The Assassin's Comeuppance: Chapter 17

“It didn’t have to come to this, Harry. But this is goodbye, for now. Who knows, may be in the afterlife, I’ll find you and we’d have our unfulfilled adventure at last,” she said sultrily, before waving her wand and taking down the wall of fire.

Harry looked to the side and his eyes widened when they met Elena’s wide and fearful ones. She took a few hesitant steps before breaking into a full sprint. In her fear-induced state, she started flinging spells wildly, which Morgana swatted aside with an evil laugh.

Elena ran forward, tears running down her face as her eyes locked with Harry’s emerald ones. She’d almost reached them when her eyes widened as Harry shook his head slightly. Her steps faltered and she came to a stop. With teary eyes, she looked as Morgana grinned before pointing her wand at him.

“I thought you should watch this, little girl,” Morgana sneered, looking at Elena who looked on helplessly, “say goodbye to your lover, dear Elena. AVADA KEDAVRA!”

“NOOOOOO!!!”

Elena’s loud cry sounded out in relative silence as she heard Morgana cast that spell. She looked on with wide, teary eyes as the cursed syllables left her malicious lips.

Harry’s eyes were open, his gaze fixed on Elena and she stared into them as she fell to her knees. With wide, red eyes, she saw the bright green flash of his eyes as Morgana cast the killing curse.

What none of them apart from the only wizard in presence saw was the slow crimson spread all over the battlefield. That’s why he was the only one unsurprised when the evil witch staggered back as if struck.

Morgana’s eyes were wide as she looked at him, and Harry smirked. Again, like someone else, she had overlooked a blood ritual that had taken place right in front of her.

“Wha-“ she gasped, before crying out in pain when sharp cuts crisscrossed her torso, before they struck her arms and legs, cutting all over in sharp crimson streaks as her blood started to seep through.

Elena looked on with wide, teary eyes as the evil witch who had kept her chained for years staggered back, fresh cuts forming on her body in every possible area.

Morgana cried out in agony when she felt new cuts appearing on her skin. Quickly, she cast a healing charm. She gave an agonizing wail when the pain intensified and looked on with wide, bloodshot eyes as the cuts deepened.

“It doesn’t feel so good to be on the receiving end, does it?” A deep voice sounded out, and she looked up through blood to see Harry Potter slowly stand up. Her face twisted into a snarl when she saw him smiling condescendingly at her.

“What-“ she coughed blood, “what have you done!”

Harry chuckled at her snarl before his eyes found Elena. She was still down on her knees, looking at him with red eyes widened and full of tears. He ignored the dark witch and slowly walked over to her, grabbed her by the arms, and gently pulled her upright.

“You okay?” He asked softly.

However, he staggered back when Elena threw herself in his arms, sobbing uncontrollably as she clutched him like a lifeline.

“I… I thought you died,” she whispered into his chest, and Harry wrapped his arms around her, holding her close as his hands stroked her back softly.

“It’s not so easy to kill me. I’m Harry Potter, after all.”

Despite herself, Elena snorted.

“Prat,” she whispered, and Harry pulled her even closer.

A soft groan from the side pulled their attention away from each other, and they turned around. The sight made them grimace.

Morgana was laying in a pool of crimson, her dark hair submerged underneath as she looked at them with wide eyes. There were cuts on her clothes and skin as if someone had forcefully dragged sharp threads all over her, and her skin was blackening where the cuts were.

Her mouth was open in a silent groan, small gasps escaping every other second, as her unfocused eyes trained on them.

“I… I never thought you… you’d use such dark magic, my dear,” she rasped between coughs, as they looked on dispassionately.

“Sometimes you need to dirty your hands to fight evil. Rest in Peace, Morgana. You’ve lived long enough,” Harry intoned, and they watched as Morgana gave one final gasp before inky blackness seeped out of her wounds and encased her body. Once she was shrouded from vision, they watched with detached fascination as her body crumbled before it withered away.

No sooner had it happened than the darkness that was surrounding them transitioned rapidly. They didn’t have the time to find their bearings as they felt a pull at their navel. Harry could only hold her tightly against him as the world around them exploded into sparks.

XXX

“- succeeds,” Hammer finished.

At the same time, twin gasps sounded out as the figures in the middle of the ritual circle opened their eyes and sat up abruptly. They looked around their surroundings and saw a collection of people garbed in runic robes who had their wands pointed at them.

“I take it the ritual succeeded, Mr. Potter?” Hammer’s voice sounded out, and Harry turned to look at him.

He nodded with a smile, and Hammer inclined his head.

“Luna, if you’d do the checks please,” he gestured for Luna to move forward.

Harry looked on in surprise as Luna came over to where he was sitting and bent forward before placing her forehead against his. A few moments later she pulled away, and smiled at him, before making her way to where Elena was sitting, looking confused.

The woman in question was surprised when Luna repeated the process with her, taking slightly longer in comparison, before pulling away with a small smile.

“All clear,” her serene voice sounded out, and Hammer relaxed. The remaining spooks also lowered their wands before they walked out of their designated spots and exited the ritual chamber, their jobs seemingly done.

“Err… what was that?” Harry asked as Luna helped him up. He walked over to Elena and pulled her up with him before the three of them walked outside the ritual circle.

Hammer looked at him for a second before looking at Elena, who frowned.

“Your girlfriend was a target of a vile ritual, Mr. Potter. We had to make sure the parasite didn’t somehow bewitch the two of you, lying dormant to emerge at the most opportune moment. Luna here has developed her esper skills massively in the last few years. She was simply making sure there were no complications.”

Harry turned to look at Luna with a smile.

“That’s a cool skill to have,” he grinned. Luna smiled.

“Come on, let’s get the two of you properly refreshed and ready,” she beckoned them to follow her. Harry looked at Hammer for a moment.

“I just want to thank you for all your help. Please don’t hesitate if you ever need my help,” Harry said with a sincere smile. Hammer chuckled.

“I’ll keep that in mind. All the best for the future, Mr. Potter.”

Harry smiled before turning toward Elena and clasped their hands together, their fingers interlacing as they walked behind Luna.

“Oh, and Mr. Potter,” Hammer called out, and they stopped abruptly to look at him.

“Yes?”

“I have one final piece of advice for you. Whatever sacrifice that ritual demanded of you, don’t try to overcome it in any manner. The consequences will be dire.”

Harry frowned before he gave a small nod.

“I shall keep it in mind,” he replied, expertly ignoring the questioning look Elena was giving him and walking behind Luna.

They walked in relative silence through the corridors of the Department of Mysteries until they reached their destination.

Luna stopped in front of the door and tapped her wand on the runic engravings. The door opened with nary a sound and they walked inside.

“Alright then,” she began, looking at them, “the enchanted showers are here. That will help you overcome the aftereffects of the ritual, get rid of any fatigue you have, and refresh your body entirely. Will you be using it together or separate?”

Without even trying, Harry’s mind went to that night when he and Elena had made out heatedly on her bed. He couldn’t believe that it was only the previous night that it had happened. It felt as if months had passed since then.

He looked at Elena and saw that she had flushed slightly, and turned to give Luna an exasperated look. Said witch only cock her head to the side in question.

Harry shook his head before he walked inside one of the rooms and shut the door behind him.

“I guess we have our answer then,” Luna said, smiling brightly at Elena. “Do you want me to join you inside?”

Elena’s eyes widened before she quickly dashed inside the room opposite the one Harry had gone in.

“Aww… she didn’t even reply,” Luna pouted, before taking a seat near the door. Out of nowhere, she pulled out a copy of The Quibbler and held it upside down.

“Ooh! Infestation of Blubbering Humdingers near the south coast! I wonder if Daddy would like to go there,” she smiled as she continued to read the paper.

XXX

Thick steam rose inside the shower as Harry Potter stood under the warm water in silence. He sighed as the enchanted water washed his fatigue away. Although there had been no physical exertion, he had been feeling mentally burdened ever since he woke up from his enchanted sleep. It was relaxing to feel the slight headache recede.

His mind wandered back to the fight. It had been a surreal experience. Although it happened in another plane of existence, he was slightly fascinated with the place. What was it? Time seemed to work differently there since no matter how long he had spent in the spiritual realm as Morgana had called it, no time had passed in the real world.

He wondered what would’ve happened if he had died. Probably the ritual would’ve failed and killed him. And if that happened, well, the unspeakables would’ve killed Elena as well. He sighed in relief that it hadn’t come to that.

What he was more curious about was the sacrifice the ritual would demand. He had been granted an entry ticket to kill Morgana, thereby saving Elena’s life. The ritual would surely demand something of similar importance, Alchemy dictated that. But so far, he couldn’t feel anything different. Hammer’s parting words echoed in his mind. It would be obvious not to try to overcome whatever the ritual took away from him.

Magic was sentient, and the consequences could be damning.

With a sigh, he shook his head. He’d worry about it when the time came. There was no use in thinking about it without even knowing what it could be.

He tapped the runes and the water stopped. Waving his hand over his body, he dried himself up before donning his clothes. Looking behind to make sure he wasn’t forgetting anything, he walked out of the shower to see Elena exiting hers as well.

His steps staggered slightly as he took her in.

Her skin was glowing and it looked as if a massive burden had finally lifted off. Her grey eyes were shining, a lovely smile etched on her face which took his breath away. Her hair was wet and sticking together, making her look so irresistible to him that it took all the effort on his part not to rush forward and mash his lips against hers.

Instead, Harry simply grabbed a hold of himself and gave her a crooked smile, a smile that widened when he saw her blush before smiling brilliantly.

Both of them moved as one, closing the distance between them and Harry wrapped his arms around her. His face buried itself in her wet hair and he inhaled her flowery scent and sighed. Her arms came up to rest on his back as she took in his masculine aroma, sighing contentedly as she pressed herself closer.

The couple stayed locked in an embrace while Luna continued to read The Quibbler without a care in the world. Finally, after a while, she put the paper down and looked up, grinning when she saw them.

“I’m sorry to interrupt them but we have to go,” she said with a smile.

Their eyes opened and they slowly pulled back, looking each other in the eye and smiling before they turned as one toward Luna.

“Ready then?” She asked, and Harry nodded before Elena grabbed his hand. Together, they walked behind Luna, passing various chambers until they reached an office at the end of the hallway. Luna opened the door and invited them in before closing it behind her once they were all inside.

“Here,” she said, pushing forward a box for Harry to take. Harry looked at her before opening it. All the magical artifacts he had on his person before the ritual was kept in the box, along with the ring. Elena reached forward and took the ring, looked at it, and twirled it between her fingers.

“Luna,” she began, looking at the woman who turned to look at her, “can you destroy this? I’d prefer to buy a wand of my own, instead of using something that belonged to her.”

Harry frowned before taking the ring from her and handing it to Luna, who brought a brown metallic instrument. She opened it and they saw a crimson fire burning inside. Taking the ring from Harry, Luna dropped it inside the object, and they watched as it was engulfed in flames before it started melting until there was no hint of it ever being there in the first place.

“Thank you,” Elena smiled. Luna merely nodded in response.

Harry put several objects in his pocket before taking the wand out of the box. However, as he held it, he frowned.

Elena looked at him as he gazed at the wand intently before she asked, “What happened, Harry?”

Harry looked at the wand for the final time before he sighed. Looking at Luna, he nodded, who gave a small sigh and nodded.

“You remember Hammer saying something about a sacrifice?” Harry asked, handing Luna the wand. She waved it around, but nothing happened.

Elena nodded, clearly remembering it and even wanting to ask Harry about it.

“Well, every ritual demands an equal sacrifice. Since I undertook one to save your life, magic decided to take away something to compensate for it.”

Elena frowned.

“And it took away your bond with your wand?”

Harry chuckled before taking the wand back from Luna. He raised it so that Elena could take a good look at it.

“This is the Elder Wand,” Harry said, and Elena’s eyes widened.

“THE Elder Wand?” She asked in a whisper.

Harry nodded.

“I’ve been its master since before the war ended. It seems magic took away my ownership of this wand in return for an attempt to save your life.”

Elena frowned.

“I’m so sorry you lost your bond with this wand because of me,” Elena said, and Harry quickly turned to look at her.

“I don’t regret it one bit,” he started, cupping her cheek and making her look at him, “your life is much more important to me that some super-powerful wand. It’s not as if I can’t do magic anymore.”

Harry picked up his faithful Holly and Phoenix feather wand from the box and gave a small flick, levitating the Elder Wand inside the metallic contraption.

“That wand is too dangerous to be left unbound anyway. Who knows who it might target now that it has no master?”

The three of them looked on as the wand was lit on fire until its ashes pooled at the base of the flames. Harry nodded and Luna closed the instrument before banishing it atop the shelf once again.

Elena looked at him with a small smile as Harry grinned.

“It’s a sacrifice I’d make a million times if it means saving you.”

Elena shook her head with a fond look on her face as she buried herself in his arms. Harry squeezed her tight before pulling away, grabbing her hand and turning around to smile at Luna.

“Thank you Luna. I can’t explain how grateful I am for all you’ve done for us.”

Luna simply smiled.

Elena pulled away from him and walked up to the shorter woman who looked at her curiously. Her eyes widened slightly when Elena pulled her into a hug.

“Thank you so much for saving me,” she whispered. Luna chuckled and returned the hug.

“I’m not the one who saved your life. It’s someone else. Just keep him happy and love him with all you have. I promise you’ll be the happiest witch in the world if you do,” Luna whispered before pulling away. Elena nodded at her with a shy smile before walking back to take her place beside Harry and taking his hand.

“Do you need us for anything else, Luna?” Harry asked.

Luna shook her head with a smile.

“Alright then. We’ll be going now. Have to get Elena a new wand. See you soon?”

“Before the wedding, for sure,” Luna called out with a grin, and Harry stumbled before giving her a mock glare.

The couple walked out of the office as Luna stood there with a serene smile on her face, happy for her friend who had finally, after all this while, found true love once again.

XXX

To be continued…