Chapter 23
Episode - The Outsider
The reception party after the wedding went off without a hitch. Voldemort was true to his word that he would leave everyone alone if he was left alone. At least for now. The couples and the wedding guests ate and drank and sang and danced and then the three couples went to their private quarters to consummate their marriages.
Harry and Ginny woke up from a night's sleep. For Harry it wasn't as restful as he would have liked as with Voldemort in town he practically slept with one eye open and wand in hand under the covers, though he had cast a few protective spells on the building. The two of them went into the shower for some post-sex hygiene, where then afterwards Ginny donned her clothes.
"Ginny, you have a game in a few days, I suggest that you get out of town right now." said Harry directly.
Ginny smiled and then walked up to him and kissed him on the mouth.
"Can't wait to get rid of me." she said sarcastically with a smile.
"It's not like that." said Harry reassuringly.
"It's okay." said Ginny in understanding. "You want me out of town while Voldemort is in town."
"Thank you for understanding." said Harry with a smile.
"But you owe me a big honeymoon when all of this is over!" she warned with a loud firm tone indicating that she was the boss.
"As you wish." said Harry compliantly with a smile.
Most of the wedding guests had left right after the wedding. The Dursleys didn't even stay for the reception. After the incident with Petunia's heart getting ripped out they got in their car and crossed the Town Line minutes after Voldemort had disapperated.
They had decided not to inform the Magical Congress for fear that this would affect the decision to have Storybrooke be made a protected magical sanctuary. Not wanting to risk any lives, but knowing that he needed help from willing loyalists, he decided to have only a small contingent of members of the Order of the Phoenix and Dumbledore's Army stick around town.
It had been 18 hours since Voldemort's dramatic appearance in the town hall and so far no sign of him. He seemed to be true to his word that he was leaving everyone alone. But Harry had a feeling that Voldemort was just stalling for time while lulling everyone into a false sense of security.
Along with Harry's small contingent of wizards David had the dwarves and the fairies on alert, as well as every other able-bodied man in town who used to be a guard in the palace in the Enchanted Forest. The citizens of the Town were loyal to their prince.
Harry Ron and Hermione were in the quaint lounge at Granny's Inn.
"So what's the plan?" asked Ron.
"Ultimately, we need to stop him." said Harry. "The original Mission from during the Wizards war. We need to get our hands on his final horcrux, and then kill him."
"His wand." said Hermione. "Assuming our information from Cora was accurate."
"I see no reason why she would lie about that. When people lie they usually lie for a reason."
"Well, we did destroy all six of what we believed to be the horcruxes, and then we killed him. But he came back. Meaning that there must still be a horcrux that is binding him to life. So, Cora was telling the truth on that account. So it would be unlikely that she would tell the truth about their being an additional horcrux but lie about what that horcrux was whether she knew what the horcrux was or not."
Harry was thinking. He thought about his hatred of Voldemort. For killing his parents. For trying to kill him. For all of the friends that he had killed. Voldemort is a monster. He has no compassion, he has no empathy. It seems like every time they put an end to him it only brings a brief period of peace.
If only there was a way to destroy the monster? And that was when it hit him. He always thought that in order to destroy the monster, to end the threat to the people, was to kill Voldemort. To sever his existence from this world. Because Voldemort will always kill again. He is pure evil. But what makes someone evil? Was Voldemort born an unfeeling psychopath?
He then tried to think of it on a scientific level. Perhaps there was some medical problem with his brain? The Anterior Insular Cortex is the part of the brain that allows a person to process other people's emotions and then feel sympathy, empathy, and compassion. If by some birth defect in his brain and then development problem as he grew and aged it's possible that that part of his brain may be disrupted.
Harry was thinking about Rehabilitation. Is there a way to turn an evil person good? Harry began to think of the prophecy. 'The one with the power to Vanquish the Dark Lord would be born as the seventh month dies. He would have powers that the Dark Lord would not and the Dark Lord would Mark him as his equal for neither can live while the other survives'.
Harry was still confused, but what if Harry vanquishing the Dark Lord wasn't that he would eventually kill him, no, but what if he was to purge all of the darkness from him. If Lord Voldemort could all of a sudden have a conscience and have compassion and empathy then he would no longer be Lord Voldemort. Lord Voldemort in a sense would be destroyed and the physical body would be host to a new consciousness that would be pure good.
This was a long shot. Harry knew this. It seemed more logical to stick to the original Mission to destroy the final horcrux and then put the evil son of a bitch out of his misery.
If there is only one constant in the universe, it is the choice that every person has of whether or not they are good or evil.
As Harry was sitting there in thought and contemplation Hermione and Ron were still deeply involved in the discussion sending opinions back and forth.
"Guys, I have an errand to run." said Harry as he stood up from his chair and then went out the door.
He walked a few blocks down, turned the corner and then walked a few more blocks down passing by shops and stores.
Then he came to it. The sign read 'Mr. Gold Pawnbroker and Antiquities Dealer'. He pushed open the door and the bell rang. There was no one manning the cash register.
"Rumpelstiltskin?" Harry called out.
Mr. Gold wearing a black suit, black shirt, and black tie while leaning on a cane came from the back room.
"Harry Potter." Mr. Gold acknowledged. "To what do I owe the pleasure."
Harry hesitated. He wasn't sure he should ask this, nor was he sure if it was the best idea.
"I need your help." said Harry. "If you can help me? I want to make a deal."
"Well," said Mr. Gold as he raised his eyebrows and surprise, "I never thought I would see the day that Harry Potter would want to make a deal with me. What exactly is it that you want?"
"Don't laugh at me." said Harry. "I want to turn Lord Voldemort good. To purge his mind of evil."
To Mr. Gold's credit, he did not laugh.
"That is awfully ambitious, dearie." said Mr. Gold with skepticism.
"Can it be done?" Harry pressed.
Mr. Gold thought for a minute in contemplation.
"Yes. It can be done. It's powerful magic, and it comes at a steep price."
"What is it?" asked Harry.
"It's a spell. The name of the spell is called 'The Blessing Of The Villainous Hero'."
"So you'll do it?" asked Harry.
"Oh, unfortunately I'm afraid I can't do it. But you can."
"Okay." said Harry a little cautiously. "How can I do it?"
"Well, as the name of the spell implies, it will transform a villain into a hero. But the spell is very specific on who can cast it and who it can be cast on. The spell can only be cast on not just any villain, but one of the Realms most ruthless villains. And the spell can only be enacted by the exact opposite, by one of the realms most Valiant Heroes."
"Okay. So how do I do it?"
"Well, first…" he stepped right in front of Harry and he held up one of his hands with his fingers spread wide. While he placed his other hand on Harry's shoulder. "Do you trust me, Harry Potter?"
"Yes." said Harry, though he wasn't entirely sure he actually did.
Mr. Gold thrust his hand forward and it magically passed right through Harry's clothes, skin, and bone.
Harry gasped as though he was choking and felt an incredible pain in his chest.
Mr. Gold then pulled out Harry's heart. The heart glowed completely red with no black in it. He then placed the heart inside of a small wooden box with a hinged flip open lid. He then went around the counter and then shuffled some items through a shelf where he then pulled out a corked glass vial of red liquid.
"This here dearie is the blood of the Sandman. How I obtained it?; don't ask."
"Wasn't going to." said Harry, still breathing heavily from his heart ripping experience.
Mr. Gold then waved his hand and in a puff of purple smoke magically materialized a piece of paper with a few strange words on it.
"This is an incantation." said Mr. Gold. "Here is exactly what to do. Set the vial of blood and your heart side by side to each other. Wave your wand over them and enact the spell by saying the incantation. You will know that it worked by both the vial of blood and the heart glowing gold for a few short seconds. Then pour the blood of the Sandman onto your heart. Then get right up close to Lord Voldemort and press your heart into his chest. Your light and good Harry Potter will become his and all evil and darkness will be purged from his mind permanently."
"That's it?" asked Harry.
"That's it." Mr. Gold confirmed.
"Okay." said Harry as he raised an eyebrow in pleasant interest. "Sounds simple enough."
But he then pulled away the blood and the piece of paper.
"I believe a deal requires an exchange of goods." Mr. Gold reprimanded with a smile.
"I'm not giving you my first born child." Harry reprimanded with a serious frown remembering all too well from Rumpelstiltskin's fairytale story.
"I wasn't going to ask for that." said Mr. Gold.
"And as you spin straw into gold, I assume you don't want money." said Harry.
"You assume correctly."
"Okay, some kind of service?" asked Harry. "A promise of a future favor?"
"Well dearie," said Rumpelstiltskin, "both of those things seem very tempting and under normal circumstances I would accept, but I'm afraid I am a collector of magical objects. And I am seizing this opportunity to add to that collection. I want your invisibility cloak."
"My father's invisibility cloak." said Harry in disbelief.
That was a family heirloom that went back Generations. It was priceless.
After a few moments of Silent contemplation Mr. Gold spoke up.
"I see the look in your face Harry Potter. You don't want to give up the invisibility cloak. But you need something from me. A way to defeat the Dark Lord once and for all by destroying evil without killing the body. It's an elaborate plan, but one that just might be worth it, for the greater good. So what do you say Harry Potter? One Priceless irreplaceable family heirloom invisibility cloak for the blood of the Sandman and the incantation to enact the spell?"
Harry continued trying to think about it. What if he gave up the cloak to permanently stop the Dark Lord like this? But then he could just abandon this deal that hadn't yet been sealed and return to the original plan of destroying the final horcrux and killing Lord Voldemort. But that might involve a long drawn out battle that would result in several of his combatants that are his allies to be killed. It may be easy enough to get close enough to Voldemort without getting anyone else hurt. Yes, 'The Blessing Of The Villainous Hero' would be the best course of action without any of his friends and allies getting killed in battle.
"Fine." Harry agreed.
"Wait." said Mr. Gold as he held up a finger in warning. "There is one more thing before you agree to this deal. With my new love life with Belle and the breaking of the curse I've been trying to turn over a new Leaf. And in this case I want to be 100% fair to you with all of the details that you need to know. As you are aware, all magic comes with a price. And what you are going to do to the Dark Lord is big powerful Magic. I'm afraid it's a one-for-one trade."
"A one-for-one trade?" asked Harry with confusion and curiosity. One of the realms most Valiant Heroes turning one of the Realms most ruthless villains into a hero? So, the one-for-one trade is that I must absorb all of Lord Voldemort's darkness and become a ruthless villain?"
"Not exactly." said Mr. Gold. "You will be pressing your heart into Lord Voldemort's chest. As you are aware, one can crush a person's heart in their hand and it turns to dust. When that is done the owner of the heart will die."
"Yes?" said Harry, urging him to go on.
"Well, when one presses their own heart into another person's chest it has the same effect of being crushed into dust. So in order for you to turn the Dark Lord good and Purge his mind of evil and darkness, you Harry Potter will have to die. When you enact The Blessing Of The Villainous Hero, in order for one of the Realms most ruthless villains to be turned into a valiant hero, one of the Realms most valiant heroes must give up their life in exchange."
There was a long pause as Harry processed the implications.
"So, Harry Potter?" said Rumpelstiltskin urging Harry to respond. "Do we have a deal?"
Harry thought. Could he really do this? Sacrifice his life so that an evil man may become good. A man who did not deserve this. But then Harry began to sympathize with Voldemort. Something Dumbledore had told him.
'Don't pity the Dead. Pity the living who live without love'.
Voldemort had a bad start to life. What if Tom Riddle senior had decided to stay with Merope Gaunt? What if Tom Riddle had been raised by loving parents? And if Voldemort truly is an unfeeling psychopath due to something wrong with his brain because the Anterior Insular Cortex was underdeveloped or corrupted in some way by the biology of his body, then it's not his fault. Or if he's just cursed to be evil. What if Voldemort never actually had the chance to choose to be good? Maybe Voldemort deserves a chance to be good, but why should Harry be the one to pay it? He doesn't owe Voldemort anything.
But yet he wanted to do this. For apparently no good reason Harry was feeling an overwhelming selflessness to save the soul of a man who lived without love. He wondered if this was his destiny. To save the world from Evil by turning one of the most ruthless villains into a hero by some weird magic trick from a fairy tale wizard from a fairy tale universe where everyone is searching to find their happy endings?
But then there was another Factor that only just struck him. He had been married for far too short a Time. He had to think about Ginny, and Teddy, and Ron, and Hermione. He had already done this once. During the ceasefire of the battle of Hogwarts. If he was going to sacrifice his life for this Fool's hope errand then this is something he should talk to his wife about. But he knew that she would never agree to this. It would break her heart. It would break her heart that he died. It would break her heart that he made this choice without her, knowing that it would hurt her. And little Teddy had already lost his parents, granted he doesn't remember them. But Harry had told him all about them. Granted Teddy had other caretakers at present who love him. And Ginny was now Teddy's mother through adoption and marriage.
This was too spur of the moment to make a decision. He needed more time.
"I need time to think on it." said Harry.
He then picked up his heart from the small wooden box with the lid still open and pressed it back into his own chest.
"Make your decision soon. I'm going out of town tonight." said Rumpelstiltskin.
"What?" asked Harry.
He then held up another glass vial with a colored potion inside of it.
"I managed to come up with this." said Rumpelstiltskin. "It will allow a citizen of Storybrooke to keep their memories of the Enchanted Forest when they cross the Town Line. I've waited 150 years to cross Realms to come to this world, so that I can find my son."
"Your son?" asked Harry. "He is in this world?"
"Yes." said Mr. Gold with fond memories. "The one and only deal that I ever broke."
Harry, ever curious, was about to ask more but then Mr. Gold's cell phone began to ring.
He held it to his ear.
"Hello."
There was some indistinct voice on the other line that seemed panicked.
"Belle?...What's wrong?...Belle, you're breaking up!"
Mr Golden hung up the phone.
"Belle's in trouble at the library!" he said in a panic.
With a wave of his hand he vanished Into Thin Air with a puff purple smoke.
Harry turned on the spot and disapperated and apperated inside the main floor of the Clock Tower with his wand in hand. He and Rumpelstiltskin looked around but aside from some overturned bookshelves there was nothing wrong. Mr Gold held out his hand towards the elevator and it opened to reveal Belle, a little disheveled but uninjured.
"Rumple." she said with relief.
They hugged.
"What happened?" asked Harry.
"I was attacked." said Belle. "By a pirate. He had a metal hook for a left hand."
"Wait a minute," said Harry, "do you mean Captain Hook?"
"I think so." said Belle.
"Hook!" said Rumpelstiltskin with vengeance in his voice.
"Hook was with Cora." said Harry. "How did he get to Storybrooke?"
"After Miss Blanchard, Miss Swan, and Miss Granger stole the enchanted compass at Lake Nostos, Hook and Cora must have found another way to cross realms." said Rumpelstiltskin. "Thank you Harry Potter, but I'll take it from here."
He then took Belle back to his shop.
Harry returned to his room at Granny's. He laid down on the bed and stared at the ceiling in meditation. He had a lot to think about. A lot to consider.
Before he knew it he awoke from asleep that he couldn't remember having fallen into. He looked outside and it was dark.
He was disappointed at himself. He should not be letting his guard down when Voldemort, Cora, and a Cutthroat pirate are on the loose.
It was then that Ron and Hermione burst into the room.
"Harry, there's an emergency, some kind of accident at the Town Line." said Hermione in a panic.
All three of them then disapperated and magically materialized on the road at the Town Line. Emma Swan, David, and Mary Margaret were all there having just driven up in the police cruiser. There was a car that looked pretty banged up. And on the ground was Captain Hook looking pretty bloody and bruised.
Mr. Gold, and Belle were on the ground in front of his car. Belle seemed injured though Mr. Gold had healed the wound with a wave of his hand.
"What happened?" asked David to Mr Gold.
"She crossed over the Town Line!" said Mr. Gold in despair. "She doesn't remember who I am or who she is!"
A second later paramedics in an ambulance arrived.
Harry walked over to the injured pirate and pointed his wand.
"Captain Hook I presume?" said Harry
Even in pain Captain Hook smiled maniacally.
"And you must be the famous Harry Potter." said Captain Hook.
He then grunted in pain as he moved and laughed.
Harry then waved his Wand Over Captain Hook's body.
"Anatomica Revelio!" said Harry clearly and deliberately.
A light Shone from Harry's Wand Over hooks body.
"Fractured ribs multiple cuts and severe bruising." said Harry as he closed his eyes and concentration. "You're lucky, pirate."
It was then that Mr. Gold descended upon Captain Hook and began squeezing his neck with his two hands.
"Do your worst crocodile!" said Captain Hook and defiance.
It took all of us to get Mr. Gold off of him and then convince him that this was not the way cursed Belle would want her first impression of Rumpelstiltskin to be.
They then looked into the broken window of the motorist. He seemed much worse for wear as he was not wearing his seatbelt.
"Who is this guy?" asked Ron.
"I don't know who he is." said Emma as one of the paramedics checked his retinal response.
"That's because he drove into town." said David.
"From the outside?" said Mary Margaret with confusion.
"Aside from the Magical Congress, and the wedding guests, it looks like the world just came to Storybrooke." said Emma with worry in her voice.
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