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How It Should've Been
Chapter 16: That Didn't Last Long
The next morning after Harry was positive he had everything packed, he shrunk his trunk and put on his jacket getting ready to leave. He had left his section of the house and was going to go downstairs when he made a quick decision and backtracked to Alex's section and leaned against her office door frame where she was standing behind the desk flipping through a file.
Clearing his throat to get her attention, Harry started when she looked up at him in surprise. "I don't blame you. I wish you told me sooner. But I don't blame you." He assured her. She nodded in response. "Just find her okay?" At her second nod, he turned and was about to leave when she called out.
"We okay?" She wondered watching him. He looked at her and nodded.
"Yeah, yeah we're good." He answered honestly to his own shock, and he meant it. He turned and left.
Days after Harry left on the train back to Hogwarts, Alex was walking into Hecate's Magical shop.
"Hecate! I need a favor!" Alex shouted as she walked right into Hecate's shop not bothering to knock, walking through and into the back where Hecate was standing over a cauldron. She looked up at Alex's arrival.
"What now?" She questioned going back to her potion.
"I need you to find someone for me." Alex shifted her weight foot to foot hands in her pockets.
"Who?" Hecate asked as she turned to grab something from a shelve.
"Lily Potter." At this Hecate spun around so fast the flask that was in her hand flew out of it and hit the wall and broke. Alex rose an eyebrow at her reaction.
"Alex, I thought you would've known this, I can't find dead people." Hecate sighed before snapping her fingers clearing the mess from the potion.
"Yeah about that, she's not exactly dead." Alex admitted and Hecate's eyes widened a fraction.
"Do I want to know?" She wondered looking at Alex. She shook her head and Hecate continued, "I'll see what I can do." She assured Alex before going back to work on the potion. Taking it as the end of the conversation, Alex left the shop.
Alex entered her apartment in New York to see a letter sitting on the accent table that was behind the leather couch. Opening it, she read.
Alex,
So, you told Harry the truth, can't say we were expecting that. Then there's the fact you haven't told Sirius yet but that's not the point. The point is, we didn't believe it was time for that to be revealed but sadly we can't do anything about it now. Just remember for next time okay?
-L&W
"Dammit. I refuse to play this bloody game!" Alex shouted as she crumbled up the paper and threw it across the apartment in the direction of the door promptly hitting Hunter in the chest as he entered the apartment, closing the door behind him. Looking down at the paper ball at his feet he bent down and picked it up before uncrumpling it.
"Don't read th-" Alex started but was too late as he had already read the paper. His eyes widening by the sentence. He looked up from the paper and at her, eyes still wide.
"You get this too?" Hunter asked stunned after reading the paper in his hands. Alex's eyebrows shot up.
"Too? Wait you've gotten this as well?" She asked surprised, Hunter nodded.
"Yeah I thought I was the only one. I've even asked Hestia for help with this, she has no idea." He shook his head.
"Wait, you told her?" Alex exclaimed looking at him in shock.
"I trust her. She's a close friend to me. She cares, and was the only one I could turn to." He explained, Alex nodded in acceptance. It was her same reasoning when she told Jake, he was one of her oldest friends and always understood.
"Yeah, I have one of those, I get that. So, what do we do? They keep coming, wanting us to play this game. And it's like they know every move we make."
"We don't play." Hunter stated as if it was obvious. Alex rolled her eyes.
"Obviously we don't play. But I don't think they're getting the picture."
"Ignore it. The reaction, that's what they want, if we just don't react, don't play, don't give them what they want. They'll give up." Hunter reasoned, Alex nodded.
Months passed and not much happened in the godly world. It seemed Hunter was right. The same, sadly, could not be said for the wizarding world over in Britain. Death eater attacks started and over time became more consistent. At first it was random, once every three or so weeks, then it became every other week, then down to once a week. Now it was every five or so days that someplace was struck. Hogwarts was one of the few places that hadn't been hit yet.
Though things there wasn't much better, everyone worried for their families or fretted over one thing or another. Hermione seemed to notice the change in Harry over the months. She confronted him about it on a number of different occasions, concerned about him, but today was different, she was going to get answers.
Harry and Hermione were sitting on the floor in front of his bed leaning back against it with books surrounding them as they worked on homework. Harry turned his head and stared at her as she bit her lip and thought about what she was going to write before she wrote it. She must've sensed his gaze because she turned to look at him with a raised eyebrow.
"What?" She questioned curiously, Harry laughed. "What?" She demanded with a smile. He shook his head.
"Nothing." He smiled, she looked at him skeptically before she turned back to her work. Deciding to mess with her, Harry snatched her quill out of her hand and held it off to the side as she looked at him dumbfounded before lunging for it. He kept moving it until eventually her hand was gripping his that held the quill and she looked down at him. The book had been pushed out of his lap during the scuffle. Their faces inches apart with Harry looking slightly up and Hermione slightly down at her. Her eyes flicked to his lips once she realized how close they were. They could feel the others heavy breathing and Harry's eye's flicked down to her lips for a second before meeting her eyes.
They leaned in slowly, closing the small gap and sending one last look at the others lips before their eyes closed and their lips met a second after. It was sweet and slow before Harry lifted a hand to her neck pushing more firmly to her lips as her hand that wasn't holding his came up to his spiky hair running through it and stopping at the nape. Opening his mouth, Harry's tongue dashed out and swiped across her lips before being granted quick access meeting hers. She shifted her body slightly as she was already on his lap from their fight over the quill.
A resounding bang was heard seconds later from somewhere downstairs in the common room and they jumped apart, Hermione back on her place on the floor. Harry shifted and picked up his textbook placing it back on his lap in the spot that Hermione had just vacated.
"So, studying?" She suggested meeting his gaze. He nodded quickly.
"Studying works." He nodded as they both dropped the gaze and turned to their respective books but neither really reading them.
A knock rang through the room. Harry glanced at her as he stood and opened the door, it was Luna. Luna entered and opened her mouth about to speak when she spotted Hermione in her place on the floor. They had built a shaky friendship over the past months and didn't mind speaking or hanging out.
"I need to speak to Ryder for a second." Luna looked between the top of them practically feeling the tension. Hermione nodded and walked past them closing the door behind her but that was as far as she went before she stepped to the side, cast a disillusionment before leaning against the wall listening to the conversation through the door, lucky for her, the door wasn't nearly as sound proof as the wall. She had gotten distracted before and hadn't been able to ask any questions.
"What's wrong?" She heard Luna question muffled. There was some movement before a reply.
"We kissed." He blurted out causing Hermione to frown from her spot outside the door. "And over the past months she has been getting suspicious."
"That's your fault for choosing to like one of the smartest witches in this school." Luna sighed. "I mean really Harry, what were you thinking?" Harry? Hermione thought. Harry was certainly not a nickname for Ryder.
"I wasn't!" He exclaimed. There was a deep exhale of breathe. "I-I ran into her twice and-" He was cut off.
"And you were drawn to her." Luna finished for him. "That's how It always seems to work with you Potters. Going after the brightest witches." Luna laughed. Potter! Red flags went off in Hermione's head. Harry and Potter. This was Harry Potter. Thinking back, she connected the dots, dead parents, half blood, very vague about details. Ryder Cage was Harry Potter. He lied, granted she understood why he would but they were close friends. They had just kissed borderline snogging, at least it would've been if there wasn't a bang from who knows where. You-know-who was back and attacking and he was doing nothing, hiding. Anger blinding logic she disabled the disillusionment and burst in through the door to see Luna talking a boy with black hair spiky hair and emerald green eyes, wearing exactly what Ryder was only minutes before.
Both Luna and Harry's eyes went wide as they scrambled to fix it but she had already seen, it was too late. Hermione slammed the door behind her and looked between the two who were frozen in place.
"We have to go to Professor Dumbledore." Was the first thing she said as she moved forward and pulled Harry towards the door. Coming back to his senses, Harry yanked his arm out of her surprisingly strong grip dragging them both to a stop in the middle of the dorm.
"No!" Harry blurt out loudly. Hermione looked at him taken aback.
"What?" She exclaimed stunned.
"No, there is no way in bloody hell that I am going to that old bastard." Harry shook his head bitterly.
"But you have to!" Hermione argued.
"Like hell I do." Harry snapped.
"People are dying Ryder- Harry, whatever the hell your name is! Do you know how many people are dying every time there is an attack! You can stop him! But instead you're hiding as someone else!" Hermione shouted arms waving.
"The only reason I'm even here is because of the LAWS! Otherwise I would be back at my home, far away from this CURSED PLACE!" Harry yelled angrily.
"Cursed place?" Hermione repeated amazed. "This is where your parents grew up, met, lived. Everything and you don't even seem TO CARE." She retorted.
"And where they died." Harry snarled. "AND HE IS THE CAUSE OF IT!" Harry hollered pointing at the castle wall.
"And you can stop you-know-who! With Dumbledore's help! He just has to know you're here so he can help you!"
"DUMBLEDORE IS THE CAUSE OF ALL OF THIS!" Harry gestured to around them. "I don't want his help for anything! Hell, I don't need it! I already graduated school! All of this is useless to me!"
"Dumbledore is the leader of the light!" She countered. "He's the reason we are all here." She fought.
"Now that's delusional." Harry remarked snidely.
"Screw you. If you want to hide and let people die fine, but I'm not going to watch you do it." She snapped before she turned and stormed out of the room slamming the door behind her. Harry dropped his head as Luna looked him.
"You okay?" She questioned with concern evident. Harry shook his dropped head before he picked it up.
"No. No, I'm not. She was never supposed to find out." He just stared at the door she had walked out of.
Hermione, after storming from the room, made her way to the library, she got about halfway there when the portraits started shouting and ward alarms started blaring.
Death eaters started running through the halls looks for students after coming from the Room of Requirement via the vanishing cabins to that Theodore Nott had fixed up before going up to the astronomy tower to find Dumbledore. He was ready to do it but hesitated in casting the curse when Snape came up behind him and cast it before he had the chance to even recognize that he was there. Dumbledore was thrown over the railing of the tower and down to the ground hundreds of yards down.
Harry, without his disguise after hearing the alarm, was sprinting through the corridors looking for Hermione. She may be pissed at him right now but he didn't care. He had to find her. He sprinted around the corner and saw Hermione at wand point, he didn't slow down just continued on before slamming into her and before they hit the ground they disappeared in a torrent of flames.
They reappeared on a rooftop. Harry was laying on top of Hermione. Rolling off her he stood before grabbing her hand and pulling her up. She looked around once standing and saw they were on a packed roof top, music was playing loudly, and there were people all around dancing and drinking. It was a roof crowded with people.
"Where the hell are we?" She demanded, having to shout in his ear over the music after turning back to Harry.
"New York." Harry admitted shouting back. Her eyes widened comically at this admission. Her head whipped around but all she could see was people. "Come on!" He shouted as he reached for her hand and pulled her along with him through the mass amounts of beings. He stopped when he heard a voice.
"HOW WE DOING EVERYBODY?" A voice shouted from the stage when the music quieted a bit. The crowd responded screaming. Harry would've recognized that voice anywhere. "We own the building so don't worry about the noise, the only worry we might have is the surrounding buildings." The woman shouted. A resounding 'aw' could be heard across the crowds. "You know what? LETS WAKE THOSE LOSERS UP!" The woman in the leather jacket walked over to where the DJ was and pushed one of the sliders almost all of the way up causing the music to get louder, probably louder than it was originally. The crowd yelled and screamed with joy, dancing to the music with alcohol all around.
Harry starting moving again pulling Hermione along with him. They continued until they got to the side of the stage, where the person that addressed the crowd was walking down.
Harry rushed over to her. "Alex!" He exclaimed getting her attention. She turned her head to where the voice came from. Once she spotted him, she made her way over.
"What the hell are you doing here?" She demanded once she reached him.
"I had to go somewhere!" He shouted over the noise.
"Either way, why here? New York? You know you can't be here. You know your father would kill me, no wait both of us, if he found out you were here." She shouted over the music.
"That doesn't matter right now! We need to talk." Harry told her. Alex nodded before flicking her head in towards the left where the roof access door was before they made their way over to it. When Alex pulled open the door there was someone on the other side about the open the door.
"Alex! I need to talk to you!" Jake shouted the second he saw it was her.
"Apparently everyone does." She remarked before shouting, "What's wrong?" She asked as she walked in to the staircase with Harry and Hermione following.
"She's gone Alex! Hecate's gone!" Jake exclaimed causing Alex to stop in her tracks and whip around to face him.
"What do you mean Hecate's gone?!" She demanded.
"It's the game Alex. They getting you to play one way or another!" Jake told her.
"But why take Hecate? And how do you know that?" Alex asked.
"To get a player off the board. You asked Hecate for a favor that she now can't do. They're trying to take your other options. And because I got this." He reached into his inside jacket pocket and pulled out a letter before handing it to Alex. Alex took it before unfolding it and reading it.
So, Alex refuses to play. Hm, should've expected that. Let's see if she'll play if a goddess goes missing. Should that do it? Or maybe, it should be one that she asked the favor of? Yes, that seems like it'll do the trick. So, Jake, think you can convince Alex to play if your mother is one of the taken? That's right, we're creating a new category, the Taken. Now it's not just the Players and the GameMakers. Let's see if the stakes are high enough yet.
-L&W
Alex reached the bottom of the page before her eyes widened. She shoved the letter against Jakes chest before taking off down the stairs. Harry and Jake exchanged looks before taking off down the stairs after her, with Hermione following behind Harry. They had to have run down at least four full stories before they saw the door to the level open. Rushing through it they saw Alex at the end of the hall in front of a door. She pushed the door lightly causing it to open wide.
Looking inside, she saw the place was a disaster zone. Stepping inside she called, "Hunter." When there was no answer she tried again louder this time.
"Here." Came a faint voice. Alex directed over to the voice and saw Hunter sitting on the floor with his arms resting on his knees, eyes shining and a letter beside him. "They took her." Alex looked at him before looking down at the paper next to him and picking it up reading it.
You refused, most of the time when someone refuses something, the other side try to sweeten the deal. Well, I don't know if that's exactly what you'd say we're doing. We're going to be taking your daughter. You know the one you just found out was your daughter? Tsk, tsk Hunter. That's right, you won't play the game, well here's what happens when you don't. We're adding a new category, it's not just the Players and the GameMakers anymore, but the Taken as well. Don't let anyone else fall into this category!
-L&W
Alex finished reading the letter and sighed put it back down on the floor. "Hunter- who?"
"Don't. There is nothing you can say to change this. It's my fault, I refused to play. I should've listened to the second letter, I should've played." Hunter rambled, Alex looked away at his words.
"Hunter, if you did that they, whoever the hell they are, they would've won."
"They already have." He looked at her, and Alex could see how little hope and fight he had left in him.
"No, they haven't. We are second to only the gods, we don't lose. And we certainly don't fall victims to these games." When he didn't response she continued. "Hey look, Hecate was taken too, but listen to me. We can win this. We can. So, get your ass up and flip over your flipped over stuff." She ordered as she walked back to where Harry was standing with Hermione beside him who was incredibly confused.
"Alright, now what's the problem?" She questioned when she reached them.
"Hogwarts-" He started.
"I'm sorry." Hermione shook her head in disbelief. "But who the hell are you?" She demanded looking at Alex. Alex brought her hand up to scratch her neck, not knowing how to answer.
"Alexandra Evans. My aunt." Harry answered quickly before looking back at Alex. "Hogwarts has been hit, Death Eaters are swarming the castle, and I'm pretty sure Dumbledore is more than likely dead." Harry revealed to Alex. Her eyebrows rose higher with every sentence in surprise.
"Is Luna okay?" She questioned worriedly. She didn't know what part this girl played in everything but knew she was important for some reason or another. Harry nodded and Alex could set that away from a minute.
"Yeah, I got her out when the alarms first started, she's at the house. By now she's told Sirius everything. But what's this game that Jake was talking about and these papers? Alex, what the hell is going on that you're not telling me about?" Harry demanded, Hermione looked between the two of them cautiously. Alex looked back at where Jake was helping Hunter flip the couch right side up and he met her eyes. Turning back to Harry, her jaw clenched.
"Look, that is not your problem right now. Your problem is-" She was cut off by a crashing sound coming from upstairs like at least two stories up. Alex and Jake shared a look before they both disappeared in flames and smoke. Hermione watched the two of them bewildered when suddenly she and Harry were enveloped in flames. They reappeared directly behind Alex as Hermione stumbled. Harry looked around and recognize did where they were. Outside Alex's apartment in which the door was busted in, almost completely off its hinges.
Alex and Jake walked in slowly ready to attack if needed. Just as they entered, someone came hurrying out of the office door which was behind the staircase. As soon as he saw all four of them standing there he held his hands up and everyone looked at his face and recognized him.
"Dad?" Harry blurted out shocked. Hermione looked at him.
"Your dad is Sirius Black?" She muttered amazed. Sirius looked at them before his eyes zoned in on Alex.
"Sorry about the door but I needed to talk to you urgently." Sirius apologized. Alex nodded and beckoned for him to continue while Jake closed the broken door behind them. "Luna's missing." Sirius burst out suddenly without preamble. Harry's, Hermione's, and Alex's eyes widened comically.
"That's not possible! I dropped her at the house!" Harry exclaimed. Sirius nodded. He was there.
"I know, but look it'll be easier if I just retell what happened." He began and started the story.
Sirius assured Luna he would be right back after she told him she would floo her dad to let him know she was okay and Sirius got a call from Amelia to meet her at Hogwarts grounds.
"What's the count?" Sirius asked Amelia quietly as she approached him, where he was pacing in front of the broken gates, and started walking next to him.
"At least twenty students are dead. Another dozen injured minor or majorly. And.." She trailed off. Sirius looked at her.
"What?" He beckoned. She stopped causing him to stop as well.
"Dumbledore's dead. His body was found at the bottom of the astronomy tower." She looked away and stared at the castle. Sirius's eyes widened. While he didn't so much as actually care that Dumbledore died, he cared because to everyone else, Dumbledore was their leader. And now that he was dead, people might lose whatever hope they had, pull students from Hogwarts after this and his death. Nothing was looking up right now.
"Can we make this sound any less bad for the public?" Sirius suggested hopefully.
"As much as I wish we could, it's not possible. So many people already know, we can't contain this." She answered solemnly.
"So, then we discussed it more, talked and I left to go back to check on Luna. When I got back, I couldn't find her all throughout the house so I thought maybe she left to her dad's but then I called to check in and he said he hadn't seen her since she floo called him to tell him she was okay. I can't find her." Sirius said desperately shaking his head leaning on his hands against the accent table. Harry turned and angrily punched the wall next to the door putting a hole in it. Alex didn't even react or tease him about left only thinking.
Why would they take Luna? Alex wondered in her head. Shaking it she rubbed her eyes when Jake nudged her. She looked at him and he gestured at the kitchen. She nodded and led him into the kitchen.
"What?" She questioned softly as while it wasn't super close, it was connected to the rest of the apartment and was fully open.
"Hunters letter said they would take his daughter. One he just found out about. Did you know he had a daughter?" Jake asked. Alex shook her head.
"No and from the wording I don't think he did either until recently. Why? What are you getting at?" Alex wondered curiously. Jake looked at the rest of the group, none of them were looking at them and he turned to face Alex.
"What if the girl from fifteen years ago, Luna, is his daughter?" Jake suggested. Alex immediately shook her head in denial.
"No, that's not possible that girl acted like a lightning partial…" She trailed off looking ahead. "The girl was taken by Hecate and given magic but she was a partial. Just like Luna." She looked at Jake in realization. He nodded, everything fit. This is why she was important. It all made sense now. The only problem was she was taken, and nobody knew how to get her back.
"Fuck."
Whatcha think? Anyone expecting that? I know I wasn't. This chapter wrote itself, like seriously. I didn't plan for any of this to happen but as I wrote, I just took it and ran with it. I had decided about a chapter ago that I was going to have Luna be Hunters daughter, had no idea how I was going to introduce that or get to it but apparently this is how I am.
Anyway! Hope you all enjoyed! Thank you for all of the support given in this story so far and this chapter. If you haven't noticed these last few chapters have been upwards of 3k(14 clocking in at over 6k, 15 at about 3.5k and this one at about 4.5k) which sometimes I struggle to get 2k but these last few chapters, the plot and pace have really picked up and I've been coming up with all of these great ideas and like constantly writing it. It's awesome. Alright well, as always, I'm DarkSuspense and I'll see ya next chapter!
Share your thoughts and reactions? I always love to see what you guys think!
