LAST TIME:
Greatness. A word that had echoed in his mind from time to time, throughout his short life.
'Not Slytherin, eh?' The Sorting hat's voice whispered naggingly in his ears. 'Are you sure? You could be great, you know, it's all here in your head, and Slytherin will help you on the way to greatness, no doubt about that.'
He had refused the path then. But he knew he had to choose it now.
The path to greatness, even if he was unsure what it truly meant.
It was his destiny. One he couldn't fulfill in his own world, being naive and unprepared as he had been.
Not here though. He wouldn't fail here as he had in his own Universe. Especially not when he had been given a second chance.
And this time, he had a goldmine of knowledge. An excellent teacher. Time to prepare. And above all, an unavoidable purpose to learn it.
Because he was the Chosen One.
The notion had almost made him laugh. The Chosen One. A title he had truly hated, only second to the moniker of the boy-who-lived and its numerous variations.
And yet, here he was, knowing that it was all true. He needed to be the hero the wizarding world had always thought him to be. This world needed him. Not now, but soon.
And when it did, Harry would be ready.
Ch.5 Contemplation and Combat
30th December 2004
Harry's Home, Bleecker Street
The sound of the water hitting the tiles was the only thing that could be heard, as Harry stood still, enjoying the solitude of the moment. Hot water cascaded down his body as the steam from the shower drifted around, condensing on the glass partition. The faint whiff of lavender perfumed the steam.
Looking through the drops of water, Harry reached for the shampoo on the small granite platform opposite him.
The thick, lemony colored substance squirted with a pop into his hand. With a relieved hum, Harry began to massage it into his hair, feeling the tension release from his scalp.
With a final rinse, Harry turned off the water and stepped out of the shower, with a towel wrapped around his waist.
The smell of lavender and lemon lingered in the air as he glanced at the mirror. His fingers ran against his jaw, feeling the coarseness of his skin as he inspected his jawline in the mirror.
'I need to shave. Shame there isn't a spell for this.'
With a thought, the shaving cream can and the razor flew into his hands.
Lately, Harry had noticed that his body had gone through changes. Very subtle changes, but changes nonetheless.
His facial hair for one had suddenly matured in a sense since he came to this world. Instead of a few adolescent hairs he had, it was now growing like a manly beard, forcing him to shave every few days. Even the hair on his head seemed to settle— more than it used to anyway. Not that he had any right to complain about it. It certainly was an improvement compared to the utterly untamable mess it once was.
But his hair was not all that had changed.
No, his other features had also undergone changes, including his most prominent feature. His scar.
The lightning-bolt scar, which had always been a part of his identity— albeit an annoying one, had all but vanished, being reduced to nothing but an almost invisible white line on his forehead.
It was strange in a way, Harry supposed. To miss something he had always hated since coming to the wizarding world. It was a constant reminder of what set him apart. The reason Voldemort came after him and his family. The reason everything in his life went the way it had.
And now, it was all gone. Here he was, in an entirely new world— a crazy world filled with things that made Voldemort look like a playground bully, with nothing but two materialistic links to his past.
No friends. No relatives. Not even the enemies.
'It's almost funny how things change,' Harry thought, looking at his reflection in the mirror as he cleaned his razor under the stream of tap water. 'A few months ago, I would've given anything to escape Voldemort and the craziness of the wizarding world. For a life of normality.'
A snort escaped him in the solitude of his bathroom.
Normal wasn't a word Harry associated with himself. He was never normal. First, he had been prophesied to defeat Voldemort before he was even born. Then, by a miracle, and his mother's love, he had managed to survive the unsurvivable Killing curse, becoming the Boy-Who-Lived. Famous before he could walk or talk.
At Hogwarts, his life was far from normal. From trolls to possessed teachers to Acromantulas, Basilisks, Dementors, and Dragons— his life had been far from normal. And this was before Voldemort had even returned. That was when he had gone from a delusional nutter to the Chosen One in a span of a few months until he had been renamed as 'Undesirable Number One'.
He had always thought it would all end with Voldemort. That he would live happily ever after.
'Like the heroes in stories,' Harry thought as a sharp sting shot at his jaw before vanishing.
Harry grimaced as he washed his razor under the stream, watching in morbid fascination as the small hair swirled with the water before vanishing down the drain.
'But it was not for me, I suppose. I couldn't even die normally. Guess Dumbledore turned out to be more than a philosophical barmy old man when he said that death was the next great adventure.'
Harry didn't have the heart to laugh at his own attempt to lighten the mood.
Bending down, he splashed his face with the cold water, in an attempt to wash away his morbid mood.
It didn't work as well as he expected it to.
Harry really hated these moments of deep self-reflection.
'They are worse than my nightmares.'
Summoning the face towel into his hand, Harry lightly patted his face dry before levitating the can and the razor back to their spots. Petunia, after all, had instilled it in him to be neat and orderly. Not even six years of living in a boys' dorm had taken practice away from him.
With a last glance at his reflection, Harry walked out of his bathroom, the face towel perched on his bare shoulders.
The first thing that hit him was the cold air of his bedroom, making him shiver. Before his teeth could begin to chatter, Harry waved his hand, sending a warm breeze blowing through his room, ruffling the curtains.
'Sufficient for now,' Harry decided as he rubbed his palms before walking to his bed as the cold floor stung his feet.
How he missed the dorms.
His warming charm was flimsy at best when compared to the warmth of the Gryffindor tower. It's roaring fire. It's sheer charm.
Not even his rather posh living apartment compared to the coziness of his dorm and common room in the Gryffindor tower.
With a soft, almost inaudible sigh, Harry picked his clothes, a green hoodie and a pair of denim trousers that he had laid on his bed before getting dressed.
As the warmth of the hoodie enveloped his torso, Harry took a deep breath and plopped down on the bed.
'It wouldn't do well to dwell on the past and forget to live, Potter.' Harry thought to himself before abruptly pausing, his denim trousers halfway up his leg. 'I sounded like Dumbledore there. I am probably turning old. And I already died once.'
Harry chuckled lightly before wearing his trousers completely and buttoning them.
"Come on. No morbid thoughts now." Harry muttered as he waved his hand. His towel became dry and neatly folded itself in an instant.
With a final look around his bedroom, Harry walked out into his living room.
The silence of the living room was punctuated by the soft ticking of the wall clock. Soft morning light filtered through the gap in his curtains.
Small particles fluttered in the tiny beams of sunlight.
'Time to let some sun in.'
Harry walked to the window before pulling apart the curtains only to be greeted by a frosted window.
Peering through the frosty pane, he was greeted by a breathtaking view of delicate snowflakes drifting lazily down from the sky, blanketing the bustling city in a quiet hush.
The streets below were nearly empty, save for a few souls who had braved the wintry weather so early in the morning. The trees lining the sidewalks were coated in a thick layer of snow, their branches bending under its weight. The cars parked on the side of the road were buried in fluffy mounds, their shapes barely discernible beneath the snow.
'Tomorrow's New Year's Eve.' Harry smiled as memories swirled past his eyes. The Christmas cheer of Hogwarts. His time with Hermione and Ron. The other Weasleys. The jumpers Mrs. Weasley always sent over. The sumptuous Christmas feast.
Harry's warm breath fogged the glass.
Licking his lips, Harry leaned forward, releasing his breath, fogging up the glass more. Raising a trembling finger, Harry began to write.
As the letters formed on the fogged-up surface, memories flooded Harry's mind. He remembered the countless battles he had fought alongside Ron and Hermione, the moments of laughter and tears they had shared, and the bond they had formed through everything they had been through.
A tear rolled down Harry's cheek as he remembered that he would never see his two best friends again. The golden trio would be nothing more but three names written on fogged windows by three separated friends, across the multiverse who would never meet again.
Harry
Ron
Hermione
Harry stood at the window for a whole minute, staring at the glass and the writing which began to fade back slowly into the coolness of the frosted pane. The snow kept gathering on the windowsill, but he didn't pay heed to it.
A pick-up truck honked loudly on the road, making him jump. Shaking himself out of his stupor, Harry turned sharply on his heel and marched straight to his study room, giving a last glance at the names he had written on the window.
Pushing the door of his study open, Harry grimaced at the sight that greeted him.
Books and pages were strewn around the small room, looking a lot messier than it should have been.
On the wall to his right, his study charts were stuck, displaying information that he probably wouldn't have touched in his lifetime, had the Ancient One not forced him to. He had to remember it all if he wished to become a Master of Sorcery.
In the Ancient One's words, it was fundamental.
And the knowledge he was to learn was nothing ordinary. Despite having systematically learned magic for six whole years, this was still weird.
The names of thousands, if not millions of different deities, mystic entities, planes of existence, pocket dimensions, energies, runes— amongst probably another dozen things Harry didn't have a clue of yet. He needed to have a committed memory to become proficient in the Mystic Arts.
'If you don't have a clue what you are up against, how do you expect to fight it?' The Ancient One had said. 'Dangers in our field won't give you time to look up information before fighting them. And it is not as simple as you might think it to be. I know you've faced great odds and come out on top every time. But against the threats we Sorcerers face— It won't be enough. You need to be acutely aware of what you're up against and respond accordingly.'
And that was exactly what he had been doing for the past three months. Learning. Reading. And dare he say— mugging up all he could.
If Hermione had seen him study like this, she would've cried tears of pride.
But the thing Harry despised was that he had little to do. He had spent the past three months holed up in the study room for the most part. The only reprieve was the scant few hours of break that his job offered, which was not much to say.
Sure he had his jiu-jitsu classes thrice a week, but they seemed more like a part of his studies than a hobby. All he did was train all day, in a sense.
The Ancient One had flat-out refused his plea to go into the field with the other masters, regardless of what they were facing. And a huge part of her argument had been on the fact that he had the Soul Stone around his neck.
'I refuse to allow you to go into battle till I am sure that you won't perish by a stroke of luck on the enemies' side. You have one of the most powerful objects in the universe around your neck and in good conscience, I cannot allow you to die because you rushed in when you were not ready. Because, it is in a way, my duty to ensure that the Stone doesn't fall into the enemy's hands, whoever it might be.'
When Harry had asked when he would be deemed ready, she had simply told him that he would be deemed ready when she said so.
In addition to that, she had told him to start learning runes. Runes were probably the first— and last thing that magic and mystic arts had in common. A magical language whose power lay in symbols and their individual and combined existences.
While at Hogwarts, Harry hadn't taken the subject, but he had seen Hermione learn it.
Ron had proclaimed them to be silly symbols doodled on rocks to do the work that charms did.
For a beginner, that might look to be the case, Harry had to concede. Long sequences of characters had to be drawn in perfect geometric structures for the same work that could be done by a single wave of a wand.
But runes, despite how silly they might look, were much more than that.
A huge part of advanced mystical arts relied rather heavily on runes. Sorcerers drew them on the go in battle to cast powerful spells, conjure protections, and manipulate reality. They were also used to enchant relics and in some cases, increase their power.
The staff that David used— The scepter of Sulfindum, was such a relic where runes had been extensively used to enchant it.
It was one of the reasons why Sulfindum was thought to be a Sorcerer of old rather than a mystic entity. All the relics associated with his name had runes used extensively to power them.
With a sigh, Harry waved his hand once more.
Books and pages rose as one before swishing around the room, going to their respective places within moments. Pens and pencils flew back into his pen stand, the books arranged themselves onto the small bookshelf on the side and the papers stacked themselves.
Harry took a seat behind his desk as he reopened the topic he had been working on the previous night.
Runic shields.
In all honesty, Harry found them to be a fancy word for wards in the magical world. Or rather, a powerful variant of wards that were used back in the magical world.
These runic shields could be used to protect objects, houses, cities, countries, and even planets without having an individual constantly channel power into them or concentrate on them. They drew powers from their surroundings and the ambient energy flowing through the mystic planes.
The foremost master of this art had been the mighty Agamotto himself, who had created the Mystical Shields that protected the Earth from malicious beings throughout the Universe. Shields, whose foundations— the pillars— were the three Sanctums alongside Kamar Taj.
And this shield Agamotto created held strong even after more than a millennium of existence, repelling the worst that the masters of mystic arts had to face.
There was a reason it was considered the pinnacle of runic shielding even by the Ancient One herself, who claimed to be in awe of it.
So was Harry, if he was honest with himself. Even if Agamotto was the Merlin of the Mystic Arts, creating a shield big enough to protect the earth would require millions of runes to be drawn with mind-boggling precision to be as powerful as it was today.
Of course, the shield was regularly maintained, and sometimes even upgraded by the Ancient One, as was her duty as the Sorcerer Supreme. Each Sorcerer Supreme had in fact, added their own touch to it. But they were just improving what was already there. Small changes to a huge art.
And Agamotto had created the art.
Harry hoped to be capable of doing such a thing one day. Or to be skilled enough to do something like it.
'Right now I can barely put a shield over a marble slab,' Harry thought, twirling the pen in his hands as he looked over pages that showed the rune drawing for the shield he had been trying. 'Well, time to try again.'
With a wave of his hand, he conjured a marble slab in the center of his table.
Licking his lips, Harry folded his ring finger while touching his thumb to his middle finger. Harry crossed his wrists, taking a deep breath before beginning his spell work.
As he uncrossed his wrists, a slight golden sheen enveloped the marble slab.
Taking a quick look at the diagram in the book before joining his wrists and rotating them in a quick clockwise motion.
Two burning concentric circles manifested themself in the center of the marble slab, glowing with harsh golden light. With a jab of his wrists, more than a dozen crisscrossing lines formed within the concentric circles, making them look akin to a dimensional disc.
A normal person would've declared the structures to be the same at a glance. Not Harry.
He knew the differences in both their structures. He wouldn't have come even this far if he hadn't.
His eyes darted again to the drawing in the book.
'So far, perfect. Now the runes.'
The shield consisted of only three runic letters, used three times each. It was a shield that would protect an object from damage both by physical and magical means. And yet, it was the most basic of them.
Harry carefully noted the places he had to place the first type of rune before snapping the fingers of his right hand.
Three burning letters blazed into existence within the confines of the concentric circles on the marble slab. Snapping the fingers of his left hand, the second runic letter too appeared thrice, to the right of each first letter.
Clapping his hands, Harry smiled as the last letter drew itself to the left of the first, completing the runic sequence.
With a smile still adorning his face, Harry slowly let go of the magic he had been channeling.
Instead of dissipating into sparks as it usually did, the construct glowed brightly for a brief moment before beginning to fade into the marble slab.
A quarter of a minute later, all traces of Harry's work had vanished from the marble slab, making him smile brighter.
'It happened exactly as the book described. Now, to try it.'
Harry scrambled out of his chair to stand in the center of the room, his fingers quivering with excitement.
As he brought his hand up to cast a reductor curse on the slab, he stopped short.
'My magic's different from the Mystic Arts. The shield might not work against it.'
Harry's jaw twitched as he stared at the marble slab on his desk. He knew that he couldn't try the mystical variety of blasting spells he knew. All of them were highly dangerous and destructive in their own way. And Harry had no wish to be murdered by the librarian if any of the spells ricocheted onto the books around the room.
Neither did he wish to cave in his floor due to a mistake. No. That would be even more terrible to deal with.
'Perhaps a tamer spell.' He decided. 'Expelliarmus.'
The red beam shot forth onto the marble slab and golden light flared over the slab as the spell met it. Harry barely tilted his head in time, as the spell rebounded upward, missing his face by an inch.
"Bloody hell," Harry muttered as he turned on his heel to see a pockmark on the whitewashed walls sticking out like a sore thumb, making him grimace.
'Right. No practicing offensive magic in here till I shield the whole room.' Harry decided, staring at the pockmark on the wall. 'But I still need to test this thing properly.'
Harry's gaze fell out of the frosted windows of his study onto the New York Sanctum across the street.
'Daniel would be there in the Sanctum. Or Master Hamir would be. I could ask them to help me with the testing. Better one of them than me.'
Harry cracked his knuckles before picking the slab up with his bare hands. As the weight settled in his hands, he began to feel the protective enchantments thrum lightly underneath his palm.
A faint smile caressed Harry's face.
With a twirl of his fingers, a fiery golden portal appeared in the center of his study.
30th December 2004
New York Sanctum
Harry stepped through the golden portal into the New York Sanctum, only to find it scorching hot in the sanctum.
With a quick wave of his hand, Harry countered the warming charms he had generously applied to himself and took a deep breath as the temperature returned to normal.
He had forgotten that the Sanctums were protected against a multitude of things, including the weather outside and its temperature. Thus, his warming charms were unneeded here. Counterproductive even.
Coughing slightly, Harry tugged on his hoodie before walking further into the sanctum.
"Daniel? Master Hamir? Anyone home?" Harry asked aloud, his eyes darting around the entrance hall of the sanctum.
"Mr. Potter," A voice called from behind, making Harry jump.
As Harry turned around he saw Master Hamir's standing by the doors of the sanctum holding a bag in his sole hand.
"Master Hamir. Were you out, sir?" Harry inquired politely as Hamir closed the doors of the sanctum behind him with a wave of his other arm.
"I had just left for a quick bite," he briskly replied, as his warm clothes transformed into monk robes in a flash. "What is it that you've brought?"
"I was just—"
"Harry?" Daniel's deep voice cut through his statement, making Harry turn again.
The man was standing on the top of the stairs with a woman Harry had never seen before. The right side of her face was partially obscured by a veil of brunette hair, and she held a crutch in her right hand.
"Daniel," Harry greeted him, as his voice echoed slightly through the entrance hall of the sanctum.
"I heard you call my name. Everything okay, man?" Daniel asked.
"All fine," Harry waved off. "I just needed your help to test my runic shielding."
A surprised look flitted across Daniel's face. "You already started on those? Damn."
"If you come in, I will help you test it," Master Hamir offered as he walked past Harry. "Join us if you wish, Master Daniel."
Harry nodded and followed Master Hamir into the sitting area of the sanctum, where he carefully placed a marble slab in the center of the table while Master Hamir placed his bag on a chair to the side.
The woman slowly descended the steps with Daniel's assistance and followed them into the room.
That was when Harry got a closer look at the woman. Beneath the veil of hair, she hid her face, which had been horribly burnt.
By what? Harry was unsure but it looked painful.
The woman seemed to notice his stare and looked away, making Harry catch a glimpse of the white glass eye she had instead of a real one.
'Something terrible has happened to her.' Harry realized, feeling a pang in his heart.
"Harry, this is Wendy Mckinney. She joined us recently. Wendy, this is Harry Potter."
"Hello," She mumbled shyly in greeting.
"Nice to meet you, Wendy," Harry replied mechanically.
Daniel looked between them for a moment before clearing his throat, almost startling Harry.
"Right. You have begun on Runic Shielding." Daniel stated. "You did your first experiment on this marble slab?"
"Yeah."
"Let us see it then," Master Hamir said, conjuring a dimensional energy disc in his hand. With a smooth fluid motion, the disc flew at the marble slab, clashing against the slab with a slight gong. The disc disintegrated, knocking the slab off the table as golden sparks flew from the marble slab.
"Very good work, Mr. Potter," Hamir commended as he walked around the table and picked the slab up.
Harry immediately moved to help him, making the old master smile.
"Ideally, the slab should've been cut in half," Daniel commented, eyeing the unblemished marble slab. "Good work. Excellent for a regular runic shield."
"How long can it hold against assault though?" Harry asked. "That's what I wanted to know."
"Depends on the assault," Hamir replied, moving his fingers in trained motions through thin air. "There are a few spells that will destroy the slab in a single strike. It is but a basic runic shield with all but nine runes."
With a deafening crack, a whip of cackling reddish-orange energy lashed out at the once-pristine marble block, shattering it into tiny fragments, which rained everywhere. The acrid scent of ozone filled the air, mingling with the charred remains of the shattered stone.
Master Hamir smiled at Harry, before glancing at Wendy, who had retreated several steps back, clutching her chest.
"What was that spell?" Harry breathed, staring at the remains of his once pristine marble slab.
"This was the Whip of Faltine. Extremely powerful, yet short-ranged." Hamir replied.
"How come I've not heard of it yet then?" Harry frowned.
"Too powerful, too soon," Daniel said. "You are after all a rookie. The spells you get are controllable, avoidable, or at the very least, survivable if you use them to attack. This one, if it hits a person, they are dead. And there are few shields which will stop the Whip of Faltine."
Harry hummed in response, but suddenly a deafening whirring noise emitted from behind him, causing everyone to spin around in alarm. They watched in horror, wisps of crackling magic began to erupt from a silver bowl that Wendy held.
"Miss McKinney! Put down the Gyre of Gateways!" Daniel's voice rang out urgently, fear evident in his tone. The silver bowl shook violently as the sparks began to twist and curl into ominous spiral forms.
Wendy practically flung the bowl away as if it were scorching hot, her face contorted in panic. She stumbled back several steps, using her crutch as a makeshift weapon, while Daniel quickly stepped in front of her, his eyes fixed on the writhing magic.
"What's happening?" Harry demanded, rapidly creating a glowing energy shield in his hand.
"The Gyre of Gateway is an artifact with the power to open portals to different dimensions throughout the Multiverse, especially demon realms," Hamir replied, his own shield forming in front of him. "It's like a sling ring portal, but much easier to operate."
"Then stop it!" Harry cried, his shield expanding in size as multicolored sparks began to fly from the spiraling magic above the silvery bowl.
"The portal is opening, and we cannot do anything until it opens and closes on its own," Hamir warned, his voice grave. "We can only stop what comes through."
"What's going to come through?" Wendy asked, her voice trembling with fear.
"That's a good question," Daniel replied tersely as he eyed the whirling spiral of magic. "We don't know."
With quick movements of his hand, the Shield of Seraphim manifested in front of him, covering both him and Wendy.
The spiral of magic began to pulse with power.
'Finite Incantatem' Harry tried silently, hoping to quell the magic at work.
Instead, a multitude of sparks emitted from the pulsing spiral before it began to change into a ring, revealing ominous dark mountains on the other side.
"Here it comes," Daniel said, his shoulders tensing.
A moment later, a flock of creatures flew into the Sanctum through the portal, making Wendy shriek.
Harry's eyes nearly bulged out as he witnessed monstrous creatures, resembling spiders, but with grotesquely enlarged bodies, each as large as a football fly into the sanctum. What made them even more horrifying was the presence of bat wings that flapped menacingly, casting eerie shadows all around.
Harry felt his heart hammer in his throat, as the creatures flew closer, their hairy legs twitching and their multiple eyes glinting with malice.
Few of the creatures seemed to take notice of him and dove straight for him, their pincers poised to attack. With a strangled yelp, Harry thrust his shield forward, protecting himself from the attack, only to jump back a moment later as the creatures fell to the ground, flapping around in frenzy.
A pulse of fear began to thrum in Harry as he watched the dark bodies of the creatures flapping around. Thrusting his hand out, Harry shot a gust of flames on instinct, encompassing the spiders on the ground.
Almost human-like shrieks sounded from within, sending chills down Harry's spine, as his heart thumped like a hammer against his chest. His blood began to run cold as the feeling of dread continued to grow in his being, as the shrieks continued.
"Potter! Break out of it!" Hamir shouted, making Harry jump as the feeling of dread suddenly vanished and the screams ceased.
A few of the spider-bat hybrids were still flying around the room, and attacking the inhabitants within while Hamir attacked them, catching them in whips or chopping through them with expert ease.
Daniel, meanwhile, was defending against any who came at Hamir or Wendy, the Shield of Seraphim still holding strong.
As two more of the creatures flew at him, Harry spread his arms, a determined glint in his eye as his hands moved in well-practiced patterns.
"Flames of Faltine! Burn bright!"
A torrent of bright orange-blue flames shot at the incoming creatures, eliciting eerie shrieks from the creatures as they burned down, falling prey to the powerful mystical spell.
This time, Harry pushed the feeling of fear and dread that came with the shrieks, allowing himself to concentrate on killing these demons off.
'Their screams work like a siren's song. Just in the opposite way though. I cannot fall prey to it.'
Out of the corner of his eyes, Harry saw that the portal was still open but nothing came from within.
With a twist of his hand, the Flames of Faltine receded to a ball of flames just as ash fell to the ground before disappearing in shadowy vapors.
Instead of extinguishing the ball of flames in his hands, Harry hurled it at a flying spider near the doors of the sanctum.
The spider-bat's burning body fell to the ground, flapping around helplessly as its shrieks sounded.
"The portal's still open!" Daniel shouted as Wendy cowered behind him, curling into a ball, using Daniel and a nearby chair as a cover. Her crutch lay forgotten on the ground a few feet away.
"It will close on its own." Hamir responded gravely as he shot a bolt of bluish-purple energy at a nearby spider, reducing it to shadowy vapors.
"Mr. Potter, a few of them went upstairs. Go and deal with them before they cause damage to any of the relics resulting in more trouble." Hamir added as he eyed the few bats still flying around and attacking objects in the Sanctum.
"Yes, Master Hamir," Harry replied as rushed toward the stairs, avoiding a spider that flew at him. With a quick whirl, Harry sent a silent Incendio at the spider before it could turn around, killing it as well as its shrieks made him wince.
Without waiting, Harry skidded to the bottom of the stairs before hurrying up, his eyes darting for any spiders that were flying around.
He found one hanging upside-down right above the landing of the first floor.
'Expulso.'
The blasting curse successfully reduced the spider to a shadowy vapor, a short shriek reverberating through the floor.
'They are dying faster without the fire. At least those screams are short-lived.'
With that, Harry ran forward, his feet bouncing, as he searched for the spider-bat hybrids on the floor.
A screech drew his attention and he threw himself flat on the ground as a spider flew above him, just missing him.
"Reducto!"
The beam of reddish-orange light flew at the spider, which dove down, allowing the spell to hit the glass case in front of Harry, reducing the glass case to tiny glass shards with a horrible crash.
A red cloak floated within it, curled itself, as if protecting itself from the glass shards, making Harry shake his head.
'The cloak of levitation. One of a kind.' He remembered Daniel saying.
Harry scrambled to his feet, ignoring the floating piece of cloth as the spider flew higher toward the ceiling. Harry thrust his hand forward, shooting a stunner at the offending creature. The spell hit true, making the spider fall to the ground, still.
'Expulso.'
The spider burst into shadowy vapors like the rest of its compatriots, this time completely soundlessly, making Harry breathe a sigh of relief.
"Let's hope that was the last of them," Harry muttered, his breathing ragged.
Without warning, the cloak of levitation suddenly surged forward with lightning speed, its edges darting towards a set of sharp knives kept on a nearby table. The cloak snatched them up and hurled them towards Harry, who barely had time to spin around.
The two deadly daggers whizzed past him, slicing through the air with lethal precision. With a resounding thud, they found their mark, obliterating two of the spiders who had been about to attack Harry from behind.
With wide, astonished eyes, Harry watched the daggers fall with a clang to the ground as the spiders evaporated in shadowy vapors, their shrieks reverberating through the floor, making Harry feel like he wanted to curl up.
"Blimey," Harry breathed, his heart hammering in his chest. Realizing what had happened, Harry spun on his heel to face the cloak.
"Thank you."
The cloak gave a bow to Harry before floating back to its place. A moment later, the edges of the cloak swooped down, dusting the tiny shards of glass from the wooden platform before becoming still again.
'This cloak's something else. It's sentient. As sentient as a human.' Harry reckoned as he gulped down the air.
"Are there any more bats here?" Harry asked the cloak.
The cloak came alive again, its top part twisted sideways rapidly in what Harry took to be a no.
"Thank you then," Harry said before waving his hand. The glass case the cloak used to be in was reformed around the cloak, courtesy of a simple repairing charm.
'The least I can do is repair the cloak's home after it helped me,' Harry figured.
A part of it felt stupid for talking to a cloak, but the cloak had just saved his life.
With a final wary glance around the whole floor, Harry breathed a sigh of relief before walking forward and picking up the daggers.
'The Daggers of Daveroth,' Harry recalled, examining them. 'They would probably kill me if I misplaced such a relic.'
Harry carefully placed them back in their place before walking down the stairs, as a shield formed in his hands.
Arriving back, Harry found that the portal had closed itself and the spiders were no longer flying around the sanctum.
Master Hamir stood at a side while Daniel sat with Wendy, who seemed to be trembling slightly.
"She's suffering from the effects of the gaze of Arachnochiroptera Shadowfiend," Master Hamir supplied, following Harry's sight.
"Archno— what?"
"Arachnochiroptera Shadowfiend," He repeated slowly. "Also known as the Shadowfang Arachnobats in some texts, are creatures of the shadow realm. Their gaze instills feelings of dread and fear in others and their dying screeches amplify it by sounding almost hum. You were almost caught by it. Once you know about them, it is rather easy to snap out of it."
"Oh," Harry said, his gaze flittering to his feet.
He had after all left the creatures of the shadow realm for later, finding their descriptions too depressing and horrific.
"You should've known of them by now," Master Hamir prodded, making Harry grimace.
"I should've," he mumbled. "But I left the topic for later."
There was no answer for a moment.
"Understandable," Hamir sighed. "But do read upon them as soon as possible. Next time we meet, I will test your knowledge of them."
"Yes, Master Hamir," Harry bobbed his head rapidly, relief spreading through his veins.
"And before I forget, you did good today," He added, making Harry stand up straighter. "You fought on your feet well and defeated the creatures. Using the flames was clever. A safe thing to do when you were fighting the unknown. Commendable."
"Thank you, Master Hamir."
"Daniel, check the Sanctum for any Shadowfiends that might have remained. Mr. Potter, stay with Miss McKinney, please. And then, take her back to Kamar Taj once she is ready, so she can rest."
"You're letting me stay?" She blurted out.
"Of course, why wouldn't we?" Hamir replied with a serene smile. "You just made an honest mistake. Not even a mistake, as the Ancient One would say. You were merely curious. And this is what we deal with, Miss McKinney. Though, I do advise you not to touch any relics without knowing what they are in the future."
Wendy just gaped at the Master of the Mystic Arts, who had turned to Daniel, as he moved his hands, forming a fiery portal to what Harry recognized as the courtyard of Kamar Taj.
"I shall be visiting the Ancient One to inform her of the incident. Make sure to sweep the sanctum for any of those creatures that might've been left behind, Daniel. Good day everyone." Master Hamir declared, before stepping through the portal which closed behind him.
Daniel stood up from his seat before walking forward.
"Take care of her till I check the Sanctum," He whispered before hurrying away.
Managing a smile, Harry sat across Wendy, who looked at him with an uncertain expression.
"Are you all—" she gulped. "—really not going to say anything about what just happened?"
"It was not your fault. You are new to all of this and you had no way of knowing what the artifact did. Neither did I know about it for that matter." Harry muttered the last part, casting a glance at the silver bowl. "Curiosity is not a sin. But we should exercise caution with our curiosity. Especially where magic and magical artifacts are concerned."
She nodded hastily at that.
"But I swear that I didn't mean to. It just— I touched it and it happened!" She exclaimed, worry shining in her sole eye.
"It is not your fault, Wendy. It was just bad luck." Harry reiterated as he eyes her trembling hand. "And nothing bad happened."
"Nothing bad? I— I unleashed monsters in the sanctum. It is all my fault."
"Monsters which were easily killed and defeated. Wendy, that is what we Sorcerers do. There is nothing to worry about."
"I—" Wendy paused before looking up sharply. "Wait. You said this is what you do. And— And the Ancient One said that Kamar Taj is a place of healing. I came to heal. Not—"
"Fight monsters?" Harry completed. "Understandable. You don't need to. It is a choice."
"And you chose to fight monsters? You're what? Twenty?"
Harry didn't bother to correct her. "I have been fighting for as long as I remember. Here, at least I am prepared. Plus, I didn't exactly come here to heal."
Wendy looked like she was about to question further before she just slumped back into the couch.
"A month ago, life was a whole lot less crazy," She muttered darkly.
"What happened to you, exactly, if you don't mind me asking?" Harry questioned
Wendy remained silent for a moment before parting the veil of hair off her face, making Harry wince at her burned face and fake eye.
"A really bad accident. Acid burns. I lost an eye. Was permanently disfigured. And— well, my leg also broke but it has healed well enough. The doctors say I will be walking fine by this time next month." She supplied with a grimace.
Harry just stared at her face in response, as the amulet began to feel warmer against his chest.
'I can try and heal her.'
"It is rude to stare," She stated after a moment of squirming.
"I can try and heal you," Harry blurted, his eyes quickly averting from her face.
"How?" She asked, raising an eyebrow over her real eye.
"Magic. Special Magic."
She frowned. "The Ancient One said that healing such things not caused by magic is next to impossible. The best she said she could do was alleviate the pain."
"It is unique. Special, as I said. Something that runs in my family. Not even the Ancient One can do it." Harry lied easily.
She frowned suspiciously at him.
"If you want to. No pressure." Harry added. "And I think I can. I am not even sure if it will work. I've never treated acid burns."
'Or anything else for that matter,' A small voice in his head reminded.
Wendy gave a jerky nod, making Harry take a deep breath.
'Let's try magic first. I am not fancying the use of the Soul Stone when I don't know how to.' Harry decided, holding his hand near her face. 'Episkey.'
Wendy shivered as she felt the magic tingle against her skin, while Harry watched in disappointment as barely anything happened.
Wendy raised a hand to touch her face and frowned.
"Nothing happened, did it?" She asked with a sigh.
'I don't know any healing spells for burns. There was a burn salve but I don't have half the ingredients to make it. And I was never the best when it came to potions.'
The Amulet containing the Soul Stone seemed to burn against his chest at that thought as if itching to be used.
'I know how it feels. I just have to channel it the right way.' Harry decided. 'But the wrong way can lead to blowing her head off, if not the whole Sanctum.'
Harry shook his head, clearing the doubts away.
"I am gonna try something different," he mumbled, his fingers caressing the amulet underneath his hoodie. "But I have never used the technique on someone other than myself."
The Soul Stone seemed to thrum in agreement with that. Raising his hand again, Harry recalled the familiar feel of the power that rushed through his veins and healed his injuries, willing it to go through his arm and heal Wendy.
But nothing happened. There was no rush of energy. No power coursing through his veins. The Soul Stone sat against his chest, still incredibly warm and thrumming with energy.
'Come on. Work.' Harry thought furiously, jabbing his hand at Wendy, making her jerk her face back.
"Excuse me?" She asked, affronted.
"I am trying. Don't move too much." He replied shortly as he tried to call the power of the stone again.
'Work, you ruddy stone.'
It refused to comply.
"Okay, tell me when you make progress. No hurry." She said, raising her hands in surrender.
Harry nodded, lowering his hand for a moment and taking a measured breath.
'Getting frustrated won't help. I need to concentrate on the task. The intent. Come on. Heal. The burns. I want them gone. Restore her face. Heal.'
Magic tingled through his fingertips and immediately, fresh skin began to stretch over Wendy's burned face. The burns began to lessen and heal.
Harry's breath itched. 'It is working. come on. Heal. I want the left side of her face to look properly like her right. HEAL.'
Magic obeyed, catering to Harry's wants. Wendy's face began to heal. New skin, as fair as her original, stretched over her burned face and neck as Harry willed it to.
Harry felt the pulse thrum in his bicep as he continued to hold his hand still till the skin was all but restored.
Only her fake eye remained as Harry let his hand drop, taking a ragged breath.
He had never used magic in such a way as he just had.
The stone was no longer burning warm against his chest, having returned to a normal temperature.
'What great bloody help it was,' Harry thought sarcastically, knowing he had used magic and not the stone to heal her.
How had he used magic? He had no idea.
"What happened?" Wendy breathed feeling her face again, her eyes wide.
With a smile, Harry conjured a mirror for her to see her face.
The resulting expression on her face and the sparkle in her real eye made Harry know that it was all worth it.
AND… DONE! I hope you all liked the chapter.
A huge thanks to Mughil and I_amaSWITCHbot for betaing this chapter.
.
Ariadne Venegas: As I said, I am not sure about the pairing. It is too early to decide the pairing in this story rn. And… tbh, the storylines in marvel are mind-boggling. Plus, I am indecisive if I should bring the X-Men in this as they're a whole new can of worms and don't connect to the main MCU in any form. Same with the Fantastic Four, DareDevil, Jessica Jones, and all the other series that marvel has.
Nils123: No. Tbh, Parselmagic, as I see it, is completely unneeded and irrelevant in this fic. Plus, Harry has no way of learning it or anything.
SS V-King Says: Just for the sake of putting it out for you, Harry is NOT the Master of Death. He has no such powers. Also, Loki is literally eight years away as far as the storyline is concerned. Avengers happens in 2012 and this story is still in 2004. Well, 2006 almost you could say. As for the question about Mordo and Zealots… too far away to think about it.
Darlok: Okay… whatever you wrote about the angels and all that, the response is that I am not doing that. Well, Harry can technically open portal to different realms like Dr. Strange but that's about it.
BJJPanda: Still canon personality, my friend. Harry Potter wasn't the most suave and confident young man in the books, was he?
.
That's all! Thank you for your reviews!
.
Also, join my server, House of HP66, to interact with me directly, and see the pictures of the characters there, so you all can get an idea of how they look. I will also post descriptions and stuff for reference.
Link: discord . gg / 4qfP3fxdQ4 [Remove the spaces please]
.
As of this moment, I have six main stories. They are:
1. The Rise of the Last Potter: My Novel length Harry Potter fic which is already 300k+ words long and it is a work in progress. Updated Regularly.
2. The Legend of the Son of Poseidon: A Novel Length Percy Jackson fic which is already 250k+ words long and it is a work in progress. Updated Regularly
3. Loved Ones Skipping Stones and Ice-cream: A fluffy Haphne one-shot. It is completed obviously.
4. SECRETS: Another romantic one-shot I published recently. Complete as well.
5. Agent Potter: The Wizard of W.A.N.D. - My spy!Harry fanfic which I implore you all to read!
6. Guardian of the Soul: Infinity Saga – My newest fic. An HP–MCU crossover. Novel length, in progress.
.
Stay Happy! Stay Safe! Keep Smiling! Keep Reading!
HPfanfictioner66