INNOVATOR; Chapter 26: The Battle of Hogsmeade

Author's Note: Hello there, this is chapter 26 of INNOVATOR.

I really hope you will like it. Also, chapter 1-23 are uploaded on my fanfiction and ao3 profiles.

Also, many thanks and congratulations to our first five holders of the Guildmaster tier: Camo, I am Lord Dems, StormFox, RyanMK666 and Lyrical! 😇🥰

Now, without any further ado....Let's begin!

Author Out!

“I am Talking.” 

‘I am Thinking’

Spells

Note: For this chapter, Harry is Harry and the doppelganger is Harry*.

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No battle was ever won according to plan, but no battle was ever won without one.

~Dwight D. Eisenhower
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INNOVATOR

-Dev Sagittarius Black 

~~Chapter 26: The Battle of Hogsmeade~~

.

Hogsmeade village, the only surviving fully magical village in Europe, thrived under the affections of third- to seventh-year students of Hogwarts, as well as the visiting schools that traversed through the cobblestone pathways that criss-crossed through the village and led people to various magical shops that were being flocked by said visitors.  

The village was decorated with flowers, candles, and an assortment of beautiful accessories that increased its charm. The upcoming event of Valentine's, which was just four days away, also increased the allure of visiting the village with the person you loved most.  

Students, as well as mages who had once been of that age, went hand-in-hand with their partners as they enjoyed the delightful atmosphere. There were also groups of friends that went around the village, laughing and enjoying the company of their companions.  

Unfortunately, a place that nurtures love can easily become a place where hatred is born and bred. One only needed the right vision to look for it. And then, once perceived, they needed to prepare for the upcoming battle that would definitely take place on the magical grounds where the two forces of natural emotions would fight to seek victory.  

Almost the entirety of The Order of Phoenix was present in the village on active guard duty under their leader Albus Dumbledore’s orders, disguised to look like normal wizards and witches out for a stroll. They had been instructed to stay alert at all times, knowing that the threat of Lord Voldemort and his army could come at any time and from any direction.  

Their work had been divided into three basic parts; A part of the Order–the young and stronger forces–were to confront the Dark Lord’s forces. They were to distract the enemies so that the students and general populace could be taken to safety. 

Another part was meant to become the defence unit, which would help the first part by safeguarding the students until they reached the carriages waiting for them. And finally, the last part—the relatively weaker and older members—were to travel with the carriages so that the students went back to Hogwarts without any Death Eater-infested problems on the way. 

Lastly, due to Hogsmeade being a relatively spread-out village with many entrances and exits, there were the shopkeepers who had been alerted to lock their stores and safeguard themselves, as well as all the unfortunate students and civilians who would probably be trapped inside the shops. They were to take all of them to the basements and keep them as safe from harm as they could.  

The preparations had been done and checked by the order members repeatedly. They didn’t want any casualties in this upcoming war. Veteran members like Alastor Moody, Aberforth, and Albus Dumbledore knew that it was impossible to have zero casualties. Therefore, they were trying their best to keep it to a bare minimum. 

And hopefully none of the departed would be students. 

Unfortunately, despite all the preparations, there is still a thing called fate. It’s something that no one knows completely, and it's the one thing that holds every secret until it’s time to reveal the cards. 

Voldemort looked down at the magical village of Hogsmeade.  

There was chaos everywhere. Chaos that he had caused with the help of a handful of trained wizards and trolls. He sneered at the small group of wizards that stood against him. The order had always been a pain to deal with. Did they not know who he was? Did they learn absolutely nothing from their past?  

He was the Dark Lord Voldemort….Cruelest lord of the Dark Side in a century. And he held no prisoners. There was no need to be associated with filth any longer than absolutely necessary.  

The Order members weren’t a surprise to him; his spy in the school had already notified him about the old goat and his mudblood-loving fools preparing against his attack. Their plans were of no consequence, really; there was no way that the old bones and young untrained idiots would be able to stop his Death Eaters, much less his entire army.  

Therefore, he chose to simply watch the destruction and mayhem caused by his followers. 

But all of this was rather tame. It was something he had already expected. Ergo, it wasn’t exciting enough. Not when there was an absolutely delightful show going on right in front of his eyes, which included three witches, Mulciber, Avery, and two more of his new members.  

Unfortunately, he only knew about one of the trio. Blue eyes, blonde hair, an angelic face with high cheekbones that was scrunched in concentration as the girl defended her companions…yes, the girl was definitely a Greengrass. Probably the eldest, as he knew that the youngest was quite weak, had fallen to the blood curse that the Greengrasses have suffered with for the last six centuries.  

“Who are they?” Voldemort asked Rookwood, who stood beside him, waiting for his signal to begin the second stage of the attack.  

“Daphne Greengrass, Angelique Beaufort, and Cho Chang, my lord,” Rookwood bowed. 

“Greengrass….wasn’t her grandfather helping our cause? What happened to change that?”  

“He died, master. And the current Lord of the Greengrasses, his son, isn’t keen on helping our cause unless he believes you are truly back. No amount of persuasion had helped to sway him to our cause.” 

“Persuading someone is an art, Augustus,” Voldemort smiled, “There are certain methods of getting someone to agree with you. You should switch tactics when you notice that your current one isn’t working.” 

“I did, master.” Rookwood hesitated a bit before adding, "Recently, Greengrass had been blessed by good fortune. Something that has clouded the far-sighted ability that the House is known for. I am sure that after today he will be more than willing to offer his support to our cause.”  

“Hmmm…do not forget to remind our friend of the price for refuting us the first time we went to him. He needs to understand the consequences of refuting Lord Voldemort.”  

“As you say, my lord.”  

“And what of Lucius? Did you hear from him?”  

“Lucius is ready with twelve of our members, my lord.” The former unspeakable told him, “He will start the second part of the attack the moment Albus Dumbledore joins us. His son has followed your instructions from the letter.” 

Voldemort smiled gleefully. Today, not only Hogsmeade, but Hogwarts will also cry tears of blood. And they will remember to fear him and his mark, which will be ingrained in their weak minds. 

⁂

Harry glared at his counterpart. They had been fighting for three weeks now. And yet, the battle wasn’t progressing any further. It only made the fact that both of them were absolutely the same glaringly obvious. 

The person ahead of him was a perfect doppelganger of himself. Same jet black hair, same glowing emeralds—quite literally, the same athletic build. There was nothing that could separate the two of them on a physical level.  

But that is where the similarities ended.  

Behaviorally, the counterpart, made by the powers of Death, was far more cruel. He was also quite confident in his abilities since this was the realm of Death, a place made by his creator with the same energy that was circulating inside him.  

And that confidence had now turned to overconfidence, as it was quite easily visible by the smirk on his face. He thought of himself as nigh unbeatable and extremely powerful. It was a just statement when it came to fights against others, but that didn’t mean he had any advantage against himself.  

“Still think you can win this battle, Harry?” Harry* sneered at his counterpart. 

“I don’t think so, duplicate,” Harry smirked. “I know so. You are nothing but a cheap copy of myself. A mere spectre made from my shadows.

“And that is where our similarities end. You are forgetting that you, as a human, are mortal. On the other hand, I, as a shadow, am immortal. You can’t kill me; you can’t defeat me. Hell, you can’t even touch me in the realm of Death.”  

“Let’s leave this shit talk to the victor; you are my duplicate, and we both know I was never good at talking.” Harry shrugged and raised his wand again.  

“Harry Potter, we are both the same guy, are we not? Same power levels, same spells, same speed of thought processes, same knowledge about our abilities.” The copy-mage smirked, “How do you plan to beat someone who is quite literally equal to you in all terms?” 

“I won’t know until I try harder.” Harry smirked and summoned his magic once more: “Fiendfyre!” 

“Fiendfyre!” Harry* announced and watched as the hellish flames were summoned once more on the pale white ground that was marred with scars from the battle of the two Potters. 

Harry* looked on as his flames turned to take the form of a tiger and launched towards Harry’s….wall? ‘What the fuck are you playing at, Harry? ’ The doppelganger thought as he saw his tiger crash in the firewall built by the original’s Fiendfyre. After that the wall started to collapse in itself as it took the tiger with it.  

Just then, Harry* jumped to his right. Moments later, a green jet of light traversed the area where his head was.  

“Using the Assassin Path, eh Potter?” Harry* smirked and bent forwards to dodge another spell before he created a shield with his blackwood wand while shooting an organ-expelling curse with his elder wand.  

Spellfire broke again as the death rays clashed between the two Harrys, each more deadly than its predecessor. But none of them managed to harm the other one, as the two maintained the Draconian shield while dodging or reverting the spells with the help of their elder wands.  

‘I need to somehow trap him where he is…there’s got to be a strong enough way that would force him on defensive’ Harry thought as he conjured a pack of wolves and lions, mutating their fangs to be of metal as the gang rushed towards the doppelganger, only to be met by three stone golems that were made from pieces of the white field beneath them.  

Harry dodged the five lightning arrows that were launched at him as he tried to think of a way to defeat his counterpart….or himself?  

The innovator’s eyes widened with triumph when he reached this realization. Since the doppelganger was quite literally him in every aspect, he didn’t need to defeat the doppleganger. No, he needed a way to defeat himself.  

Which means he needed to try something that had been almost successful against him in the past and do it with far more precision so that he could succeed.  

And when it came to that, there was no one better than the veteran warlock who was now the headmaster of Hogwarts. There was no one else who had forced him on his backfoot more than the old Titan of magic. 

‘I think this means that it’s time to begin my ‘Next great adventure, right?’ Harry smirked, ‘Right!’ 

⁂

When Dumbledore reached Hogsmeade, he saw an entirely different world than what he had expected to see.  

It took the aged headmaster some time to reach the village, as he had to help the broken carriages and ensure the safety of the students that were on their way to Hogwarts. They had a Death Eater-infested problem on the way; it wasn’t anything big, but it was time-consuming.  

He had hoped that the situation wouldn’t be that bad in Hogsmeade, but he couldn't be farther from the truth.  

“Minerva!” He called for his deputy, who was rushing behind him, “Help Nymphadora first. She’s closer to you, near Madam Pudifoots.”  

He saw his trusted deputy rush in the direction of the pink cafe that housed a few third and fourth years while junior auror Tonks defended the building against three Death Eaters. Minerva’s presence would certainly aid the poor girl.  

Once assured of the safety of those students, Dumbledore scanned the battlefield and joined Rosmerta and his brother Aberforth who were fighting against a troll and another masked bunch. 

“Bombarda Maxima!”  

Rosmerta dove while Aberforth turned to look as his brother joined the fray. The bombarding hex took down the troll’s club as well as the shield that was protecting it.  

“Fucking hell!” One of the Death Eaters screamed as he held his wand hand, “It’s Dumbledore! RUN!!”  

“You are a fool if you think our master would leave us alive once he learned that we ran from this battle." The other masked one shouted as he shot a bonebreaker at Rosmerta.  

“Rosemary, protect your patrons and the students from stray spells; Aberforth and I will handle the troll and the lot,” Dumbledore ordered Madam Rosmerta, who went to do as had been asked of her while the Dumbledore brothers joined to fight their enemies.  

Not so far from the battlefield, Lord Voldemort gave a nasty grin when he spotted both Albus Dumbledore and Minerva McGonagall on the battlefield fighting his army.  

It was time to begin the second part of his attack. He raised his wand towards the sky and said, “Morsmordre.”  

His infamous mark: A green snake slithering through a huge skull floated in the sky. The signal had been sent; it was up to the Malfoys to execute the second part of the plan. And they better succeed in it, because if they failed, it would be their last mistake. 

“Rookwood…” Voldemort muttered as he prepared to fly into the sky and confront his former professor: “Prepare the rest of our friends for the final part of the attack.”  

“As you wish, master.” Rookwood bowed and vanished with a small ‘pop’ sound. 

“Apovoli Organon!” “Avada Kedavra!”  

Albus conjured a thick slab of granite while Aberforth summoned the Magus shield that blocked the organs expelling curse. “Ventus Maxima” Rosmerta threw the granite dust into the lumbering troll’s face. 

“Aquamenti Maxima! Albus, NOW!” Aberforth shouted as he summoned a huge amount of water on the Death Eaters.  

Albus understood what his younger brother wanted to do: “Fulgur!”  

The water that was conjured over the death eaters was charged with white hot lightning. Aberforth released the water, and the Dumbledore brothers shielded themselves as the death eaters got roasted by the lightning summoned by Dumbledore.  

They fell to the ground, still shaking from the aftershocks of the current that circulated within them. Unfortunately, this caused the troll to be free from their control, and it angrily launched towards the centurion wizards.  

It met its end as dual Bombarda hexes smashed in his skull, leaving it nothing more than a thin paste on the ground as the children and others screamed while the troll fell on the ground with a loud thump.  

“Rosmerta,” Dumbledore announced, “Can you ensure to lead the students to safety? I think the passage beneath your shop that connects Hogwarts is still active, right? Good. Take the students and others with you. We will join you shortly afterwards.”  

Rosmerta agreed and rushed inside her shop to do as she was told.  

“Aberforth, let’s move towards Scrivenshafts.” The headmaster told his brother only to stop when he saw the Dark Mark floating in the sky.  

“Albus….leave Scrivenshafts to me, your opponent is coming for you.” Aberforth couldn’t help but shiver a bit when he saw the approaching form of Lord Voldemort. He knew that his brother was more than enough to handle him, but it still gave him chills to see the psychopath flying towards them like death approaching to reap their souls.  

“Go!” Albus shouted at his brother, who hesitated a bit, looking between Voldemort and Scrivenshafts, where Shacklebolt and Moody were fighting two trolls and Voldemort’s right-hand witch, Bellatrix Lestrange.  

“GO ABERFORTH! Save them; I can handle him.” Dumbledore pushed the last of his family away from him as he rushed to meet Voldemort in the middle of Hogsmeade.

⁂

Daphne dove under the purple hex as Angelique blasted the ground beneath Mulciber’s feet, which caused a cloud of dust to surround them.  

“Ventus!” Daphne shrieked as she dove under a skin-rotting hex that came from within the smoke. Avery and Mulciber vanished from the direction of the smoke and appeared right behind the two girls.  

“BEHIND YOU!” Angelique screamed at Daphne as she dove under Avery’s killing curse while shielding Daphne’s back with a stone piece that she summoned from near the sidepath. The stone was blasted by Mulciber’s curse.  

The tired Slytherin stumbled forward from the impact towards a lying Cho who had fallen earlier, taking a Death Eater with her. Meanwhile, her French partner started throwing hexes at the three out of four Death Eaters that were still alive.  

She tried to focus their attention on herself so that they would leave Daphne and the unconscious Cho alone.  

Unfortunately, this meant that she had to fend off two of Voldemort’s inner circle along with another Death Eater all alone. Something that cost her dearly, like a cutting curse, grazed her neck. 

She immediately pressed her hand where it bled, but there was no time as two killing curses were launched at her while an organ expeller was launched towards Daphne.  

At that moment, she knew that she wouldn't survive. There were two killing curses coming her way, and then there were three Death Eaters that were set to kill them. So she decided to protect Daphne instead, which would at least give the younger girl a chance to run away. 

“Protego! Run Daphne!” Angelique screamed and internally smiled when she saw a blue shield form in front of the terrified Slytherin girl who looked at her. She closed her eyes, waiting for the killing curses to impact and death to reap her soul.  

“Accio Stone!”  

Angelique felt a relatively larger piece of stone swish right in front of her and be blasted to smithereens as the curses impacted it. Against hope, she looked towards her saviour and was surprised to see who came to save her. 

“Quite a generous heart you got there, Beaufort. I didn’t know you had it in yourself to worry about anyone else.”  

Angelique had never been more happy to see Ashley. The Durmstrang champion stood in front of her like a saviour, and she held a blue shield in front of them.  

“Pet-Ashley…Thank-You…I-I don’t-” Angelique stuttered as she tried to get a hold of her bearings. Before Angelique could say anything else, she felt hands envelope her from behind as weight fell on her shoulder and blonde hairs crawled into her field of vision. 

Ashley smiled at her French rival, who was being hugged by the Greengrass girl. “Thank me later, Beaufort; for now, I think it’s time to remove the kiddy gloves and give our dear friends in masks a show to last their lifetime. I’ll drop the shield the moment you are ready.”  

The two blondes agreed and sprang to their feet. Their momentous meeting with death’s touch had ignited a newfound companionship and trust between them, at least for their upcoming battle.  

“Beaufort your defence is excellent; you are to defend us. I will be the attacker, and Greengrass will shift between the two,” Angelique ordered as she dropped the shield and the trios faced each other. “Time to give these guys one hell of a show, girls.”  

Their enemies were definitely in for the wildest and bloodiest show of their soon-to-end lives. 

⁂

The two titans of magic met midway. Voldemort slowly levitated down while Dumbledore glared at the descending Dark Lord. He knew that Voldemort was not someone to be played with; therefore, he needed to finish this as soon as he could. Or hold this battle long enough until his brother and other members could join him. 

Thankfully, most of the younger years had already reached Hogwarts. The only ones left were the ones fighting alongside his Order members. He looked at Daphne Greengrass and her group near Honeydukes.  

He could see the Durmstrang girl, whose request he had signed at the start of the year for a school tour with Harry, joining the Greengrass heiress in fighting the Death Eaters.  

Similarly, he could see many more Durmstrang and Beauxbatons students engaging death eaters around the various shops and locations of Hogsmeade. He knew that they weren’t ready for such a battle; yes, they were excellent students who had risked their lives to safeguard the ones that needed protection.  

But that didn’t make watching them fight for their lives any easier.  

Especially when he saw bodies littered around the battlefield. Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, Durmstrang….he couldn’t stop the drop of tear that rolled down his eyes and down his cheek. This wasn’t what any of these young minds had expected when they woke up today and ventured excitedly for Hogsmeade.  

This wasn’t what he had wanted for any of these innocent lives that were plucked early from the world.  

“What a waste, isn’t it?”  

Dumbledore clenched his fist when he realised that his enemy stood behind him. Watching all this, he just wanted to kill the man behind him. Wanted to make him suffer for what he had done to all these innocent lives who didn’t get to feel the energetic adulthood or the glorious old age.  

Still, he knew that it was impossible to kill Voldemort. At least until the time they had destroyed all of his soul containers and turned him back mortal. And that would have to wait until Harry joined him once more. 

“Only a psychopath like you would think death a waste, Tom,” Dumbledore turned to look at his wayward student, who stood a few metres from him, hands folded in front of him and a small smile on his face. 

"Ah, I think you misunderstood me, Dumbledore.” He sneered at the name, “I am saying that every drop of magical blood spilled, no matter the side, is a waste. We could just stop everything right this moment if you wanted to, and yet I know you won’t.”  

“Why are you doing this, Tom?” Dumbledore asked patiently. “When will this war end? What is the reason?”  

“You know quite well what I want, Dumbledore. I want us wizards to take our rightful place in our society, which is the highest. All others were made to live beneath us, and yet mindless fools like you insist on hiding.”  

“You are deluded if you think that you alone, with a group of brainwashed wizards and witches, could rule the continent, much less the world.”  

“That is because we have different views on how to actually use the powers gifted to us by mother magic,” Voldemort sneered. “But you wouldn’t understand that, professor; you love the filthy way too much to walk over them like you should’ve all those years ago.”  

“Our ideals are what shape us, Tom.” Dumbledore flicked his wand out, and Voldemort did the same. “And I think now we are way too different to merge our ideals on how wizard kind should live.”  

The clash between the two magical powerhouses was unlike anything that anyone had witnessed before in their lives. Both of them knew what was at stake, and it was way more than their lives.  

Voldemort was fighting for his reputation as well as making the grand statement that he had finally returned from his temporary leave. It was time to join the dark side and fulfil their goal of wizard supremacy.  

Dumbledore, on the other hand, was fighting to protect all the lives that depended on his victory. He knew that if he somehow managed to defeat Voldemort, then the entire battle would change, and that too for a long time, as Tom would once again be afraid to face him head-on.  

Voldemort waved his wand in a wide arc and conjured a bunch of snakes on the field that he sent towards Dumbledore, who immediately turned the snakes into long ropes with metals, which he threw back at the dark lord.  

A conjured wall met the incoming attack, which was destroyed immediately as the ropes had sulphur on them that blasted on contact. He took this small trick from his impromptu battle against Harry near the Gaunt Shack.  

The two traded spells submerged in arcane magic as the landscape changed around them. Jets of fire, lightning arrows, and thick earthen chains bind. The duel was as spectacular as the one Dumbledore had with Grindelwald nearly half a century ago.  

“I must say, I am impressed that an old fool like you is still able to keep up with me, Dumbledore,” Voldemort smirked as the two mages stopped for a breather.  

Dumbledore ignored the barb, “What do you want, Tom? Why are you attacking the people of Hogsmeade today?!”  

“I need something from you....professor,” he said, giving a cruel smile. “And no matter what, I will have it before this battle ends.”  

“What do you want from me? If it’s the-” But before Dumbledore could have completed his sentence, an eagle patronus swooped in front of him, and both of them waited for it to speak.  

Professor Flirtwick’s squeaky voice came from the patronus’ mouth: “Headmaster! Someone has opened a secret passage that allows Death Eaters inside Hogwarts! There are thirteen of them! Put the castle under lockdown; we are trying our best to save the students.”  

Voldemort laughed uproariously as the patronus disappeared, “I told you, Dumbledore, I will have what I want by the end of this battle. And Lord Voldemort always takes his word seriously.” 

Dumbledore glared at the mocking Dark Lord, who chuckled a few feet away from him. He didn’t know who had allowed the Death Eaters inside Hogwarts, but that investigation was for a later date, and right now he had to decide what to do.  

If he didn’t go, the Death Eaters would definitely leave behind a lot of casualties that didn’t deserve to die. But if he left to save them, Voldemort would be free to do as he wished, and he would definitely burn the entire village and all its current occupants down.  

“Albus! We are done ‘ere,” Minerva shouted with Tonks in tow, about five metres from him. They were probably on their way to help him against Voldemort. “I will leave to ‘elp Filius and Pomona at ‘ogwarts as well as put the castle undah lockdown. Yeh take care of ‘im!”  

Dumbledore agreed with his deputy as she rushed in the direction of the school with Tonks in tow. “Expecto Patronum!” The Phoenix patronus formed mid-air; it looked at its creator for a moment before it soared in the east direction. 

“Already calling for reinforcements? You really think that someone else could help you stop me?” Voldemort chuckled and raised his wand towards Dumbledore.  

“You would be long defeated before that, Tom. Your pride and arrogance would lead you to your downfall.”  

And with that, the battle resumed. 

⁂

Harry dodged another attack as his doppleganger launched lightning arrows at him. Both of them were mid-air and were trying their level best to get the upper hand on the other one.  

There was a minute difference between the two, though, while Harry* was bent on attacking Harry and mistakenly took Harry’s purely defensive approach as a success. The Innovator was trying to finely control six invisible ravens as they worked on carefully drawing the runes that he had used during his battle with Dumbledore on the ground.  

“You really think that you can win this battle, Mr. Original? Harry sneered at the innovator who conjured a flock of ravens and released it at the other Harry.  

“You are underestimating me, and that will be your downfall one day.” Harry gritted as he momentarily lost control of one raven. It was easy to use the ravens for blunt jobs like attack and defence, but to control six invisible ravens to the point where they were making runes in the ground?  

Yeah…a bit tougher than he wanted it to be. Still, he immediately regained control and continued from where he had stopped it.  

“The way you are relying on defences, I really think that you’ve lost your hunger to live.” Harry* shook his head in disappointment. “It’s a shame. You were such a nice toy to play with; unfortunately, you just don’t know how to use your own strengths.”  

“No one knows my strengths and weaknesses better than me,” Harry said, narrowing his eyes. “You better remember it since you are me as well.”  

Harry* glared at the original and launched another volley of spells ranging from death rays to stasis spells. “I think you are unaware that this is my world. Which means, even though we are similar in power levels, I am better at controlling the energy than you.”  

Harry sighed when he felt that the entire rune system was active. He looked down and saw the rune circle, which was six metres in diameter. This was the same rune pattern that had trapped a powerhouse like Dumbledore, so the innovator knew that he could easily stop his doppleganger with it.  

The only problem now was getting his doppleganger to step inside the rune circle without getting him to notice that there was something different about their surroundings.  

Easy, right? He really wished it was because the only way he could actually see that happening was to tie his doppleganger and throw him in the rune circle.  

“Well then,” Harry began as an idea started forming in his head, “I think it’s time to stop playing with you and actually start taking you seriously.”  

“Don’t you think you’re quite late for it, Original?” Harry* smirked as he looked at the nearly empty hourglass. “Just a few more weeks, and we’ll be done. You will forever be bound in the realm, out of reach, and suffer the consequences of your failure. Knowing you could’ve turned the tables and yet you failed.”  

“Calcitrare-Ignis Flagellum-Avis-Mutare Mortus!” Harry screamed the spell chain out loud and sent a non-verbal, petrifying hex at his unsuspecting opponent. 

Harry* conjured a shield to defend against the flame whip and the punching hex, “Fiendyre!” A serpent of fire formed, and it slithered towards Harry as it roasted the conjured birds.  

Harry sent a nonverbal Aquamenti Maxima from his blackwood wand at the incoming fire serpent while he created a fire net with the same hellish flames from his elder wand and captured the serpent in it. He dropped to the ground and saw his doppelganger following suit.  

‘Good’ Harry thought when he saw that the other one had mistakenly followed him to the ground and was closer to the rune circuit. Now all he needed to do was push him back so that he fell into the trap.  

And for that, he had a small idea.  

“Draco Ignem! Ventus Maxima!” Harry released the Draconian flames and extended them with the wind from his other wand at the same time. The fire that was supposed to light a hall was now strong and wild enough to light up the entire building as it rushed towards Harry*. 

“Finally decided to come out of your pussyshell, did you? It doesn’t matter; I am still way stronger than you in this realm.” Harry* tutted and waved his wand, “Vocatio Fluminis.” The spell was an ancient one and took quite an amount of power as it conjured a multi-layered wall of rocks, sand, and flowing water.  

“Calcitrare Maxima!” Harry sent twelve punching hexes at him combined with an advanced shield breaker alongside, “Stupefy, Ignis Flagellum.”  

Harry* smirked when he saw the coming spells. He conjured the Mage shield, which took the three punching hexes, “You will have to do harder than this to-” His eyes widened when the mage shield broke into pieces, and he hastily conjured a simple shield while dodging the bright red stunner.  

Unfortunately, this pushed him in the path of the rest of the punching hexes that collided on his face, caving it in quite brutally as Harry* was tossed back a few feet on the ground.  

“You were never a bother for me,” Harry said, shaking his head, “I was just busy with other things when you gloated about being superior.” 

“Wh-What?” The shadow panted as he slowly stood up once more. “What do you mean by other things?”  

The innovator smirked at the slight panic he sensed from the shadow, “Enough said. Apovoli Organon, Ignis Flagellum Novem!” Harry unleashed the nine flame whips on the shadow. He didn’t want the shadow to realize that he was slowly being pushed into the circuit.  

“Dissendium, Magus Trahens!” Harry announced and witnessed with glee as the Shadow again pulled the Mage shield. This was the plan, as both of them knew the glaring fault in making a mage shield was that you could not move. You had to be stationary to work on it.  

Harry conjured five wolves behind his doppleganger and unleashed them, ‘Mutare Mortus.' The modification was done non-verbally. It was at this moment that Harry also conjured a small raven and overpowered it, taking over its consciousness easily. 

He concealed the bird and sent it towards the Shadow who was hiding behind the mage shield. He felt the bird sit on the target’s shoulder, and then the control slowly merged into said target.  

It worked as his dear shadow didn’t realise what had happened as he released a wide area of cutting hex to cut off the wolves heads. 

“You are getting quite vicious, Original,” Harry* narrowed his eyes. “I don’t know what changed within you in these last moments of your life, but you have to remember that I am stronger than you. Hell, I am made from the same energies that are around us.”  

“Are you done, or do you need more time to throw your temper tantrum?” Harry sighed as if the mere thought of his shadow disappointed him. “I never knew I was such a drama queen.”  

“Drama Queen?! You think I am being dramatic right now?!” Harry* growled and raised his wand once more, “Draconum Ignis! Fiendfyre! Bombarda Maxima!”  

Harry narrowed his eyes at the incoming spells, “Infinitus Sanctuarium.” The infinite void pouch that he had used against the Horntail’s flame formed again and sucked all the flame in it.” 

Unfortunately, the original had not contemplated the presence of a blasting hex in between the elemental spells. The blasting hex collided with his infinity pouch that had been formed and caused it to blast in between the two mages.  

The energy that was released from the impact was strong enough to send both Harrys flying a few metres back. The original was the first to wake up, and he groaned as he slowly got up from his prone position. His eyes widened in surprise when he saw the shadow lying right in the rune circuit.  

The innovator rushed towards the primary circuit, he summoned a small amount of magic in his wand and released it towards the circuit in a pulse, “ACTIVATE!”  

The ground started to shake violently as six spots roughly three metres away from him started to glow light blue, and a golden thread of magic started connecting them.  

Unfortunately, Harry* noticed it too, and he started laughing when he realised that this was the ‘other thing’ that the original one was talking about earlier.  

“You were planning this the whole time?” Harry* laughed loudly, holding his stomach. “And here, I was worried it was something grand and unstoppable. This has proved your idiocy; you don’t deserve to live, Mr. Innovator.”  

He slowly started to float upwards from the ground, laughing loudly when he saw that Harry was too shocked to say anything. The runes were stitched on the ground and were supposed to trap any wizard or witch. Unfortunately, what Harry had ignored was the fact that he, and by extension, his shadow, can fly.  

But just as the doppelganger had floated a foot above the ground to mock Harry, he felt something change inside him. There was an external force that was slowly filling him from his shoulder. He didn’t know what it was, and he tried to fight it back; unfortunately, the force had taken control over sixty percent of his body and was rapidly increasing.  

“Wh-What’s this?!” Harry* shrieked in shock, “What are you doing?! Why can’t I move myself?!” 

Finally, Harry smirked at his doppelganger and mentally pushed him into the trap. The moment he did, the golden circuit completed and the trap was activated, completely suppressing the prisoner’s magic. 

Harry gasped as he released the hold over the other Harry’s* body. He knew that he couldn’t have used it in an actively ongoing battle because it took him a long time to slowly fill his shadow’s body with his control, and even then, he couldn’t hold him for more than five seconds. 

It was enough to keep him in the trap, but not enough to defeat him completely. 

Now he just watched as his doppleganger tried his level best to free himself, but the more he tried, the more his magic was sucked from him to strengthen the trap and cause him more pain. 

“How did you control me?” Harry* asked, “I know that I am strong enough to resist your control if you start it. But your power was infused in me more than sixty percent…When did that happen?” 

“I am surprised that you aren’t asking how I was able to control you.” Harry smirked at his trapped self. 

“That’s easy. I am made of the same energies that surround us; you have been trained to control the same energies, so I wasn’t surprised that you were able to do it. I am more interested in knowing how you were able to infuse sixty percent inside me before I even realised it.” 

Harry made a thinking pose before he shrugged, "First, tell me, what will happen now? You are obviously defeated, and I don’t have to stay here; will you be merged inside me or something?”

“I don’t think so. I am a construct made of energies from this realm, I am not going to survive in the living realm, no matter how much you merge me into yourself. I think I will just disappear and cease to exist.” 

Harry nodded, “Alright then, I don’t think I need to explain it to you since you are going to vanish anyway.” 

“What?! HEY! LISTEN HERE, YOU LITTLE-”

“Expelliarmus.” 

The two wands—Blackwood and Elder—That were also a copy of their originals were pulled out from the Shadow’s hands and leapt into the original’s who grabbed them both. 

“I think someone deserves congratulations.” 

Harry smiled when he turned to meet Death, who stood behind him with a small grin beneath his hood. 

“So, I passed?” 

“You did. And right on time, because I think you should leave as soon as you can.” Death told his apprentice, “Or else most of your friends would join us here in the realm.” 

“What?! What happened to them?” 

“Nothing yet, but if you don’t leave, they’ll lose their lives.” 

It was at this moment that the trapped Harry started laughing loudly, “Ha! Take that, you dumb idiot! I am the reason you had to wait, and I will have the last laugh any–” He vanished without a single sound as Death snapped his fingers.

“There, all good. Now, close your eyes, Anubis; it’s time for you to leave my realm.”

Harry took a last look at the world that he had lived in for seven long years. He remembered all the things that he had suffered and learned, as well as the knowledge and weapons he had gained. 

“Thank-you, Death.” He whispered as he closed his eyes and heard death whisper his iconic words again: "Memento mori, Anubis...." He felt his consciousness lapse into the unknown as it was pulled out of the crack between the two realms. 

The mortal had returned to his world after a seven-year journey in the immortal world of Death. And now it was time to make his enemies suffer for their crimes against him, against the innocent, and against humanity. 

⁂

On a distant land, inside one of the most infamous and powerful guilds, there was a chamber that held the body of a young man. Several runes glowed around his body; each of them was made to monitor a specific function of the man’s unconscious body. 

Several members clad in blue rushed around the chamber as they monitored the progress. They had been told that the man would return any day now, and each moment was of utmost importance. 

Slowly, the man’s fingers twitched. 

Then his hand clenched.

The runes glowed brightly. 

His eyelids fluttered. 

His breathing rate increased alarmingly.

A green aura started to form inside the pit of his stomach, which slowly encased his entire body. 

The runes started to flash around him. The blue-clad members started to panic as they felt high levels of energy from within the man.

“He-He’s coming!! He’s coming back!!!” One of them shouted with joy and terror. 

The entire chamber shook loudly as the green aura was unleashed with a strong pulse of magic that sent the members flying into the chamber’s wall. 

Slowly, the eyelids fluttered more as the man clenched his fists once more. 

Finally, he took a deep breath and slowly opened his eyes. 

Twin emeralds slowly came into view as they scanned the chamber’s ceiling and the destruction around them. 

“HE HAS RETURNED! HARRY POTTER HAS RETURNED FROM THE REALM OF DEATH!!” Someone shouted distantly as members rushed inside the chamber.  

Harry took a look around himself and couldn’t help but smile.  

Yes…. it was true…Harry Potter had indeed returned to the Land of the Living.

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Ending note: There you have it fellas, chapter Twenty-Six of Innovator, hope you liked it.

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