Chapter 23: Dark Within Light

After Harry and Ginny had visited the Potter Vault, drew some money out and decided to live in the Potter Manor, they concluded their business at Gringotts and left. They also took Ragnork's advice and found a book in Flourish and Blotts about soul bonds, purchasing it to take home with them to read. They also purchased books on all of the abilities that Harry had as well as on animagus transformations.

Harry also went to the Ministry of Magic to take his apparition test that he had been studying for over the last year ready for when he claimed his inheritance. He easily passed, after he had to prove his emancipation, and took his license. He met back up with Ginny in the reception area and exited the Ministry with her before apparating to the gates of the Potter Manor.

As the couple entered the Manor, they were stunned by the beauty and architecture inside. Harry couldn't believe that he could've lived here all of this time, likely with his godfather and the other people who his parents trusted with his care, instead of at the Dursleys. Well, that had finally been corrected now, and so would Sirius' wrongful imprisonment hopefully.

Once Harry and Ginny had toured the Manor and found the master bedroom, he decided to ask her something about what they learnt at his inheritance ritual, more specifically his abilities and the soul bond.

"Ginny? Have you ever heard of pure light and pure dark magic?" Harry asked.

"Not exactly. We were taught about dark magic, but never specifically 'pure' dark magic. Neither were we taught about specifically light magic, let alone 'pure' light magic. Is this because you have an aptitude for both?" Ginny replied.

"Yes. The soul purge is supposed to remove any dark magic from our system, yet I still have an aptitude for pure dark magic. Surely it would make me unable to perform such magic, right?" Harry pondered aloud.

"While that makes sense, that's not necessarily correct. Ragnork said that the soul purge would remove dark magic and its effects on us. From that context, I believe that he meant foreign acts and effects of dark magic against us. Plus, you haven't performed dark magic yet, so it wouldn't need to purge you of anything except Riddle's horcrux in your scar," Ginny explained.

"Yes, that makes a bit more sense than my previous thoughts...I guess we'll have to check this out when we read the books that we bought. I want to know what these 'pure' magic types are and how to perform them as they could be useful if we are to defeat Dumbledore and Riddle when he finally returns, which he will. I don't doubt that the diary was a horcrux and if he made two, then he could've made more," Harry said.

"So, now what?" Ginny asked.

"Now? We get my stuff from the Dursleys. I still have Hedwig and my trunk with all of my things still packed in it there. Now that I can apparate, we don't need to worry about getting there anymore. Hold on tight," Harry replied.

Ginny grabbed Harry's arm as he apparated them to the doorstep of Number 4 Privet Drive. Opening the door, he heard the Dursleys talking in the kitchen, including Marge.

"Damn! I hoped that we'd finish our business here before she'd arrive!" Harry hissed.

"Who are you talking about?" Ginny asked in confusion and worry of Harry's anger.

"My uncle has brought my dear aunt Marge over after so many blissful years. The last time she came, I hadn't snapped and took control of my life, so she treated me like dirt as the others did. Let's just get in, get my stuff, then leave as quick as possible. While I'd enjoy humiliating that fat cow, I'm not in the mood for confrontations today," Harry explained.

Without another word, Harry went upstairs as quietly as he could, followed closely by Ginny. They entered his old bedroom and grabbed his trunk. He then set Hedwig free, telling her where to go and to meet them at the Manor gates. As the couple got downstairs and were about the leave, they heard a vile voice behind them.

"And just where do you think you're going, you brat?!" Marge asked angrily.

"Home," Harry answered calmly, not batting an eyelash, which only angered Marge more.

"What rubbish are you talking about, boy?! My brother gave you a home and this is how you repay him?! Where the hell were you all day?! You were supposed to be here cooking us dinner, you ungrateful freak! And get rid of that little girl! If she's hanging around with you, she must be trouble and even more of a freak than you!" Marge yelled.

At those words, and Ginny's fearful expression when Marge and Dudley gave her predatory looks, Harry saw red and tried hard to bottle his anger before he did something stupid. All they needed to do was ignore Marge and leave.

"Then again, I'm sure that Dudley would be able to straighten her out. She is quite a good looking girl. All she needs is guidance, wouldn't you say, Dudley? Now go in the kitchen and prepare our food, freak!" Marge mused before yelling at Harry triumphantly.

"Yeah, she's quite pretty...Come here, darling...I'll give you something that freak never could..." Dudley said in his lustful state as he gazed at Ginny.

At this, Harry snapped and his eyes darkened to show his anger. He would not be talked down to by a vile piece of filth and a stupid, dirty pig! That animal would never lay a hand on his Ginny, ever!

"No! I'm leaving for my real home with Ginny! The home that my parents lived in before they had to go into hiding from a mass murderer trying to kill me! Instead, that psychopath murdered and would've come after people like you if my mother didn't protect me and prevent me from being killed myself! You call me a freak?! What self-respecting person makes a 4 year old cook and clean for them, then beats them if they make a simple mistake that children do?! You sicken me! My parents fought and died so that people like you would survive, so how do you repay them?! By abusing their only son! Your pitiful brother found out what happened when he pushed me too far and carries the scars of when I gave him a taste of his own medicine! If you even dare to touch my Ginny, either you or Dudley, I will make sure that you will be wishing that you were dead, because there are worse things in life! Here's something that your stupid brother forgot to tell you before coming over here! I don't go to St Brutus' like he said he was going to send me and neither to Dudley's school! No! I go to a school where I'm treated like a normal human being, because they know the truth about my parents' deaths unlike you, and where I'm trained to be the best! I am the top of my classes, and not even the teachers have done better than me in their own time in school! Your precious little Duddikins wouldn't hold a candle to me there! The only reason why he was doing better at primary school than me was because when I got better grades, I was beaten for it and accused of cheating! I was ordered to be stupid because apparently, that's all you are capable of being! Stupid! I hate every last one of you and considering that I'm a master at all forms of martial arts that I've trained in, you're lucky that I haven't taken you down yet and that I'm still fairly in control of myself at the moment! Do not push me anymore, Marge Dursley, or you will be screaming on the floor before I leave! I'm never coming back here now that I've got my things back! I have plenty of money from my parents, who were actually filthy-rich from their high-class jobs unlike yourselves, and when I passed all of my exams and get the job that I want, I will be very happy to shove it in your face and show you just inferior you are to me!" Harry ranted, not stopping to take any breaths as he got 8 years of anger from his abuse out of his system.

During Harry's rant, Dudley had been slowly inching towards Ginny. When Harry finally finished, Dudley grabbed Ginny's sleeve and pulled her roughly to him in an attempt to kiss her. The soul bond took effect, however, as Dudley was repelled back a few feet from the shield put up around Ginny before the pig could touch her lips. Harry's eyes darted to Dudley's form after picturing the situation from Ginny's end, and his rage heightened as he dove at Dudley.

Harry grabbed his cousin by the neck and pulled him up off the floor, holding him in the air. He then kicked his cousin in the privates before punching him so hard that he was sent flying across the room, straighten into the kitchen. Fortunately, Dudley didn't hit his head on anything, but the kick to his privates meant that he couldn't get up from the pain. Marge seemed to forget Harry's rant as she lunged for him.

"Why you filthy-!" Marge screamed before her fist was caught in Harry's grip.

"You should've listened to me!" Harry growled.

Harry then pulled his hand down, pulling Marge down with it until she hit the floor hard. He then kicked her in the head, flipping her over and knocking her out from the force of impact. He then turned to the cowering Vernon and Petunia Dursley and said one final sentence.

"Pretend that I never existed. I'm leaving now and I'm not coming back. Do not try to find me either, as you never will. Explain that to dear old Marge when she wakes up to so that she doesn't call the police and waste their valuable time, alright? Goodbye, Dursleys. I'd say that it's been nice knowing you, but then I'd be lying," Harry ordered before exiting the Dursley home for good, leading Ginny with him before apparating to the Potter Manor gates where Hedwig was sitting on the top.

The trio then entered the Manor silently. Once Hedwig flew off upstairs to find Harry's room, the silence was broken by Ginny's quiet, frightened voice.

"Harry? What happened in there? You never get that angry at anything. What happened to you?" Ginny asked hesitantly, still in fear of the Dursley incident.

"I didn't realise just how much anger I had bottled up inside of me until then. What Marge said about giving you to Dudley to 'straighten you out' and to give you 'guidance' made me think about everything she did to me and what Dumbledore was planning on doing to you...I snapped...I couldn't help it, neither could I control my actions...I just saw red...then nothing except the pain in Dudley and Marge's eyes...It felt...good..." Harry explained in horrific honesty, staring at his hands as if he couldn't believe that they belonged to him.

"Harry..." Ginny sighed in sadness, remembering the abuse and hardships that Harry had suffered throughout his young life as her fear dissipated, leaving only understanding of his pain.

"I need to be alone for a while to calm down...I'm sorry for scaring you, Ginny...I'd never wish to hurt you in anyway...I love you..." Harry explained before apparating to a study to think.

Eventually, Harry dozed off, allowing his mind to wander to places he had never explored before as the events of this year, triggered by the confrontation with Marge, finally took its toll on him. He found himself in his mindscape, but a much darker area that his had never discovered before. Out of the darkness, he saw a figure emerge. He took on a fighting stance, preparing himself for a confrontation. However, the figure merely stood and stared at him in amusement. The shadowy aura faded away, revealing the details of the figure.

Harry backed on in shock as the figure was revealed to be...him?! No, it wasn't exactly him. The Dark Harry's skin was grey, his eyes were red, his nails were claws and he wore a black suit with a black cloak.

"Well, this is interesting...I was beginning to believe that I would never be found by you, Harry," Dark Harry said.

"Who exactly are you?! You can't be me! This has to be an illusion!" Harry shouted.

"Oh, but I am you, albeit the darker side of you. I must say, we certainly showed those filthy muggles who was in charge, didn't we?" Dark Harry stated with a chuckle.

"So you made me act like that?! You made me more sensitive to them?!" Harry questioned angrily.

"I may have had a part in it, yes. You can't really say that I did a bad thing, can you? Did you see how that disgusting pig was eyeing up our Ginny?! You should've made sure that he could never stand up again, or at least never use his little piggy," Dark Harry responded, laughing at his innuendo.

"I may hate him, but killing him is going too far! I'm not Riddle! I'm not a monster!" Harry cried out in horror.

"That's your opinion, my light brother. We are not so dissimilar to Tom, you know? He was as intelligent as we are at this age. However, he wasn't nearly as strong as us. And the stronger we get, the more knowledge we will learn until we become better than him. I wouldn't be surprised if we become better than him just by next year! He never even had half of the power at our disposal! He won't stand a chance once he returns and we destroy his foolish horcruxes!" Dark Harry declared.

"That still doesn't warrant becoming like him! I will not stoop to his level and become the very thing that I'm trying to defeat! Plus there's Dumbledore to worry about! If I become another Riddle, then it gives Dumbledore the perfect excuse to kill me himself once my usefulness is gone!" Harry responded.

"He too shall be no match against us. I have felt the old fool's power dropping slowly. If we continue this little game and continue to make him believe that we are his good little 'Golden Boy', then he won't know what will hit him when we strike," Dark Harry mused.

"No! I won't become a killer! Not even Dumbledore's killer! He will get justice, but by being sentenced to Azkaban or the Dementor's Kiss! I will not become him or Riddle! And what's with all of this 'we'?! We are not the same person!" Harry declared in defiance.

"Oh, but we are. You are the light side of Harry Potter and I am the dark side. We must work together in order to win. You must understand this. How else do you think that we can perform pure dark magic if there was no me? You know this to be true, my light brother..." Dark Harry explained.

"You may be my dark side, but you do not control me. I will not become dark. Even if I am forced to use pure dark magic, I will not allow it to corrupt me and give you anymore control. Not after today..." Harry said.

"Trust me, my light brother...this is only the beginning...We will meet again...and I will not be denied..." Dark Harry warned menacingly as his expression darkened.

Dark Harry faded back into the shadows as Harry finally woke up to Ginny shaking his body awake. Once he woke up, she hugged him tightly and kissed him, apologising for not thinking sooner and understanding his pain. As the couple went to bed, he couldn't help but think of his conversation with his darker self. He had a very bad feeling about all of this...

In the dark recesses of Harry Potter's mindscape, Dark Harry sat in the shadows as he began to laugh manically.

"Soon, I will take control...I will claim what should've been mine...My freedom...My chance to be at the front of our mind...My Ginny..." Dark Harry declared as his devolved into another fit of evil laughter.

A/N: Hey guys, here's the chapter I promised you. I finished it a lot quicker than most chapters recently as I had the idea in my head already, so just needed to write it down. I hope that you don't mind that I've brought Harry's inner darkness back out, but I thought that he had gotten a bit too soft and it would mean that it was all too easy for Ginny to remove Harry's darker urges, which we cannot have, right? Plus, I just love the idea of having Harry facing off against his darker self. Who can be a deadlier enemy than yourself? Anyway, enjoy the chapter. Please review. Oh, and one thing that I missed in the last chapter was where Shade was all of this time. In my head, he would've been following Harry everywhere during the last chapter, then stayed in the Potter Manor during this chapter. Just thought that I should clear that up for anyone wondering. Also I don't own Harry Potter, JKR does, neither Pokémon, Nintendo and Game Freak do.