I need saving?-

-Look!-

In the complete nothingness that was everything an image appeared and Harry knew it was an image of the past. He was in it, so was Sirius, and Xaos was curled at his feet, hissing spitefully at the black robed people gathered around him and his Godfather. Instinctively Harry looked towards his arm and wasn't surprised to see Xaos curled there, tongue flickering and green eyes burning intently as the little basilisk watched the image as well.

$Master,$ Xaos said softly, tightening his coils slightly to reassure Harry as the image began to move.

He watched as Draco and his cronies began to cast curses at him and Harry's fingers twitched as he suppressed the urge to mutter the counter charms. He growled unconsciously as Sirius was hit, making sure he noted who had done it. He could do nothing now... There would be time for that later.

Draco stopped casting and Harry frowned as the blond spoke in the image. By the twisted expression on the grey-eyed boys face it wasn't hard to discern the Slytherins frustration but for the life of him, Harry couldn't remember what Draco had said.

...for the life of him... Harry snorted at his own feelings as he saw the Slytherin cast the all to familiar green spell at Sirius.

He'd heard about people who claimed to have watched things in abstract, floating above their bodies as things happened and this was close but unlike them Harry wasn't dispassionate. His eyes glowed and a cold anger gathered in his gut as he watched himself take the spell for his Godfather. He wasn't angry with himself, he'd do it again to save Sirius and he wasn't angry with Sirius. From the look of anguish on the black haired mans face, Sirius was wishing that he had been hit a thousand times before he would even conceive of his Godson doing that. No... Harry was angry at Draco... more than angry... The Slytherin had crossed the line... He had no concept of the power he used...

Harry wasn't a fool. Voldemort used that curse, used it often but the Dark Lord, his beloved, knew of the power, knew of the potential consequences of taking even one life... Draco just saw the power, just saw the spell and the fact that it could be used... He had no concept of true power... And that is why Harry was angry...

-Send me back!- He demanded of the Shadows, his green eyes literally throwing out motes of power.

-There is something else,- they countered, although they did not seem upset.

-What?-

The image changed and Harry vaguely recognised the darkened stone of the Ministry Atrium. It was crowded, every vantage point was packed. From the cut of the robes he could see, there appeared to be three groups. The Death Eaters he recognised easily from their masks and jet robes, the Aurors were similarly familiar but there was another group, in coloured robes he didn't recognise until the image focused on a pasty white face. Vampires. He recognised them from his dream and he felt a faint swirl of disgust coming from the shadows.

There was a small clearing though and the shadowy image spiralled to focus on that and Harry instantly recognised the two people fighting there. Lucius Malfoy and Voldemort. He watched them trade curses and felt a vague pride mixed with admiration at the way the Dark Lord fought. There was no wasted movement, no wasted magic. Every curse was cast precisely with a grace Harry hoped he'd be able to imitate one day. It was beautiful.

As he watched though he could see Voldemort becoming agitated and frowned slightly, wondering what was causing such obvious, at least to him, distress as the Dark Lord cast several curses in quick succession, signalling to a waiting basilisk that it was free to join the battle before he turned his magic on the spectators.

It was awe inspiring and more than a little chilling as Harry recalled, somewhat inappropriately how those hands, that were now wielding the most deadly magics with ease, had made him ache with pleasure. Harry wasn't distracted by such thoughts for long as he watched Lucius kill the constructed Basilisk and then turn with gloating eyes to watch the spell back lash into Voldemort.

He watched, with a soft smile of satisfaction as the Dark Lord ignored the pain of the broken spell to cast his shield charms perfectly before launching new attacks at Lucius. Attacks that the blond had the bad taste to counter. Harry could feel his ire rising as watched. At least now he knew where Draco got his unthinking arrogance about power. His father was equally, if not more stupid than the son, in thinking that he could use a vampire's strength.

-Help him!- He hissed the command to the Shadows as the blond continued to stand against his beloved.

-No.-

-Then let me!-

-Not yet. It is not finished yet,- the shadows returned his attention to the image as the older Malfoy cast Avada Kedrava.

"What!" Harry exclaimed when his beloved did not move but he felt a slight stir of relief when the Dark Lord cast a personal shield but that vanished with the shield.

What had Lucius cast to incapacitate his beloved?

As the green spell struck Harry felt his power explode within him. He could feel every cell in his body pulsing with energy in time with his heartbeat. He saw red as he watched the Dark Lord fall and he unthinkingly cast about, searching for the way out of the endless dark. "Unforgivable..." he snarled. "Help him."

-No.-

-Help him,- Harry's eyes narrowed at the defiance and a small lash of power rippled out from him.

-Make us.- There was a note of malice in the Shadow's voice that he had never heard before.

Red energy collected around Harry and he whipped it through the darkness, into the presences he could feel there.

-Heh! You think such energy will hurt us?- The question was scornful. -Why should we obey someone who is so weak?- The shadows exerted their own power back at him, nudging into him painfully and Harry suppressed a hiss of pain. They would obey him or their fate would be no different to Lucius'.

-You would let the vampires win?- He countered.

-They cannot win over us.-

-I can though.-

-A human? Defeat us..?-

-You are the power of Gryffindor and I am Gryffindor's Heir. You will obey me,- Harry snapped at the shadows as Xaos squeezed his arm reassuringly.

$Master,$ the little serpent hissed, looking up at him with green eyes that mirrored his own.

Harry blinked but after a moment he smiled. Xaos had said a lot more than the single word. He took a deep breath, releasing his anger. He didn't release it completely, since he would need it to be able to strike effectively, he just released enough that it was no longer interfering with his power flows.

-You will obey me,- he repeated, this time gathering pure white energy into his hand. He felt the shadows flinch back from it. This was his true power. Any wizard could strike with the red energy he had been using, the energy of rage but such power was of the shadows and it could not compel them. This energy though, this light was his and it was the true power of Gryffindor - the power to destroy the shadows and that which could destroy them, could rule them. -Now, help him!- He commanded forcefully.

-We cannot, Master,- the Shadows recognised his ability, -not until you are there.-

Harry nodded, understanding what they were saying as he gathered more power into himself. He could hardly interfere in a wizarding battle as he was, not if he wanted Xeoaph and Lucius to take him seriously and not if he wanted to remain anonymous, and for the moment, anonymity would be useful to him.

The dark nothingness did not change but around Harry his energy gathered in tangible lines. Green swirled around him, transfiguring his cloths and he could feel the Shadows weaving their own power into his new raiments. A long hooded cloak wrapped its way around him and on his shins and forearms he could feel the weight of armour. A breastplate appeared under his robes protecting his heart and a long sword appeared beside him. He could feel a wand resting against his left forearm. Harry frowned, the wand was warm with contained power and it tingled in much the same way as his had done when he first touched it in Ollivander's. But he knew he'd left his wand in his pocket on his right thigh so where had this one come from..? He shook his head as a hiss came from above him.

Xaos had been included in his change. The small black serpent had left its usual place on his arm and had grown and was now wrapped around him. Black scales and shadows twined together imperceptibly and in the nothingness it was impossible to say where one ended and the other began. Xaos' green eyes had changed, and now glowed a brilliant ruby red, the true eyes of a basilisk. His crest was raised in a traditional threat display and his fangs were barred as he reared protectively over his Master, the warning obvious.

-Say the word, Master, and we will obey.- The Shadows affirmed their loyalty quietly when Harry was ready.

-Save me.-

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