Unfinished Journeys, Untraveled Roads - 12 - An Unholy Alliance
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by Polydicta
A selection of unfinished tales that have been abandoned.
Each 'chapter' represents a single story.
Ongoing warnings for smut, language, character death, bashing, torture, mutilation, religious/social iconoclasm and reader brain damage. Brain bleach is highly recommended.
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Disclaimer:
All fiction is derivative and fan fiction doubly so. I make no claim to own any part of any of the following, all I have done is an attempt to put together the elements in a novel fashion, using words and ideas like Lego ™ bricks.
There is no money involved – all I do is to share what I do for my own amusement.
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Unfinished Journeys, Untraveled Roads - 12 - An Unholy Alliance
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When a boy is trained in the bright arts by a demoness (who subsequently falls in love with him), and his fated partner is likewise trained in the bright arts by an angel, the result is bound to be a mortal couple who have near divine powers.
When that boy is Harry Potter, and he is destined to become the Master of The Hallows, then something will simply have to give …
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The Prologue
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In a time and place not far away and not long ago, events were unfolding that had been set in motion by the creator himself. Events that were quite different to those that would be reflected in the official chronicles of the times.
For one thing, no mortal was quite aware of the involvement of demonic forces, and none was quite aware of the true nature of the approaching conflict. Certainly, even those involved, would not know of the debts being called in until after the war was ended.
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"Harry Potter?"
"mmflgl … hmm … Eh?"
Harry scrambled to his feet, cracking his head sharply on the underside of the stairs in the cupboard in which he lived.
"Who're you?"
"My name? It's not really that important right now, but since you ask, I'm Azicarael-Cacopsycheos. I'm commonly called Madness, at least by some. And in order to answer your next question, I'm a demon."
Harry regarded the lithe figure before him. The demon appeared to be a rather androgynous female with skin the same shade of red as Uncle Vernon's teak television cabinet. She sported long, black hair which framed a face comprising rather angular features and fiery yellow eyes. She was naked, but for some reason, the ten-year-old Harry wasn't terribly interested. Arching from behind her shoulders were a pair of incredibly glossy, blue-black feathered wings.
Harry wasn't terribly sure where the light to see her was coming from, but assumed that it went along with her being a demon.
Marshalling his thoughts, he looked down and saw the … demon's … feet. What he saw were two dainty red feet with glistening bronze toenails. A black-tufted tail curled around her ankles.
The demon chuckled. "I happen to like bronze-coloured nail polish."
Harry looked sharply back at the demon's face. She was grinning. Her teeth were pointed but not unattractive.
"I like you, Harry Potter, you talk to my face not my … other assets. That makes this so much easier."
"Makes what easier? I suppose you're here to take my soul to Hell, aren't you? Well, I won't put up any argument. At least in Hell I'll be better treated than by my relatives."
"Is your life so terrible, Harry Potter?"
He bowed his head. The demon, even with enhanced senses, strained to hear the quiet murmur. "Yes."
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Chapter 1: Of Demonic Forces and Unholy Alliances
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"Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore?"
The young mage looked up. A rather attractive woman was standing before him. He almost stepped into the circle, but then remembered that this was a summoning, and he wasn't certain that he could defeat this … creature … at least, not in close contact.
Albus nodded. "That is how I am known."
"I have come in order to grant your wish. You have studied much and learned more. You have immersed yourself in the most ancient and powerful magics of this world, and now you can claim your reward.
"You who have sought power shall be granted access to that power along with life enough in which to exercise that power. It will not be an easy task, for you will still need to work to gain and to exert that power, but it shall be within your reach. Is this acceptable to you?"
The mage nodded. "I am not unused to having to work for what I gain, and life enough will be welcome. It is acceptable."
"There shall be a cost to the granting of your wish."
Albus nodded. "This I expected. Whatever the cost, I shall pay willingly."
The demon raised her perfect, black eyebrow. This was easier than she had expected.
"The bargain is struck, the contract is made. So mote it be."
"So mote it be."
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"Arianna! Nooooooo!"
There was a crack, and Grindlewald apparated away, leaving Albus and Aberforth Dumbledore to mourn their sister. Aberforth never forgave his brother, nor did Albus forgive himself, for he knew in his heart of hearts that hers had been the blood price of his pact with the nether realm.
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"Albus Dumbledore, you must go to Germany and defeat Grindlewald. Everything you need to know is in this tome…"
He went, and he defeated the dark wizard, his former friend and confidant, and after, he was the darling of the wizarding world. Knowing that his absolute obedience was required in order for him to continue to live, he followed his orders from below without question.
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"Is there anything you feel you should tell me, Tom?"
"Uh, no. No, sir … nothing."
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"What have I done? I allowed him to follow in my own footsteps, but …"
"He didn't have the strength to rise above the petty revenge and hate that he grew up with."
"You! What do YOU want now?"
"There is one for whom you will allow no happiness in his life. There is one who is fated to be with his soul mate. He will defeat Tom Riddle. Then, and only then, the wizarding world will find itself with an even greater Dark Lord to overcome. To survive, you must not allow him to ever know true love … You should do what is right."
"What is this new Dark Lord's name?"
"The boy's name is Harry Potter."
The Demon departed, grinning to herself. She had told the truth, as her kind were forced to do. It just wasn't the whole truth, after all. She knew Dumbledore, and precisely how he would interpret her 'prophesy.'
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It was the Eve of All-Hallows that saw the next chapter of events unfolded ...
"Professor Dumbledore?"
"Hello, Petunia. Are you well?"
She nodded. "Yes thanks. We were just getting ready for a quiet evening indoors, just Vernon, Baby Dudley and myself, away from the rather raucous Halloween revellers. Would you like to come in?"
Dumbledore nodded. "If I may. I have news that you need to hear."
Petunia Dursley paled. "It's Lils, isn't it?"
Vernon was in the sitting room with Dudley. The joy on the father's face mirroring that on his son's. The feeling of love and happiness filled the house. The man smiled and waved hello with his fingers, quite pleased to see the old wizard.
"I'm afraid that I have some bad news for you all. Today, James and Lily Potter's security wards, in Godric's Hollow were compromised. It is too early to be certain, but they are not expected to survive the night. I need to ask you to take in young Harry."
"Of course we'll do that. Do you have him with you?"
Dumbledore shook his head. "No, I won't bring him until we are certain."
He stood and silently stunned the three muggles. He obliviated them, implanting false memories and compulsions to treat their soon-to-be new ward with neither love nor gentleness; to hate and despise anything magic. The cheerful, loving Dursleys became in that unwilling instant, demonically controlled agents of pure evil.
Dumbledore placed charms and wards around the property in order to reinforce his commands to his cat's paws.
He left, silently apparating from the same place he had arrived in the front hallway of the house, neatly avoiding his being seen by Minerva McGonagall who was watching outside.
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That very night, nine years later, young Harry Potter first received his demonic visitor.
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"So, Harry, how could your life be improved?"
The small, half-starved boy shook his head. "I'm not sure that it could be. I'm just a worthless freak. My parents died in a car crash because my father was drunk."
"No, Harry, they didn't. They were both members of an elite security service. They were murdered by a terrorist, but their murder was orchestrated by a traitor."
The boy looked into the demon's yellow eyes, and she felt that he could see her very essence.
"It's true then. What will it cost to make my life right and to get just payment?"
The demon blinked. She wasn't used to dealing with bright children, certainly ones that weren't intimidated by her demonic form.
"Nothing but that you do what is right. There are prophesies surrounding you and a certain mythos, but all you have to do is to follow your heart. You need to know that you are fated to be with another, a match made in Hell."
Harry shuddered and looked afraid.
"No, not hell for you. It's just that the union was decreed by the Infernal forces and not those of …"
The demon swallowed. "… of Heaven."
"So you haven't come to claim my soul as Father Bernard says you will?"
The demon laughed, a soft, tinkling sound like the running of a small brook. A pure sound filled with genuine mirth.
"Dear me, no. We couldn't house your soul in Hell, not for a moment. First of all, you're an innocent, even now. And secondly, you have a destiny to fulfil. The only way that we get to take your soul is if you renounce everything that is honest and good.
"No, we only take our due. Sometimes it is necessary that we use the forces of light to do our bidding. The object isn't actually overall rule, but for a balance of powers. It's that pull between light and dark that has led mankind from the caves of his youth and, hopefully, one day to the light of the stars. Without that tension, there would be only stagnation and decay.
"In truth, it could have been one of the angelic heralds who visited you tonight, but since I was here …"
She shrugged.
Very quietly, Harry spoke. "So, what do I need to know, and what do I need to do?"
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When, at last he slept, the demon kissed the boy gently on his brow. As he slumbered fitfully, she healed his many hurts. While she could not interfere in many ways, she could ensure that the child grew as he should, that he was healthy and sane. She could also instruct him …
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Harry woke the next morning feeling healthy and rested. He also felt well fed, for some reason.
As he prepared breakfast for his relatives, he pondered the rather strange dream he had experienced. He also found himself holding the silent conviction that magic was real, but his sense of self-preservation prevented him from behaving any differently from yesterday.
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During the eight months until Harry's next birthday, he suffered the ills inflicted upon him by his relatives and each night he was visited by Madness who instructed him in magic. One of her first gifts was the skill of deep occlumancy. Whilst Harry's mind may seem undefended, his true thoughts and memories were as well protected as any angel … or demon. could manage.
Each night, Harry was healed of his hurts and fed upon the very essence of life. Each night, the demon apologised to him that he was forced to suffer, and each night Harry forgave the demon.
Each and every day, the Demon's daily duties seemed to take longer and become more onerous while she waited to see her young charge again. She found herself looking forward to the boy's ready charm and wit, and to the fact that he alone over the millennia had made her laugh.
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A hundred miles west and north, a similar scenario played out each night. Castafael, one of Azicarael's angelic opposites visited a young girl who had already received her Hogwarts letter.
Fearful that the demonic influence upon young Harry Potter would cause yet another dark lord to rise, the heavenly forces had decreed that Hermione Granger, a muggleborn witch, would be trained in order to be the foil against which Harry would dispel his dark energies, preventing him from becoming dark.
Castafael drove forth the strength of The Light that no matter what Harry did, it could be balanced by his fated partner, Hermione.