Planet Magix, Citadel of Night.
"Everyone ready?" Harry asked of the six young women before him.
The Trix stood separate from the fairies, but united with one another. Bloom, Diaspro and Chimera on the other hand showed no such unity, standing apart from each other. Each of them wore their usual casual clothes right now. Bloom and the Trix wore those of yesterday and Chimera preferred her favourite Lolita-style dress. Diaspro on the other hand was clearly overdressed, clothed more appropriate for court than everyday life, but insisting that it was casual for her. While Harry himself wore a pair of black jeans, thick white dragonhide boots and a simple white t-shirt.
The wizard got nods and other signs of agreement from them.
"Then let's go." with that he led them to what he had prepared for this endeavour.
In the last two days it had been decided that all six would accompany him on his journey to the various planets he needed to visit in the Magical Galaxy. Harry would've taken all of them with him regardless, but Chimera and Diaspro were especially useful due to their knowledge about the cultures, social mores and customs of various planets. While Bloom planned to come with him in a bid to earn Enchantix, knowing it was of no importance in the end if she did it under Alfea's banner or not.
Though, first Bloom needed to visit Earth and tell her adoptive parents that she was basically switching schools, for all intents and purposes. Something Harry had insisted she do, arguing that they deserved to know the truth about a lot of things. Not that he didn't have his own commitments back home. And so, the group was near the surface of the Lake of Stars as they now called it, walking along the edge a little further away from the bathhouse. A place where he had built something in preparation for his travels, to make it a little bit more covert and also teach his girls to do it themselves.
'My girls?' he wondered. 'Since when did I become so possessive of them?' while the wizard knew that he could become very possessive of things he deemed his, this hadn't happened often with people. Only with Sirius and Ginny to an extent in his sixth year.
"I've got a question!" Chimera said, raising and waving her hand as if in school.
"What a surprise." came the sarcastic mutter of Diaspro, the words quite but slightly echoing in the cavern nonetheless. It caused Bloom lips to twitch, all while Diaspro's citrine eyes glittered mockingly. The Trix only observed the spectacle, assessing and clearly looking for weaknesses to exploit.
The Solarian fairy just struck her tongue out at the blonde, but refrained from lashing out verbally, having accrued some patience from her ordeal. Still, she only spoke once Harry acknowledged her. "Why do we use this when you can just flame us there or use a Portkey?"
"Good question, Chimera." he praised, causing the fairy to puff up and preen and Diaspro to scowl. "I have multiple reasons for that." the Shadow Phoenix began explaining. "Firstly, while flaming seems to be able to cover a vast distance, it still is considered short-distance travel in the grand scheme of things." he looked at the Trix at his left. "For example, Darkar could only break you out of the Fortress of Light due to its relative proximity to Magix. Much like Apparition, it largely is still restricted to intra-planetary travel; and just like Apparition I need to roughly know and be familiar with where I am going for it work."
Passing through a narrow gap in the smooth wall at the lake's shore, the group stepped on the marble-like stone floor of this mooring – decorated with geometric designs of brass – sitting atop and along a collection of brass pillars rising from the depths of the lake. The scents of metal and ozone were ever-present but constantly subdued by the refreshing aroma of foliage. While these sprightly and verdant invaders had not yet obstructed the brass glyphs beneath their feet, they did cover the rest of this ground floor. Stringy bits of vine hung off the sides of the taller pillars like thin strands of hair.
On the floor approaching the end were engravings.
I journeyed long in walking
far beyond the place of stopping
Where there was no more returning
to the people I had known.
I saw the world forgotten
where the grass gives up on growing
And I knew that I would never
make another journey home.
Upon that fleshy plain
below the final rock outcropping
stretched the vast and empty desert
of the hungry, bleeding thing.
Encompassing the Earth
to the horizon, all-consuming,
crying in a thousand voices
never dead, ever dying.
None of the girls knew their origin, but according to lore this had been the words of the first traveller arriving far from home through the Blind Eternities. They served no true purpose, only included through traditions and customs for good fortune. Harry saw no reason to change such a thing.
Though, the unusual greenery and scents here weren't the only things out of place in the normally still cave. Whips of wind danced along the walkways connecting the tops of the pillars, voices keening like woeful sighs from the darkness beyond. The gloom would've made it difficult to discern what lied beyond each raised walkway, if not for the glittering waters below. As they walked along the intricate pier, it looked like they were walking amongst the night sky. The shelf seemed to overlook the cosmic tapestry: a compendium of stars and prismatic nebulas.
"Secondly, no one in Magix will sell a Portkey or trip away to the Trix or those associated with them. Not to mention that those with Earth as a destination are horribly expensive." It was an understandable leftover of the Trix' attempt to conquer the planet. Even if they had been proclaimed largely innocent at the trial. "And thirdly, it's educational. For which I am now responsible as far as you're concerned, I suppose."
Finally the group arrived at the end of the way, but no boat or anything else waited for them. Instead Harry fetched six vials out of his enlarged pouch. Each one contained a silvery substance with many black dots sprinkled throughout and the viscosity of honey. "Here, you should take that before we do this." he levitated one to each and said. "It's called – among other things – Aegis or Cosmos Honey, and is required for the travel we're about to attempt."
"Why is that, and don't you need some as well then?" Darcy inquired, noting only six phials and inspecting the strange semi-liquid.
Chimera asked at the same time. "What does it do?"
"It protects you from the dangers present by simply being in the place we're about to visit." Harry explained patiently. "It allows you to breathe there and insulates you against its energies. It's one big mouthful and you need to swallow all of it at once. Otherwise you'll probably sputter or puke it back out." he drove a hand through his raven hair. "I don't need it because of... special circumstances not connected to me being the Shadow Phoenix, shall we say."
Five of the young women looked at the brew apprehensively.
"Bottoms up then!" Stormy said, doing as instructed. Shortly followed by the other five.
They first let it pool in their mouths as instructed before swallowing all of it. It tasted like an excellent vintage of wine on the tongue, but the prickling feeling it induced was more akin to poison. After they swallowed, it felt like it was too much and would be stuck in their throats. However, then some was diverted without any of their input, flowing in the wrong pipe towards their lungs. Yet none choked, they couldn't even sputter as the magical substance coated everything from the windpipe to the stomach and lungs.
While the process was happening a low, drum-like sound could be heard by them within the pillars. One could feel the subtle reverberations underfoot, shooting through their bodies and making them quiver. Suddenly the witches' and fairies' eyes watered as they tried to adjust to the nebulous sea undulating in streams of pink and teal, black and blue before their eyes. Through the blurring of their vision, celestial bodies swam unhurried along their destined paths. Just one blink later and it was gone, instead a swirling vortex of water coalesced into a flat silvery surface in front of them. This mirror-like portal must be where the concept of stepping through ones own reflection originated, they thought.
All but Harry took a deep lungful of air to confirm they were still working. Thankfully, they did.
"Where are we going, by the way?" Icy asked after she calmed down again, observing the floating portal with interest. She saw that her reflection was a blurry mess as she stepped up to the sheen of liquid.
Harry grinned mischievously, clearly not wanting to ruin the surprise. "You'll see." next he transfigured a long rope out of a summoned stone, and throwing one end to the girls as he instructed. "Keep grabbing onto it as you step through."
They looked from the rope in their hands to the portal warily, but trusted him enough to deem it safe and no prank. As such they stepped through as a group. Immediately the shimmer overcame and peeled from them just as fast. First, all was coloured dust like pollen, then metal flakes, then crystalline translucence.
Rainbow Ocean.
All latitude and longitude was gone in an instant. They were here and not, there and approaching. Nothingness; a void, extending infinitely in all directions stretched before the group. Beyond and below them lied an endless black pinpricked by stars. Those stars and luminous nebulae provided the only light, casting everything in an otherworldly glow. Debris, the flotsam and jetsam of countless worlds and a multitude of planes, floated aimlessly among clouds of green-coloured dust. The strangeness didn't end there. From the relative safety of the boulder they were standing on the group observed trees freely levitating upside down in the air; their roots burrowed into nothing at all while their crimson leaves swayed in a non-existent breeze.
Further above the firmament was in constant motion, but up where the clouds and sky should be a sea of opaque, brilliant and multicoloured waves raged about. The swells rose like mountains against the seemingly storm-wracked waters. Their caps foamed in wrath before crashing up, sending their spray downward again. Despite the seemingly constant threat of being drowned by titanic amounts of water not a single drop reached them as rain. Instead the scintillating caldera of energy roiled and toiled about, moving like oil on water.
"Welcome." Harry greeted them with a wide and giddy smile. "Does anyone of you know where we are?"
None of them answered for a few seconds, too busy to take in the fantastical surroundings of this upside-down place. The young women simply stood, but suddenly found themselves floating up towards the maelstrom.
"What?" Darcy gasped out, holding onto the rope for dear life. Bloom blurted out. "What's happening?!"
Harry was unbothered by the weird phenomenon, holding tight onto the rope as he explained. "Relax, up and down are subjective here." gravity itself was subjective in terms of direction, meaning no gravity weighed one down here without consent. One could always be in transit, no matter how still one stood. "You're propelled by the thought of movement alone. So simply chose a new direction to fall in."
They did so and promptly fell down into a tangle of limbs, hair and groans, earning some bruises along the way. The only one Harry caught expertly was Chimera, – his hands gripping her hips and dispersing her momentum – lest her wounds reopen.
"Couldn't you have just warned us?" Icy complained with a growl from beneath Bloom and Stormy, trying to push them off of her.
"I could have." he acknowledged with a nod and a grin, setting a smug Chimera down and waving the complaint away. "However, it wouldn't have gotten the point across near as well. Failure is the best teacher in regard to remembering things you shouldn't do. Not that you were in any real danger with that." he clapped his hands to get them to stop grumbling. "Now, back to my question."
It was Diaspro who answered first as she lay on her back, looking up at the strange sky. "We're in the Long Quiet." her eyes were wide as she glanced around in awe. "More commonly know as the Ethereal."
"Really?" came the surprised voices of the others. Each one knew a few titbits about the place, but books covering the subject were all contradicting themselves.
However, all agreed that there were layers, beginning with the shoals; the shallow ways. Then there were the greater streams, plunging deeper to levels nearly unexplored. Down to the fabled Umbral Abyss; the Root of Blissful Terror, where no living man could hope to navigate, where madness and sanity were one and the same. It was akin to an infinite ocean. It had currents, it had depths, it had storms. Near the surface one was safe, could follow some rough paths and with the Aegis one even had protection from its influence to a degree.
Here they were just below the surface, it seemed.
"Correct." he praised, causing Chimera to glare at Diaspro which was followed by a pout. "The Ethereal has many names from all manner of civilisations. Equally as many as there are for practitioners of magic, maybe more." he began to count them on his fingers. "The Blind Eternities, Atlas of Worlds, Rainbow Ocean, Twisting Nether, Dreamlands, Sea of Souls, Immaterium, the Place between Places, the Dark Below, the Veil and countless more. Here we are behind this Veil. Anything else you can tell us, Diaspro?"
The blonde frowned in thought as she slowly stood up. "Only that the discovery of the Ethereal at first didn't do much in terms of being useful. All who entered died swiftly in the beginning." she dusted the cobwebs of history lessons long in the past. "Only after the development of Cosmos Honey did the Great Age of Exploration slowly begin, which birthed the Magical Galaxy as we know it. Even then the dangers were still many and more." the blonde looked at Harry, thoughts racing. "For example one couldn't safely travel to their destination without an object possessing the unique magical signature of said destination. A quite impossible thing to attain in those times, making the undertaking of travel quite perilous indeed."
She finished it by saying "In recent times – at least as history is measured – and with the development of safer modes of transport such as Portkeys and later on Void Drives people could leave this place's dangers behind. As such travel by foot through here isn't normally advised due to the potential dangers involved."
At least now they had Harry, who came from Earth and as such had an inbuilt magical signature belonging to their destination. Always finding his way back home as long as he was picturing it.
While Void Drives still travelled through here, just like Portkeys, it was much safer than going on foot and not as exhausting as Portkeys. Not that the vast majority of magical people could even create a Portkey today, much less a portal to the Ethereal. Simply due to seeing no value in spending decades to learn magic, when they had access to the same opportunities with Magi-Tech. After all, just because someone could learn something didn't mean they wanted to. The rational being that most would just be average at magic anyway and that the convenience of Magi-Tech trumped that for many.
Sure, most still learned the basics, but how many learned more and honed their craft? Instead of letting it decay and only using it for the convenience they now had Magi-Tech for?
Icy snorted in derision, crossing her arms with a huff. "Sure, it has nothing at all to do with the fact that the governments can't monitor this form of travel." the lazy drawl made clear what she thought the truth was. Not being able to travel much, having only visited Magix and Whisperia due to their lack of money, was something she had hated intensely. Still did.
"You're probably both correct." Harry told them, waving one of his hands as if presenting the sight before them. "Furthermore, while nobody knows exactly how, this is where magic really comes from; its origin." while there was some research done on how it worked, most people had no idea how and those who had an inkling didn't know much more. Everything most knew of it was that it worked and that was enough for them. "From here it seeps into the material world and into a planet's Leylines where it is then known as Mana. Even into people with magical circuits, where magic is then quantified as Od."
It was still largely the same thing, just different names for it. Much like with lava and magma just being different names for the same thing, but in different locations.
"Do you think it's true that demons exist here?" Bloom questioned, her cyan eyes warily observing her strange surroundings. Just like back home she loved to read about fantastical things, which had included the stories about the explorers that came here. They only now came back to the forefront of her mind.
It wasn't Harry that answered, but Darcy as she looked out at the breathtaking expanse. "The Ethereal is a place of the mind and soul; a parallel dimension superimposed upon our own reality. It's touching every mind and inch of the material realm at the same time. It is born out of the thoughts, emotions and dreams of every sentient species; inspiration and belief are its nourishment. Time is merely a suggestion in this place where imagination reigns supreme." she turned towards her fellows. "As such it is entirely possible that gods and demons exist here. Everything exists here, all at once."
A stairway with infinite steps, a horrific garden of blood and gore with petals and leaves of metal, a forest burning eternally with frozen fire were just the more mundane things here. A graveyard of murdered dreams, a path paved with mistakes, an eye as big and luminous as a sun, seeing music and even liquid forming itself into shapes on its own were entirely possible here.
"Now, can someone tell me what schools of magic this space has the most obvious connections with?" Harry asked as he began their journey. Due to him basically being responsible for their education at this point he'd make it a bloody good one, starting with the true foundations of Thaumaturgy he learned from absorbing memories from Omega.
He could've just floated forward but decided to make things a little more flashy and easier for the girls. As such the crimson leaves of the floating trees ripped themselves off of their boughs and built a bridge that shouldn't hold, but did. The wizard motioned them forward. Some like Stormy and Bloom were bolder, while the others took a little longer.
"Divination?" Bloom threw out, the leaves not even crackling and crunching as she walked on them. "If this is the realm of dreams – as the name Dreamlands implies – and not truly connected with time then that seems only logical."
"Correct, but that's not all of it." he threw a look back, making sure the rest were still with him. "Chimera, what's the second?"
The fairy in question stumbled a little in surprise. "Uh," she brought out, wracking her brain for the answer. The encouraging look Harry gave her spurred her on. 'Come on. You know this!' she thought frantically, not wanting to disappoint. "Summoning?" she ventured hesitantly, her heart soaring as he smiled and nodded at her.
"Indeed, though the correct term is conjuration. Both are used interchangeably, but summoning more so refers to transporting one thing to you in the physical sense. Conjuring, be it the conjuration of creatures or inanimate objects, are closely linked with this realm." Harry told them. "After all, it is the creation of a faux entity based on the concept of that creature or object, which is pulled from here. That is also the reason why visualising what you want is so important when conjuring, but the more familiar one is with that idea or concept the easier it is. Now, what's the difference between a summoned creature and an object?"
"A living thing dissolves after a certain amount of time, while a 'dead' object usually does not." Icy answered confidently. "There is some debate as to why food isn't included as dead, but it also usually dissolves before anything can be done with it." conjuring food didn't work in that regard, but transfiguring something into food did work just fine. Presumably due to it already being from the Material Plane. "Some creatures from this plane can sustain themselves through a variety of measures. One such being is the Nightmare Gargoyle, which feeds on the dreams of people – which is therefore mental energy from the Ethereal – and so prolongs its own existence on the material plane."
Bloom remembered that frightening being clearly, and the problems it had caused the Winx.
Stormy then elaborated further. "A summoned thing, be it living or not, can always be dismissed or disassembled with the appropriate counter-spell." one of the more difficult schools of magic. "As such people don't use conjured materials in construction." even Harry had only used the materials that had already been there in the Citadel of Night's construction, or if necessary transfigured one thing into another where it wasn't structurally important. "Lest it all collapse through a simple application of magic. However, what is unable to be summoned are truly sentient beings and individuals. Some speculate that it is due to their uniqueness and the fact that no magic can create souls." Stormy finished, noticing the slightly dumbfounded looks she got.
So she snapped at the fairies. "Just because I don't like learning doesn't mean I'm stupid! Before our expulsion we were top of our class for a reason!"
Bloom ignored that outburst, despite something derisive lying on the tip of her tongue. "All the names of the Ethereal sound like one would call hell, heaven or some other purgatory realm." she commented idly as she looked around.
"That's because it is." Harry confirmed as the leaves they walked on fell away. Only to be replaced by fluffy clouds as solid as stone. Nearby, on said clouds, a river of lava flowed upwards in a spiral.
"What?!" came the shocked voices of the young women. Always having thought that to be more of a figure of speech and not literally. "We're in heaven?"
Harry chuckled before he explained. "Yes and no." the wizard began. "This is called the Sea of Souls for a reason and each description of heaven or hell is nothing more than the visions people saw when peering inside, which then solidified somewhat as the idea of it spread and a consensus was reached. Like Darcy said: everything exists here and as such basically every depiction of an afterlife exists as well. However, due to us still being present in our physical forms our perception is different than from pure souls."
"After all, Magic Circuits are our connection to the Ethereal, and those reside in our souls. What is found of them in the body are nothing more than a physical expression that stretches throughout our physical forms in a similar fashion to a nervous system." Harry explained patiently to his captive audience. "Of course, there is debate if souls really go to the afterlife they believe they'll go to. Some speculate that each of our destination is determined by the purity of our soul, depending on how virtuous one was in life. Others assume we simply reincarnate anew after a period of time. Though, that is for philosophers to ponder on."
"Wait," Icy stopped, staring at Harry with a mix of horror and realisation at the sheer certainty with which he said it. "you said you died back in the Fortress of Light. Is that how you know?"
Harry stopped walking and turned back to face them, sharing a look with Bloom who already knew what he went through from his memories. A small and sad smile was shared between them. "Yeah." he said, glancing briefly around with an unconcerned shrug. "For me it was largely a white void, but I don't know if that was because I wasn't really dead or because I had no expectations about what I'd find on the other side."
"So that's why you don't require Cosmos Honey, have a Magical Core and were so ridiculously strong even before getting the Crystal of Power from Relix." Darcy commented intrigued, interest and a deep hunger clear to see on her features. She clearly remembered what happened at Alfea and the explanation of Ophelia. As well as what happened while they were in prison, explained by Harry as delicately as possible.
"Do you mean what I think you mean, sister?" came the question of Stormy, looking equally hungry as the Witch of Darkness.
"Well I don't know!" Chimera interrupted, glaring at Icy. "So mind filling me in?"
Harry had an inkling of what they were talking about from some of his stolen memories, but decided to let the girls settle this between themselves. They had to somewhat get along amongst each other, after all. Better to start now with that than later.
"It's more a legend and myth than anything else." Diaspro chimed in haughtily, somehow managing to look down her nose at Chimera without stumbling. "It says that those who have died and came back are changed for the lack of a better word, taking a piece of the Ethereal with them inside their souls when they leave. Which supposedly manifests into the addition of a Magical Core."
"Ohh," came from Bloom, her cyan eyes growing wide with recognition. "You're talking about the Empyreans!" she exclaimed, remembering some of the stories she read in her free time. Just like back home Bloom had voraciously devoured any material pertaining legends and myths. "It says those who truly stepped beyond the Veil and returned were changed. Not really in body, but in spirit." the stories had never been precise, nor did they mention Magical Cores anywhere.
"Indeed." Darcy concurred with a terse nod at Bloom. "It's widely believed that a few very prominent figures in history were Empyreans. Each and every one having a disproportionate amount of influence on the course of history; for good or ill." they weren't a race or people. The name was more title than anything else. "However, that are only the successful ones. There are also stories of failures who grew insane, not a favourable situation to be in for them or those they met." magic was intrinsically linked to imagination after all, and insanity was just an extreme version of that. So, they did grow more powerful indeed, but not how they imagined it.
Icy picked up where her sister left off. "There is no dispute that Empyreans exist and snippets are known about them, but most is conjecture and speculation. Nobody even knows what determines failure or success in becoming one. However, it's no wonder you have the problems you do, Harry." she told the only wizard present with a smile, hungry sapphire eyes raking over his form. "Together with the Crystal of Power and being the Shadow Phoenix it's too much of a good thing."
Harry just grunted. "It wouldn't be such a problem if the process of Evaporation would apply to me still." the complaint had been uttered once or twice by him, but one could clearly hear the palpable frustration in his voice. The wizard didn't know what caused that problem, but it could be a number of things. Be it the Crystal of Power, being an Empyrean, even having lived with a parasitic leech on his magic in the form of a Horcrux for seventeen years could've done it. He added cautiously. "At least I've found a few avenues for release." be it his connection to them or more carnal pleasures.
Further conversation was stifled as the group was suddenly cast into shadow. Looking up as one, the group beheld what seemed to be a bare alabaster foot towering over them, its heel reflecting the bizarre light of the Blind Eternities strangely. Through squinting eyes the group peered up the side of the corpse. The shape was familiar – humanoid – but the scale was incomprehensible.
Icy stood up on her toes, reaching up as if to touch a ceiling. She prodded the figure's sole to confirm it was a stone statue. The skin tore with the lightest touch, and motes of brilliant light spilled out to then drift upwards and back into the being. "It's warm!" she exclaimed, shocked. Immediately apprehensive about what this thing could be, and if it was still alive.
By silent agreement the group resumed their journey, unsure of what else they might find. Everything around them seemed familiar yet strangely alien. Things felt as though nothing had any weight, and as they passed familiar sights, they found them just beyond their ability to fully perceive. Some wondered why it seemed to take longer than expected to travel the distance, but suddenly their destination was before them in form of another floating and shimmering portal.
As was discussed beforehand; Bloom, Chimera and Diaspro went through first while holding hands. Their destination was Gardenia; Bloom's home. Easily able to reach any point of Earth from here, due to the planet not having any of the usual safety measures known to the Magical Galaxy.
The redhead sent him a worried look before stepping through, afraid of what he'd do or become in the pursuit of justice. Especially with only the Trix at his side. Though, she trusted him enough to be the good man she knew he was, and not do something he'd regret.
Harry and the Trix went in afterward, but with a different target in mind; England to be precise. Easily able to reach any point on Earth as long as he knew what it looked like. Mostly done so Harry could finally move on from his past, but also because it was deemed not prudent by him to take the Trix to Bloom's parents without a heads-up first. Harry also didn't want to show the bigots of Britain the existence of Fairies if he could help it.
Earth, Great Britain, Wiltshire.
It was good to be Draco Lucius Malfoy, the man bearing that name decided as he mingled with all the important Pureblood guests present at the Gala he hosted.
Life was going exactly as it should for someone of his status. Purebloods respected him, Half-Bloods grovelled for his support and Mudbloods thought better than to speak or even approach, lest they pollute the air near him with their disgusting presence. He had a Pureblood wife that understood her position and revelled in the prestige and wealth he provided. In turn she had provided him with many children, who emulated him like he did his own father. Draco was even all but assured to be the next Minister of Magic.
Even the laws from Voldemort's regime were largely still in place. All the Wizangemot had to do was pull it back an inch, to make it seem like things were changing. Even though before they had taken three miles. Anyone would look good compared to Voldemort in that regard. The Half-Blood and Mudblood imbeciles didn't even fight back and thanked them instead, showing that they were all he thought they were. Barely above useless cattle that deserved what they got.
'All that without having to suffer under a daily Crucio from Voldemort. I just had to get rid of Potter.' the man thought smugly. A feat that was surprisingly easy to do in the hysterical after-war climate. After all, no one should've survived a Killing Curse or beaten Voldemort. A feat all considered hopeless and impossible, and therefore condemned Potter as a result. He may have never beaten Potter in a duel, but that had been youthful ignorance to even try. No, where he had always beaten him was the court of public opinion and therefore used it to get rid of that thorn in his side.
Everything was as it should be, until it slowly wasn't.
It started innocent enough. Sounds took on a slightly higher pitch with a faint echo, while colours shifted toward the blue end of the spectrum. Things Draco blamed on the alcohol together with the sheer size of the drawing room. The same with the movement he then saw out of the corner of his grey eyes, which ceased once he tried to focus on it.
Things then grew stranger still. Objects underwent colour shifts at random, while light and shadow intensified or dampened seemingly at random, causing whispers to be shouts and vice versa. Water flowed in whirlpools or waves, even with no spell cast on it and it currently being in a drinking glass. Fabrics stiffened momentarily, as if hardened to stone. Metal and glass on the other hand warped when touched, leaving indents everywhere.
All of those weren't strange enough to be concerned about for magical folk. Instead thinking it part of the entertainment, and them being merry enough to dismiss them due to the alcohol.
Only for suddenly a cold wind to blow out of nowhere, despite all the windows being closed. It caused goosebumps to erupt on everyone's skin and even the magical Bluebell-flames flickered, with some sputtering out. People looked around in confusion and annoyance. That lasted until whispers barely on the edge of perceptible could be heard from the middle of the room, where space itself seemed to bend.
The room tightened without warning, the ceiling threatened to fall onto everyone's heads, seemingly intent to become a coffin. People felt smothered, and actual claustrophobics began to hyperventilate in panic while Occlumency users could weather the happenings better. A shiver ran down Draco's spine as a dreadful feeling of being trapped manifested in his gut. Only becoming worse as he made out the hazy silhouette of a hand pushing against spectral cloth, as if someone was trying to push through from behind a veil.
'The Veil of Death?!' some of the Unspeakables present thought, the phenomenon eerily resembling the ancient artefact. Not knowing that said device was simply a portal to a fixed destination through the Sea of Souls.
Not a second later the air itself seemed to fracture. Three-dimensional cracks, like in a damaged crystal, formed before them. With a deafening boom a section shattered inwards, and the witches and wizards found themselves staring into an unfathomable blackness that shook all to their primal core. What had started as whispers turned to murmurs and then to agonized shrieks of tortured souls, deafening the attendees.
Worst of all were the emerald eyes peering out from that infernal abyss, glowing with an eldritch light and narrowing upon spotting him. "Malfoy!" a voice of booming resonance snarled forth with a hatred that was palpable.
Everyone flinched and reflexively stepped back from what must be a demon speaking. With more than half of the attendees fleeing, chocking the Floo with their numbers while the few able to use Apparition were luckier. It left Malfoy alone to face it. The man in question had tried to walk backwards, but in his hurry landed on his ass instead. He also had pissed himself in fright at once, now unable to flee or move an inch and wondering what kind of demon stepped out of the portal.
"Potter!?" he sputtered out in disbelief, sending a hushed murmur of shock through the remaining crowd. Nearly all recognized the figure from its messy raven hair and striking emerald eyes, not to mention the sheer magical presence emanating from him. Though, the three young women at his back were complete unknowns, but the fact that they were flying without any aid spoke of their magical ability. Something only Voldemort had accomplished.
"How're you alive? I saw you die!" Malfoy shouted in a mad panic that threatened to evolve into mania.
Potter only chuckled, as if Draco had told him a particularly funny joke. "It's been too long, Malfoy." he greeted the balding platinum blonde with a bloodthirsty grin, his dangerous gaze roaming over the crowd once before dismissing them. "The path you've sent me on has been so dark, darker than I ever dreamed it could be. But I survived, and now I'm back. Just for you." The wizard advanced menacingly onto Malfoy, stalking forward like a predator hunting prey. Each step echoed threateningly, much louder than they should be.
The leftover crowd parting for him like the Red Sea.
"Me?" the wizard stuttered out, crab-walking back on all fours in fright.
"Of course." Harry nodded, stopping a few ways away in front of Malfoy and squatting down so they were eye to eye. "I've been thinking about nothing but you as I languished for years in my prison. Only fuelled by my singular hatred for you and the goal that is this very moment. And now I'll finally have justice."
Malfoy backed further away until he hit a wall. He was breathing harshly now, nearly hiccuping with how fast his lungs worked. "I killed you. I killed you." he babbled over and over again, trying to convince himself of it more than anyone else. In his panic he brandished his wand and fired one curse after another at his foe.
Every single spell splashed uselessly against a shimmering shield, flying wildly into the panicking and once more fleeing crowd but safely away from his group. "That's all you've got, Malfoy?" Potter said with a sigh of disappointment, his voice taking on a sibilant quality as if he was a step away from slipping into Parseltongue. "I shouldn't have expected more of you, but I confess myself disappointed. I guess you'll die how you lived: trying to run away."
The Pureblood grew more frantic and angry in his casting, using more deadly spells the nearer Potter came. "I'll kill you now then." he swore from the ground, summoning his mightiest onslaught of rage. "Avada Kedavra!"
Harry feigned interest when faced with Wizardkind's deadliest spell. Though, when cast by Draco it looked rather weak and pathetic. Instead of fearing for his life Harry simply held a swirling corona of darkness surrounded by twinkling runes of red in his right hand, causing the spell to stutter and break. It's pieces reached Harry out of rhythm, meaningless in the face of the Shadow Phoenix.
"Kill me? You?!" Potter laughed mockingly, as if the very idea was laughable. It was accompanied by the cackles and sneers of the three witches at his back. "I'll tell you what. How about you try again?" he offered, the smile on his face promising pain.
Before Draco could utter a single word a Jelly-Brain Jinx hit him courtesy of Harry. Only Draco's fledgling Occlumency prevented him from degenerating into a drooling moron at the sheer power of Harry's spell. Draco's own spell wavered, caught on the tip of his wand and tongue, unable to breach the edge of his awareness. The platinum blonde stared blankly at nothing, trying in vain to remember what he knew he had forgotten. It was a lonely agony, the memory of memories lost.
"Po.. Potter, I... I... haven't forgotten you!" he clumsily insisted, only half-knowing what he meant.
"That's a surprise, considering how easily your forgot who saved your hide in the war. I'll make you wish you forgot me in a bit." he promised the Pureblood, venom and pure contempt mixed with loathing dripping from every word. Snarling the next word out like the curse it was. "Crucio!"
The spell wasn't just a red light but a crackling ball of lightning the colour crimson and agony. Harry emptied his cruelty and malice into it, imbuing the Unforgivable with all of the hate and fury born a decade ago and nourished daily for nearly the whole of it.
From Draco's throat came a sound no human should be able to make, more a litany of anguish than a scream. His back was bending like a bow and nearly breaking in his futile effort to escape from the agony. The rest of Draco writhed in torment as pain lanced through every part of him, like white hot knifes cutting apart all of his nerves at once. Red lighting danced over every part of him, caressing Malfoy's nerves in an intimate fashion.
What seemed like weeks for Draco wasn't even a minute in truth before the curse was lifted. "P..Pl..Please." Draco stuttered out from his raw throat, quivering pathetically in pain on the floor. "Me... Mer... Mercy! I.. I've changed." he brought out in stutters, tears of pain streaming down his face as the foulness of faeces became apparent.
Harry snorted derisively before frowning at the Pureblood. "It's easy for you to claim to be reformed when its convenient, I should know. After all, I had to languish for years because of you doing just that! You've always hated me for nothing." Harry smiled a sharp smile as he promised. "But be glad, because now I'll earn that hatred. With death as my sceptre and pain as my crown I will make sure you stay awake for every single cut!"
The fear in Malfoy's gaze gave way to pure terror, whimpering in fright as he curled into a miserable ball and cried. It satisfied a dark urge inside of Harry, crying out for justice that was finally in reach.
"Potter!"
"Harry!"
Two different voices cried out for the same reason. Harry's gaze only left Malfoy's snivelling form due to recognizing one as someone once close to him. Narcissa Malfoy née Black – perhaps predictably – was one of them, coming to her son's aid on trembling legs and with wide blue eyes. Her blonde hair greyer than before and with more wrinkles on her skin.
The second, however, was much more important. Even if not sounding any more welcoming than the first one.
"Ginny?! What're you doing here?" came the perplexed question from Harry. Confusion evident in his voice as he beheld his old crush. Her hair was still fiery red, and her brown eyes fierce. Ginny's figure on the other hand more resembled her mother's now. She was wearing an expensive looking gown fitting for the occasion – not something he associated with her at all.
Narcissa spoke first while Ginny ignored him and tended to Draco of all people, standing in front of her son as a shield. "Potter, by the Life-Debt you owe me; I command you to kill yourself!"
It took a few seconds for the ridiculous words to penetrate, but Harry blinked a couple of times before responding. "Stormy."
"Yeah?" the witch asked, nearly vibrating in excitement.
"Make her adopt a posture more conductive to listening, please." he ordered casually, knowing Stormy would grasp the intent of it perfectly.
The Witch of Storms cracked her knuckles with an eager grin on her lips. "With pleasure!" lightning surged to life, dancing over her pale skin as she went on the offensive. A blink later the young woman wearing a cloak of thunder had flown at Narcissa's side, kicking her left knee from the side and breaking it like a twig.
With a cry of pain the Pureblood collapsed down to the ground, her leg now bent in a direction it wasn't supposed to. Beside her stood an incredibly disappointed Tharma, having expected more from a Witch.
"As if I ever owed a Life-Debt to you anywhere outside of your delusions." Harry sneered down at the groaning woman, her eyes closed in pain. He approached and squatted down, grabbing a chunk of hair to roughly lift her head and forcing Narcissa to look at him. "To form a Life-Debt you'd need to perform the selfless rescue of another." Harry snorted at the thought of the Malfoys able to do such a thing. At the back of his mind he briefly pondered on the connection between a Life-Debt and the Enchantix requirements. "Besides, even if I had owed you one, that would have been resolved by me vouching for your miserable hides after the war."
He let go of Narcissa, letting her head callously impact on the marble floor. "Unfortunately for you, your son owes me a Life-Debt." from the time he had selflessly rescued the ferret from burning alive in Fiendfyre unleashed inside the Room of Requirement. Harry's grin was downright feral, eyes reflecting the remaining magical lights in strange and eldritch ways. "And I've come to collect my due."
The wizard turned back to a quivering Draco tended to by Ginny, which painted a surreal picture to the last Potter. As insurance against possible interference, Harry gave a command once more. "Icy, Stormy, make sure no one does anything foolish." he glanced at Lysslis, motioning forward lazily. "Darcy, with me."
Without complaint each of them went to their assigned tasks.
Ginny took note of his approach and turned to face him. "Please, Harry. You don't have to do this!" she pleaded, instinctively knowing she was no match for him and his.
"Step aside, Ginny." Harry demanded, the words filling him with a terrible sense of dreadful deja-vu. "I only want Malfoy."
The redhead showed her courage and ferocity by not budging an inch. "You don't have to do this!" she repeated desperately.
All she saw were the green eyes glowing eerily like the Killing Curse.
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