9. Wounds
Harry was furiously dodging spells from all directions. His hands were tied behind his back. That was taking a toll on his mobility, but did not stop him. Yet.
Gradually, the speed of the spells coming at him increased to a pace that became impossible for him to keep dodging. More than ten spells were coming at him each second, from ten different directions, and after a while he got tagged by one spell. He freed his hands and kept weaving away from the incoming spells.
The barrage of the spells kept coming faster and faster until he couldn't keep up and he waved his hand. All spells ceased. Upon inspection, he had small cuts and angry spots all over his body and was panting heavily. He wanted to keep going, but knew that any more might cause Daphne to find him passed out near the entrance of the dorm. While their relationship had continually developed, he didn't actively seek out embarrassment. He waved a hand over his body and felt a cool tingling as his magic started to heal the cuts and bruises. Idly, he made a reminder to himself to learn the equivalent spell of this with a wand. It would be useful to heal someone who did not know about his magic.
After some light exercise to cool down and checking the Marauder's Map, hef left the Room of Requirement. As he reached his dorm, he saw Daphne was heading out.
"Hey." He called at her. She grinned.
"Not crawling today?" She asked with a smirk.
"I thought I'd try a dignified entrance today."
"Hmm. About time, I'd say."
"You heading out?" he asked, jumping on the sofa.
"I figured I should go down to the dungeons every now and then. I might lose the few friends I actually have there."
"You have friends?" Harry exclaimed in mock surprise and she flipped him the bird.
"Piss off, mophead." She said, with a smirk on her face.
"You wound me, Daffy-poo!" Harry cried and Daphne laughed at his antics before firing a Stinging Hex at him and leaving the dorm quickly before Harry could retaliate.
As she climbed out of the portrait hole, she quickly turned her face to its normal expressionless self. She had been smiling and laughing more often than she ever had in Hogwarts and suspected that the raven haired Gryffindor was responsible for most of it, if not all. It scared her a little bit.
Almost all her life, she had actively tried to avoid any kind of attachment to anyone. And she had mostly succeeded. Apart from her mother and Astoria, she did not have much of an attachment to anyone. She didn't think that she would have any trouble to live without even Tracey or Millicent, her only two friends in Slytherin. Of course, she had no desire to test that theory, which was probably the only reason she went to the Slytherin common room every now and then. She tried to invite them over to the Head's room, but they did not seem very excited about the idea.
However, the most worrisome fact was that when Harry was out training or quidditch practice ran late, she found herself… missing him. Missing the coffee, the music, and even his sense of humour. Like any sensible Slytherin, she tried to ignore it and hoped it would go away. She even actively stopped herself from seeking out conversation with him too often. Of course, that was a bit difficult seeing as they were literal flatmates.
Once she reached the Slytherin common room, the door opened automatically for her, as it recognized her as the Head Girl. Some younger students stopped whatever they were doing and looked guiltily at her. She got some satisfaction knowing that her reputation was intact. The older students were not as intimidated as them, but most of them still moved out of her way when she was moving.
She found Millicent sitting alone with a book and approached her. She noticed Daphne and offered a half-hearted smile. Daphne sat next to her and looked around. Tracey was nowhere to be seen. Neither was Blaise, for that matter.
"Looking for Tracey?" Millicent asked and Daphne shrugged. To be fair, she was never that close to Millicent anyway, but they were both friends with Tracey, who sort of forced them to be friends as well. Daphne had nothing against her, but she found that holding a conversation with her without Tracey acting as the glue of the group could become a little awkward.
"She is out with Zabini, I assume?" Millicent snorted with, Daphne noted, a bit of irritation. Apparently, she did not like to share her only friend with a guy. Figures.
"Yeah. Often times she does not sleep at the dorm nowadays." Millicent muttered. Daphne raised her eyebrows at that.
"It must get lonely in the dorm sometimes, then?" Daphne asked.
"Actually no. Haven't you heard? Draco broke up with Pansy again. Now she rarely leaves the dorm besides classes and prefect duties. She cries almost constantly whenever she is in the dorm. It gets old real fast."
'No surprise,' Daphne thought.
She knew it would happen sooner or later. Pansy would never become the future Lady Malfoy. Daphne could see that when they were thirteen. She was a bit surprised that Draco kept her around for so long. Then again, Draco did not have everything go his way in the last few years as well.
"No, I actually hadn't heard that. Makes me kinda glad I don't have to sleep in the dorm." Daphne said and noticed a flash of jealousy cross Millicent's eyes.
Before she could reply, the entrance opened to let in Draco, Greg and Vincent. Draco's eyes fell directly on Daphne and he sneered.
"Look who has finally graced us with their presence." He loudly called.
"Millicent, do you see Malfoy's father nearby? He seems to be extraordinarily impressed by someone nearby." Daphne shot back, sweetly looking at the girl in front of her, who looked like she wanted to disappear and never be a part of this conversation.
"Be careful Greengrass. Your Gryffindor boyfriend is not here. You will do well to remember whose House you are in." He threatened with a silky voice, unconsciously attempting to sound like his father. Daphne looked straight at him.
"Why Malfoy? I certainly don't need two bodyguards around me all the time inside my common room. If you want to say something, I suggest you either say it, or stay out of my earshot altogether." She told him in an icy calm tone.
There was a pregnant silence in the common room. Draco took a few steps closer to her, while Daphne deliberately turned her back to infuriate him even further. However, her body was taut as a spring, ready to go on the offensive in a moment's notice.
"You will find that you need to respect certain individuals when talking to them, Greengrass." Draco said dangerously, his eyes flashing. "Times are changing, and that badge will do literally nothing for you outside school. Particularly with the company you are keeping these days. You're swimming against the current."
Every instinct she had told Daphne to ignore the words and leave the common room. But something inside her would not let her.
"What? You think wearing a mask and tattoo like your father will make you a big boy, Malfoy?" She called scathingly with as much venom as possible, discreetly pulling out her wand. Malfoy's eyes flashed with fury.
"Do not try to rise above your station, Greengrass. You don't want to get on my bad side. My friends are not limited to Hogwarts."
"Oh Draco, I don't think your masters will appreciate you calling them 'friends'. You do know that you are just a tool to them, right?"
Malfoy's wand was in his hand in an instant and in the next instant it flew away at Professor Snape's feet.
"Care to explain what is happening here?" The potions master asked silkily, and Malfoy glared at him with unhidden venom.
"I was about to hand Malfoy a week's detention for attacking the Head Girl, sir." Daphne replied calmly, her face emotionless. Snape looked hard at her for a few moments.
"Do you have anything to say for yourself, Mr. Malfoy?" He asked Draco, who looked like he would rather eat a slug than explain himself to him.
"I was provoked." He said through gritted teeth. "Sir." He added after a long pause. Snape's eyes steeled.
"I will oversee Mr. Malfoy's detention, Miss Greengrass. Meanwhile, try to exercise restraint on your speech. As Head Girl, you are expected to set an example, not provoke confrontations." Snape said with a sneer.
Daphne looked at the man for a few moments before nodding.
"Yes sir." She replied politely, but firmly. Malfoy was looking pointedly at the ceiling, determined not to make any eye contact with the Head of the House.
"Mr. Malfoy, please accompany me to my office." Snape drawled. Draco looked at him challengingly.
"I have some homework to catch up on, Professor." He replied and Snape's eyes flashed dangerously.
"I am sorry if I gave you the impression that it was a request. Mr. Crabbe, Goyle, find something else to occupy your time, as Mr. Malfoy is not likely to return very soon."
As a red faced Draco followed the billowing robes of Severus Snape, Daphne spotted Astoria standing at a corner, staring at her. Daphne closed her eyes. She was regretting visiting the common room in the first place.
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"Harry!" A voice called. Before turning around, Harry clearly knew the voice.
"Katie! What are you doing here?" He asked brightly. A bit too brightly, if he was honest.
Katie Bell was as beautiful as ever, dressed in a simple white blouse that gave a nice contrast to her dark hair, which was longer than Harry remembered.
"Looking for you, actually." She admitted. "Where are you headed?"
Harry was actually headed towards the Gryffindor common room but suddenly did not feel like going there anymore, particularly with present company. Too many memories.
"I was thinking of visiting Hagrid actually." He lied. "You said you were looking for me?"
"Yes, but where did you come from?" She asked, looking down the corridor Harry just came out of.
"My dorm. I'm the Head Boy." He explained with a strained smile, and she looked surprised. Then she gave him a genuine smile.
"Wow, I am so happy for you! Congratulations." She said with a smile.
"Thanks." Harry smiled embarrassedly. "So what brings you back to Hogwarts?"
"Well, I was actually hoping you would write a letter for me." Katie said, wringing her arms nervously. Although they ended their relationship cordially, there was still some awkwardness.
"What for?" Harry asked and Katie smiled awkwardly again.
"You know that I wanted to pursue my quidditch career, and I… uh, is there any chance we could talk in private? There are some things I cannot tell anyone about, and I don't want to breach a contract before even starting my career."
"Er… let's go to the Head's dorm then. It has only one more resident." He joked.
"If it's not a problem, lead the way." She followed him as he walked back to the dorm.
"This is as secure as you can get." Harry said, gesturing for her to take a seat. She looked around the dorm with interest before taking her seat.
"Thanks. As I was saying, I was called to try out for Ballycastle, and I did pretty well there. Now they want me to get a recommendation from my last captain and my Head of House before I can be considered for any offers."
"Congratulations! That's awesome." Harry said, exuberantly. "Let's get started then."
He summoned a parchment and set to write the letter. There was some light conversation, each politely enquiring how the other's life has been. Harry wrote in a fast pace and finished quickly.
"There you go. Is that alright?" He handed her the letter, and she read it. The letter was quite flattering, as Harry praised her prowess as a chaser and as a team player quite lavishly. It was perfect.
"This is brilliant. Thanks Harry." She stood up and placed a kiss on his cheek, much to Harry's surprise.
"Oh good you're here-"
Katie jumped away as Daphne picked that exact moment to return to the Head's dorm. She stared at the scene before her, and her face went from annoyed to shocked to blank within the blink of an eye.
"I'm sorry. What are you doing here?" Katie asked, wondering why Harry's worst enemy, as far as she knew, was in his dorm.
"I think it is more fitting for me to ask that question. Last time I checked, you were a graduate, were you not?" Daphne asked icily, and Katie looked at Harry with a frown.
"She is the Head Girl. It is as much her dorm as it is mine." He explained, desperately wishing he could crawl under his father's invisibility cloak and vanish forever
"Oh. I'm sorry for you. Stuck with her of all people." Katie said, knowing Harry and Daphne's history. Harry just put his head to his hand.
"Did you need anything else, Katie?" He asked in a muffled voice and the girl's jaw hardened.
"No. Thank you for the help. I'll see myself out." She grabbed her letter and left in a huff. Daphne was looking at Harry with cold eyes.
"It was not what it looked like." Harry started, but Daphne cut him off.
"I was not aware we were allowed conjugal visits inside the Head's dorm. Maybe I should go through the rule book one more time." She shot at him, her voice laced with venom. Harry's eyes hardened.
"Don't talk about things that you don't know anything about." He spat out through gritted teeth. Daphne laughed without any humour.
"Oh yes. How silly of me to presume to know all the secrets of Harry Potter." She said in a mocking tone. "Merlin forbid I dare to interrupt his make out session with an ex."
"I told you it was nothing like that, you miserable bitch." Harry yelled. "But I don't owe you an explanation. Just go fuck yourself for all I care." He got up and went to his room, fuming.
Daphne was still standing beside the entrance and was trying very hard not to let a tear escape. Why was this upsetting her so much. Harry was perfectly free to snog whoever the fuck he pleased. It was not against the rules to bring visitors, and even if it was, it was not like she was going to snitch on him. They had literally countless rows over the years, and none of them stung as much as this did.
"You were wrong, you know."
Daphne looked at the portrait of the Blue Mistress, who guarded their entrance.
"Pardon?" She asked with a shaky voice.
"It is not my place to say anything, but your assumption was wrong. He just wrote a letter of recommendation for that girl. She kissed him on the cheek as a thank you gesture. It really took him by surprise."
Daphne wanted the ground to open up and swallow her. Not only had she jumped to a wrong conclusion, she also estranged the one person she felt the closest to in the whole school.
"What do I do?" She asked in a whisper to the portrait, who smiled wanly.
"Talking would be a nice first step." She advised gently.
"But how do I talk to him? I am sure he hates me now."
"I think we both know that's not true." The portrait of the Blue Mistress was secretly amused, the situation reminding her of another pair of Head students long ago. She hoped that the current Head Girl would be brave enough to go and apologize like the other Head Girl did. However, Lily Evans was a Gryffindor.
"Daphne."
She looked at him, standing at the door of his room. Head bowed.
"I'm sorry I yelled. I didn't mean what I said." He said quietly. Daphne walked towards him and came to a stop right in front of him. She felt a very strong urge to do something foolish and wonderful. Butterflies knotted in her stomach, but she somehow managed to keep her emotions in check.
"You have nothing to be sorry about." She said in a voice threatening to crack. "I jumped to the wrong conclusions without knowing what was going on. I was stressed when I came in, and even though that does not excuse my behaviour, I was not thinking straight. I am sorry about what I said."
"C'mere." He muttered before pulling her into a hug, which she returned. It felt right. Normal even. They stayed in each other's embrace for a few moments before Harry asked, "What were you stressed about?"
Daphne gave a watery laugh and broke the embrace before answering.
"Well, it involves two people you love very much. Snape and Malfoy."
"Sweet Merlin." He exclaimed and she laughed at his expression.
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It wasn't long before snow filled the grounds, and winter break loomed. Only Snape and McGonagall taught something new on the last day of the term. The seventh years had plenty of homework, though. NEWTs were, true to their name, nastily exhausting, and even Harry had sacrificed training time in favour of studying more. Daphne had continued running every day except Saturdays, slowly building up her stamina to avoid panting like a dog. Harry said she would begin working out after the winter break. She informed him that she didn't feel nearly as tired as she used to feel before and could focus better on studies as well with the increased energy.
Her paper was coming along nicely, and sometimes Harry lent her his mirror to talk with Lily Potter. Daphne was a fan of Lily, who had insisted that Daphne call her by her first name. Lily took the young Slytherin under her wing, delighted to find such a smart and witty girl with an appetite to learn. It reminded her of her own younger self.
Neville and Ginny went on a few more dates and they absolutely hated Harry now, as he caught them snogging in a broom cupboard. Ron tried to grumble at the pair dating, but Ginny threatened to use her Bat-Bogey on him and that was the end of it. Harry felt very happy for the couple, who were his best friends in school. He was especially delighted to see Neville not as depressed as usual, considering the load he bore in the war to come.
When the pair noticed that Harry Daphne's relationship had changed, Harry introduced them to Daphne properly. Of course, there was some proper ribbing from the two of them over the status of his relationship with her, but Harry brushed it off easily.
There was some wariness from both sides at first. Daphne being Daphne and Neville still scared of her. Harry forced them to spend time together with him and after a while they began to warm up to each other. If Harry had his way, they would all be friends with each other, but even he couldn't force people to be friends right away and was content with them being friendly for now.
Every now and then, Harry brought his other friends to hang out with him and was secretly amused by their reaction to Daphne. Seamus and Dean were quite scared of her, but also thought she was 'a bombshell.' Hermione tried to be too polite and Daphne only refrained from saying something intimidating to her out of respect for her academic excellence and intelligence, which was very close to her own, if not more. Susan Bones, surprisingly, made the most progress in the very few times she visited with Hannah and Justin. Daphne admitted that there was something about the redhead Hufflepuff which made not talking to her quite difficult. Luna Lovegood, however, was the only person who managed to intimidate Daphne with her quirky but insightful personality.
Astoria visited more frequently too now that she wasn't wary of avoiding Harry, and she always demanded coffee from him every time. Of course, Harry always obliged. Daphne even showed Astoria the CD player Harry had given her. Astoria loved Iron Maiden and Metallica and shot envious looks at the device every time. Harry had asked Daphne to bring her friends along as well, and Tracey sometimes did visit them, but Millicent was not particularly interested.
On the outside, the war was heating up as several muggle villages were attacked and a few muggleborn families were killed by the Death Eaters. The Order couldn't find any more leads from Yaxley and Wormtail's intel, and they were given the Draught of Living Death and left in a holding cell under the Fidelius Charm. James and Sirius tried to capture more Death Eaters, but they only found rookies who knew nothing of import.
Lily was doing some research, of which no one but herself and Dumbledore were privy to, and stocked up on medical potions and supplies for the inevitable conflict. Sometimes, James took her along with his reconnaissance missions, but patience was not her strongest virtue, which came as a surprise considering her potions expertise. After those missions, she decided that she would only go when there was a battle. Remus made almost zero progress on the werewolf front, as most werewolves took his pleasant personality as a sign of weakness. He often came back, chased down by other werewolves because Dumbledore strictly forbade him to engage in any kind of violence, even in self-defence.
It was the first day of the holidays, and Daphne and Harry were packing their trunks to take their essentials home. Daphne decided to take the CD player with her, mainly because Astoria had reminded her to bring it a million times already. Since Daphne liked almost every artist he gave her, she borrowed some Beatles, Pink Floyd, Johnny Cash and U2 for herself, and Metallica, Iron Maiden, Megadeth and Black Sabbath for Astoria. Of course, she had to swear that she would bring them back in good condition, or else there would be hell to pay.
Being the Head Boy and Girl, they were the first on the platform of Hogsmeade station and supervised as students climbed abroad. Most of the prefects were going home, so they had plenty of people for rounds. Harry and Daphne patrolled the corridors themselves as well, though it was not required of them. Seeing the Head Boy and the Girl on patrols made troublemakers reconsider any bad decisions, and Daphne even put a fifth year Ravenclaw and a fourth year Hufflepuff on detention as soon as the term started, when they found the couple in a girl's toilet snogging. Harry saw Seamus trying to pull Parvati into a boy's toilet, but a stern look from him made him change his mind, and the red faced couple went back to their compartment. To be honest, he was quite relieved that Parvati was now focusing on Seamus instead of him.
All in all, it was a busy ride to London and Harry and Daphne barely spent time with their friends as the train stopped in King's Cross station. After checking if all the compartments and the toilets were empty, they finally grabbed their luggage and stepped out of the train. Lily Potter was there, waiting for Harry, and Astoria was waiting for her sister with their mother.
Harry went to hug his mother and Daphne went to her mother and did the same. She spoke quietly to her mother for a moment and then came towards the Potters to say hello to Lily, who greeted Daphne with a hug. She introduced them all to her mother, Isabella Greengrass. She was a pleasant, beautiful woman who, it turned out, was two years ahead of James and Lily Potter in Hogwarts. They exchanged pleasantries for a while before they went their separate ways. The Greengrasses all apparated away as Harry and his mother went to muggle London to grab some pizza, which both Harry and Lily absolutely loved. James didn't mind eating it but wasn't very enthusiastic about it either, while Sirius loved is tool. Surprisingly, Remus hated it, joking that it was too cheesy for any self-respecting werewolf.
On their way, Harry explained how cleverly he had set up Ginny and Neville and Lily was impressed. She had thought about doing something similar to a few friends while in school, but never did it. She inquired if he had a girlfriend, and Harry honestly replied that he had been way too busy to spend much time with his friends, let alone having a love life.
Lily informed him that she had invited Master Zhi to visit them during the break, and he would be coming for a day sometime before Christmas, though he did not specify a date. Harry was anxious. On one hand, he was about to have a training session that would be more effective than anything he had done in school, but on the other, a full day's training with the man meant he would spend Christmas in bed, recovering from the gruelling session.
At least the next few days would be interesting
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"My loyal Death Eaters." Voldemort began in his high, cold voice that most of the country was terrified of. "It is time that we show our enemies what are we capable of."
He looked around the room and studied the face of each and every Death Eater present. The Inner Circle stood close to him, all without their masks.
"This time, your mission is to send a message." He spoke softly, although everyone could hear him very clearly. "This time, we show our adversaries what happens when they stand in our way."
"WE CRUSH THEM!" he suddenly screamed, and a few rookie members flinched. Voldemort stared at them for a moment and everyone braced themselves for a bout of torture. However, it never came. Voldemort did not want to lower his men's morale just before a mission this important.
"Make them fear you." He whispered, looking hard at the flinching rookies. "Crush the blood traitors like the vermin they are."
"Mudbloods and blood traitors are not welcome here."
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A few days before Christmas, Master Zhi arrived in the early morning. Lily and Harry were the only ones up. Zhi wanted to take Harry for a walk right away, but Lily almost forced him to stay for a while and have breakfast with them. When she first met Zhi, she was very wary of him. There was no mistaking of the power that he possessed, but unlike Dumbledore, he was not very charming or amicable, which made him seem rather unapproachable and intimidating. Also, this was the man responsible for Harry training hard from quite a young age, which she did not approve of at first.
She remembered their first trip to China. She had always encouraged Harry to seek out knowledge, and when the young boy wanted to visit China to learn more about their magic, she actively supported it. After a rather tiring journey to the Himalayas, when they reached the temple, Lily and James thought the experience would be enough for Harry, seeing that the monk of the temple did not look to be in a mood to talk. She was apprehensive of leaving Harry in the middle of a mountain, but Mr. Li had convinced her that he was absolutely safe, and he had more of a chance to talk with the monk if he were alone.
She was very relieved when Harry finally returned hours later. She had wanted to go back and retrieve him many times, but James and the Li had placated her. Of course, she thought that Harry had gained some knowledge about the magic, and they would be returning home soon, perhaps after some sightseeing.
Of course, she thought wrong.
Harry was determined to stay here and learn their way of magic. He gave her the puppy eyes no mother can resist. To be fair, she had not been around Harry long enough to resist it as James had been, who only seemed amused at the situation.
In the end, they agreed James would go back to Britain for his job, while Lily and Harry would take an extended vacation. Lily would hang around with the Li family while Harry would train and learn. Being his immediate family, Lily was aware of most of the things Harry did, but was under oath to not divulge the details of Chinese magic to outsiders. Over time, Lily learned that Chinese magic was actually much more intricate and simple at the same time.
From Zhi's short explanation, Chinese magic sought control of natural forces and elements to one's advantage rather than communicating through a physical medium like the Euro-American methods. This type of magic was quite powerful and tiring compared to using a wand, but it did not require the caster to memorize any spells. Rather, it needed an instinctual understanding and control of magic. As a beginner, it is difficult to master but becomes natural with diligent practice of focusing one's magic. However, once mastered, it allowed a wizard to manipulate nature in ways that seemed impossible to a British wizard.
Their magic initially caught Harry's eyes because of the lack of wand usage. Instead, they chose a magical stone and magically infused the stone inside one's hand, which helps their internal magic to spread through their bloodstream. As a result, their immune system was excellent, and small injuries healed very fast without needing any kind of medical attention.
But what impressed Lily the most was the discipline and routine that one had to follow to learn this magic. She noticed the change in Harry almost instantly. He was calm, collected and very focused. His grades in school shot up, as did his quidditch performances. He needed a very short time to grasp anything new and now excelled at almost anything that caught his interest. Most importantly, he seemed more content and peaceful. Since her reawakening, Harry had always been a troubled kid. He was restless and a bit confused, but now he seemed to do everything with a purpose, and kept a cool head most of the time.
Over time, she warmed up to the old Asian wizard, who she discovered had a very dry sense of humour. Lily had since invited Zhi to their home every time Harry was home for a long vacation, and oftentimes, like now, he accepted the invitation, if even for a short time. He was not one for idle chit chat. After the meal and some light conversation, Zhi finally took off with Harry.
"So where are we?" Harry asked, as he couldn't recognize the place, and there were no landmarks in sight. The older man shrugged.
"How would I know? It's your country." Harry decided not to press the matter any further. Master Zhi was not one for idle chat.
"So, how do we start?" Harry asked nervously.
"Show me what you can do." Zhi commanded, and Harry took a deep breath before demonstrating what was expected of him. Zhi stood perfectly still for an hour as Harry showed him what he could do and how far he had progressed.
When his demonstration was over, Harry was out of breath but tried not to show it. Zhi stared at him for a while before speaking sharply.
"You have been overexerting yourself."
Harry hung his head and nodded, and Zhi sighed in frustration.
"Do you understand why I give you a routine specific to the exact minute? It is certainly not so you can ignore it and do them as you wish. Do you understand that?"
Harry mumbled "I'm sorry," but Zhi went on.
"I give you a routine so that you are in the optimum condition. Working hard is important, but working smartly is crucial. Did I tell you about my old apprentice Carlo?"
Harry shook his head.
"Carlo was a very talented boy. Far more talented than you. And he trained just like I suggested him to. I wanted him to take my place when he was older. He had strength, he had willpower and his technique was perfect.
"But one day, a thug killed his wife and robbed his home. Carlo was not home at that time, but when he learnt of this, he swore revenge and trained. He trained for weeks straight. He trained more than what I asked him to, and he wouldn't listen to me. He would keep training all day and looked for the thug who killed his wife at night. After two weeks, he found the thug, hiding in a village quite far away from Carlo's home. He swore to me he was going to kill the thug. I told him he would fail. Do you know what happened?
"He was killed. The thug had guards protecting him and when Carlo started to fight with all of them, the weeks of training cost him. His grip on a man loosened for one moment and that moment cost him his life. He brought down most of the guards easily, but it wasn't the brilliance of an opponent that took him down. His body betrayed him just like he betrayed his body for two weeks. Do you understand what I am trying to tell you?"
Harry nodded. He knew that Zhi would find out about it the moment he saw Harry and did it anyway. Now it seemed like a pretty bad life choice.
"Have you been running?" Zhi suddenly asked, and Harry looked at him like a deer caught in the headlights.
"Yes, I am helping a friend to gain some stamina." He admitted and Zhi nodded.
"Helping others to be better is always a good thing to do. It's nothing to feel sorry for."
Harry nodded, relieved. He was worried that Zhi would chew his head off.
"So what will you teach me today?" He asked the older man. To his surprise, Zhi sat down on the grasses and simply said, "Sit."
Harry sat down, thinking he would be learning a new meditation technique. He didn't say anything, though. Zhi closed his eyes for a few moments and Harry wondered if he should do the same.
"Why do you train, child?" Zhi asked him, eyes still closed.
"To get better." Harry replied, hoping it was the correct answer.
"No, that is why I train. Why do you train, really?"
Harry knew he had discussed it with Zhi before, but he answered anyway.
"So that I am prepared for the war. I want to be a useful fighter along with everyone else, not a burden caught in crossfire."
"No. That is not the whole reason either. Tell me the truth."
Harry audibly winced. He always knew the reason, deep down, why he wanted to fight so bad, but he had tried to convince himself otherwise. Apparently he couldn't even convince others.
"I seek vengeance. I intend to destroy those who have wronged my mother." He said the words carefully, knowing that it was almost considered a sin as far Zhi was concerned. Zhi nodded. Of course the old bastard knew it all along.
"You do know the price of vengeance, don't you, child?" He calmly asked, eyes still closed.
"Yes, master."
"Are you truly prepared to pay it?"
"I think so."
They stayed silent for a long time.
"Our kind of magic is special." He said in a soft voice. "Unlike wand wielders, our magic integrates into our blood and soul. You command the elements with your willpower. Your thoughts are what drives your magic. Our kind of magic decides your magical strength based on your will. Your soul marks your magic."
"When you taint your soul with darkness, you taint your magic as well. You influence your very being with that darkness. And that darkness will feed off your magic in an infinite loop. Feed it enough and it will gradually consume you."
Zhi finally opened his eyes, and Harry could see that those eyes were like water in the deep ocean. Tranquil, deep and unmoving. The old man reached out and put his hands on Harry's shoulder.
"Think about this price before you take your vengeance."
Zhi saw a fire blazing in his young apprentice's eye. He knew Harry understood what he was trying to say, and he was prepared for the consequences. He knew he couldn't convince the young man to forgive those who had wronged him. He hoped the young man would find his peace soon.
A/N: This chapter was much different originally, and went through a number of reconstructions, and of course the fantastic edit by slucas123. I was slightly overwhelmed by the sheer support the readers showed in the last chapter. Hoping for more of that again. Please review.