Harry looked around the dead field and at the dead trees and frowned. He'd been here before. Yes, yes of course he had. There was the grim watching at the edge of the trees and the raven in the dead tree in the center of the clearing.
But why was he here?
He glanced around again and was surprised at what he found. The grass though dead was hiding the fresh green grass that was shorter then it and the trees all had buds. He frowned. Why was that? Why did everything appear to be growing?
He didn't have time to ponder this any longer. He threw himself to the side on instinct. A large black body flew over the spot he had been standing and hit the ground with a loud thump. A whinny of amusement echoed. Harry stared in shock at the large black stallion. It was tall but slender with a coat of dark ebony. Green/brown eyes landed on Harry and the horse snickered again throwing its head. Mane of black with a red tint was tossed about.
"Three forms?" He spoke aloud. "I have three forms?"
The stallion whickered again and trotted around him showing off grace and speed. It started to gallop and started around the clearing, jumping hidden logs and turning tight circles before rearing. Harry was in awe. It looked so fast, so free. Finally it trotted up to him and took a deep breath, taking in his scent.
"You're beautiful." Harry whispered reaching out slowly.
It leaned into his hand and then everything melted away.
.-.
Harry woke with a start. He sat up, unmindful of the blanket that slid down his chest to pool at his waist. Running his fingers through his hair he found it coarser then usual. He smiled wildly as it slowly turned to his regular texture.
Then he realized he was not in his own bed. He blinked then spotted Elewa sleeping beside him, face buried in a pillow. Silently he rose and grabbed his clothes from the floor. He tugged them on and then grinned as he cast a cleaning spell on himself. His magic jumped eagerly to the command and he wanted to giggle in relief as he felt it flow through his veins.
He exited the room silently and bound down the stairs. He passed by the goblins sleeping on the couches and slipped outside. Once in the fresh air he breathed deeply. Then he jumped. He transformed into his raven form and with a few wing beats was high in the sky. He shot up higher and hovered above the clearing. He could see jungle surrounded Elewa's house for miles upon miles. Then he dived.
He dived straight down until he hit the tree tops and then swooped out over the trees. When he was a distance a way he found himself over a tiny clearing with a waterfall in it. Pausing in his flight he glanced around before dropping to the ground, transforming back to human on his way down.
He landed lightly on the soft ground and breathed the humid air happily. The waterfall wasn't large, nor was the pool it fell into, but it was beautiful and peaceful. Harry took a seat on one of the large boulders and just listened for the longest time. He listened to the birds, the rustle of the trees, the sound of the water, and the silence beneath it all. He sat as still as the boulder he was one, marvelling at how warm his magic was in his veins. It cooed at him, caressing him as it seemed to compress around him like a hug. He smiled unconsciously the whole time.
Then he stood and transformed. Because he'd learned how to change properly with his first two forms, he didn't need much practice with his third form. He transformed perfectly, seamlessly shifting from human into a black stallion. He pranced in a quick circle enjoying how much freedom he felt just being in this form. He felt powerful and fast and free. He galloped around the tiny clearing and the pool for a few minutes testing out his new limbs and such.
He transformed back after a few minutes and decided that even though the cleaning spell had cleaned him up, nothing was better then an actual bath. He shed his cloth onto a near by rock and took a breath before diving into the pool. Luckily it was shallow and the waterfall wasn't big enough to suck him under and have him drown. The water was pleasurably warm and so clear and clean. Harry hummed as he scrubbed himself under the falling water and just enjoyed the silence.
A flurry of silver interrupted his bath. He spun, magic already crackling at his finger tips when he realized it was just a patronus. A beautiful leopard one. Its mouth opened and Elewa's voice emerged.
"Lord Black! Please return now! You're goblin guards are convinced I've done something to you and are now holding me hostage above a boiling pot of oil at spear point!"
There was a pause.
"The goblin Switchblade says that he has always wanted to see how human's taste." Elewa's voice came out with a slight waver as the patronus vanished.
Harry laughed slightly but decided he'd best tell the goblins that Elewa was innocent. He waded to his clothes and pulled out his wanted. He closed his eyes and pictured the exact moment his magic had returned to him.
"Expecto patronum." He chanted.
A burst of silver erupted from his wand.
"Please tell Switchblade that I am taking a bath a ways off and that I will return soon. And please don't hurt Elewa, I left without his knowledge."
The stag gave an amused toss of its head and took off into the trees. Harry sunk back into the water and happily relaxed.
.-.
Harry looked over the pretty flower on the branch. He was careful not to touch it as he didn't know what was safe and not so safe here in the middle of the jungle. The flower was small and brilliant red. It had a tempting scent that smelled heavenly. He prodded it with a stick and watched it cringe away from the object as if it could think. Harry knew it was magical.
"That is a dangerous plant."
Harry spun, hang automatically going for the knife at his waist with his left hand and the wand at his hip with his right hand. He turned to face the person who had spoken, ready to defend or attack. He found himself stopping with something akin to shock.
The man he was looking at was certainly not human. He had a human build, about six feet tall and slender, with creamy caramel skin. His lips were a darker mocha color and a small ring of black, almost like eye shadow circled his eyes.
His hair and eyes set him apart from humans though.
His hair started black, all the roots and such black for a good four inches. And then it faded into every color. A dark shade of every color Harry had ever seen was mixed in, all swirls and twists. It was all pulled back in a high ponytail that flared every which way at the ends. Two long locks and bangs framed his face. The bangs were short and all black while the locks both faded to dark red at the ends. Feathers of brilliant red and blue were tied in the thick hair along with strings of wooden and bone beads.
It was his eyes, not the exotic hair, though, that grabbed Harry's attention.
He had no pupils, the irises being larger then usual also. His irises were a sparkling swirl of red, silver, and bronze, all twirling in a mix together like a whirlpool.
Deep purple tattoos stood out on the side of his face, shaped almost like tiger stripes and lines in red and black. Three on each side of his face, angling down from the tops of his ears to his cheeks. He wore a leather vest that hung open showing his slender build. He also wore a pair of loose pants made of coarse red material.
The man tilted his head, examining Harry almost with curious apathy. His face was soft almost sad and he stood loosely, relaxed.
"Hello." Harry ventured softly, but warily.
"Hello." The man spoke again.
His voice was quiet and hoarse like he was unused to using it.
"What are you doing out here?" Harry asked.
"I live out here." The man returned.
Harry took note that he both looked and sounded young. No older then twenty.
"You?" the man asked curiously.
Harry gave a shrug and kept his eyes on the man.
"Are you…" The man cut off, pausing.
He tilted his head again.
"Are you a demon summoner?"
Harry raised his brow, not showing his surprise at the man's observation .
"Yes."
"Ah." He said like that answered everything.
For a long moment there was silence. The man looked at him, his head still tilted to the side in a curious, innocent look.
"I am a demon." He finally answered.
Harry immediately felt for the link. There. Yes, the man was a demon. The link tying him to this realm was loose meaning that his summoner had either tied it and left him or his summoner had died leaving him still tied to the realm.
"How long have you been in this realm?" Harry asked.
"In human years? I think fifty." He responded softly.
"You have the power to return to your realm." Harry said. "All Demon Creatures do, why have you not?"
"I was banished from my clan when my brother became alpha." He said. "Then I was summoned. When my late mistress released me I felt no need to return because there was nothing waiting for me." He answered honestly.
"What type of demon are you?" Harry asked, relaxing slightly.
"I do not know." He shrugged. "I can not remember what I was classified as. I am from the Xico clan though. We are a warrior clan. We fight and protect. We are strongest when summoned to this realm and tied to a Loving the story so far? There's a whole world of magic and mystery waiting for you with over 85+ chapters still to come! By supporting my Patreon.
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This your trained pet or something?" One of the other guys asked holding a hand up for Harry to smell.
Harry snorted at him. Lucius glanced at him. Harry shook his head in a way that Lucius took to be an 'okay'.
"He's an animagus." Lucius said shortly, wincing as the wound on his shoulder slowly closed.
"Cool!" The boy said more eagerly, looking at Harry.
Harry threw his head as if to say he wouldn't be changing back at the moment.
When Lucius was fully healed he offered his thanks and the two headed off again, this time Lucius walking with a hand to his back instead of riding. Once out of view Harry shifted seamlessly to his grim form and sniffed the air. He turned slightly and led Lucius off to where he smelled Narcissa and Draco. As they reached the area where the other two Malfoys were waiting Lucius caught on.
Harry stopped when Lucius understood his family now waited just behind a few trees. Lucius paused with him. For a long moment Lucius was silent.
"You're not returning to Hogwarts are you." Lucius stated.
Harry shook his head in agreement.
"I will be taking my OWLS as soon as possible." Harry said, changing his voice box back to human.
"If you run into any problems, contact me." Lucius said. "I'll get you in within an hour of a call."
Harry smiled, though it looked more like a dark grin in his Grim form.
"Thank you Lucius."
Lucius paused.
"That's the first time you've called me by my first name." He said.
Harry raised a brow at him. The blonde smirked then nodded once. He then straightened, brushing his robe smooth.
"Wait," Harry called as he took a step.
Lucius raised a brow at him but paused all the same.
"Next time you come to my café, could you bring Snape?"
"Severus?" Lucius asked, a slight frown tugging at the corners of his lips.
"Yes. I have to talk to him, but knowing Snape he won't come just because of that."
Lucius's lips twitched at the description but he nodded all the same. And then he was through the trees and meeting a relieved Narcissa and Draco. Harry watched as they vanished with a crack.
The demon woman he had summoned appeared with nary a sound not even a second later.
"All the men are dealt with." She said in a soft voice. "They have been restrained and left for your people to retrieve."
"Thank you." Harry said, still in Grim form.
He lips twitched into a smirk.
"It was fun, call me again should you need any assistance in battle."
Then she grabbed his left paw and nicked it with her finger. He felt the familiar spark of magic and then she vanished with a puff of smoke. Harry knew when he changed back to human he would have another tattooed band on his left wrists.
He breathed out in a rush and looked to the sky. He'd have to go find the others before they started to worry.
"Well, this is the place I call home." Harry said cheerfully.
The demon tilted his head and eyed the flowers and trees as the passed by. Harry threw the door open in a burst of energy and jumped into his house.
"I'm home!" he crowed happily.
Loraine, who had been on the couch, threw herself at him, squealing happily. Xi-Wong must have seen her as harmless as he did nothing to stop her. Harry spun the smaller woman around in a circle. Even though he was small he was not weak and she was smaller then him.
"You look so much better." She cooed, looking him over.
"Harry's back!?"
Dante came sprinting from the stairs, a wide grin on his face. He didn't even notice the silent Xi-Wong as he crushed Harry in a hug, cooing over him.
"We were worried." He cooed. "How did it go? Do you have your magic back?"
"Yes." Harry smiled.
The demon finally set him down and noticed the other. He tensed slightly.
"Who is this?" He asked with a frown.
"This is Xi-Wong. He's a demon I summoned."
"From the Xico clan?" Dante asked eyeing his markings.
"Yes. I was banished." Xi-Wong said simply.
A sharp cry interrupted them all and making Dante step aside as Hedwig dive bombed Harry and fussed over him. Harry laughed and stroked his owl as she preened his hair, scanning every inch of him.
"Hello Hedwig dear. Where is Keiruim?"
"We haven't seen the bird lately. He and Hedwig practically vanished when you left." Dante said.
"Ah. And where are Valentine, Harold, and Dudley?"
"They headed for the World Cup Already. Said they'd set up camp." Dante shrugged.
Harry nodded and then glanced at Hedwig who barked at him and made a movement to show she wanted him to follow.
"I'll be back in a few minutes. I'll see what Hedwig wants and then grab my stuff."
He followed Hedwig out the half opened back door and into his sunny garden. Xi-Wong followed closely, eyeing everything but more relaxed then in Gringotts. Hedwig led him to the greenhouse where she slipped in the half opened door. Harry frowned remembering having locked it before leaving but shrugged. He stepped in and was immediately assaulted by the flower Faeries. He pushed them away softly and dodged them to follow Hedwig to the back of the greenhouse.
He found himself staring in surprise at the plant hanging from the ceiling. This plant was one of the ones he'd gotten that ate his magic to grow. It had grown wildly. It had branched into hundreds of strong vines, each holding many flowers of a delicate blue in color. The whole thing though had shaped itself into a vine-y sphere that hung from the ceiling. A small opening was what Hedwig had slipped into. Harry peered in and found the inside was hollow like a giant birdhouse.
He gasped in surprise. Inside was Keiruim curled up happily. Hedwig prodded the Colored Thief and it hesitantly moved. Six pure white eggs lay clustered together. Harry ogled them for a moment.
"Hedwig?" He asked breathlessly.
She barked happily and cuddled against Keiruim, laying over the eggs protectively. Harry softly left the two alone, grinning widely.
"She's having chicks." He told Xi-Wong happily.
The demon just tilted his head slightly.
Harry happily skipped back into the house and to his room where he hummed while tossing things in his red satchel. Uncaring of Xi-Wong who stood next to his door he shed his clothes and changed into a pair of black slacks and a red button up silk shirt that had a black raven stitched on the breast. He grabbed his red fedora and pulled it on before glancing at Xi-Wong.
He dug through his dresser a moment and came up with a pair of dark green shades that matched a couple strands of his hair.
"Here, this will hide your eyes. They may make people uneasy and I don't want you attacked."
Xi-Wong examined them a moment then slid them on awkwardly. Harry smiled.
"Oh, and here, change into this."
He spelled a plain purple shirt and some loose pants to fit the man. The demon changed without prodding and Harry folded his clothes, setting them in one of his extra bags and hanging said bag to him telling him to keep it.
Then Harry grabbed the rucksack and tent he still had from his trip to Egypt and strapped them on his back.
"That's everything. Before we head to the World Cup we'll head to the muggle mall nearby. We can get you some clothes."
He led the demon downstairs where Dante was practically bouncing up and down while waiting. When he saw Harry he launched himself at him.
"Harry! I made you a present."
Harry found a small rectangular box shoved in his hand before he could even open his mouth.
He examined it a moment.
"Um, thank you?"
"Open it." Dante whined.
Harry gently opened the box and found a pair of small oval/rectangular glasses sitting in the box. The silver frames were dainty with small engravings along the side with pictures of small lilies and runes.
"I visited the muggle eye place and got the lenses with your prescription. Harold helped me make the frames." Dante grinned excitedly. "And then I tinkered with them."
Harry warily pulled his own glasses off and put Dante's on. He looked through them and found nothing different. Dante grinned and pulled a book from his robes, shoving it in Harry's hands. Harry looked at him confused before looking down at the book. He flipped a few pages but it was just a story.
"What am I looking at?" He asked.
"Take the glasses off."
Harry took them off. Looking down at the book all he saw was weird lines. He frowned and flipped through the book. It was illegible now, written in another language. He put the glasses back on and started to comprehend what Dante had done. He blinked in amazement.
"That book is in Arabic." Dante clapped happily. "I made it so the glasses can translate any written language still known today."
Harry stared at the demon in amazement. He knew nothing like this existed. If it ever got out what these glasses did they'd be worth more than a fortune.
"Thank you." He whispered breathlessly handing to book back and slipping his old glasses in his bag.
"If you ever want to turn the enchantments off, as if you ever would want to," He scoffed, "you can push the lily on the edge of the frame on the right side."
Harry stored this away in memory.
"Thank you." He smiled.
Dante scooped him in a hug and then set him down just as quickly.
"Now hurry off, you have to make the Quidditch cup which starts in four hours."
Harry just chuckled and pulled his shoes on, transfiguring a pair for Xi-Wong. He prodded the demon into putting the spear in his bag and then led him outside. Once he was sure no one was looking he grabbed Xi-Wong's hand and apparated to a safe apparation spot near a mall.
"If anyone asks, you got your hair died in America."
The demon nodded confusedly and followed Harry into the store.
.-.
Harry hummed happily as they stepped from the last store. He'd stopped by the small grocery store to grab some things. Knowing Valentine and Harold they wouldn't have bothered to pack much to eat while Dudley wouldn't have grabbed enough. And he doubted any of them had thought to have brought Galleons, sickles, or knuts. Besides, muggle food was better for camping in his opinion.
Loving the story so far? There's a whole world of magic and mystery waiting for you with over 85+ chapters still to come! By supporting my Patreon.
You not only get early access to new chapters but also exclusive content, behind-the-scenes insights, and special perks just for fans like you.
Join us on this enchanted journey and help shape the future of the tale. Your support makes all the difference—discover more and become part of the adventure today!
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(P).(A).(T).(R).(E).(O).(N)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~