Chapter 12
Blinking his eyes Harry immediately felt the stinging of the rain and howling of the wind once more. To his right stood Max who also seemed to be coming to from her little Time trip and in front of both of them stood Chloe watching as the Tornado once again tore it's way towards the city. He was here in Arcadia, which meant that he was on this assignment already. They were still in the original timeline!
Before he could voice his happiness at that, Max rushed forward calling Chloe's name and wrapping her arms around her.
"I see that the real Max is back... Are you back to?" the blue haired girl asked as she turned to Harry.
He nodded with a smile on his face.
"Oh Chloe, you're alive, you're really alive! I did so much to bring you back and it worked!"
"Looks like even fate doesn't want us apart. And you travelled through multiple realities to get me back... I don't deserve you, Max."
"Oh no, Chloe! I'm the official Drama King and Queen of Arcadia, just look at what my powers have caused this week alone!"
Harry stepped forward, knowing this could probably go on for another hour or so.
"Ladies, I'm sorry to interrupt but maybe we should get a move on before we're crushed by that fucking tornado?"
"Harry! I'm so sorry for the way we... well I treated you! I was a mega bitch, and I was just really upset and just took it out on you. For whatever reason that we'll probably never figure out, the three of us are here, right now. I have to think Rachel had her hand in this, that she's fighting for justice behind the scenes." Chloe stated with a smile as she regarded the other two.
"More than you know." Harry muttered quietly.
"Chloe, Harry the storm's getting bigger, we should move to the lighthouse, we'll be safe there. Oh God, I can't believe I did this..." Max yelled in despair.
"Stop it! Stop beating yourself up, okay?! We've both paid our dues!"
Harry looked at the path towards the lighthouse and found it to be very dangerous. He reached out and grabbed the two girls.
"Hold on! This is going to be a bit uncomfortable!"
Max's eyes widened comically before she tried to stop him. But it was too late, Harry spun on the spot and apparated the girls and himself to the top of the hill near the lighthouse.
"What the fuck was that?!" Chloe asked as she doubled over in pain.
"Sorry about that! But it was... the... the fastest..."
"Harry...! Oh... Chloe..."
The blue haired girl's eyes widened in shock as her two friends simultaneously collapsed. She rushed over and tried to pull them away from the ledge and to saftey.
-Magic is Strange-
Max sat up at her desk with a gasp.
"Wh- What?"
"Alfred Hitchcock famously called film 'little pieces of time' - but he could be talking about photography, as he always was."
Max frowned as she once again found herself back in Jefferson's class, once more listening to the lecture he gave on Monday. She looked around and found herself wondering if she had fucked with time so much that she had actually found herself trapped in some kind of time loop. Constantly forced to repeat the events of this week for all of eternity... she was convinced she was in Hell.
There was a sudden slam against the window and she turned to face it, only to see a blood stain on the glass. Then as if a flood gate opened more and more appeared, increasing in frequency, until the entire classroom was bathed in a red hue from the entire window being covered in the blood of what seemed to have been pigeons. She looked around and noticed not a single person acknowledge it.
The bell rang loudly through the classroom and as if she had been in a dream, she was alone, not a single person in the classroom, not a drop of blood on the window, not a sound from anywhere.
"Everyone's... gone? Have I fucked up time?" she muttered to herself as she too stood from her desk and threw the strap of her bag over her shoulder and made to move to the window.
She gasped and took an involuntary step back, birds dozens and dozens of birds lay dead right outside the window.
"Holy shit... this can't be real..." she muttered to herself before headed for the classroom door.
"I see you Max Caulfield. Don't even think about leaving here until we talk about your entry."
Turning faster than she thought possible Max saw Thomas Jefferson; murdering, sociopathic Jefferson, standing by his desk in the classroom, before she could leave, her body led her over to him.
"I just wanted to know if... you'd like to spend the rest of your life in my Dark Room? Your purity inspires me so much... and we could be so happy together... Who needs selfies, when I can give you portraiture?"
"What the fuck? What the fuck?! What the fuck?!" Max thought as she desperately wished to get away from the man in front of her.
"I've been dreaming of the day when you would finally tell me... I love you, Mr Jefferson." she heard herself respond.
"Call me Mark. We need to play catch-up on all the time we've... wasted. Especially since there's nobody left in your life. I love you too, Max."
The brown haired girl felt absolutely sick to her stomach hearing herself say those things and even worse when the man responded in kind. She shut her eyes tightly and when she opened them once again, Jefferson was gone, once more leaving her in the classroom. Alone.
Max turned and as quickly as she could left the Photography classroom, only to find her self in the hallway of the girls dormitory. As she ventured in further, she sees Kate crying as she lights a candle for her own vigil.
"K-Kate?"
"Max, why did you stop me from jumping? What kind of friend are you? You never understood me, or what happened to me. Now my family will never leave me alone, and that means I'll always be alone... thanks to you."
"Kate... no, tha- that isn't true."
She watched as Kate opened the door to her room, only to see pure blackness, before the girl jumped and disappeared into an abyss. As she quickly gathered her bearings, Max rushed after her, throwing the door open and rushing through... only to find herself standing at the entranceway of the hall once more.
"W-What the fuck is going on? God, Harry where are you?"
-Magic is Strange-
Harry groaned as he sat up from his place on the floor.
"What happened?" he asked out loud.
"It would appear as though your magic is stretched rather thin, my Lord."
He spun to face the unfamiliar voice and saw what could only be described as a hooded figure. He couldn't gleam anything from it. It simply stood beside him, as he slowly made his way to his feet.
"You must have many questions."
Harry frowned, the figure didn't seem like a threat, as it simply stood? hovered? Beside him waiting patiently.
"Wh- Who are you?"
"Ah, of course, the most common question. I was rather hoping you would begin this with an original one, but alas it would seem as though I have been let down. I go by many names, and will continue to be called many things as life goes on, but I am commonly known, as Death."
Harry felt his breath hitch in his throat. He stared at the figure, more than a bit skeptical at it's claim to be the actual incarnation of Death.
"So, what? Am I dead?" he asked with a small frown.
The figure calling itself Death let out a short laugh. "Dead?! No, master, not at all. You are very much alive."
"Then, what am I doing here? And why do you keep calling me master?!"
"I do not know why you have summoned me to this plane, master? I simply sensed that you were in need of my assistance. As for why I keep calling you Master, I think we both know the reason for that."
Harry could hear the satisfaction in the beings voice. God, he couldn't even tell if they were male or female. When he finally registered what the being had said, he felt his blood run cold.
"What do you mean?!"
"Now Master, we both know you aren't that stupid. You are well aware of what I mean."
"Just answer my question!"
"Tsk, tsk, temper, temper. Such behaviour is unbecoming... for the Master of Death."
Harry felt himself stumble. "N- No... no, it's a tale! A story made up for children!"
"As were you at one point, Master. Battling Dragons, capturing Dark Wizards... all told in tales for children, and yet here you are, having accomplished those very tasks."
Harry wanted to deny it, he wanted to call the being a liar and demand they reveal themselves. But he couldn't, because a small part of him knew. A small part had accepted the tales, the legends and the stories. A part of him had noticed that his abilities had risen since the combination of the Hallows, that he felt more invincible, more indestructible. A part of him knew... that this being really was Death.
"What do you want with me?" he asked with a sneer.
"As I have stated before Master, it is not what I want from you, but rather what you have summoned me for."
"I didn't summon you."
"Oh but you have, Master-"
"And would you stop calling me that!"
"Calling by anything else would be an insult."
Harry growled irritably.
"So you're saying you're here to answer my questions?"
"That is correct, Master."
Harry chose to ignore the way he was being addressed and simply decided to figure out just what the hell was going on.
"What happened before I showed up here?"
"You were with the Caufield girl, as well as an escaped soul."
Harry frowned at that. "Escaped soul?"
"Ah, yes, apologies. I believe you refer to her as, Chloe."
Harry's eyes widened as he remembered the situation.
"Chloe, Max... the tornado! How do I stop the tornado?"
"You have many powers, Master, but even you cannot stop balance."
Balance? "What do you mean by that?"
"The escaped soul-"
"Chloe, her name is Chloe!"
"Apologies, Master. When Chloe's soul escaped my grasp it created an imbalance in the universe. Her soul continued to go on, causing many of my instruments to go... haywire. I have tried many times to reclaim her soul. But, due to Miss Aboril- I mean Amber's interference and Miss Caulfield's abilities, I have yet to be able to claim her."
"So then why the tornado?!"
"Balance, Young Master, the universe survives on it. It thrives on it. When the esca- Chloe's soul was no longer in the land of the dead, nature demanded it's due. But before it could collect, you and miss Caufield would travel to another world, and begin to throw that one into chaos as well. And now, the accumulation of your meddling has come. Mother Nature will always get her due, Master."
"So what?! Chloe's just supposed to die?! I can't just let that happen! I swore to Rachel that I would save her, I swore to Max that I'd keep her safe, I refuse to allow this to happen!" Harry retorted in anger.
Death seemed to sigh disappointedly.
"Master, I do not understand... you stand above them, you are by all accounts a God." Death then chuckled. "No, not even that, for you are above it. With the snap of your fingers you could take the life of anything and everything in your path. You are the Master of Death! You are the Master of the one constant that will forever be and yet you stand among the mortals, as- as if they were your equal?"
Harry frowned at the deity.
"I stand with them, because I am them! I am just as mortal as they are!"
"And yet you are not! You will outlive them all! You will live on to see many more disasters, and torment! You, Master, are for all intents and purposes, Death! You stand as the pillar between Death and the Dying."
Harry reeled at the information he had just received as Death seemed to calm down from their own explosion.
"I- I'm immortal?" he asked in a tight whisper.
"As Immortal as Death is constant."
Harry found his legs becoming jelly like before he collapsed onto the floor.
"I- I will never see my family again?"
"That is what the stone is for, Master." Death answered quietly. Harry sensed that this was supposed to be comforting.
"No, it wouldn't be them, just a shade of what they were..." Harry's eyes narrowed for a moment, as a memory flashed in his mind. His eyes immediately shot open and he found the strength to once more stand and face the deity.
"What if- what if I could find a way to preserve the balance?! What if I was able to get Max to take us to the beginning and we were able to save Chloe while providing a cover for her soul?"
Harry watched as Death seemed to regard him for a seemingly in deep thought.
"And you are certain this... cover, would be enough to cover the price of a soul?"
Harry grinned at Death. "Oh, I am very sure."
Harry couldn't see it, but he was sure he Death was smiling, beneath their hood.
"Well, allow me to hear your alternative, Master."
-Magic is Strange-
Max found herself in the Two Whales Diner, or a version of it as everywhere around her, she saw the frozen members of Arcadia Bay. As she had passed them, she heard their pleas for her to allow them to live. Their begging to keep them alive and she felt tears sting her eyes, she had been so uncontrollably selfish that she had never taken their lives into account, not even once.
As she made it to the booth her and Chloe had shared for the first time since six years prior, she was no longer surprised, but she was a bit taken a back at seeing, herself in the booth.
"Who are you?"
"Holy shit, are you cereal? I'm you, dumbass. Or one of the many Maxes you left behind..."
"Can you get me out of here?" Max asked her doppelgänger, just wanting to get out of this nightmare and see her friends again.
"Oh so you want help? Thought you could control everybody and everything, huh? Twist time around your little fingers?"
"I never asked for these powers!"
"Oh God, stop playing innocent! You've done nothing but left a trail of death behind you! You let that crazy ex-vet kill Jefferson... that's sick! You're more cold blooded than Nathan."
"I know what I am." Max responded evenly, though the sting of her counterparts words still hurt like hell. "You're just trying to hurt me."
"You're such a goddamn hypocrite."
"That wasn't my fault, you son of a bitch."
"Hey! Do not talk about our mother that way... ha! Let me guess, you fucked up time and space for your precious punk Chloe. You really think she's worth all that?"
"Of course! She's my best friend!"
"Oh yeah! You ignored your best friend for five years while she went through hell... Some friend." her counterpart retorted with a sneer.
"Chloe does a better job at guilt tripping me than you do."
"That's cause you let her walk all over you. It's called Stockholm Syndrome, but I guess you'll just have to learn... Like Rachel."
"Shut up..."
"Max, do you really think she has feeling for us? You're just another puppet to her. Man, you are so stupid, I'm embarrassed we share the same name..."
"Max!"
The girl perked up and turned to the door of the diner to see Chloe and Harry rushing in. Chloe immediately sat opposite the other Max and began berating her while Harry helped Max stand.
"We should get moving." he informed her.
"Where were you?"
Harry looked around at the frozen patrons of the diner and turned back to the girl.
"Let's just say, you weren't the only one having an intense fever dream. Shall we get moving?"
As the two began moving, the scene around them suddenly shifted and Harry was greeted to the a few scenes he had missed, either from the day before he arrived at Blackwell or from moments he was not a part of.
"After five years you're still Max Caulfield." Chloe's voice echoed around them as Harry saw the two of them sitting in her red truck.
"I am seriously glad to see you." Max voice responded.
"Welcome home, Max. Fasten your seatbelt."
They stumbled past a scene of Max and Chloe in a bedroom from Harry could tell, and judging by the posters, it belonged to Chloe.
"I, uh... know it was your birthday last month. This was my real father's camera... I want you to have it."
"This is so cool! Thank you, this camera is sweet!"
A scene on the cliff that housed the lighthouse.
"You were there for me today, Max. You saved me! I'm still tripping on that... Seeing you after all these years feels like-"
"Destiny?"
And so on and so forth, from that point on, Harry had been been a part of or knew about the scenes that followed though as they continued going, there was one that caught his attention. They were once again in Chloe's room.
"I double dare you. Kiss me now."
Harry smiled when he saw the small girl take initiative and close the distance between them, softly pressing her lips against Chloe's.
"Damn Max, you're hardcore. Now I can text Warren and tell him he doesn't stand a chance... unless he's into girl on girl action."
"Chloe's really important to you, isn't she?" Harry asked gently.
"She is." Max responded without an ounce of hesitation. "She's my best friend, I have to be there for her. I wasn't for so long and everything went wrong. I refuse to let her down again."
"You love her."
Max nearly tripped at Harry's sudden declaration.
"Wh- What?"
"You're in love with her. It's okay. It's not a bad thing to be." Harry told her with a smile.
Max seemed to have a bit of a battle before she sighed a bit.
"Was it really that obvious?"
"Honestly, seeing that memory of you two in her room sealed it for me. I was leaning both ways before that."
Max chuckled at that. "Yeah, I don't make it a point to be known. I guess I just don't really think labels are all that important."
"Fair point, but I'm glad you two figured your stuff out."
Max went silent and Harry frowned.
"You have figured it out, right?"
"We haven't spoken about the kiss, since it happened."
"What? Why?"
"You know, the search for Rachel continued and well, we both kinda got caught up. Besides, I don't know if Chloe likes me like that, you know? It just feels like, I'll always be in Rachel's shadow."
Harry frowned for a bit before he chuckled out loud.
"You think that's funny?!"
"I'm sorry no, it's just that... I have it on good authority that Rachel herself was positive that she lived in your shadow. That she couldn't hold a candle for Chloe's infatuation for you."
Max's mouth hung open and her jaw moved but no sound, came out. Harry would've laughed had the wind suddenly picked up and he found himself pushing back against the force of it.
"We're almost there! Keep pushing!"
-Magic is Strange-
"Max, Harry! Guys wake up, please!"
There were two simultaneous gasps and Chloe fell back in surprise.
"Guys! You're awake! Oh thank God!"
"Chloe! You're okay!" the two girls hugged pulling each other in close and holding one another tightly.
"Max! Thank God! Don't you ever do that again, okay?"
"I swear!"
The two pulled apart and helped one another stand before helping Harry and they all turned to the storm.
"I caused this..." Max said sadly. "This is my storm... I tried to help but all I did was cause death and destruction!"
"No! Fuck that, okay?! You were given a power you didn't ask for! How were you supposed to know that it'd turn out like this?!" Chloe yelled defending the smaller girl.
"This wasn't you, Max. Well, not completely anyway. This was Rachel." Harry informed them.
"What do you mean?!"
Harry sighed before responding. "Rachel was a witch, she could do magic like me! She sent a magical beast your way which gave you your powers. She had an ability, a very rare one where she could see the future, and in it she saw Chloe dying. So she set all of this up so that you could save her. Chloe, Rachel gave her life so that you could live!"
Max and Chloe looked absolutely dumbfounded.
"She did all of this?" Max asked in a choked whisper.
Harry nodded.
"But... she sacrificed an entire town so that I could live? Why would she do that?!"
"She thought of everything... even a way out! A way to fix all of this so that the storm doesn't happen and Chloe doesn't have to die!"
"What is it?!" Max asked desperately.
"Do you have that picture you took of that butterfly?"
Chloe quickly fished the photo out of her back pocket. "Never leave home without it."
Just then there were several pops and Harry turned to see a group of about 10 wizards all with their wands pointed at them.
"Potter! Drop your wand and come quietly!" one of them yelled.
Harry felt a pang of sadness knowing that Johnson was likely dead.
"Wait hold on! We can fix this! Nobody has to die! Just let me explain!"
He didn't get further as one of the wizards threw a spell at him. Knowing that he couldn't take the group on in a fight due to his really low magic supply Harry made a last ditch effort and erected a shield dome over the three of them.
"Harry what's going on?!" Chloe asked in a scared tone.
"No time to explain, I don't know how long this is going to hold, so Max listen to me, carefully!"
The girl nodded and turned her attention away from the multiple lights that slammed against the shield causing it buckle under the strain.
"Okay, listen you're going to do that thing that you do and use that photo to go back to the moment you took it on Monday! Now I want you to do whatever you can to keep Chloe from getting hurt okay? Don't worry the universe will be in balance, but if she dies, she dies and we don't get another shot at this, okay!"
The shield buckled once more and Harry groaned slightly.
"Then I want you to get Nathan caught, you should know by now that David will listen to an anonymous tip. Send him the same text you sent him last time and include the gun Nathan has, then just wait for everything else to sort itself out okay?!" He could feel his magic weakening. "Go, now! Go!"
Max nodded and turned to Chloe.
"Go, I'll see you soon enough anyway right?" the blue haired girl said with a teary laugh.
Max hesitated for a second before stepping forward and capturing Chloe's lips on hers. When she stepped away she smiled at her best friend. "I'll see you soon, both of you hopefully."
Max focussed on the picture and as she began to fade Chloe decided to ask Harry one more question before the timeline re-corrected itself.
"Will we remember this?"
"I might, but you won't." he answered honestly before his magic ran out and the shield dropped.
Harry watched as 10 multi-coloured spells raced towards him, he closed his eyes and awaited the impact.
-Magic is Strange-
Harry immediately noticed something was different when instead of cold rain hitting his skin it was warmth instead. He noticed that harsh wind had stopped as well and was replaced by a cool breeze. He wanted to open his eyes, but every time Max had major change to the flow of time he wound up in a very different place. He didn't trust that he wouldn't be in a MACUSA holding cell with a particularly nice view.
"Dude, how long you gonna lie there?"
Harry's breath hitched as he slowly but surely opened his eyes and was met by a beautifully clear sky, not a cloud in sight. On his left was the imposing lighthouse, completely intact, not a single scratch on it.
"You gonna spend your whole Friday afternoon napping? Max, talk some sense into him, please."
Harry then sat up and turned to see Chloe and Max standing against the railing on the cliff, watching him with looks of amusement.
"Well I was going to, until I was so rudely awoken." he grumbled with a smile.
"Oh come on, you know you love us!" Max responded with a grin of her own.
As Harry took a closer look at the two he noticed the sad look behind Chloe's eyes. It was Friday, Prescott was captured, hopefully receiving treatment and Jefferson should also be caught. That meant that Chloe was still mourning the loss of Rachel. He watched as Max placed a comforting hand on Chloe's and gave a supportive smile.
"Harry could I talk to you for a second?" Max asked as she quickly walked up to him.
"What's up?" he asked quietly as she approached.
"How did you do it? How did you manage to balance everything?"
Harry smiled. "Well it's a bit of a long story but basically..."
-Magic is Strange-
"Are you sure about this, Master? Once this is done, it cannot be undone?" Death asked with a frown.
"Yes, I'm sure. You said you needed a life for a life right? Then take the Master of Death's? What's one mortal life compared to immortality? As long as I get to live out my natural life cycle, you can have my immortality."
"You certainly are... an interesting one." Death responded with a small chuckle of their own. "Well if you are sure, then very well. It shall be done."
"And while we're on it, how would you like your relics back? This way we ensure that you will never have a Master again?"
The hooded figure immediately perked up at that, and Harry knew he had them hooked.
"Truly? You would part with my gifts?"
"Of course, they were yours to begin with, but of course there is something you could do for me, you know as a thank you, perhaps?"
The being seemed to tilt it's head a bit before a chuckle sounded once more.
"But of course, as a thank you, what would you request of me?"
"Wipe the memories of everything that has happened from the minds of the American Wizards, they are to never recall that any of the events that occurred."
Death was silent for a moment before they completely bellowed in laughter. They shook as they held their stomach... or what Harry assumed would be an equivalent. They eventually got themselves under control and turned to the raven haired man.
"You are an interesting man, Harry Potter. I cannot wait to see just what future holds for you."
There was a bright flash and Harry turned to find himself standing outside of the Two Whales Diner, where he looked through one of the windows and saw two Max Caulfield's having a conversation before he rushed in.
-Magic is Strange-
"And that's the gist of it." Harry answered with a smile and a shrug.
"You... You made a trade? With Death?" she asked with a bit of squeak.
"Eh, he's apparently an old family friend." Harry shrugged once more.
Thank you all for reading! I will be including an Epilogue once I come back from visiting family in the New Year! So please look forward to that!
Happy Holidays everyone! Stay Safe and I hope we all have a better New Year!
Peace, Love and Respect
Zak