They were asleep for a few peaceful hours before the screaming started. This time, it wasn't coming from Harry and his nightmares but from outside their window.
A loud, thundering stampede trampled past and Harry quickly jumped out of bed to take a look.
"Shit," was all he said before he was rushing to put on his shoes.
"Who are they?" Voldemort asked when he finally made his way to the window. He could see men and women dressed in dark leather with blue skulls messily painted on the back, riding creatures that looked almost like horses but larger than he had ever seen. Their hooves came to a sharp point like claws and their long mouths barely hid their many teeth.
"Bad news," Harry answered while grabbing a long sword from his bag and holding it out. "Here." It had runes etched into the side he recognized. An enchanted sword that will never dull, and would shoot lightning at whatever it was pointed at. "It's better than nothing if they come for you."
"I still have my wand."
"You cannot use magic like before you will- UGH why do I bother? Are you coming or not?"
"To do what?" Voldemort took the sword and inspected it.
"Those are riders from the Hallowed Scourge. They love a challenge and practically live on the battlefield. Sometimes they go out and hunt creatures to fight, other times they raid villages hunting for warriors or challengers." As he talked, Harry pulled two daggers from his bag with more runes etched onto them. "And if they don't get one… well…"
"Isn't this mostly a farming village?"
"Yes."
"So you have to go fight. Still a hero then?" Voldemort swung the sword in the air and saw electric sparks follow it. He couldn't help but be impressed.
"I like this town. They have a good ale. Also, they will pay us if we save them." Harry had a sudden thought pop into his head. "Which means you can buy all the books and things you want to help you get back home."
"I could just take it from them after they are all dead."
"Yes you could, but then you can find your own damn place to stay." Harry had his foot out the door when he added. "Also, I won't cook for you anymore."
"Is that supposed to be a threat?" Voldemort called out after Harry. "Sounds like a miracle to me. I won't have to deal with your drunken arse anymore." He followed Harry out of the tavern and into the road where he saw one of the riders heading directly towards Harry with their spear raised and a dark cloud forming around it.
Harry threw one of his daggers and it hit the rider directly in the neck.
Voldemort could hear them choking on their own blood, and the screech of the horse-like creature called out a warning before the rider toppled to the ground dead and it stamped off into the chaos.. Harry held out the same hand he threw the dagger and with a short burst of blue light, it was back in his hand covered in blood.
"Always a surprise with you," Voldemort said to himself, shocked at the skill Harry had shown. He should have known better. Harry never failed to surpass his expectations and as the wizarding war raged on, Harry's willingness to do what it takes to protect the ones he cared about became more and more determined.
For Voldemort, it had only been a short while. But after thirty years, what was Harry willing to do now?
"If you want to cower inside you can, but you'll miss all the fun," Harry nearly sang as he ran off to find another rider.
Curious, not wanting to be left behind, nor to be considered a coward, Voldemort followed.
Holding the longsword was awkward at first, but he was no stranger to the magic it already possessed. As the riders came near, he blasted them off their horses so they fell to the ground before quickly stabbing them while they twitched from the shocks still in their body.
One of them rode up from behind with their weapon raised, and he quickly side-stepped away and swung his sword against the horse's neck. He watched in sick satisfaction as the creature with its rider toppled to the ground.
He became absorbed in the bloodshed and battle, the screams of the villagers made his heart race and the fire and blood brought a smile to his face. But not once did his attention fully waver from Harry. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched as Harry threw his daggers, dodged, and slaughtered his way into the hearts of the villagers as he saved them.
He helped them get back up as they were knocked over and rushed into burning buildings to save those that he could. Even after all this time, Harry Potter couldn't help but save those around him at the risk of his own life.
It brought some strange sense of comfort to the Dark Lord's cold heart.
"Something is wrong," Harry told him after a while, the blood of his enemies dripping off his hands and splattered on his face. "They aren't very skilled. They are dying too easily. The Scourge I know wouldn't fall like these idiots." He wiped the blood on his daggers onto his pants.
"That's because they are idiots." A smooth voice called from behind him. Voldemort turned and saw a tall man walking towards them with a walk that reminded him of all the purebloods who have thought they were worthy of his presence simply because of their name and money. The man had pointed ears, light blond hair, and reminded him of the elves from the forest but with less of their ethereal presence.
To his surprise, Harry groaned when he approached. "Hello, Dorryn."
"Hello, you. Long time no see. Where have you been off adventuring lately?" The smile Dorryn gave could have charmed a king from their crown.
"What are you doing here," Harry sheathed his daggers and turned to face him.
"Same as you, spending some time with the weaker species. Drinking their ale, bedding their women. We all have to have some junk food now and again to appreciate the finer things in life." Dorryn turned to face Voldemort. "And who is your friend?"
"Not for you," Harry snapped and took a step forward threateningly.
"I think I can defend myself against this…creature." Voldemort replied.
"I don't want you bringing home a disease," Harry rolled his eyes.
Dorryn clutched his chest like he had been wounded. "Home? Harry, you never brought me home-"
Harry growled. "I'd rather cut your tongue out."
"Want it all for yourself? I knew you liked me." The smile on Dorryn's face never left as he bowed toward Voldemort. "Dorrynnon Ballar at your service. I see you and Harry are close. He and I used to work together for a short time."
"Yes, yes, and now we have a tragic backstory," Harry said with his voice raised. "There is a battle going on you moron. Quit flirting and go kill someone."
"That's just it. I don't think these idiots are part of the true Scourge. I think they are imposters." The smile left Dorryn's face but his charm never did. If Voldemort didn't know better, he would have been sure the man had used a spell on himself to make him seem more appealing. He wondered what happened between the two of them, and felt an ugly feeling growing inside of him.
"What are they are they-" Harry was interrupted by the sound of a loud horn. The riders that were left abandoned the battle and rode out of the town as quickly as they could, the sound of their horses and shouts quickly faded away. Harry looked like he wanted to throw one of his daggers at their retreating backs but restrained himself.
"Children. I think they are the youngest of the lot trying to prove themselves. Something must have happened." Dorryn wiped the invisible sweat from his brow, and Voldemort was starting to feel the irritation the man's presence provided creep along his skin.
"How insightful. Why don't you go do something about that? I'm sure the village will be eternally grateful." Voldemort, ever practiced in the art of charm himself, did not let his true feelings show. Though he could see Harry snicker at his choice of words.
Dorryn's eyes went wide for a moment before letting out a delighted laugh. "Have we met? You speak so highly of me already. Not even I would dare to take on the Scourge alone."
"He's not from around here," Harry mentioned as he walked past the two of them. "Come on, let's go and find any survivors."
The three of them spent the next few hours finding anyone still left alive and bringing them to the middle of town where the rest of the survivors were gathering. They had set up the area as a makeshift hospital where people were treated for their injuries and those who were able already started rebuilding.
Harry was grateful that Voldemort didn't complain too much about helping the people, but he was pretty sure he was adding up all the good deeds he was doing and going to cash it all in later for something Harry was sure he was going to regret.
Once everyone was accounted for, the strongest of the survivors met at the tavern to discuss their next moves. Harry, Voldemort, and Dorryn stood together in the back. Harry had found a mug of ale and happily nursed it with his eyes closed and his head resting back on the pole behind him but listening intently.
The short woman with an axe addressed the crowd with the same level of control as she did before. As soon as she spoke, the crowd became silent and hung on her every word. "For those of you newcomers that do not know, my name is Dura. Now that we've got things under control here, we need to discuss our next steps. We could retaliate, but that would be suicide. The few Scourge riders who came through today may have been unseasoned, but their leaders will not be. I propose we strengthen our defenses so this does not happen again."
"Bullshit!" A strong woman stood up and pounded her fist on the table. "We need to go after them! They killed our friends! If we don't teach them a lesson then they will just come back again!" A few sounds of agreement followed her words. Before she was knocked in the back of the head by a smaller woman behind her.
"Not everything has to be solved with violence. Plenty of theirs died tonight, too. Their blood is still on your shirt. This was a loss for everyone today. We need to move on and rebuild stronger." The smaller woman put her hand on the stronger one's shoulder and seemed to calm down, but the rage in her eyes remained. "We will all mourn those we have lost, but there is no reason we all need to join them today."
There was reluctant silence following her words, and a few people nodded their heads.
"Then we are in agreement," Dura put the hilt of her axe down onto the ground like a gavel. "We build our defenses. Every able body needs to start gathering materials and meet me by the town entrance in three hours." Everyone started getting up to follow her orders. Harry finally opened his eyes when Dorryn started speaking.
"I don't know about you two, but I'm not much of a laborer. I'm more of a knight or a hero type. I'll leave this bit to the professionals."
"Well then that's good because I have a job for you boys," Dura said as she walked towards them. "And your friend too if he is interested."
"Not my friend," Harry grumbled just as Dorryn greeted her with a smile. "Hello Dura, it has been a while. You have aged beautifully."
"And you two haven't aged a day," she pointed out with an eyebrow raised. "Follow me. Titus, Aster, with me!"
The large bull-like man they saw the night before and the woman who served their drinks followed as they all walked into the kitchen with Dura. When they all found spots to stand, she shut the door and turned to face them.
"You boys still up for hire," She asked Harry and Dorryn.
"Yes," Dorryn said confidently.
"Not together," Harry said at the same time. "I don't work with him anymore."
"I'm sure you will get over it," Dura said dryly.
"Hey-"
She ignored Harry and turned to face the bull-like man. "Titus, you will need to be their guide. You know the terrain better than anyone."
"Yes of course Madam." Titus bowed to her calmly.
"Aster, you will need to get them prepared. Bring them supplies for their journey," she did not even look toward Aster as she spoke.
"But, I want to -" Aster tried to argue.
"You will not. You will stay here where it is safe."
"Mom-"
"Enough, Aster. Go now. Get them ready," Dura snapped. With rage in her eyes, Aster stomped off to go to as she was told.
"You are making a lot of demands without telling us what it is you want," Voldemort pointed out irritably.
Dura turned to him and gripped her axe tightly. "They took my bow."
"The Scourge?" Dorryn said just as Harry said "Your bow?"
"Yes, my bow. It's … special to me." Dura took a slow breath. "If they have it, I would need it back."
"You want us to fight the Scourge for a silly bow? Even if it is made of gold, it's not worth our lives." It was Dorryn's turn to be irritated.
"I will pay you handsomely. I still have money saved up from my own time adventuring and this tavern of mine has done better than I ever could have expected. Get it back for me and you will be rewarded." Dura promised with her free hand over her heart.
"How much?" Dorryn asked next with a glint in his eyes.
"Five hundred gold pieces. Each."
Dorryn's response was a low whistle and a smile.
It was Voldemort's turn to inquire next. "What is so special about this bow of yours?"
"It has sentimental value. I used it in my fight with an invasion of vampires long ago. It helped save a lot of lives and protected this town. I would feel a lot more comfortable having it back," she explained.
"Vampires? That's it. Why didn't you just-" Voldemort started to say, but Harry elbowed him in the side.
"We will take the job," Harry agreed.
"We will not!" Voldemort snapped. "I will not be dragged into your little heroic adventure."
Harry grabbed his arm and pulled him aside. "That kind of money can buy you all sorts of knowledge. We can take a trip into one of the bigger cities and you can buy books on whatever the hell you think will help you find your way home. Besides, your bloodlust will drive you into wanting to kill someone anyways and this seems the easiest option. And if this goes sideways, we can just leave and let them suffer. It's only a bow."
"Are you serious?" Voldemort disliked how he kept being reminded how much Harry had changed.
"No, I'm Harry," he replied with a grin. "Come on, it could be like a vacation. There is no world-ending war to worry about. Just some old bow and some gold to get at the end."
"Is that how you became so complacent? The simplicity of this world and a few pieces of gold?" Voldemort countered.
"And the ale, but I didn't have you to keep me interested in the better things in life, so here we are." The smile on Harry's face no longer reached his eyes, but Voldemort did not argue any further. Harry turned to Dura and announced, "We're in."
"Excellent. I will meet you back here at nightfall. Rest and regain your strength. You will have a long road ahead of you."
They all headed out of the kitchen and were about to part ways. Voldemort watched Dorryn whisper something to Harry who looked like he was about to take out his daggers and stab him in retaliation, but Dorryn held up his hands in surrender.
"I never caught your name," Dorryn said as he turned to Voldemort with a charming smile.
Harry, who didn't think Voldemort had ever had to introduce himself in nearly fifty years, was about to intervene when to his surprise Voldemort replied "I am Lord Voldemort. A pleasure to meet you Dorrynnon Ballar. We will see you at nightfall." Harry had never seen the man act so enchantingly and it seemed Dorryn wasn't unaffected. To himself, Harry thought that if Voldemort looked more like his scaly self then Dorryn wouldn't have such a prominent blush on his face.
"Oh, yes well." Dorryn cleared his throat. "Tonight then." Titus, who had been watching them, nodded his head as he passed and headed to his own room. "Not much of a talker that one." Dorryn commented.
They parted ways leaving Voldemort and Harry alone and back in the safety of their room which remained thankfully untouched. Harry went straight to his bed and flopped down after he stretched his hands over his head.
"Well this turned out more interesting than I could have hoped," Harry yawned and turned to grab his pillow, and held it tightly while he tucked it under his chin. "At least it won't be boring." Voldemort made a noise of agreement while he set up the wards around their room before walking over to his bed and carefully laid down.
The two were fast asleep before long, and Harry thankfully was not troubled by any nightmares.
