Chaos Born: Destiny Undone

by I LIKE FEAR 1-2

Cast into the shadows, and captured by Evil, the Boy-Who-Lived suffered in agony. Twisted, mutated, and mutilated, what happens when he escapes back into the world and learns a terrible truth. Blessed by darkness, guided by death, the world's savior has been lost. A nightmare has been born with only two goals in mind; survive and prosper. (Warnings/Cliches inside)

9. Chapter 9

Alright, here's the next chapter for you guys, hope you all find it enjoyable.

Chaos Born: Destiny Undone

Chapter 9: The first task and dealing with witches

Twenty-four years…

Twenty-four long, difficult years. And now he was back. He stood in the shadow of Hogwarts staring up at the castle, almost as if seeing it for the first time again.

"I used to love this place. Used to think that there was nowhere like it… It was the closest thing to home I'd ever known." Harry thought to himself, his eyes filling with nostalgia. It hadn't been all that long here, but for Harry, after so many years, he could look back and see it clearly. This place had only been a home to him because he was allowed some modicum of happiness here. That was the only reason. It was infinitely better than the Dursleys, so he could feel joy, and happiness and consider this place home. It took him a long time to realize, to recognize just how much he had suffered within these walls, it was different from the Dursleys so he could trick himself into thinking it was home.

Hogwarts itself was fashioned as a place of wonder, and magic, and to most people that's what it was, but not to Harry, not any longer. Now when he looked at it, he didn't see a school, or a home, all he saw was a den of little miscreants being shaped into mirror images of their parents.

That was far from a good thing in many of their cases. Voldemort had been right about them, about this society. It was diseased and bigoted, ruled by fear, paranoia and power-hungry fools. Nepotism ran rampant, and blood-purity was always on everyone's mind. Had Voldemort not been a raging psychopath, maybe he may have even had a point. Looking back on Voldemort's life, and memories, Harry was startled to see just how much they had in common. Despite his hatred of the man, Harry found himself agreeing with the maniac on many points. Had it not been for just a tiny issue that kept such feelings at bay, Harry may have even been willing to sympathize with the dark lord. That issue being the murder of his mother and the breaking of his family. No, no matter how much he agreed with Voldemort, he could never feel anything but hatred for the man for taking away his mother, and dooming him to a life of separation from his father and sister. Voldemort was at the crux of that particular issue, though he didn't yet know enough to fully condemn or absolve his father of his part in this either. Voldemort himself had once been a charismatic and charming leader, but as time went on, and fear tore at his nerves, he degraded into the monster that the world knew him as. He raged against the machine that built him, all the while he was shaped by it, even as he preached supremacy over it. He would tear the whole world down, just to replace it with a warped parody of what was already there. He became misguided at the end, and had perverted his original goal and ideals. Voldemort was a lost cause, beyond any hope of redemption. The next time Harry ran into the man, he would put an end to this, once and for all.

He lifted his gaze to the sky, his eyes settling on the cloud covered sun. His eyes lingered on it for a moment before he let out a grunt of annoyance.

"The Light is something that exists in defiance of nature. It's chaotic, and rampant, and requires power to fuel itself. When the light goes out, what is left? Only darkness… maybe you were right Kaathe, maybe darkness is the natural order to the world. I guess we'll see." Harry thought to himself before phase shifting into the castle, appearing outside of the Room of Requirement.

He stood for a moment before letting out a dry chuckle. So Hogwarts had no defense against his phase shifting? That was interesting.

Harry entered into the room and found himself a mirror. He wanted to see just what he looked like now, because it was obvious that he was no longer an adult, despite being almost forty now.

He was right on that point. He looked just like he had before being sent to that world. He was young again, though he still carried the changes that he had made during his time away. His body was younger, yet he still sported the stone scales of the Everlasting Dragons along his Behir arm, he was also noticeably paler. After so many deaths, his Dementor arm now looked like a normal human arm. It was toned, and muscular, a sign of Harry's physique. The only thing that really made it stand out was it's color. The skin of the arm was a matted gray, while the fingernails were black. He was a bit taller than before as well. It was almost like when coming back into this younger body instead of just jumping back into his prior self, his body de-aged, leaving him younger, but without the effects of years of malnutrition. So he was fourteen again, but taller than before, and more muscular as well.

"You look well." Came Luna's voice as she appeared behind him.

"Thanks… you look spectacular." Harry replied as he turned to face her. She smiled at him, for a good long moment before he approached her and pulled her into a hug.

Luna returned the embrace and nuzzled into him, taking comfort in his warmth.

"Just doesn't beat real life." Harry hummed as he held her in his arms. Before all of this he had difficulties initiating such physical interactions. Being touched had always been a painful experience for Harry up until coming to Hogwarts, and even then the only real positive physical contact he ever got was from Mrs. Weasley and Hermione, so when he started dating Luna he was still nervous about initiating such physical interactions, even if he no longer feared them. That had been a lifetime ago for him. He had grown past such fears, especially with this woman.

"I'm missed having you here." Luna said to him, pulling back and lifting her eyes to meet his.

"I wasn't gone too long was I?" He asked with a cheeky smirk.

"Too long for me." Luna responded before hugging him again.

Having been in contact with her the entire time he was away, there was no real need to catch up or anything.

Harry chose to spend the rest of the day in the Room of Requirement and allow Daphne and Tracey to think the plan had worked. He'd confront the two tomorrow after the first task which Harry now had no reservations about. He didn't know what it would be, but after all that he had been through, it no longer mattered. He had no fear of death, he was used to pain, and he'd faced monsters, and dragons, and powerful warriors for over two decades. Nothing this tournament could throw at him would be more than he could handle, and if by chance it somehow was, he was unafraid of the consequences of failure.

He spent the rest of the day creating a new wardrobe for himself. He no longer intended to hide his body's modifications, namely his arms, he intended to leave them visible. Not like he could hide his Behir arm any longer as the Stone Scales made it appear even larger than before so there was no real way to cover it up without just using glamours or physical transfiguration but Harry decided against that because he no longer cared about what these people thought of him. He had suffered and been turned into a monster through no fault of his own. If people called him a monster for what he'd endured then he knew where he stood with them, and would treat them accordingly.

The only part of himself that he intended to hide was his beholder/basilisk eye, mostly because it was an excellent trump card in either form, so letting people think he had no eye under an eye-patch was more valuable to him.

His original eye-patch had burned up when he died, but instead of getting another one, Harry stuck with a method he had developed while in the other world. He used transfiguration to create an eye-patch that would sit on his head, and he would simply keep his right eye shut. If he opened it, while channeling the power of the Beholder, the anti-magic properties of the eye would cancel the transfiguration allowing him to remove the eye-patch without the use of his hands, meaning even if he was bound up, all he had to do to reveal that secret weapon was open his eye.

After getting his outfit settled, he spent the rest of the night, laying with Luna in a bed the Room had provided for them.

They laid side-by-side staring up at the canopy of the bed, which had been decorated with stars. Both lost in their thoughts. It was Harry who was first drawn out of his contemplation when Luna shifted her head, resting it on his shoulder. He turned his gaze to her, marveling at how she could ever be comfortable rested against the stone-hard scales of his draconic arm. She didn't seem to mind, didn't even seem to notice in truth. There was very little that bothered Luna when it came to the physical, he had learned over their many years in the dream world. On a few occasions she'd asked if he was interested in having her walk around naked whenever they met in the shared dream. At first such questions drew embarrassment from Harry, despite the answer always remaining the same. Eventually he found himself asking if she was comfortable with that. Her reply was simply that it didn't bother her. Physical things and experiences were entirely new to her. Despite her long life, she had only had a physical body for a few short years of it at that point so the physical was basically alien to her.

Even now, despite their two decades of intimacy, Luna still had very little grasp on the consequences of physical actions and reactions. In the dream she could tease him and be playful with him, but that was their spirits, not their physical bodies. Despite it 'feeling' physical it was all mental and spiritual.

She didn't really have a grasp on comfort, or the importance of it. For example, here and now, her head was rested on the rigid stone scales of his shoulder. It could not possibly be comfortable, and with a single word or even a grunt of discomfort, Harry would happily roll over or switch sides so she could rest on his other arm. Luna didn't make any of these noises, or show any signs of discomfort because comfort didn't matter to her.

Knowing all of this, Harry slid his arm underneath her and pulled her onto his chest, allowing her head to rest over his heart. Luna hummed in delight, though again it had less to do with her own sense of comfort and more to do with him offering an affectionate gesture and allowing her to listen to his heartbeat, which was one of Luna's favorite things to do.

The beating of his heart, had been the sound that had drawn her to him specifically. The moment his heart first started beating, she knew he was the one she had been waiting for. For months, while he grew and developed Death would linger over Lily Potter and just listen. Listen to the ever increasing strength of his heartbeat. It was a sound she was intimately familiar with and one that she attributed to his existence being real. Offering to allow her to resume listening to it, was one of those few physical things that she desired for herself, it's why she liked hugs so much, it allowed her to press her ear to his body, and just listen.

Of course, having her resting on his chest, listening to her soft breathing, and the way she cuddled against him, it drew his mind towards similar circumstances that occurred during their time in the dreamworld, though those moments were often precluded by 'other' forms of intimacy.

Harry let out a grunt of annoyance as he felt himself start to stiffen. Images of Luna's nude form dancing in his mind.

He shifted, and Luna lifted her head to gaze at him. He met her eyes, and a knowing look began to creep across her face.

He stared back, fighting off the beginnings of a blush. He hadn't been back for more than a day, and already he was ready to resume their physical relationship as if nothing had changed. Emotionally he was where he had been yesterday, or his perception of yesterday, but physically he was younger again.

As much as he wanted to right it off as the same thing, he couldn't because it wasn't the same. Being back in his original body, and being able to be with her physically for the first time, it was definitely an entirely new situation.

"Interested?" Luna hummed, her delicate hand snaking down into his trousers.

"Yes." Harry replied, knowing that anything less would be a lie.

Her smile grew as she sat up and removed her shirt, and Harry followed suite by removing his pajama bottoms.

Things picked up quickly from there as the two began to kiss, Luna's hand wrapping around his engorged member. The two went about their usual playbook, going through the motions that they both knew the other liked.

The first speed bump came when Luna tried to take him into her mouth, only for the two to quickly realize that he was too big for that. In the dream the limits of the human body were more of a suggestion than a reality, but this was reality and unfortunately they had to play by the rules.

Luna's inability to take him into her mouth like she could in the dream, quickly made them realize that there was a lot they couldn't here in the real world. Harry was too big, and Luna was still too small.

While it had started off big, his repeated deaths in the other world, and the subsequent bonding to his new body parts led him to getting bigger. At full grown he'd sported a twelve inch member that at it's base was as wide as as his wrist is now. While several inches shy of that and only about half as wide now that he was back in his younger body, he was still too big for Luna who while a year younger than him, was also small and dainty for her age.

She wasn't going to be able to get her mouth around him like she could in the dream. That was true for other places as well. Their attempts at deeper intimacy were again met with failure as Harry was unable to squeeze much of his length into Luna's depths even with proper lubrication. He made it just far enough into her to break her hymen, taking her virginity for real.

Seeing how things weren't going to go the way they would in the dream, Harry turned to another method to help them get through it. A spell he had come up with during his time with Quelaag and Quinna. This spell would allow him to fit his length into her depths without hurting her. It was a spell he'd created on his own after Quelaag had hurt herself in a fit of lust while they had sex, though she wasn't the only one guilty of getting lost in a frenzy as Harry too would happily turn off his brain and lose himself to the feelings and sensations. Things could get wild, and it was easy to lose yourself to the pleasure once it got intense enough. Despite the fact that she enjoyed it, and always defended how it happened, Harry didn't like seeing her in pain, and worked to devise a spell that could help them.

Though it took him a bit to figure out, he knew such spells did exist in his original world, spells that could allow much larger beings to have sex with smaller ones without killing them. Hell the Minotaur the he had gained his accursed manhood from, had likely come from the use of such a spell.

In the end he managed to devise a spell that he could cast on a woman like a form of transfiguration. This spell would allow her insides to stretch a great deal, without actually extending into her body, meaning he was less likely to hurt her, even if things got really wild.

He had never had to use the spell on Luna before despite her having been the smallest of his three lovers, due to it happening in the dream world. While in there, certain things just didn't happen the same way as they did in the real world. For example he never had a problem fitting himself into her, while in the dream.

He didn't need to consider it, or weight any sort of options, he had been in love with her for over two decades, and this was the first time they were sharing in this kind of physical intimacy in the real world. He wasn't about to let such limitations stop him from claiming his prize.

Luna felt his magic wash over her, and a few moments later, felt him press into her depths. Even with the aid of the spell, he still had to move slowly as this was the first time she'd put her body through such an activity.

He slowly pressed his full length into her depths, shuddering when he reached the end of his length.

Luna trembled from the intensity of the sensation.

The two paused at that moment and locked eyes with one another. They held each other's gaze for several long moments before pulling one another into a kiss. Things quickly picked up, though unlike in the dream, and due to this technically being their first time together, neither lasted very long.

They partook for close to an hour, Luna reaching her climax four times, with Harry right behind her with three. Though he was used to finishing in her depths, since they were in the real world now, he forced himself to pull out of her each time to avoid her possibly getting pregnant. Neither one of them knew if she could, being Death and all, but now wasn't the time to figure it out.

At the end the two were left laying next to each other, staring at the ceiling, satisfaction evident on both of their faces.

"That was interesting." Luna noted.

"Yep…" Harry sighed in agreement.

"I think it feels better in the physical world, and I like this feeling afterwards. This… 'elated' sensation. Is this how you felt after being with Quelaag or Quinna?" Luna inquired, glancing over at him.

"Yeah. Don't get me wrong, I love all the time we spend together in the dream, and I'm more than happy to keep enjoying our time there, but there's something about all of the physical sensations. The pleasure, the breathlessness, the exhilaration, and excitement. Even the release… you don't quite get that in the dream. You don't quite come down from it, in the dreamworld. I like it, because in the dream, you don't come down, you just keep going, but here, you can reach that satisfaction, and for a few moments be content, only for your partner to do something that immediately gets you going again. It makes the second act more enjoyable I think." Harry responded to her, meeting her gaze with his own.

She smiled at him, that friendly, beaming smile that showed she was happy.

"Interested in getting back to what we're used too?" Luna hummed after a few moments as she snuggled against him.

"Absolutely. You know me, I can't get enough of hearing you moan and whimper." He growled back, kissing the side of her head while he did.

"I like when you do that. I like not being able to control myself." Luna said to him, her cheeks tinging red.

Harry felt himself smile, wrapping his arms around her, and pulling her onto his chest as he did. While their first time together in the real world had been exciting, both fully intended to drift off into the land of dreams to continue where they left off, and enjoy what they were used to.

Luna was asleep first, drifting off into the dreamworld to the powerful rhythmic beat of Harry's heart. Harry soon began to follow her, falling into the realm's of unconsciousness to be with her.

Moments after arriving in that dreamscape he found himself standing in the Great Hall. For a moment he stood in confusion, unsure of why he was here and not in the normal dreamscape. Then it suddenly clicked. It had been so long since the Dream had changed. It had been a constant setting for over two decades, but now it was fluid again.

Screams filled his ears and the light of the room vanished, sending everything into darkness. The screams grew louder and louder until he heard it, piercing through the choir of pained wails, the roar of a mighty demon.

Light returned, and the Great Hall was once more revealed to him, this time it was far from empty.

surrounding him, filling ever seat was a flayed body, these bodies clawed at themselves, and screamed. Hung from jagged hooks above them was their skin. Dangling listlessly just out of reach. The Head table was missing and in its place was a throne of blackened stone. Sat upon it was the demon.

Sat before the throne, facing towards where Harry stood were all of the teachers. They were on their knees, naked, their eyes torn out. They were screaming too. Harry felt his blood pressure skyrocketing as he took all of this in.

It quickly became more than he could handle, the scream grew in intensity, reaching such a volume that he could even hear himself think.

Suddenly, everything went silent, and Harry found himself standing before Luna. They were still in the Great Hall, yet it was empty once again, save for the demon that stared down at them, it's form ever changing, impossible to comprehend, yet it now carried with it, the irrefutable presence of the Dark Soul.

Harry was quicky to set aside the nightmarish scene he had just been witness too. He knew no answers lay in such sights, just a dark reflection of his own anger. Instead, he focused on Luna, something far more comforting and oddly enough, easier to understand. The two embraced and quickly began to return to their nightly activities, it was only after she had mounted him, and lowered herself onto his length that he noticed the hungry eyes of the others watching them. His four slaves were clustered at the doorway leading into the Great Hall. This was the first time since they'd begun having sex that the others had appeared here.

It shouldn't have been a surprise to Harry. When in the other realm, he may have endured twenty-four years, and Luna, being a cosmic being wasn't affected by time the same way as others were, so she could visit him in his dreams even though her body was here in this world, but the other four couldn't. They could only come to the dream world when they slept, so for twenty-four years, Harry and Luna had had the dreamscape to themselves, save for the watchful eyes of Harry's ever-changing demonic form.

Now though, they had a cabal of lustful eyes watching as the two rutted like love-starved fools.

Harry tried to pay them little mind, and Luna didn't seem to care, but the idea of being watched by two women that he intended to punish harshly for their role in killing him, and one who was his sister, made him feel incredibly awkward.

It didn't help when at one point as he mounted Luna, he locked eyes with Olivia, who appeared nude, and wantonly groped at herself as she watched him.

He tried to keep his focus on Luna, only to lose sight of his sister and then to suddenly feel the hot body of the demoness in question press up against his back, and grope at his chest. Feeling Olivia's shapely body against him, while he was buried deep in Luna, led to him reaching his tipping point a few moments later.

He found himself rolling off of Luna and ending up on his back, Olivia standing over him, her eyes blazing with devilish desire. His eyes trailed up and down her naked body, nothing about her putting him off. She was absolutely gorgeous, her pale skin and raven locks that hung to her middle back. Her hair was thick, and messy, her bangs falling into her blazing eyes. Her breasts were laid bare for his eyes to see, and she did nothing to hide her womanhood from his gaze. He took in the sight of the black patch of hair that sat above her pussy, and how wet her cunt was. The sight almost made him tremble with desire. Even her digitigrade legs that ended in clover hooves didn't put him off. With a wild smile plastered on her face, she stepped on either side of his waist, and lowered down to her knees, intent on impaling herself on his erect member. Right as she got to her knees and wrapped her hand around his cock to guide it into her entrance, he found the others kneeling around them, watching with lustful eyes. Even Luna had risen from the crowd and was watching with this excited smirk. Right as he felt the heat of his own sister's entrance, he was suddenly awoken by the bed gently shaking.

His eyes snapped open, and he let out a groan. In his ears echoed the disappointed groans of the demons, almost as a final sound to taunt him of their wanton desires. The shaking of the bed was like a magical alarm, waking him up before he overslept. He stared at the ceiling for a moment, his face flushed from embarrassment. His own sister…

"Why in the hell does she have to be so attractive…?" Harry groaned, as he brought his hands up to his face, taking note of how warm it was.

Luna was awake a few seconds later, where she took note of his receding erection and the mess he'd left behind from his nocturnal emissions. She had slept on top of him all night and because of that, when he grew erect it had sprouted up between her legs, and with the blanket covering the two of them, when he had finished most of it landed on her butt and back.

She gave him that typical dreamy smile of hers, gifting him with a morning kiss before rolling off of him and heading towards the bathroom, stopping just long enough to glance back at him in a way that was all too familiar. It was an action that mirrored how Quelaag would invite him to come and fuck, something she had obviously picked up from his own memories of it, and now sought to mimic.

Harry blinked for a moment before rising from bed to follow after her. The two bathed together, cleaning up from the night before. Once they were clean, Harry dropped to his knees and ate her out, a gift she returned after her release by running her body along his manhood, and then licking and jerking him to completion.

Afterwards, the two dried off and spent a few minutes getting ready for the day. Or, more accurately, Harry busied himself getting ready for the day while Luna watched him, remaining naked the entire time, much to Harry's chagrin.

"You enjoy teasing me don't you?" Harry said to her, casting a rueful glance at her as he finished pulling his pants on.

"Yes. I also like seeing you blush. It makes me smile." Luna responded playfully, leaning back on the bed as she watched him, and gifting him with a wonderful view of her body. Though he found her cute, he was definitely excited for the day when they both returned to their adult bodies. For Harry it was an exciting prospect because he had no idea what he'd get when it came to Luna. Over the course of their twenty-four years together in his dreams, she had aged up her body to be more like an adult, or at least to her late teens, early twenties. The aging up process though was far from perfect or accurate. It was basically just Luna's guess as to what she'd look like, which took the form of just a taller form of herself. On a few occasions she'd tried giving herself disproportionate assets like a bigger butt or larger boobs just to entertain Harry for a bit, but she always went back to something more closely in line with what looked like how she was now, that being a petite woman. Still, even with her being petite, Harry still found her to be absolutely incredible, and he very much wanted to see what she'd actually look like full grown, and not just what she imagined she'd look like. They both knew how he would look, at least how he would look with all of his current mutations, and additions, but she was still a mystery.

That was also the case with the others as well. Their 'demonic' and 'older' appearances were shapes generated by the mind and soul. It was how they saw themselves in such a state, meaning it was far from one hundred percent accurate. Their demonic shapes might change, or they may not look anything like they do now. It was why it was so easy to recognize Tracey, and Daphne, and Fleur in their demonic forms because the faces were basically their current faces just plastered onto an older body. What they would actually look like as adults was a mystery.

After Harry finished putting on his robes he went over to her. He placed a kiss on either of her nipples, gently teasing them just enough to earn sigh of pleasure from her. He then kissed her collarbone, then her neck, chin and cheek, before finally meeting her lips, in a searing and lustful kiss. He felt one of her hands circle around his head, while the other grasped the front of his robes. He had to use one of his hands to steady himself since she was now using him to keep her elevated off the bed. He smiled into the kiss, and pulled back, leaving her wanting more.

"See you later." He offered to her as he pulled back and let her fall onto the bed.

Luna sighed and stared up at the ceiling, knowing full well that was revenge for teasing him. She smiled, happy that he was happy, and happy to be happy. Even as she heard him exit the room, leaving her alone on the bed, she didn't lose her smile. For so long she had needed him, and wanted to be with him, but only after so much time together was, she starting to understand what being with someone meant. It was easy to say things like she was in love, and it was easy to say them to him, because she knew it made him happy, but truth be told, she didn't really know what love was for a long time. Emotions had always been tricky for her. She had never really had any means of rationalizing them until she came to this body. Before then, she could feel emotions, but they made no sense to her. She didn't know what she was feeling. That was true for a time, even in this body, but the physical sensations that came with certain feelings helped her to understand what emotions she was feeling.

Feeling a weight descend upon her when she was sad or depressed. Feeling lighter, and bubbling with energy when she was happy or excited. Even this burning heat that seemed to fill her. This intensity that seemed to build simultaneously in her heart and groin, whenever Harry would stare at her with those lustful, hungry eyes.

She felt free around him, free of burdens, free of containment. It was difficult to describe and even harder to understand. Still, whatever she had thought their relationship would be like when it first started, she was happy where it had ended up.

She smiled again, placing her hands on her belly and closing her eyes. In her minds eye, she saw him. The person she would spend eternity with. Wherever he would go, she would follow, of that she had no doubt.

She allowed herself to bask in her feelings for a few short moments before rising to her feet to begin getting ready for the day. As much as she enjoyed being naked when Harry was around, unfortunately the people who lived here frowned on such openness, so she got dressed and headed out to watch Harry in the first task.

The First Task of the Triwizard Tournament was met with a great deal of fanfare. A small stadium had been erected in the hills above Hogwarts. Harry arrived with little fanfare as the other champions psyched themselves up for the task.

It quickly dawned on Harry that all three of them knew what the task was going to be. It was obvious that cheating was perfectly alright, just so long as he wasn't the one doing it. In each of their minds, he heard the same word repeated, and he couldn't help but smile when he heard it. 'Dragons'.

One thing, if there was one thing in the world that Harry was ready to face with almost no warning or preparation it was a dragon. Most of the dragons of this world were nothing compared to the Everlasting Dragons. Their scales were weaker, they were smaller, they weren't immortal, and they were more closely related to wyverns than true dragons, there were some exceptions but, in most cases, the age of true dragons had long passed, and the beasts of today's era were pale shadows by comparison.

Now knowing what he'd be facing, any uncertainty or concern immediately fled his body. This would be a walk in the park.

"What are you smiling about Potter?" Cedric inquired as he took note of the look on Harry's face.

"Dragons! How exciting." Harry replied giving his opponent a chuckle, allowing his emerald eye to shine with anticipation. If one looked closely at his green eye, they'd see how it was slitted, almost like a serpent's eye.

Cedric made a face at him but said nothing in response.

"Vat is wrong vith your hand?" Krum asked, as he noticed the blue scales of Harry's Behir arm.

Harry smirked at him and raised his arm, allowing his sleeve to fall back. Krum's eyes widened, as did Cedric's. On the opposite side of the tent, Fleur looked over at him, just in time to also catch sight of the draconic limb.

"Nothing's wrong with my arm. Works perfectly fine." Harry responded.

"What the hell happened to you?" Cedric asked, rising to his feet with a look of disgust.

"Psychotic bitch of a witch ripped off my arms, tore open my body, and skinned me alive, and replaced it all with bits and bobs from whatever random magical creatures she could think of." Harry responded with a rueful chuckle, lowering his arm as he did.

Cedric blinked at him in surprise, Krum also remained silent, meanwhile Fleur approached, joining the others in standing around him.

"What creature did zat come from?" Fleur asked.

"A Behir." Harry responded, glancing over at her. She was the first one to notice his slitted pupil causing her to take in a nervous breath.

"What all did she do to you?" Fleur inquired, her curiosity plainly showing on her face.

"A lot. Though the most fascinating bit was branding me with these markings that bind me to other people. She was truly a messed up human being." Harry responded as he once more raised his Behir arm, showing them the mark of Slaanesh on his forearm. The sight of his mark caused Fleur to take in a sudden breath, her eyes going wide as her hand went to her own left forearm.

Harry met her eyes and offered the smallest of nods, showing that he very much knew she had the same mark as him, and that they needed to talk.

Before any further questions could be asked, Dumbledore and the other judges walked into the tent. Harry rose to his feet to join the other champions as they were brought together.

Dumbledore offered them some words of encouragement before opening the floor to Barty Crouch who explained to them the first task. Their goal was simple. Retrieve a golden egg from a nesting dragon. The egg itself would contain a vital clue that would help them in the second task, so it was important that they acquired it. Aside from that, pretty much anything was valid. They were only allowed to bring a wand into the arena, but anything they could do once within the arena was fair game.

Once that was explained to them, the four drew from a bag to determine which dragons they be facing. Harry, of course, picked the most violent and aggressive breed of dragon because of course he did, his luck would allow for no other outcome. Still, he wasn't unsettled. He had to face a Hungarian Horntail, a vicious beast, but far from worst he ever had to deal with.

Cedric would go first, then Fleur, then Krum, and finally Harry.

With everything explained to them, the first task began.

Cedric was led out of the tent and into the arena with the three remaining champions left only with the roars of the dragon, the screams of the crowd and Ludo Bagman's observations over the microphone to determine what was happening within the arena.

Harry spent most of his time kicked back, his eyes shut, just relaxing. He'd already devised a plan for how to kill the dragon. He could have just summoned the Invisibility Cloak and stolen the egg without being seen, but he intended to make a point here. Besides, he needed to show two certain Slytherins just how much trouble they were in.

"You do not seem perturbed by the task at hand." Krum noted, his eyes passing over Harry's leisurely rest.

"Because I'm not." Harry replied his eyes shut while he lay on a bench facing the ceiling of the tent.

"Why not?" Fleur chose to ask before Krum did.

"Death is an old friend, and after what that witch did to me, pain no longer scares me. When you've lived through what I've lived through, not a whole lot can scare you anymore." Harry answered her, earning a slow nod from the Veela, who's eyes seemed to flash with something, admiration perhaps.

Before she could ask another question, a cannon went off and she was called to take the field. Cedric had finished the first round.

Harry and Krum remained in silence as Fleur participated in the first task. It wasn't long before Krum was called out into the arena, leaving Harry alone with his thoughts.

Outside in the stands, Tracey and Daphne sat beside one another.

They watched as Krum finished with the task and acquired the golden egg, both growing more apprehensive the longer the point of their focus went unaddressed.

Something had happened to Harry, both of them knew it. When he had died, their brands had flared up causing a surge of energy to pass into them. Thankfully the two had been alone when it happened so no one else noticed. That had signaled to them that the task was done, Harry had died. They hadn't seen him at all yesterday and had no reason to believe otherwise. That is until night came, and they were once again drawn into the dreamworld. They could both remember seeing something, seeing two people in the midst of lovemaking. Neither could remember who they were and yet, both admitted to the other that the sight had filled them with ravishing desire.

The fact that they still had a dream like that, concerned the two of them. If Harry was dead, then why were they still having these strange dreams? The marks were supposed to be the cause. Maybe it was because the marks were still present even if Harry was dead? That was the only possibility that came to mind. It was Tracey who voiced the possibility, almost hopefully that Harry might still be alive.

Daphne though quickly shut it down as impossible. All they knew was that some men would be waiting for Harry and would get rid of him. Some men meaning more than one. As good as he was at spell work, Harry was just one person, and a kid at that. He was a slacker in school, and far from the best. Against actual full-grown wizards, he had no chance, Boy-Who-Lived or not. Daphne was also quick to add that if by some miracle he had survived, that spelled danger for them because then he'd likely piece together their involvement in the plan.

This shut Tracey up, but it didn't answer either of their questions, so the two were still left wondering for the rest of the morning.

Then the start of the First Task came. Both of them expected some commotion or maybe an address from Dumbledore or the Ministry signifying that Harry wasn't present and they were trying to find him. This hadn't happened yet. Everything seemed to be going as normal. If such an announcement was coming, it would have to be now.

It didn't come though. Instead, they watched in horror as the fourth dragon was brought into the arena and the task was reset, which could only mean one thing.

Then the cannon went off and Harry was called out into the arena.

The two felt their guts sink when they saw him emerging from the tunnel. Tracey even grabbed Daphne's hand in panic and elation when she saw him alive.

Harry emerged out into the arena and began circling its outskirts. He didn't immediately see the dragon meaning it was most likely behind him, somewhere near to the entrance.

He heard it's breathing though, and he could smell the scent of multiple dragons from the previous rounds.

The rustling of heavy chains caught his ear as he continued to walk, the crowd watching in silence.

Suddenly, a bellow touched at the air, and crowd grew restless. Harry began to smirk as he heard the dragon moving, lining itself up to torch him with it's fire-breath.

Voices from the crowd grew in intensity as the dragon began to inhale.

Harry allowed a smirk to appear on his face as he cast a stream of water on himself, soaking his body. He then spun around, catching sight of the dragon, half clinging to the wall of the arena.

It let out a blast of fire, which Harry countered by using an overpowered Protego charm.

That coupled with his heightened resistance to fire due to the Red Dragon skin allowed him to withstand the fire blast for as long as the dragon could maintain it.

Most people immediately assumed he was a goner once he'd vanished into the blazing flame, only for it to end and Harry to be left standing there sweaty but unharmed. With all the times that he had died, leading him to become more and more connected with parts like his dragon skin, it made him more resilient to the elements. By now, Harry could put his hand into a campfire for several seconds, and only just barely start feeling some irritation from the heat. He guessed that two dozen or so more deaths, and he'd have a fire resilience matching an actual red dragon, or fire-breathing dragon.

Soaking himself, using an overpowered protego to weaken the flames, added to his natural resilience, allowed him to survive without being burned.

People were left stunned at his survival, even the dragon seemed perturbed that Harry had taken that blast head on and was unharmed by it.

"Let's see how well you do against this!" Harry brought his hand up, causing a bolt of blue lightning to appear and shape like a spear.

The crackle of lightning flooded the air, as Harry launched the bolt straight into the dragon's head. A flash of light erupted from the impact spot, and a shower of scales filled the air, followed soon by blood.

The dragon let out a roar of rage and pain, as a hole was blown into the side of its head.

Shouts of disbelief and amazement filled the air, and Harry moved to reposition himself while the dragon was disoriented.

Harry made it to the center of the arena where people expected him to grab the golden egg which sat in a nest nearby. Instead, he turned to face the dragon again, and summoned another lightning bolt, similar to the first one.

He let it fly, this time striking the dragon in the wing, where it clung to the arena wall. He struck its actual arm, blasting a hole deep enough into the flesh to expose the bone of its arm, while also causing the dragon to release its hold on the wall, and fall over.

Harry watched the creature for a moment as it struggled upright and turned its focus onto him.

With a roar of rage, the dragon lurched forward, scrambling towards him with utter fury, intent on devouring him.

A smirk touched at his lips as he held out his hand, causing a spear to materialize out of thin air, summoned forth from The Arsenal.

He faced down the charging reptile without fear. All he did was begin to backpedal as the dragon closed the gap between them and lurched forward to devour him.

Wordlessly, he released a Lumos Maxima from his wand, causing it to ignite with blinding fury. As he did so he shut his normal eye and opened his beholder eye causing his transfigured eyepatch to disappear.

The light instantly blinded the dragon, causing it to flinch away as it bit forward, allowing Harry to sidestep its charge. His beholder eye could not be blinded via light, so he saw clearly, despite the intense brightness which caused many in the crowd to turn away.

Now beside the dragon's head, Harry took the spear in both hands and thrust it hard into the open wound he had blasted into the dragon's flesh. The spearhead, which had been fashioned to pierce into the hardened flesh and bone of an everlasting dragon, crashed hard through bone and into the back of the Dragon's brain.

Despite his smaller size, Harry's physical strength hadn't fallen by much, and without the dragon's scales to get in the way, his strike was delivered exactly how he wanted it to go.

The dragon lurched and then convulsed as the spearhead cut into its brain, pulverizing and mincing the soft gray matter within its thick skull.

Harry held onto the spear, keeping it pressed into the dragon's skull as it shook and twisted.

Soon the dragon's movements slowed and were reduced to nothing more than heavy twitching.

"What was that, four minutes? That's gotta be a record…" Harry noted with some excitement as he stared down at the dying beast. With this kill, it raised the total number of dragons that he'd slain on his own to seven.

He ripped the spear free causing the dragon to convulse once more. He could tell it was still alive and would probably stay alive for several long minutes before its organs began to shut down.

A smirk touched at Harry's lips as he moved around the beast, stepping towards its side, he reached his hand out and felt at its torso for where it's heart would be. Once he'd found it, he ran a hand along his spear, causing lightning to begin dancing across it. He then took the spear in both hands and plunged it deep into the dragon's chest, pushing as hard as he could. His initial stab piercing the dragon's scales, and flesh, pushing between its rib bones. He then pressed his weight onto the spear pushing it deeper and deeper as steaming blood began to spill out around the penetration wound.

He felt the spear tremble as it pushed into the beast's powerful heart muscle.

Once he was certain that the spear had penetrated his target, he gave it a sharp twist and then ripped it free, causing blood to erupt out of the wound, splattering Harry's face and chest. His actions finished off the mighty dragon, ending its life.

He stepped away as he wiped at the smoking blood that covered him. The arena was silent as the spectators stared in dumbfounded disbelief.

Harry kept his smirk as he made it to the golden egg which sat nestled in a nest of other eggs. He picked up the golden egg from the bunch and raised it into the air, showing the entire arena that he had claimed it.

The students of Durmstrang were the first to break the silence, letting out a rousing cheer of excitement. They were most definitely blown away by the showing of incredible ability. Watching anyone, let alone a fourteen-year-old boy take down a dragon was a sight none of them would ever forget. The carnage and bloodshed got their blood pumping so many rose to their feet as they clapped and cheered.

Slowly they were joined by students from Hogwarts and Beauxbatons. Harry allowed his eyes to pass over the crowd of onlookers taking in the cheers or polite clapping. A rueful part of him wanted to spit at the turnabout here. Most were probably hoping for Harry to be hurt in this task, or at least to see him struggle, yet now they cheered for him, as if just yesterday they weren't mocking him.

He kept his composure though; they'd learn who he really was soon enough. His eyes eventually caught sight of who he was looking for, Daphne and Tracey, both of which stared down at him in disbelief.

His smirk turned into a full-blown grin as he raised his spear and pointed it right at the two. He could visibly see the two pale, even from this distance, and many within the crowd soon began to take notice of the solid blue scales of his behir arm, which was the one he used to hold the spear.

This caused some of the clapping or cheers to silence and whispers to take their place.

Harry didn't much care, his eyes remained locked on Tracey and Daphne.

He held them in his gaze for several long moments before lowering his spear and placing it back in the Arsenal, an act that caused the spear to collapse into nothingness, almost as if it had imploded.

Harry made his way up into the stands where he was directed by professor McGonagall towards to the medical tent to be checked over by Madam Pomfrey. The Transfiguration professor observed him with surprise and unease as she guided him in the right direction.

He stepped into the medical tent where the other champions were recuperating, having been unable to see his match.

They all seemed to have suffered some sort of minor injuries here and there. Cuts and scrapes mostly, though Fleur had some bandages wrapped around her hip, as well as a towel tied off there to held aid in protecting her modesty. It did allow him a glance at one of her shapely legs as she moved to face him, an act that she caught, causing the hint of a smirk to touch at her lips, only for it to retreat when she noticed him doused in blood.

Pomfrey quickly made her way over to him.

"Mr. Potter, come. Sit." Pomfrey directed as she approached him, stopping when she caught sight of his Behir arm, and his beholder eye.

"I'm fine, Madam." Harry said to her as he rolled his shoulders, showing her that he hadn't been injured.

"I'm… I…" Pomfrey tried to respond but her eyes were still stuck on his arm.

"It's rude to stare madam." Harry noted with a soft chuckle as he removed a small piece of cloth from his pocket and transfigured it into another eye-patch that he then put on to cover his beholder eye.

"Yes… you're right. My apologies. I had heard what happened but… please come, let me check on you." Pomfrey shook off her astonishment and regained her focus.

"Check all you want, I'm unharmed." Harry stepped up to her. Other than the dragon's blood which was still on his face and torso and still steaming with noteworthy heat, nothing else about his person indicated that he'd suffered any injuries.

Pomfrey quickly checked him over but found that he had no injuries, even with the dragon blood on him, which should have caused burns, or at the very least skin irritation, yet she found so signs of that either. She did help to clean the blood off of him, but beyond that, had no other reason to keep him.

"You managed to get your egg." Krum noted while he was having the blood cleaned off of him.

"So did you." Harry noted.

"Da… how did you do it?" Krum inquired.

"Killed it, you?" Harry responded leisurely, his response causing all three of the champions to turn to him, while Pomfrey stopped cleaning him and stared as well.

"You killed it?" Krum repeated.

"Yeah. How did you get your egg?" Harry asked him with genuine curiosity.

"Wait, wait… you killed it, you killed a dragon?" Cedric spoke up.

"Yeah." Harry replied, giving him a sideways glance.

"How?" Fleur asked.

"Blinded it, stabbed it in the brain, and heart." Harry answered, turning his gaze to her. Fleur stared back, disbelief dancing in her eyes. He almost felt a smirk begin to touch at his lips, a part of him recalling how she had referred to him as a 'leetle' boy. He was too distracted by other things them, but perhaps he should challenge her on that now, make her eat those words.

Before anything could come from that, the silence that had filled the tent was interrupted as the judges burst in.

"Harry, Harry… how did you do it!?" Dumbledore asked him, approaching him with intent.

"You saw how I did it." Harry responded, his face shaping with a look of displeasure at the sight of the old headmaster.

"The spear Harry. The rules say you were only allowed to bring in a wand. The others say you shrunk it down and snuck it inside." Dumbledore told him, causing Harry to let out a chuckle.

"If I say that's exactly what I did does that mean I'm disqualified, and I don't have to participate anymore?" Harry asked, smiling as he did.

"No, Mr. Potter. But if you did break the rules, then you will be granted no points for this challenge and be automatically put in last place." Crouch answered the question.

"Well damn… I guess it's whatever you want then." Harry let out a sigh, as he stretched his arms and hopped to his feet.

"Did you bring in the spear or did you transfigure it? It was obvious you didn't summon it, so answer the question." Crouch questioned him.

"Let me make this clear to you, since I've already done so with Dumbledore, I'm participating in this tournament under duress because I did not enter myself into it. I could not possibly care how well I do in it, or whether or not I win. Give me points, don't give me points, I don't really care. If you don't know what I did then I'm not going to tell you. Figure it out, you're all witches and wizards." Harry said to them before stepping through them, pushing past each of the judges, as he headed out of the tent, stopping only for a moment in front of Fleur.

"We need to talk." He said to her, still staring forward.

"I agree." She said in response, her eyes lowering to the scaled flesh of his Behir arm, and then a bit higher to his forearm where she knew his shared mark to be.

Harry continued on his way, making it out into the stands, whispering filled his ears as he made his way through the crowd and towards the exit. People watched him with amazement, concern, and possibly even fear. Harry took it all in and continued forward confidently.

He had a plan to put in place, and two specific people he knew would be in the midst of reacting to his sudden return.

He made his way towards the exit when he was met by Hermione and Ron, as well as several other Gryffindors like Seamus and the Twins.

"Harry!" Hermione called out to him, stepping towards him.

His eyes darkened at the sight of them. Twenty-four years since he had seen any of them, since he had laid eyes on his so-called 'friends'.

"Out of my way." Harry said to them.

"Wait, Harry! We need to talk…" Hermione began.

"Yeah, mate…" Ron agreed, both of them seemed unnerved, almost as if they were shaken by what they'd just seen him do.

"Don't call me mate." Harry responded coldly, his gaze turning dark.

"Come on Harry… I mean… friends fight…" Ron tried to start saying but Harry quickly stepped forward, getting in his face, his emerald eye almost blazing with anger. Ron trembled and back off, and before anyone could say anything more, Harry stormed past them. He had two errant Slytherins to find, and no time to deal with these people.

He heard Hermione call after him, but he chose to continue on his way without stopping. They had made their bed, and he had no intention of forgiving them for turning their backs on him and treating him like a leper.

As far as he was concerned, they could rot.

By now, Tracey and Daphne were already out of the arena, and making their way towards the owlery to send a letter. They walked quickly even as they fought off their panic.

"I don't understand… how is he…?" Tracey spoke up as they walked.

"It doesn't make any sense. The marks reacted, something happened yesterday. Why is he here today? Why haven't we heard anything? If he somehow got away, he would have told the teachers, told Dumbledore. An attack on a student at Hogsmeade, that would have torn through the castle and brought the whole ministry down on Hogwarts. I don't get it. Multiple men were waiting for him, full grown adults. There's no way he could have fought them off." Daphne replied concern marring her face.

"You saw what he did though? He killed a dragon. A dragon Daph!" Tracey responded, her eyes filled with fear and panic.

"I know! I was there just like you were. I've never seen power like that before, never seen someone control lightning." Daphne said to her, realizing that Tracey was right. He 'had' killed a dragon. If he could do that, then maybe she was wrong. Maybe he had fought off the men sent to ambush him. What if he had killed them?

That last thought caused her to tremble in fear as the two closed in on the owlery. They needed to send a message to their parents, needed to know what to do now. If Harry had gotten away from his attackers than he'd no doubt now turn his suspicions on them. Seeing him kill a dragon, left Daphne with no misconceptions about their lives being in danger, especially with his actions afterwards, pointing a spear at the two of them.

Daphne felt herself shudder as she remembered it. The way his eye blazed up at them. His eyepatch had vanished sometime during the fight, but he kept the eye closed as he looked up at them. Still though, his emerald eye almost seemed to blaze as he focused it on them. She felt powerless in that gaze, felt tiny and insignificant. Like all of the strength was sapped from her body from just the intensity of his gaze.

He was coming after them, she just knew it. What had happened at Hogsmeade? How had he survived?

The two made it to the owlery and quickly went inside. They needed to get this done quickly and then retreat to their common room to await a response. Potter would certainly be gunning for them, so it was best to do this now while he was basking in his success from the first task.

The two had just entered into the first floor of the owlery when the door slammed closed behind them. Daphne spun around and drew her wand only for it to be ripped from her hand by an unseen force. Whatever spell had struck her, caused pain to lance through her hand, and up her arm. She let out a shriek of pain as her wand flew across the room, landing in a pile of straw. Tracey had drawn her wand as well but stood stock still in fright, unable to raise it.

Her eyes were locked onto Harry, who stood behind the door, having slammed it shut just after they entered. His emerald eye smoldered with fury, while a cruel smirk plastered itself on his face.

His wand was drawn, pointed right at them. Keeping his grin, he advanced. Without a word, a red light jumped from his wand, striking Tracey, causing her own wand to tear out of her hand and fly right into his. With a light chuckle Harry tossed it over his shoulder as he continued to advance on them.

Now defenseless the two girls could do nothing but back away from Harry. Daphne was quick to place herself protectively between Tracey and Harry. She held a look of defiance, but her eyes clearly reflected her fear.

"How did he know we'd be here?" Tracey whispered in fright.

"Because you're not as smart as think you are. Because, just like every other manipulative, lying, dimwitted snake in Slytherin House, the moment things don't go as planned, you're left with no other recourse but to run to mommy and daddy to try and get it fixed." Harry spoke up, answering her question.

"What was it you said to me before Greengrass? That you weren't anything like Malfoy? Well, I guess we know that's true. Malfoy is just a bully; he hasn't actually tried to get me killed. I guess that makes you worse than Malfoy." Harry continued on.

"We didn't have a choice." Daphne said to him. Her final word made it out, when a spell leaped from Harry's wand, striking her in the legs. She let out a shriek of pain and collapsed to the ground. Tracey backed away, startled by the sudden attack. Her back was now pressed against the wall, and she was visibly shaking.

"You led me into a trap, Greengrass. Three men, waiting to kill me! You don't get to whine about your innocence!" Harry snarled at her. Daphne let out a gasp as she struggled to sit up. Her legs had lost all strength in them, yet the muscles were painfully flexing. She couldn't control them at all, and pain lanced through her legs as muscles fought against each other, pulled the limbs in opposite directions.

The pain continued for several long moments before Harry made a movement with his wand, causing her muscles to relax. Daphne let out a gasp as the pain subsided and slowly lifted her gaze to meet with Harry's.

Harry stared down at her for a good long moment before lifting his gaze to Tracey. Both of them were focused on him, their eyes locked on him, waiting for his next move.

"Tell me something…" Harry began, "What did you hope to accomplish from this? Did you think that by killing me that the Slave Brands would simply vanish? Did it ever cross your stupid little minds that by doing what you did, the brands themselves would retaliate? I know why you went along with this. I know that being my slaves puts you at odds with the Black Contract, and I know the kind of price the Blacks would demand for breaking one of their contracts."

"Then you know this wasn't about you, Potter. This was about our survival. Nothing would touch these marks. The goblins couldn't help us, and our parents couldn't find anything. Killing you was the only possibility. You are the last of your house. No heirs, no distant relations. If you died, there wouldn't be anyone to inherit control of the brands. It would render them defunct. It was the only option. If you wanna blame someone, blame me. Blame me. Tracey didn't want to do this. She thought it was wrong. I forced her to stay quiet and follow me. You want revenge, take it out on me." Daphne said to him, her eyes focused on him. At her words, Tracey looked down at her, surprise filling her face.

Harry stared down at her for a good long moment. The way that she fought to take the blame unto herself, to protect her friend. It reminded him of someone. For a moment he saw Quelaag laying before him, and Quinna backed into the corner. He felt his heart lurch at the image, and a snarl spread across his face. God… he really was starting to miss them.

A moment passed as Harry shook his head and growled out in displeasure. He definitely didn't like his mind comparing his beloved fire witches to these two. Finally, he was able to shake off the thought and focus his attention back onto Daphne. Slowly, he knelt down in front of her, canceling the spell that kept her legs tensed.

"Why do you care so much about her?" Harry asked, meeting Daphne's gaze.

Daphne blinked at him, as if confused by the question.

"You're an unkind selfish bitch who only seems to care about your own life. You were willing to kill an innocent person to save yourself. I mean… maybe you thought I was lying. Maybe you convinced yourself that I was guilty and deserved it. Either way… I understand that kind of selfishness. You were willing to kill me to save yourself. I survived, and here I stand, with you backed into a corner. I could kill you here. And here you are trying to get me to spare her, but not yourself. You were willing to kill for your own life, but sacrifice it for another… honestly… I find that a bit strange."

Daphne blinked at him, taking in his assessment of her. His words stung at her, stung at her character, thought she could hardly argue with his assessment.

"She's my friend. She's like my… she is a sister to me." Daphne said to him.

"I see." Harry said softly as he raised his gaze to Tracey who still stood cowering in the corner. Her eyes were locked on the two of them, fear dancing in them. She seemed almost on the verge of having a panic attack. Some kind of horror danced behind her eyes, almost as if she was being drawn into a horrible memory from her past.

For a brief moment, Harry saw the images flashing in Tracey's mind's eye. The image of a man, on top of a boy, the man's hands clasped around the boy's throat.

She was being drawn into the memory, having it cloud the edges of her thoughts. At some point in her life, Tracey had witnessed at attack, possibly even a murder, and seeing Harry knelt over Daphne like he was, it summoned forth those memories from her past, and left her on the verge of a panic attack.

"So that's it. It's not just because she's your friend. You know she's been through hell. You feel the need to protect her, even at the expense of your own safety." Harry thought to himself as he lowered his eyes back to Daphne.

Daphne stared at him for several long moments, her blue eyes filled with fear, and resolve. He held her gaze with his own.

"You protect her. You've taken on the role of a protector. Not a common responsibility to fall onto the shoulders of a child." Harry said to her, earning confusion from Daphne who glanced between him and Tracey. When her eyes landed on Tracey and she saw the state she was in, she tensed.

"Don't move." Harry commanded before she could shoot to her feet and run over to check on her friend.

Daphne's eyes shot back at him, and she grit her teeth angrily, her eyes flickering from him to his wand.

"Davis… come here. Sit next to Greengrass." Harry instructed, his voice commanding, piercing through the air, almost like a physical force. Tracey blinked at his words, her eyes momentarily flickering between him and Daphne before she slowly crept forward and dropped to her knees beside Daphne, placing her arms around her as she did.

The two of them stared up at him, fear dancing in their eyes. No matter how defiant she tried to remain, Harry could tell that even Greengrass was on the verge of losing it.

Harry rose to his feet after a moment, staring down at them for a good long while. Twenty-four years he had waited to see them again. Twenty-four years he had plotted his revenge and how he'd get back at them. A thousand ideas had spawned over the years. Some beyond cruel, beyond a living nightmare and drawn from some of the darkest years of Harry's life. In the end though, with all that had happened, only one plan survived to this day. One act, one means of retaliation that would satisfy him without bringing further grief down on his head.

"I know what it's like. To live through hell. To endure unspeakable pain. Honestly… I'm a bit jealous of you Davis. To have someone who loves you so much, and is willing to protect you, to put their life on the line. It wasn't just your own life you were willing to kill for Greengrass. It wasn't even mostly your life. It had more to do with her than it did yourself. I grew up hated, I was treated like dirt. I lived in a cupboard under the stairs until I was eleven. I know what it's like to suffer, and I wish, more than anything that I had had a friend like you, willing to do anything it took to protect me. It took a long time before I found that friend." Harry said to them, his voice soft, his eye coloring with regret and nostalgia.

Daphne's surprise was evident, as was Tracey's. Both stared at him as they took that it. There was silence in the tower, as even the owls held quiet as they watched from above.

"I feel sorry for you. I know I shouldn't, but I do. I thought I was beginning to understand a bit about you Greengrass, but I was wrong. Here and now, I'm seeing the real you. Someone willing to face pain in order to protect those you care about. It shows remarkable bravery. Remarkable resolve. It's painful to see in someone so young, someone who's barely had the chance to live their life." Harry spoke as he let out a sigh.

The two girls watched him, waiting for his next move.

Harry was silent for a moment before he let out a sigh and continued on, setting his plan into motion.

"Lucius Malfoy nearly got you killed. Your parents nearly got you killed. What I want to know, is did they do this for you, or for their goddamn alliance? If it was the former, to protect their daughters using the only means available, then I can accept that. I understand going so far to protect your family. If it was for the latter though, then I'm going to kill them for this." Harry spoke after several long moments, causing both girls to tense up at his words.

"What does Lucius Malfoy have to do with this?" Tracey asked softly, her voice barely above a terrified whisper.

"The assassins that were sent to murder me, they are ones he often employs to handle his dirty business. Your parents didn't do this on their own, they were working with Malfoy. Which is why I ask if they did this for you, or for their alliance. Either way, I doubt it'll make it that far. Malfoy intends to destroy your families and your parents are too stupid to see it." Harry shook his head.

"What do you mean Malfoy is trying to destroy us?" Daphne questioned.

"Greengrass, Davis… who was the last lord Black?" Harry asked them.

Both shared a look with each other but offered no answer.

"Regulus Black. That's who it was. He had no children, but he did have an heir. He named his older brother, his heir. Sirius Black. Sirius had been kicked out of the family, but Regulus reinstated him and named him his heir. Sirius Black was framed for the murder of those muggles in London. The real culprit was Peter Pettigrew, a rat animagus who did the deed and pinned the blame on Sirius. Sirius can't claim his rightful lordship because he doesn't know about it, and even if he did, getting to Gringotts as a wanted man isn't easy. Sirius Black has no children, but he still has an heir. You see he named his godson, as his heir. Or I should say, he intended to leave most of his worldly possessions to someone, well unbeknownst to him, that included his lordship. You wouldn't happen to know who Sirius Black's godson is?" Harry inquired after finishing his explanation. The two stared up at him, both coming to the same realization, at the same time.

"You don't mean…?" Daphne began.

"I'm the heir to house Black. I'm the heir to the Black Lordship. I've sent word to Sirius letting him know that it's open for him to claim. If he doesn't or he can't, then I can legally claim it when I come of age. You should know though, that the moment I do so, the obligations of the marriage contract will automatically be fulfilled. Meaning the moment I claim the Black Lordship, if we aren't married by then, we'd automatically be married on the spot as the contract pertains to the heir, not the lord. Just a fancy bit of information. Now, the important part of this all is that I'm actually the heir to house Black, not Draco. Your actions, and the actions of your parents, have directly violated the marriage contract that you were hoping desperately to avoid." Harry explained to the two, causing both to visibly pale until they were as white as ghosts.

"You mean… we're going to die?" Tracey muttered as tears began to fill her eyes.

"You violated the contract. You sent me to be murdered. I can simply sit back and let the contract kill all parties involved. Because your parents are the ones who employed the assassins, they could very well be seen as the ones attempting to violate it, and because the contract is bound up in the family magics of both of your houses, they are equally as susceptible to retaliation. Because of what you've done, these marriage contracts may just murder all, or in your case Greengrass, most of your family. The main line of House Davis would be wiped out, and House Greengrass would carry on through your little sister, who would inherit the contract and be forced to take your place. That is of course, if I accepted and didn't declare a blood feud with your remaining family, and then do everything in my power to finish the job the contract started." Harry said to them, letting them grasp the full gravity of their actions and the actions of their parents.

"Why aren't we dead then? Why haven't the marriage contracts exacted their toll?" Daphne questioned him.

"Because I'm still here. The contract can retaliate on its own but only if I choose not to. You see… so long as I have the intention of avenging myself, the contract will not react. The moment I choose not to, it will though. Unless I offer you full pardon, and forgiveness, which I'm not going to do. Either I punish you, or the contract kills you. That's how it is. So here we stand, and here is where you bargain for your lives. You asked earlier how Lucius is trying to kill you, well I've just explained it. You see, house Black has protections in place to keep the heir a secret so that those who may seek to kill them, can't learn who it is. That's what allows Lucius and his wife to lie and say it's Draco. But Narcissa Malfoy, Draco's mother, is a member of house Black, she can gain access to that information and then tell her husband. If I had to assume, Lucius is either still upset at your families for their refusal to aid the Dark during the last war, or he intends to take over your businesses with you out of the picture. House Davis would be left in disarray for long enough for Lucius to buy out your businesses, meanwhile, with me dead, your parents dead, you dead, that leaves only your little sister to inherit everything on your side Greengrass, at that point Draco would be the heir to House Black, and he could force your little sister to marry him, giving them control over everything house Greengrass owns as well as their seat on the Wizengamot. Honestly, it's brilliant if you ask me. Get rid of political rivals, gain political power, and get a heck of a lot richer." Harry explained to them, lying his ass off the whole time.

Not only was Narcissa unable to learn the identity of the true heir because she technically wasn't a Black anymore, but Harry was quite certain that Lucius wasn't nearly smart or brave enough to try for a plan such as the one he just described. After drinking the blood of his murderer, Harry learned everything he needed to know. This plan had been orchestrated by lord Greengrass, and Davis, though Lucius had been working with them, and encouraging them to go through with it.

So, he hatched a plan, one that would sow the seeds of a new alliance, one born out of obligation, fear, and hatred for the followers of Lord Voldemort.

He had a plan in place to deal with these two. They would suffer, but now that he knew without a shadow of a doubt that this had been done purely for their survival, at least from their perspective, he intended to give the two one final chance. They were about to lose some of their humanity, and gain something far worse. For attempting to take his life, he was going to take parts of theirs, and they were going to help him protect someone that mattered to him.

-Flashback-

The idea had formed during his time away. When, out of sheer curiosity he had once asked the black book how he should punish Daphne and Tracey. Since the answers came from Tzeentch he was curious to see how the Changer of Ways would answer that question, and perhaps it would give him some insight into how the Chaos god felt about his gift's actions.

The answer he got sowed the seeds for this plan.

It was a simple answer, one that of course required further questions to get a fuller understanding of. The answer was to awaken their marks.

Well, that led to Harry asking what that meant, and he was given a fuller understanding of the brands and what their true purpose was.

The brands marked them as his slaves, and bonded them to him, that much he already knew. What he didn't know was that each one of the brands, was a ticking time bomb, that once activated would unleash a torrent of warp energy directly into the victim's soul, polluting it, and infecting them with demonic essence, turning each of the girls into a daemon. The idea was, that they could become demons, but still persist in the physical world, by drawing warp energy through him, and his connection to death. All things that died went into the warp, and Death itself had a powerful connection to the warp. In a manner of speaking, Harry himself had the means of acting like a powerful, but subtle warp portal, channeling that energy into the physical realm, through Death. He could use it to empower his demonic servants, allowing them to maintain a physical presence here without an open portal into the warp.

So Tzeentch's suggestion for revenge was to activate the marks, turning Daphne and Tracey into daemons. This would strip them of their humanity, and their souls, effectively destroying them, but leaving something behind that would never betray him, never break his trust. The Daemons that spawned from the activation would be purely loyal and devoted to him, so he'd never have to fear betrayal from them.

It was a definitive solution, and also one that would essentially kill them. A part of Harry wanted to go through with it, to walk that path. He thought about the two of them in his dreams, how they acted, how they were. It was obvious they were demons, but Luna had once said that those images were just reflections of their subconscious. Though they looked like demons due to the presence of the marks, their actions were controlled by a human subconscious.

If he activated the marks, they'd most definitely die. The people who they were, would die, and they'd be replaced by demons wearing their skin. Their souls would burn away, either being swallowed up by the demons that replaced them or sent into the gullets of their patron gods. Either way, a horrible end that would drag on for eternity.

For a few weeks Harry considered that his solution, his means of getting revenge, but as time went on and he thought about it more and more, he started to reconsider. Eventually he began to wonder if there wasn't another route he could take. While he didn't know for certain how much malice was involved in their decision, he knew that a large part of it most certainly had to do with their own survival. Unlike with the Death Eaters who had murdered him, or his family who hated him, Tracey and Daphne hadn't sent him to his death because they wanted him to die, or at least he didn't think so. It was more likely that they simply wanted to live, wanted to be free. They needed to be punished, and he wanted to hurt them, but he wasn't so sure they deserved such a fate as having their souls devoured for all of time. If he wanted them to die, then he should just kill them himself, maybe free their souls to a natural end rather than whatever horrific fate awaited them if they were swallowed up by demons.

That's when he began to wonder if such a thing was even possible now that they'd been marked. Maybe it didn't matter anymore. Now that they'd been marked their souls were doomed. In that case, killing them in anyway would see them damned for all eternity.

So, what was he left with? Without knowing how much malice was involved in their actions, he was left with only his speculations. If they had done what they did to survive, then Harry didn't feel right damning them for all eternity. Even if he wanted to kill them for killing him, he didn't know what would happen to their souls if he just killed them. So, he decided to ask the Black Book.

It confirmed his suspicion. Now that they'd been marked, they were bound to the Dark Gods. It didn't matter how they died; their souls were doomed to be swallowed up by their patrons.

So, knowing that, he was left to thinking. Did they deserve to die for aiding in his own murder? He could argue it either way. He was justified in wanting them dead, he never doubted that. But did he want them to suffer for all of time? The Death Eaters that had murdered him? Yes. The Dursleys? Absolutely. Abigail McTash? One hundred percent, he wished she was alive still so he could kill her again. They all deserved such a fate but had received death instead. These two girls who had been minding their own business as far as he was aware, had been thrust into this situation, and were forced against a wall believing that death awaited them if they didn't act. Then, with the guidance of their parents they acted for their own survival.

Maybe there was something there that could help him decide? Maybe they weren't such innocent bystanders. So again, he consulted the Black Book, and asked it four different times for each of the four women marked as his slaves. He asked, why were they chosen.

First was Daphne. She was chosen because of her nature. A woman with an insatiable thirst for knowledge, for understanding. She was actually one of two candidates that Tzeentch could have chosen, but given his hatred for the other, and Daphne's connection to the one that Nurgle had chosen, Tzeentch thought it fit perfectly. An insatiable hunger for knowledge, and his hatred for the other candidate made Harry realize that Hermione could have easily taken Daphne's place. If not for Nurgle's choice of Tracey tipping the scales, Tzeentch may have still chosen Hermione.

It was their insatiable desire to know things, to understand them that drove the two. They were always studying, always had their heads buried in books. It was this drive to know, to understand that inherently brought them closer to Tzeentch. Being tied to a family with very old magics, and an innate connection to sorcery, made Daphne the easier choice. There was also the fact that unlike Hermione, Daphne was a schemer and deceptive by her very nature, which also brought her more in line with the Changer of Ways.

Of course, after learning that, he next asked about Tracey, and why she was chosen.

She had been chosen as a defilement to Nurgle's pet, and bride. A Goddess that Nurgle had taken from Slaanesh and held imprisoned. This goddess was a goddess of life, nature, and fertility, whom Nurgle played games with on a regular basis. According to the Black Book, Nurgle would unleash his plagues upon the universe, and his bride would work to cure them, and then whisper that cure into the minds of mortals, helping them to find it before the plague could wipe them out. Tracey's family were well known as doctors and healers. The Davis clan had a long history being involved in the medical profession. Their main industry was the production and distribution of medicine, being the largest producer in Britain and one of the five largest in Europe. That meant that this particular family had a tie to this captured goddess, and through that tie, they were also connected to the one who held her, Nurgle. Nurgle chose Tracey, specifically because of this connection.

Tzeentch suspected that it was Nurgle's hope that while he would unleash pestilence, plague, and death through his chosen servant, his beloved would also whisper the cures through her as well. Nurgle loved this game, loved the back and forth, as it provided him the means to constantly experiment and come up with new diseases. Nothing worked forever, eventually his beloved would uncover the cure and it would be time for him to brew anew.

Next, he asked about Fleur Delacour. The answer there was much more straight forward. She was a Veela, Veela were descended from daemonettes of Slaanesh who had raped harpies. The resulting children would eventually become the Veela, who still had strong ties to their demonic ancestry. Their unnatural lust, incredible beauty, and hermaphroditic nature were all tied to their origins. Fleur was chosen for two reasons, one because Harry would have naturally met her due to the Triwizard Tournament, and the second being that Harry would likely form a bond with her, so it made sense to pick her since that connection would likely form already.

While he did wonder as to the nature of the kind of bond, he might have formed with Fleur outside of the god's involvement, he did take the time to acknowledge the suspected nature of the Veela that not even Voldemort knew if it were true. Veela were all female, or at least all appeared female. So, it was always a wonderment how there could be full blooded Veela. Having the Black Book confirm that they were hermaphrodites answered that question. Considering he had seen Fleur naked, or at least her dream variant, he wondered what that ultimately meant, but that was for later. The most interesting part of this discovery was the knowledge that the Veela had demonic heritage and an inborn connection to the Prince of Pleasure.

With that knowledge, he moved on to the last one, his sister Olivia. This one he approached with a bit more trepidation. The answer he got was a surprising one. Olivia was chosen because she was already a servant of Khorne, she simply didn't know it yet. So, Harry had to ask what that meant. Apparently, his sister was a lot like him. She was brave, she was courageous, and she wanted to help people. She was also a spiritual person, and often times prayed for bravery. He had to wonder what it was she was dealing with that led to her praying for bravery and courage.

Normally he wouldn't have, but given that this was his sister, he couldn't simply let that go. He had to know if she was in danger, so he used up the last of several months' worth of sacrificial power to ask why she had to pray for bravery and courage.

The answer he got was heartwarming and also confirmed a longstanding theory that he'd had. She prayed for bravery so that she could face and defeat Voldemort one day, and also that she'd have the courage to stand before Harry when the time was right. That confirmed to him that she knew about him and was thinking about him. It also confirmed his theory that he was simply being used as a diversion. He was a distraction, meanwhile his big sister was being trained to defeat Voldemort.

This left only one question that stood in the way of him shaping the image of his sister into a complete positive in his mind, and that was whether she knew he was being used as a tool to deceive Voldemort. In the end it boiled down to what she knew about him at all. If she knew the truth, then she'd no doubt be just another sycophant of Dumbledore's following his guidance and believe whatever he wanted her to believe, but if she was being fed lies, told that Harry was living a good life, and not going through hell, then he could continue seeing her in a positive light.

Hearing this did leave him with more questions, but it also led to something new emerging to the forefront of his mind. Olivia carried a brand just like Daphne and Tracey did. When it activated, she would die, her soul would be devoured, and a demon would replace her.

Learning why each of the four were chosen did change a few things, but the biggest part was that he knew he had to find another way to deal with the brands. He simply could not allow Olivia to be killed by the brand.

So, what course of action was left to him?

He spent several weeks thinking up another idea, working with Luna to determine if it was possible, all the while he performed sacrifices to Tzeentch in order to regain power to use on the Black Book.

Once he'd gathered enough, and came up with a new plan, he went through the motions of confirming a few things.

First, he asked it if was possible to activate the brands only partially, and if so, cause their affects to occur more slowly. The answer was yes. If opened partially the warp energy would still turn them into demons but it wouldn't explode out of them. He then asked if it was possible to save the souls of the girl in question, allowing her to survive, even if she was turned into a demon.

The answer was yes, but only if she appeased her patron god enough to transform her into a daemon, spirit and all. The intention for these girls was to be his slaves, and act as conduits for their dark gods. So long as they acted as champions of those gods, it didn't matter if it was them, or other demons placed in their bodies.

So how did one appease each of the gods?

For Tzeentch engaging in deceit, deception, and manipulation are good places to start. Delving into sorcery, especially the highest forms of Warp sorcery is another. Using divination to sense the future, and then working to alter it, or manipulate others through the knowledge gained. These are actions that appeased Tzeentch.

For Nurgle it was spreading plague, and disease. Causing death, was another. Coercing people to embrace death, or even worship death, were also good ways of appeasing Nurgle. Anything that pushed people to the end of life, so that they could rot away, helped to validate one in the eyes of the Plaguefather. And of course, there was also creating and spreading sickness and disease, though that one was basically a given.

For Slaanesh it was bathing in excess. Throwing huge parties, partaking in drugs, having copious amounts of sex. Anything in excess could help to encourage the Prince of Pleasure's adoration. Though these were the easiest things, the pursuit of excellence and perfection were also things that the God of pleasure approved up. Constantly working to improve upon yourself and pushing others to improve themselves also worked as well.

And finally, with Khorne, acts of murder and bloodshed were the answers. Combat in all its forms was another. Khorne preferred martial combat, but he'd accept battle in any shape and form. Acts of heroism and bravery, displaying a willingness to face threats head on, surviving no matter the cost. These were things that Khorne approved up.

It wasn't difficult to appease the Chaos Gods, but one did have to go far and above to earn their notice. On top of just acting within their domain, sacrificing in their names, or committing actions in their name could also earn their favor. For example, waging war in any of their names, or killing in any of their names. Harry already sacrificed in Tzeentch's name to gain power for his use with the Black Book, but if he sacrificed purely to Tzeentch without asking or expecting the exchange of power, he would instead gain favor with the Changer of Ways. If he did it enough, he'd start to earn the god's attention, or at least more than he already had.

That was how it could work with all of them. Act in a way they approved of or commit acts in their names.

The more he learned, the more it seemed to Harry that if he wanted to at least keep his sister alive, he'd have to side with Chaos, and encourage his slaves to do so as well.

The final question he asked of the Black Book was how long he had before these brands activated on their own. The answer was five years. At the end of that five years, the brands would fully activate, causing the stores of corruptive energy sealed within them to be unleashed. If he didn't open them himself beforehand than that was the point at which they'd awaken in full.

Armed with this knowledge he and Luna refined their plans. While it hadn't been exactly what he was looking for, this line of questioning had given him the reason he needed to tip the scales for Daphne and Tracey. He no longer had any intention to kill them. Instead, they would earn his forgiveness by helping to save the life of his sister, as well as Fleur who was also innocent in all of this.

They'd serve as his guinea pigs, and he'd use them to understand the brands and how to go about activating them without killing their human souls. No matter what, he wouldn't allow his big sister to be killed. If his plan worked, she'd at least get to live, even if she was stuck as a monster. He was coming to learn that being a monster wasn't so bad. Then again, neither was being dead, at least for him. Still…

-End Flashback-

So now he stood before the two who'd helped to get him killed, and he intended to put his plan into action and see what came of it.

Daphne and Tracey were stunned by the revelation that he'd just delivered to them. Both their minds were reeling at the knowledge that they'd been manipulated by Lucius Malfoy into attacking their actual betrothed in the hopes that such actions would get them, and their parents killed, leaving the pathway open for Malfoy to swoop in and steal their families' possessions, as well as Daphne's own little sister.

The idea filled them both with fury. They'd been tricked, manipulated, and now they were most likely going to be killed by the righteous fury of Harry Potter.

"How did you learn all of this?" Tracey asked.

"The assassins. Before I killed them, I drank their blood. The witch who mutilated me, also injected me with vampire blood. Vampires can read people's memories through their blood." Harry answered.

"You're a vampire?" Tracey squeaked out, fearfully.

"I am now, in part at least." Harry replied with a vicious smirk.

"You… killed them?" Daphne spoke up, that being the part she was hung up on.

"After they killed me." Harry replied, causing both to blink at him, confusion filling their eyes.

"I was poisoned by a Basilisk in second year. Fawkes, Dumbledore's Phoenix cried tears into my wound in order to heal the poison. When Abigail McTash used that ritual on me in order to bind me to other magical creatures, she inadvertently bonded me to the powers of a phoenix and a basilisk. When I die, I revive. That's how I escaped. A bunch of Death Eaters who'd just attacked the pitch at the World Cup came over to top off their celebration by murdering me. They did so. I died. The moment I died, those marks were placed on your bodies. A few minutes later, and I came back. Born again from my own ashes, like a phoenix. I awoke and I went and slaughtered each and every one of them. Over thirty people, including Theodore Nott's own bastard father." Harry explained to them, dropping to a squat as he returned their horrified gazes with malice in his own.

"You mean… all of those people…" Tracey began, her breathing picking up.

"Yes… they murdered me, so I murdered them. Seemed like a fair trade. I did the same to those assassins. They killed me, I came back, I killed them. The last one I killed; I drank his blood. I learned the truth. I can't die, ladies, but you can… and you should…" Harry returned, with hellish intent. He playfully danced his fingers along his wand as he stared the two girls down, making sure they understood just how easily he could end them, and how easily he could live with it. If he was telling the truth, then he'd already murdered dozens of people. It explained even more so why he'd been acting so strangely since starting this year. Not only had he endured unspeakable pain and horrific mutilation and experimentation, but he'd also slaughtered thirty people. When it looked like he was going to rip Draco apart, he really was going to.

"You said we could bargain for our lives… what do you want?" Daphne spoke up quickly.

Harry smirked at that and pulled up his sleeve on his Behir arm. Once the mark on his shoulder was visible, he removed the glove from his dementor hand, revealing it to be normal looking, save for its color and the pitch-black fingernails. No longer was it mummified and skeletal, which was surprising to the two.

"After our first real conversation I learned quite a bit about these marks we share, and what they represent. I had hoped you'd find a way to remove them, but after learning the truth about them, I wasn't so sure it was possible. I intended to tell you both after I made it through the First Task, but then this happened. These marks were placed by the Gods of Chaos. Deities from another dimension who targeted you two, plus two other girls, to be my slaves, and act as the emissaries of these Dark Gods." Harry said to them causing the two to stare at him for several long moments in confusion and disbelief.

"Gods of… Chaos? To be their emissaries? What does that all mean?" Tracey questioned.

"It means what it means. I am the Master of Death. I am bonded to Death itself and have a unique relationship with Death. These Chaos Gods know of my relationship with Death and want my allegiance so they each gave me three gifts to try and bribe me to join them. There are four main gods, and each one gifted me with a slave as one of their gifts, with powers and items being the other gifts given to me. You were all chosen due to your unique natures, or connections in life that offer some small tie to the god in question. Because it was gods who gave you those marks, there isn't any way to remove them." Harry continued on.

"Okay… what does that mean in regard to our current situation?" Daphne asked the pertinent question.

"I have two options available to me. Well, in a basic sense. I can't forgive you for what you've done to me. I just can't. I'm not the same person I was a year ago. As much as I might understand your reasoning, I just can't summon up true forgiveness. I don't hate you. Not as much as I did when it happened. My two options are basically to kill you or give you a chance. I have many ways of killing you. I can just do nothing and let the marriage contract exact its toll on you as just one example, but I only have one way of offering you a chance." Harry explained to them, his gaze softening a bit.

"What do we have to do?" Tracey asked after sharing a glance with Daphne.

"Help me save the life of someone important to me." Harry answered.

"How do we do that?" Tracey questioned him.

"Those marks, on your bodies, they're ticking time bombs. They're slave brands that bond you to me, but they're also vessels that contain an incredible amount of dark magic. Magic that is designed to turn you into daemons. When they activate, a blistering power will rip through your bodies mutating you into monsters. Meanwhile this energy will swallow up your souls, opening the doorway for malignant entities to possess your bodies and take your place as my servants. These entities will be purely loyal to me. I won't need to fear them betraying me or going again me. They'll be like extensions of myself. It's one of the ways I can kill the two of you as your souls will be swallowed up by these demons, or perhaps by the dark gods who branded you, and you'll suffer for all of time." Harry told them, fear and uncertainty once more flooding their eyes.

"But you have a way to stop that from happening?" Daphne realized.

"I do. It's the chance I'm offering you." Harry responded with a nod.

"So, what does that involve?" Daphne continued on.

"If the marks are left alone to activate on their own, it's like a bomb going off, and you'll be obliterated in the process. However, if I open the marks myself, and do it slowly, the energy will leak out and cause the effects to hit you over a longer period of time. I have the means of protecting your souls while this process occurs, or I will soon. I will keep your human souls safe, while you are slowly mutated into demons. This is the chance I offer. You still only have five years to save yourself, but this method will offer you the best chance to survive. You see, while the conversion is taking place it will elevate you in the eyes of your patron god. You must earn that god's favor within the next five years, in order to allow for your ascension to demonhood. By convincing the dark gods that you're worthy of ascension, you get to keep your souls. You become the daemons, rather than being replaced by them. You two were willing to kill in order to survive. I'm giving you the chance to keep fighting in order to live. This offer isn't coming for free. While this process is occurring, you will cast aside your other masters. You will serve me, and me alone. You will hold your loyalty to no others. Not Slytherin House, not your parents, not anyone, other than me." Harry declared to them, his gaze hardening once more.

Tracey's gaze fell and tears began to fill her eyes, while Daphne was able to meet his gaze, fighting to keep it from falling. A well of emotions was spreading through them. They were angry, scared, uncertain.

"I wasn't the one who placed those marks. I wish this had never happened to you. If it wasn't for the marks, there'd be a third option. I could kill you and set your free. That won't work though. Your souls are bound to your patron gods. If you die, your souls go to them, and they are not kind masters. Especially with how you've failed them, in making me hate you. I doubt they'll be kind to you. That is where we stand ladies. A part of me thinks it's only right if you die, since you got me killed. Another part wants you to suffer. One more understands what you did and why you did it and wants to show you mercy. The largest part though, understands that I might be able to forgive you one day, but only in exchange for a life. One of these marks was placed on someone important to me. I don't want her to die. So I'm making you this offer to see if it's possible, to see if your lives can be saved, even if you're forced to walk this dark path with me. If you help me to save her life, then I will forgive you. Her life, for the life you helped to take. That's the deal I offer you. If you refuse, then I'll wipe my hands of this and walk away, leaving the marriage contract to act out it's due. What happens to you then is outside of my control." Harry offered to the two, a bit of sympathy touching at his voice before retreating, allowing cold detachment to take up residence on his face once more.

The two were silent for many long moments as they considered all of this. It was Tracey who spoke up first.

"Okay." She said. Harry gave her a curious look while Daphne turned to her in surprise.

"Tracey?" Daphne spoke up.

"It's the only way. Like he said. He isn't going to forgive us, but even if he did, we still have these ticking bombs stuck to us. This might not work, but on the off chance that it does work we get to live. I don't wanna die Daph. I most certainly don't want to end up eaten by some kind of demon or an evil god." Tracey argued.

"What if he's lying?" Daphne threw back at her.

"Why would he? These marks make us his slaves. We're also bound to him by marriage contract. We're basically his slaves because of that too. He's got us under control twice over, so why would he need to lie?" Tracey countered, her tone rising.

Daphne grit her teeth but offered no argument to her logic.

"We have to do this. Maybe, just maybe, it all works out. And if it does we save two other people who are equally as trapped as we are. Maybe we save their lives. Like he said, if we help save one life, it'll be worth the life we helped to take. And of course we get to live." Tracey pointed out.

"Even if it's as monsters?" Daphne questioned.

"Daphne! We helped send an innocent person to their death! We're already monsters!" Tracey countered again her tone harsh and angry.

Daphne was silent for several long moments before relenting and offering a slow nod. A few moments passed before she let out a sigh and turned her eyes back to Harry.

"Alright, what do we have to do?" Daphne asked him.

"Switch sides, and I'll place my hands on your marks." Harry instructed.

"We're doing this now?" Daphne questioned.

"Forgive me if I'm not comfortable with the two of you running around doing whatever you want." Harry replied with a rueful smirk.

Daphne blinked at him, before grimacing and shifting around Tracey. She removed the glove from her own hand before holding it out for Harry, meanwhile Tracey rolled up her sleeve to show her own mark.

"Is this going to hurt?" Tracey asked as Harry reached out.

"Probably." Harry responded causing Tracey to grumble something under her breath.

Both of them shuddered when contact was made.

Using his magic he reached out to their marks, passing his power into them, and coxing the marks to begin opening. He did so slowly, and felt push back as a stream of warp energy began to race out of their marks infecting their bodies.

He pulled his hands back as both girls seized up. Their marks blazed with a light an a magical wind began to flood the owlery whipping straw into the air.

Tracey's veins around the mark turned black, and her skin began to rapidly lose color, meanwhile Daphne's eyes lit up, as did her veins, a bluish glow filling them.

Harry sat back and watched intently as Tracey arced her back, and then doubled forward. A few seconds passed when she suddenly began to vomit. Harry moved to stand up as he heard her heaving, moving just in time to avoid the blackish substance that erupted from her mouth and began to eat through the floorboards. Above them the owls began to scatter in fear, as they felt the flood of malevolent magic fill the owlery.

While Tracey vomited and convulsed, Daphne was still seized up.

Suddenly she arched forward as all of the light in her eyes and veins raced towards her back.

She let out a horrific scream of pain, as something exploded out of her back.

Harry blinked at the sight, a deep blue serpent had erupted from the flesh of her back. It was coated in blood, and glistened in the dim light of the owlery. The serpent hissed out into the air, revealing a sea of razor sharp, needle-like teeth in it's mouth. Slowly, the serpent opened it's eyes. It's radiant blues dancing over the room.

Harry met the serpent's gaze, and could see fear, uncertainty, and recognition dance within it's eyes.

Slowly he lowered his gaze to Daphne who was hyperventilating due to the pain. The back of her jacket had been torn open, as had her shirt. Blood had sprayed high against the back wall from the serpent's explosive emergence, and it now leaked across the exposed flesh of Daphne's back.

The copious amounts of dark red fluid made it difficult to see the tattoo that had appeared on Daphne's back when this first started, but from what Harry could see past the blood, the serpent part of the tattoo was now missing, leaving only the bed of tentacles still imprinted on her back. He guessed that those too would emerge in time.

He heard scrambling, and turned his gaze back over to Tracey, finding her struggling to her feet. She was glancing around, as if in a panic.

"Davis?" Harry called out to her, causing her to turn her eyes over to him. Her eyes had lost their luster, they were pale now, white, almost as if she'd been struck by cataracts.

"Harry?" Tracey spoke, blinking at him.

"Can you see me?" Harry asked her.

"Y-yes…" She replied, uncertainty flooding her response.

"You don't sound sure." Harry said to her.

"I… everything… it looks different now. It's… different… it's… so… weird…" Tracey replied, worry and fear coming from her.

"Describe it." Harry instructed as he approached her, noticing as he did that small white and red flowers were beginning to bloom in her hair. They were tiny, but there was quite a few of them. Dozens to be exact. They were small. No bigger than three centimeters across. White petals with red splotches on them.

"I don't know, everything is so vivid now. I can see so much color. It's… … …" Tracey began to say only to stop when her eyes settled onto something in the darkness of the room. It didn't seem like she had noticed Daphne yet, too lost in her own world to catch what had happened to her friend.

Tracey began to advance on whatever it was she was looking at. Harry turned his gaze towards the point of her focus, and spotted in the shadow beside an old wooden table, a dead mouse. The body was only, partially rotted away, most likely it had been dropped after being killed, and the bird that had done it, hadn't come to retrieve it's lost meal.

Tracey knelt down and stared at the rotting body, her face colored by wonderment.

Harry observed her with his own curiosity, knowing full well that she wasn't seeing what he was seeing.

"It's dead…" Harry noted.

"It's beautiful…" Tracey whispered, blinking as she did.

Harry tiled his head slightly, turning his eye back towards the half-rotted corpse of the mouse.

"How does it look to you?" Harry asked her.

"I see flowers… and… light… it's almost like it's glowing. It's pretty." Tracey responded, her voice barely above a whisper.

Harry was silent as he observed her. She saw the corpse of this mouse as something beautiful. She could see flowers, and light around it. Despite the fact that there were no flowers, and the dim light of the owlery left things rather dreary.

"Are you seeing this too Daph?" Tracey asked, glancing back at her best friend. "DAPHNE!"

Harry glanced back at the other Slytherin girl as Tracey rose to her feet in panic. Daphne was laying on her side now, her eyes were open, but she seemed out of it, almost like she was unconscious.

Tracey seemed to freeze up in panic as Harry made his way over to Daphne and knelt beside her. He placed a hand on her, felt the expansion of her chest as she breathed. She was indeed unconscious. The Serpent that had sprung from her back lay sprawled out, it's eyes shut.

"Is she… dead?" Tracey spoke, her whole body trembling.

Harry was silent for a moment. He was about to answer when he heard Tracey collapse to the ground. He glanced back at her, and noticed that she too had feinted, though she had done so out of sheer panic.

Whatever memories had haunted the Slytherin came rushing back with enough force to knock her into unconsciousness at the sight of her best friend in such a state.

Harry rolled his jaw and let out a sigh. This had most certainly been in interesting development, but now he had to clean this place up and move these two somewhere secure. The Room of Requirement seemed like a good idea.

He'd have to levitate the two up there, since he couldn't apparate into the castle, and he'd never tried to phase shift with another person before.

Placing the two side by side, he set about cleaning Daphne's blood off of the walls and removing any trace of what had happened there. He then retrieved their wands, and covered them with the Invisibility Cloak. Once done, he levitated the two into the air, side by side and took them with him up into the castle.

He had to move quickly, to get them there without anyone noticing, and the faster the better to avoid having to maneuver the unconscious duo around other people.

It didn't take him long to bring the two girls up to the Room of Requirement. He had it take the shape of something more akin to the rooms used to house the students in their respective dorms, with multiple beds. By the time he'd finished placing the two into beds, and double checking Daphne to see if she had any injuries from the serpent erupting from her back, Luna had arrived.

"Well done against the dragon." Luna complimented him as she came to his side.

"Thank you." Harry replied, finishing up his check of Daphne's back, cleaning all of the blood off of it, and taking note of how the serpent part of the tattoo had disappeared, but as he had noticed earlier the multiple tentacles still remained. The serpent itself emerged from just above her tailbone, almost like some kind of tail.

He then moved over to Tracey, running his eyes over her before his gaze settled on the flowers in her hair. He gently reached out and touched one, and felt a painful tingling in his fingertips a few moments after contact.

He pulled back and glanced at his fingers on his Behir hand, noting the pain, and how it began to fade after a few moments.

"Poison…" Harry spoke aloud.

"Poisonous flowers growing from her hair. How strange. They are pretty though." Luna hummed.

Harry made a noise as he stepped away, with Luna soon following after him. He stepped over to one of the beds and sat down, staring across the room at his two slaves, a look of contemplation on his face.

Luna stood over him, staring down at him with the dreamy look she usually carried.

"What's bothering you?" She asked him after a few moments.

"Just taking in everything. It seems that even opening the brands slowly will still cause irreparable change to them." Harry noted.

"True. At least for now they can hide their changes, or dismiss them." Luna said as she sat by his side.

"But how long will that last? The flowers in Tracey's hair are different. She didn't have them in the dreamworld, despite the fact that Daphne did have a serpent growing out of her back. That means that they may not look like how I saw them. Means that I can't prepare them, for the changes that might come with this process. It also means that there's no stopping them from physically ending up as monsters." Harry said with a sigh.

"You're worried about Olivia." Luna noted.

"I am. I know I'm probably too focused on it. I mean… I've built this image of her in my mind, and I could be way off on it. She might be an absolute nightmare. Some stuck up highborn, with a self-inflated ego. She might be the literal devil, and I just used these two as a means of trying to find a way to help her. Not to say that they're innocent, or undeserving of such treatment, but still…" Harry responded.

"You did terrible things while you were in that other world. Things far worse than this. You killed people, used them. Tortured them to learn of Gwyn's plans. You fought a secret war against him for years, and did what you had to do. Did you think you could go back to being the old Harry Potter when you returned here?" Luna questioned him.

"No, of course not. I just… I didn't know what to expect. A part of me thought it might be like waking up from a dream, like I'd open my eyes and that place would become like a half-remembered memory. Instead it's all crystal clear, it's my life. I spent more time in that place, in that shell of a world, slowly coming to life, than I have here. I was free there. Free to be whoever I wanted to be. Now that I'm back, I'm very aware of the shackles that constrain me. I feel the burden of them, yet at the same time, I feel as if I could break them without much effort. Inside of me, I feel the Dark Soul churning, I feel it's depths writhing with intense emotion. I wasn't able to feel my soul before, wasn't able to discern it. So when you said it had been corrupted and possessed by the four daemons that were rammed inside of me, I couldn't really tell. Now that I possess the Dark Soul, I am intimately aware of how different I am now. Nothing about me resembles a human in the pits of my soul. I can feel how alien it is, how foreign it is. It's like it looks human, but I know it isn't. Like a shapeshifter wearing the face of someone you know. You can tell there's something not right, something that warns you away, yet you can't quite place it." Harry said to her.

"I can't really understand how it feels to go through that. I don't really have a soul. I was never touched by life, I never had a lifeforce. I'm familiar with it, I know it intimately, but I don't know what it's like to have a soul. I wish I could offer you some advice about that, but I truly don't know." Luna offered to him honestly.

"It's alright. I think this is something I'll have to figure out on my own. For now, I think I need to return my focus to what matters." Harry hummed, letting out another sigh, as he rose to his feet.

"Going to track down Delacour?" Luna asked.

"Yes. Could you keep an eye on these two? I don't know when they'll wake up, just keep them from leaving until I return. Depending on how this goes, I might have company." Harry asked her, earning a nod from Luna he passed her, Daphne's and Tracey's wands and made to leave.

He needed to find Delacour and speak with her. He needed to ensure that she didn't start moving in a direction that would add even more hardship to his life. The future was already guaranteed to be filled with turmoil, he certainly didn't need it to be filled with anymore.

-To Be Continued -

Alright, there you go. Hope everyone enjoyed that. Lots going on here, lots in the next chapter too. See you there!