Previously: The wedding between Severus and Marriet is finally here, and Harry navigates between his duties as a friend, host, and wedding guest. All goes well, until they feel the alarms go off on the property.
Notes: I'm very sorry that this chapter took as long as it did. Not only did my private life got in the way (I switched jobs, and that always needs time), but somehow the chapter itself didn't want to get to wherever I needed it. It's acceptable right now. Haha. I hope you guys enjoy it. Check me out on Instagram for more info; Eyeseemorewrites!
Music: Whisky in a black forest (playlist on Spotify, username Karma)
Throne by Saint Mesa | Madness by Ruelle | Natural by Imagine Dragons | Blue on black by Five Finger Death Punch
Four: Head in the dust, feat in the fire
Present time Luna Park
Harry looked at Ron, who gave him the exact same look in return. There was a part of confusion and a part of disbelief in it. Harry looked up towards all those that were present in the room, and shook off those emotions, before he seemed to shift into his leader role. He held one hand in the air before his voice echoed throughout the magical lands of Peverell with an unease that most only knew from the war: "Luna Park is under attack. There is no breach yet, but we will check it out. The magical lands will go under lockdown, which can only be lifted by Ron, George or myself. For those without magic, please join someone who does. I will get back to you as soon as I can."
His eyes shone a dangerous vibrant green, and he let his hand fall. "Ron and I will go and check it out. If you want to join, regroup within five minutes in the main foyer."
"Aye." Ron already had his wand out, and his combat robe came flying out of his pocket it seemed. The former Auror had probably expected the trouble. "I'll call Ezra with the portable radio, tell him to wake Shane immediately if they aren't already aware."
"I'll join," said Draco with a determination on his face, and he proceeded to wave his wand over his clothing, which let off an outer layer and revealed the battle robe underneath. The thin layer of silk seemed to fly away into the direction that was his room, and the other Malfoy's did the same. Harry sighed; it meant that no-one had felt safe, and that somehow bothered him more than he had expected.
Harry looked over at Merle and Daryl, who both had gotten up while everybody had been speaking, and saw they had pulled a crossbow and a hunting rifle from underneath the bar without question. The wizard knew they wouldn't step back, even if he asked, and he sighed but accepted their decision. The fact that they had hidden weapons throughout the house didn't surprise him at all.
"I'll stay here," proclaimed Vicky, as she herded her husband out of the bar. "I'll look after the people here."
"I appreciate it!" Ron yelled back at her, as Harry threw out his Patronus towards Severus, to let him know exactly what was happening if he hadn't gotten the point already. He didn't need to wait for a reply, as they saw the man enter the room just a few seconds after that. His old teaching robes back on, a determined look on his face.
"In case you have any doubts about my intentions, Potter, and you try to dissuade me," the potions master looked sternly over at his protégé, "I will succeed where others have failed, believe me."
"I had no intention of mentioning it, I promise Severus." Harry wouldn't dare. Severus was their best dueller when it came to it, and it might be self-centred from Harry, but he needed the wizard now more than ever.
"Good," Severus exclaimed, "Lucius?" Coal locked eyes with silver, and both men held a indifference on their faces that nobody could decipher.
"Just like the old days, my friend," Lucius gave him a little smile, and stepped in line with Severus, "Off to battle we march on the dying tunes of our enemies." There was a familiarity in there that nobody could deny, but before Harry had his own clothing changed, everybody else seemed to be ready for battle.
"I'll join Vicky and will pick up Marriet, my dears," Narcissa said, while she kissed her husband and son, before pecking one on Harry as well. "Hadrian, my dearest nephew. Try not to die on us, again."
Harry groaned, and George clapped him on the shoulder while he ran towards the main foyer as he had changed as well. Hermione wasn't the only one with a secret compartment in her clothing it seemed. Ron threw Harry his battle cloak, and Harry switched it out, as he felt the leather with its enchantments fall in place around his shoulders.
He didn't want to admit it, but his wands were aching.
Present time Luna Park
Ezra hadn't expected to have the walkie-talkie to ring like it did at that moment, but when it did he realised what it meant. He had just gotten back from his watch and he had been about to lay his body next to his wife, so he was awake enough in seconds. He listened to the message that Ron had sent him, but was relieved to hear that the men were on their way with a large group.
Quickly getting back into his clothes, fingering for his rifle, he accidently woke Mila, whom he gave a quick version of the story as he took out the ballistic vest that Merle, Ron, and Shane had found on their travels. He strapped it on with a familiarity that never went away just as he attached his walkie-talkie to the vest like he had done in his time in the Army. Back to arms it was.
Shane fortunately replied very quickly, and made his way towards Mack. Mila had roughly awoken Mitchel, who lived with them, and taken him towards Juliana who occupied the cabin next to them. The latter had already armed herself with a shotgun, and the ladies and Mitchell were making their way to the communal building. Gabriel had been also been lifted out of his bed by Shane, and made his way over to them. The man had been a sniper in the army, and to see the large hunting rifle in his hands was no surprise at all.
Ezra heard the wizards pop in, before he saw them 'running' towards the three armed men as if they had run all the way from the other side of the river. He sometimes wondered how they did it; it seemed as no-one even asked questions about it. Maybe it were the enchantments, as they had called it. Or the anti-enchantments or something like that, that he wore around his neck.
Mack was still adjusting his own ballistic vest when he took over one of Shane's rifles. It had come as quite a surprise that the youngest Moore-brother had decided to move to their side, although the man had indicated that he needed more peace and simplicity, and was almost on their side of the land anyway. Who was Ezra to judge; Mack was a good man, and a good addition to their group.
"South border has been breached, according to our sensors," shouted Ron at the four men. Hadrian and the doctor were behind that, flanked by the Dixons, who had their bows and rifles ready to shoot. John followed after that, quickly making his way to his brother while Shane handed him another gun. Merle had done a fine job of outfitting their armoury, and now Ezra was pretty pleased and happy with the fact that they did that. It looked like Shane thought the same thing.
Not far behind Hadrian and Draco were two tall men. Both had longer hair that had been tied back with what seemed a bow or leather tie. The blonde looked very similar to the doctor, and Ezra guessed that it might be his father. The other had a stern face, with a long nose and strict features. He believed it was their chemist, who made all sorts of things for both groups nowadays. Most of the wizards were wearing simple daggers or a sword, and Ezra feared for them if it would come to a gunfight. Never bring a knife to a gunfight was something that had been imprinted into him at a young age, and yet it seemed like the group didn't care.
Ron had been vague about their intruders, so he didn't know what to expect.
Luna seemed to have appeared out of thin air, with Neville, whom Ezra had not expected to show up. The man always seemed so calm, collected, and peaceful; he was barely the guy you would bring to a gunfight so to speak. He did have the physique for it, but not the attitude, or so Ezra thought. That his wife was here didn't surprise Ezra in the slightest. He had seen the woman work, and she was a force to be reckoned with. He dared to say that about most of the wizards he worked with. They all looked like they were worth nothing – except for Ron – but they were tough cookies in their own right.
George showed up from the south, running frantically while barely having any breath left.
"Harry," he yelled, and they were barely able to understand it, "it's worse than we thought. This is a co-ordinated attack, they seem to walk with purpose." Harry understood him all too well, but it was too late to get the Muggles to walk out on this fight.
Eventually, if it came down to it, he would tell these men about the how and what, and he was glad that the other group on the outside hadn't been brought in yet. Harry looked over at Shane, who had seen him look at the gates as well.
"I alerted them that there could be danger, Lena and Samuel have armed themselves and are on the lookout." He said almost immediately.
"Thank you, Shane," said Harry, and Ron nodded next to him. The atmosphere was grim, and everybody seemed to be waiting for something to happen as they busied themselves with armour, guns, and the loading of magazines. Shane was particularly efficient, just like Ezra, and Merle had stepped in to help them where necessary.
"Well, I think we're ready for everything. Let 'em come." Ron stood strong as he looked around his people with a calculating look in his eyes as he turned his gaze towards Ezra. "Good, you're all wearing armour. Ezra, you remember what I told you?"
"Yes, I do." No more words were needed.
"Alright, on me please. Get into defensive position," yelled Ron, as he seemed to direct the group of people that were from his side of the pond, as Draco had called it before. He was what Ezra was to the no-Maj's, and it seemed that everybody took to his words without a second thought. People trusted Ron and people believed in Harry.
Ezra noticed that while Hadrian listened to Ron, he barely made a move to get into position until he saw that Ron wasn't being flanked by Dr. Malfoy, but that they were waiting until they could hold someone's flank. It took him a few to realise that this would obviously be Hadrian.
With the youngest Dixon at his left side, closing the rear with Merle on his right, who stood loosely on Ron's right, they positioned themselves for the attack, while Merle was having a heated conversation with Luna, who seemed to tap something on his shoulders. She barely seemed to recognize that the man was complaining about something, and seemed to look far off in the distance.
"George is right, they are living humans indeed. No dead ones. Very unexpected guests, that hadn't been invited to the wedding, I must admit." With this message, two unfamiliar faces seemed to cross the second, bigger bridge that led from one compound to the other. One dark-skinned man and one with a pale companion, that looked like he hadn't eaten well in days.
"Sorry, we're late." The dark blonde of the two said, and he seemed to adjust something under his heavy jacket.
"You didn't need to." Hadrian looked surprised to see them.
"Yes Harry, sure." The other said almost dismissively with a certain flair like he expected this but didn't appreciate it, and Ezra found that the man had an accent that he couldn't place. Probably something European. "Cosa ti aspettavi allora, amico mio?*"
He didn't expect a reply, and they fell back in line with Draco and the other two men that Ezra hadn't met before, like this wasn't their first rodeo. Then he realised, it probably wasn't.
It was hard to tell if the intruders would be showing up soon. Ezra knew they hadn't had the manpower yet to walk the perimeter fully, but Shane, Gabriel, himself, and nowadays Mack did what they could. Shane had been walking the North perimeter before they had received the call. If they survived this encounter, and Ezra knew they would, he would have to talk with Ron about fortifying the grounds even more. He hated being ambushed like this. Although it was strange, because Ron had said that they were so off-grid, that no-one would find them. Something with invisible walls as Merle had explained it to him.
Then it hit him like a brick. Wizards. It could be wizards.
The reason most of the men weren't wearing weapons was because they probably knew that they would have to fight with magic. Because the whole compound would repel people like him without magic. He had only been able to find it after John had opened the doors for him. Literally.
Shit. May the Lord have mercy on them. He hoped those wizards could fight as well as he had seen Ron brawl with Merle. May Mother Mary watch over us, he thought as he made a cross and looked up towards the heavens.
Harry was feeling all kinds of emotions right now, he was annoyed that had chosen this moment to rear their heads instead of staying hidden where they should, and not bother him while he had work to do. If Draco would find out, he would have to sit in on those heavy sessions again, so he closed his eyes and rearranged his mental barriers, checked his occlumency barriers as Severus had taught him with the help of Draco, before breathing in real deep, and exhaling.
'Do not fret, Master. I still deserve some souls for the ones you saved.'
Naturally, Death would show up, and Harry felt the dark powers within him rise. It was as if the world wasn't made out of colour anymore. Like the shadows rose above him, and the mist swirled around him, and the people he held close. To protect them, like a shield that he had raised. Like a cloud that was more a mirror of one's own reflection, instead of a cold occasion.
Like the instances was devoid of life, even though he could feel the heartbeats around him thumping in their chests. It's owners were pumped on adrenaline, magic, and some of them fuelled with rage, protectiveness, or even a calm that he usually couldn't place. That was always Luna to him. Her numbers never showed. Harry could never figure out when here time would come, as they always changed.
Her unfortunate fate, intertwined with his. Like wanderers without a cause, but too beloved by fate to start over. They had to deal with the cards that had been dealt for them at birth.
And Harry had accepted his fate a long, long time ago.
On that faithful night, he had walked into the forest with nothing but a stolen wand, a stone that sat on a ring, and a cloak tossed over his shoulders to guide and protect him.
Even if he hadn't known it then, he knew it now. He had accepted his faith to be what he was always meant to be.
Ron's life expectancy was flickering, but Harry wasn't scared of that anymore. He'd seen that way too much when his best mate was still Head Auror. Auror's were more often in danger than anyone else. Draco's was still unwavering. Good.
'You will get your souls, I promise.' Harry's voice was harsh, and a bit terse, as he looked around the fields that would turn into a battlefield if he made the wrong decisions.
'I know you will, my Master.' Death was nothing more than energy, which meant that he expected death to show up on Harry's doorstep. It was easier this way to take what it needed. 'No need to tense up, you've been nothing but good to me.'
'Until the day I make a selfish decision,' mused Harry.
'Fate urges you to do so. I wouldn't argue with her.' Vague words from entities that had seen way too much in life.
Harry did not know how to feel. It irked him that they had chosen the non-magical side to attack. Luna Park was his little project – named after his sister - that now helped people in need, and he had plans to turn it into a thriving community. He didn't want to mix both worlds if he didn't need to. He had just wanted to help.
Ezra knew a little bit about the magical world, because he had been too perceptive when he joined them at the beginning, but otherwise they wouldn't have told any of the Muggles anything. Harry glanced towards Mack, who nodded that he understood as well, even if he hated it. The man had calmed down completely after moving to the Muggle part, and according to Draco he had apologized for his behaviour. Harry didn't know if Draco accepted it completely, and it didn't mean that he wasn't on thin ice, but Harry would let it be. Draco could fight his own fights. Most of the time. Usually.
"Incoming." George seemed to look at his pocket watch, as he was playing absentmindedly with a lighter in his hands. Harry felt it too. They were trying to break his wards, and rather sooner than later he would let them in. The wards were too strong to actually break through it, but then he would show his hands, and Luna had said more than once that his time would still come.
"Brother, are you absolutely sure that I shouldn't …?" Harry knew what George meant.
Death had reformed, as he returned to its 'Master', in the older gentleman form, complete with suit and top hat. He looked towards his people, and let loose a breath he didn't know he had been holding. He shook his head towards George.
A fight was imminent.
Fuck his life.
Fuck his miserable life sometimes.
Ron and Merle stood next to each other on Harry's right flank. Both men who were used to fighting in any form or style. One look at their faces told them enough; he felt it too. Luna had tried to talk him and Daryl out of it, just like she had done with Mack and John. None of them had wavered. Ron respected them and had doused Merle in protective spells so much, that he was shocked that the Squib wasn't complaining about a headache.
It was that lingering sense of dread mixed with the pleasure that came before a fight, and a body that was anticipation what was about to come. It was the high that adrenaline could and would give you, and most of the wizards and witches present, had just knocked back some potions to sober up, clear their minds, and pepper up. Courtesy of Severus.
After Theo and Blaise had shown up, who apparently had used their rooms in America, instead of flooing back to Britain as most guests had done, Ron knew that Harry had thrown both manors into complete lockdown. No-one but one of the keepers would be able to undo it, so the people there would be safe. It was dark magic, magic that before his sixth year at Hogwarts Ron would have scoffed at but now he realised that it belonged to his best friend. Harry wasn't the light wizard he started out as - or the grey wizard he had become during Hogwarts. No, after Harry became the Master of Death, his energy and magic had turned.
Ronald Weasley could easily say he loved Harry more than anything in his life. Even himself. He wasn't the young boy who had won a war. He was a war veteran, with decorations under his belt from his time in the corps. He would do anything to protect Harry, and give him the life he deserved.
He felt that magic bubbling under the surface next to him, and he didn't need to see the man to know what he looked like. Locked jaw, eyes that looked more like a certain curse than the soft green meadows they usually carried. Harry's energy and magic screamed danger, and it surprised Ron that Daryl was still standing as close as he was. Most people would have ran already.
It spoke volumes.
They loomed out of the mist that was hanging over the fields, and the moon was the only light that glowed over the small patch of grass that was left in Luna Park. Some were wearing American Auror robes, others were in battle robes, and it was clear that they had no idea which side they were on, as they talked as freely as they did.
The leader, a bald man with a heavy scar on his head, stepped forward and bellowed without any preamble: "Harry James Potter, you are hereby under arrest by the American Ministry of Magic. Please come with us." He held out a roll of parchment in front of the group, but no one seemed to take it from his hands. All stood still.
The wizards, who had kept up appearances, and had carried fake weapons on their shoulders, let those disappear like they never had been there, and multiple wands fell into the hands of the seasoned witch and wizards that were currently forming a formation around the Muggles.
"On what grounds?" Blaise was even quicker than Draco, which surprised Harry, as he looked at his barrister with a small smile. A nice stalling technique, without getting the formalities right. Never underestimate a Slytherin. "Oh, and allow me to introduce myself. Count Zabini, barrister to the Noble and Ancient houses of Peverell and Black, and the Noble house of Potter, at your service." Blaise had always been a force to be reckoned with. His Italian lilt more active than normal, because Harry knew he had been visiting his mother last week in Italy.
"For exposing magic to No-Maj's, not coming to the aid of the MACUSA, and refusing co-operation, Mister Zabini." The man seemed a bit annoyed as he responded a bit eagerly with anger in his voice, but he flashed his MACUSA-batch to them. "Head Auror Milligan, at your service."
"Count Zabini, if you please, Head Auror Milligan. I don't believe we are that acquainted yet. It's not really my pleasure, Head Auror, this late at night. Especially since you could have announced yourself decently, instead of breaking in. You know, send a letter and all that," drawled Blaise with a smile that wouldn't have looked bad on the cover of a magazine. "We would have let you in without a question. Breaking and entering another property without a warrant is still a crime. Even in these times. Well, it's too bad that mister Potter isn't here."
"He's standing in front of me, you fool. I'm looking at him right now." The Auror on Milligan's left said with a snare. This man looked more dangerous than the Head Auror, but they had learned not to underestimate someone.
"Ah, my apologies my dear sir, but that's not Harry James Potter, that man actually doesn't exist." Blaise was in full Slytherin mode, and Harry heard Theo mutter something under his breath. Probably adoration or any of his runic sequences. Harry couldn't hear him well enough to decipher that.
"Then who is he? Merlin?" A women on Milligan's other side bit back, trying to look calm and collected - while giving off an air that she was important so she could snap at them.
"Ah no, absolutely not," Harry answered himself. "I would never claim to be such a thing."
Death was the better answer there. He heard Death make a pleased sound, and Harry tried to focus on the people before him before he got sucked into a conversation with the pleased entity.
Too damn pleased, if Harry were to interpreted its feelings. Death was not an entity to mess with, nor to tread lightly around. Although he knew that the being favoured him, even if it shouldn't. Fate had told him so more than once, but that was their secret.
"Yes, well, then?" Another person asked with irritation in his voice.
"His name is Lord Hadrian James Peverell-Black, son of James Potter and son of the Ancient and Noble house of Black." Blaise grinned now, and saw a few people in the back looking surprised while the information dawned in their brains.
Harry saw it too and he guessed that they hadn't been informed properly. Even here in America, people knew his reputation. The whole stupid world knew him, or at least thought they knew him. The name of Peverell had been once famous here, and he wouldn't have to hide that part about him.
"Still the same then, one way or another. You're just stalling, we're still arresting him." One of the Aurors behind the front team claimed, but it seemed that a few of the people in the back realised their errors. The Peverells had diplomatic immunity in America for some reason that no journal actually spoke about, but Harry would fully exploit that if it came to it. If they even got the chance to get close to him.
He felt Death leaking an emotion next to him that looked suspiciously like happiness and pleasure.
"I think the accusations are false, Head Auror." It was a miracle how calm Blaise still was, as Harry felt all the others around him. Harry had a wry smile on his face. Ron's magic was brewing, but nothing beat the confusion, the anger, the pissed-off boredom that only a Malfoy could have. Maybe having a madman in your house could do that to you. Lucius and Draco not only looked the part, but played the part with grace.
"We never told the Muggles about magic, we respected the Statue all along. You've just told them in our stead." Blaise smiled with the confidence that only a man of his reputation could. "I think I will be the one sending a letter of my own after a good night of sleep. Now, if you will excuse us, we thought the Walking death were at our doorstep, and we would like to rest now."
"We've seen you use magic in front of a No-Maj." The man said with confidence, and Harry remembered the fight he had with the hitwizards and Auror a while back, where Daryl was with them. The fire in him ignited, and only lit up to epic proportions when the Auror stated; "They need to be obliviated."
Harry's jaw clenched. No one would touch Daryl's or Merle's memories. No one. They would rather meet their fates sooner than was necessary. Harry wouldn't allow for that to happen. Those men were his family now.
"These people are Squibs. That has never been crime, has it now? They already have it worse than others, but that is another debate. Now, my point still stands. You started shouting about the Ministry of Magic, not us. We would like to end this day with grace, you may use a fireplace to leave."
Harry noticed that some of them tried to apparate, as they realised that this wasn't going to be the fight that some of the public thought it would be. The problem was, with apparition they could never know who were there; if they used a fireplace, they could call in the Aurors.
Harry also felt George manipulating the wards again. Within the time that they had entered, it hadn't taken both of them long before they had it restored to its original state. Harry's magic was soaked so deep into the grounds with all the rituals they had done, it was almost child's play for him to fix it. Even during a confrontation like this. George was very skilled at borrowing his magic to do so.
If he was right, which Harry hoped he wouldn't be, there was a large fight brewing now that the Head Auror didn't agree with Blaise's request. Harry looked towards Ron, who gave him the same look.
"Quite some manpower you brought today, I must admit, for such a simple request."
Draco had stepped into Harry's left flank, and he felt the defensive wards go up fully around the Muggles and Squibs that they had with them.
Luna and George maintained them with ease, especially since Theo was walking in a protective motion before them, muttering under his breath. He had been planning this all along, Harry noted, as the man was a Runes master in his own right. His protective runes had saved many students during the last stand at Hogwarts. Harry should have realised it that they also looked like an army. Because they had been once, no matter the side they had been on.
"Well," drawled Milligan, "We know that many of you have a background in the forbidden arts, and we thought it wise to bring some witnesses with us. We wouldn't want to make the same mistakes as the British Aurors used to do." An obvious dig towards Ron, who was just looking at the man with a disdain on his face that was so visible, Harry was surprised that there hadn't any spells been flung out.
Then it turned out, that Harry had cheered too soon.
The first jinx didn't come from Milligan, but from the woman on his left, and both Harry and Ron sidestepped it without any problems. Harry let his holly wand back into its holster, and took out the other yew wand that he had made. No need for panic yet.
The Master of Death noticed that he wasn't alone, as Ron, Draco and George also seemed to make tactical changes. It was Merle who was going to tell the others about it later, with a great deal of bravado. Merle had literally seen all the magic that had been used, and had a magical vision far beyond many people's wildest dreams. He was able to see everything that was shot, and they found out that he even saw the invisible magic running it's course through the lands. His memory of the fight would be something most people loved to watch.
It would be Severus who then remarked that he was surprised that they latched onto Harry so easily, as Squibs usually avoided dark magic, and to be honest; Harry was as dark as they came nowadays.
Harry and his people were quick to react with non-lethal spells, shields and hexes as they tried to turn the tide, but as the heavier curses began to fly close to the front trio, they let that decision slip away with ease. Ron, Harry and Draco changed their pace with practised ease, and with the way they were in sync with each other, it seemed like an easy battle to fight.
Harry got so lost in the thrill and heavy thrums of magic that flowed through him, before him, and all around him, that he did not notice that Ron's flank was unprotected.
Ron felt it before he saw it. It wasn't the killing curse, but something quite entirely different, and he barely had the time to react. It was his honed reflexes, combined with Harry's power behind him, that he was able to block most off the spellfire coming his way. But it cost him greatly he realised too late.
Then he missed one.
"Oowph," was the only thing that came out of him as he felt it hitting him in the sides where Blaise had just been a few moments ago.
The Italian had switched places with George, so he could help out Neville who had been struggling with three opponents. Even his Chinese Chomping Cabbages had not been enough to help them out as they were throwing out hex after spell, curse after jinx. Ron felt it burning through his dragon armour, through the protective spells, and then felt the rawness of the magic; dark magic.
"You asshole!" He heard George scream out from somewhere as he tried to get a good look at who might have hit him. One look on Milligan's face told him enough. It had been that asshole himself. He tried to get up but felt as if his breath was stuck in his chest.
It took only a few seconds before Draco was at his side immediately, and his outcry caused the rest of his new found family to regroup around them. Draco's healing magic sprung up around him, and Harry looked at him with a look on his face that spoke volumes. This wasn't his best friend anymore; this was the Master of Death.
George and Luna closed ranks immediately while Severus and Lucius took over on the attack. They had been defending mostly, not to look too suspicious as two former Death Eaters, but now it was serious. They stopped playing around. This action had also enticed Blaise to back the two wizards, and the fight turned dirty and nasty within seconds.
Severus had always been the one to attack, with Lucius at his side as a defender. Lucius was better with transfiguration of their environment, while Severus kept them at bay with his volley of well-controlled spells and hexes. If they weren't in a battle where one of them would have become wounded, it would have been a glorious fight to watch.
You didn't join the inner circle of Voldemort without having something to show for it. These men meant business.
Harry took one look at Neville who nodded, and released his anger. Both men stepped into the fray with George behind him. Harry had tried to play it fair, he had tried to not use the wand that was destined for him, he had tried to be nice and good. He had written letter after letter the last few weeks. He had tried it politically with words, he had tried to just give them a warning that he wasn't their puppet to use and discard whenever it suited them.
He had given them once chance too much, it seemed.
But the moment he saw Ron getting cursed, he felt all the frustrations, anger, and annoyance with his current predicament course through his body. What he didn't realise was that most of his glamours also fell the moment he switched wands for the second time, and the Elder Wand came out to play.
This also let the Master of Death out to play completely.
Daryl and Merle looked at the fight with fascination. They had been put back violently by Hadrian's magic, when the wands had come out. Both men had seen some of the wizards in action a few times, but Merle hadn't been there when Daryl, Ron, and George had been ambushed by Aurors back then. It was almost mesmerizing, if you didn't realise that most spells would be able to maim and kill a person. The environment changed with every spell that was available. He saw some of them mutter under their breath, others yelled spells, while the more trained ones like Severus, Lucius, Ron, Harry and Blaise were silent as a grave.
Merle saw the spell hitting Ron in his side, but they had already tried to break through the magical bubble that they were in, but it had been to no avail. Nevertheless, the four Squibs stood ready to attack if necessary, and protect the truly no-Maj's that had been positioned behind them. An arrow would still kill. No matter what.
Shane was muttering profanities under his breath, while Gabriel was praying to God for their rescue. Merle wasn't sure if he was praying for the witches and wizards on their side or just to have the whole ordeal gone. He couldn't blame the man, it was quite something to wrap you head around.
Daryl's eyes followed Harry's every movement, and he tried to keep up with the man who looked like he was more concerned with dodging and defending than actually attacking. It looked as if the wizard was toying with his prey, but he was reluctant to show it. As if he had something to hide. Daryl knew that Harry was truly a powerful wizard, as he had seen him do the weirdest things without getting his wand out, and he wondered why the man wasn't fighting full out.
When Ron fell down, he saw the change in Harry immediately. Nobody touches family, and the Dixons respected that the most about their Hadrian. It was quite the spectacle when the dark, thundering magic that hung around Harry released without any hesitation. Daryl felt it caress his skin softly, but it seemed like he was the only one. Even his brother, and the brothers Moore were not unaffected.
The power that came off Harry was almost intoxicating, but suffocating for the rest around him it seemed, as even Merle was clutching at his throat just like Theo did who stood before them. It affected the magicals just as well, yet Daryl felt no difference in it than he had before, and realised that that could mean something but pushed it out of his mind as quickly as it came.
"I won't hold the barrier for long anymore," said Theo, as he almost choked on his words. Blaise was in the middle of the fray, and Luna stood fierce to protect Draco and Ron, as they tried to carry Ron towards the Squibs.
"Then let it fall. Whatever it is, I'll bet these fuckers have never ever gotten a bullet in their head!" This was Shane, and Daryl realised that the soldier in him would take over, just like he'd seen Merle and Ezra shift with that ease that had been drilled into them.
"A- are you su-su-re?" His breath came out in gasps, as Theo was now on the ground, and looked towards Harry, who had started to float slightly above the ground, while attacking around him and not sparing a single soul from the group that had visited them. "If it falls, you're open to any spellfire that comes your way."
"Man, you look exhausted, I dunno what it does to you, but you look like you're about to faint. We can protect ourselves, I promise." Ezra took over, and looked towards Shane.
"Just be careful while shooting, Hadrian's magic has gone haywire and I don't know how it will react." With those last words, the wizard fell to the ground, and Mack was at his side immediately. The barrier flickered out of Merle's vision, and Theo lost consciousness.
"I couldn't care right now if it's magic or not," this was Shane, "but I say we show them a real good time, buds."
"Hell yeah!" Ezra nodded towards Gabriel who seemed to get the hint. They immediately took up defensive positions behind one of the buildings and a few trees on the other side. Daryl had his crossbow pre-loaded, while he checked the perimeter around Harry just to be safe. He didn't want to shoot the wizard in the back.
"Can you get him up there?" Ezra asked the closest wizard they could find, who happened to be Blaise who had come for his partner as he had been switched out by Luna now that Draco and Ron had reached John. The Italian nodded and pointed his wand at Gabriel. His breath was coming back in little puffs after he had just crossed the battle field within a few seconds, after downing something from a bottle that Mack had handed him, apparently knowing exactly what to do.
"Yes, that doable, may I?"
"Yeah, adelante amigo*." Gabriel's voice sounded unused, but he accepted the 'wingardium leviosa' that came his way, and was dropped with a little thud on the roof of one of the little houses nearby.
"Que la Santa Maria me proteja, en estos tiempos de incertidumbre y guie a las almas que lleve al cielo." Daryl heard him mutter over and over again, as he prepared his sniper rifle to take a shot.
It was utter chaos and madness, as not only Harry's magic tore through most people, Severus and Lucius seemed to end any and all that were still alive after that encounter while Neville had their back, and now Gabriel was popping bullets left and right, to catch the stragglers that tried to run away from the hurricane of dark vengeance that came their way.
Daryl felt strangely unaffected by it all. Maybe a bit aroused, if he would be honest with himself later.
When all the men and women were down, Lucius stood there panting with his hand on his thighs while Severus did the last search to make sure they had been thorough enough. On the other side, Harry was still unapproachable in his bubble of tight and dark magic. Daryl had expected Harry to calm down now that the danger was gone. He heard a few of the wizards calling Harry's name, but it seemed to no avail. Luna was trying her best to plead with him, but it seemed to be of no use.
Harry was far, far away, and it looked like another being had taken over the body of the man that he had fallen in love with. When even Draco's plead to stop didn't help, Daryl ran forward to where the blond stood next to Ron's body that was barely breathing, and yelled out over the enormous cackling of thunderous magic.
"What's going on?"
"He's lost control. It happened before!" shouted Draco, as he held Ron's head close to his chest. "Somebody needs to stop him. That someone was usually Ron." There was a slight panic in his voice, and Daryl looked over at Harry again.
Then it hit Daryl. His intuition kicked it, and he looked briefly back at Merle who seemed to understand what he was trying to do.
"Let me try," muttered Daryl with a determined look, as that look met Hadrian's smouldering eyes. It seemed that even Harry wasn't home anymore, but that a dark entity had taken over his lover.
"Daryl, don't. I don't know how he will react, and if his magic attacks you, you have nothing to protect yourself with."
"Brother!" He heard Merle's gruff voice yell. "Don' ya dare!"
"I understand," Daryl heard himself say, before he walked towards the fray that was the magic of the man that he had fallen hard for, and let himself be engulfed into the magic that just a few days ago had caressed him in the most loving way.
He could do this.
He would do this.
Let me know what you think!
* What did you expect, my friend (vertaald met Deepl)
* Go for it, my friend (vertaald met Deepl)
* May the Holy Mother of Mary protect me, in these times of uncertainty, and may she guide the souls that I take to heaven. (vertaald met Deepl)