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SIYE Time:19:47 on 28th March 2024
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After
By Senator of Sorcery

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Category: Alternate Universe, Asylum Challenge (2013-3), Asylum Challenge (2013-3)
Characters:Albus Dumbledore, All, Draco Malfoy, Harry/Ginny, Hermione Granger, Lily Potter, Luna Lovegood, Minerva McGonagall, Other, Ron Weasley
Genres: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Romance
Warnings: Dark Fiction, Death, Disturbing Imagery, Violence
Story is Complete
Rating: PG-13
Reviews: 105
Summary: *** Winner of Best Overall, Best Drama and the People’s Choice Award in the Asylum Challenge ***
*Nominated for 2014 April/May and November/December DSTA for Best Romance and Best Drama* *Nominated for 2016 January/February DSTA for Best Drama and Best Completed*

Ginny's plans for the weekend were just perfect: a day out in Hogsmeade with her girlfriends. Spend the morning window shopping and wishing, then lunch at the Three Broomsticks, and then to the local theater for a production of the Scottish Play (Macbeth).


Unfortunately, the bad luck of the Scottish Play strikes before it even starts. The village is invaded by Death Eaters, Dementors, and a man she had hoped to never see again in her life.


And in the middle of the battle, Ginny sees something she'd never thought she'd see. Voldemort and one of her greatest friends dueling; Harry Potter and Voldemort fighting so fiercely, she lost focus on her own battle. Harry Potter, crying out, falling, and hitting the ground. Dead.

And then, someone she never expected to help her saves her from Voldemort’s wrath.
Hitcount: Story Total: 167853; Chapter Total: 4800







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Chapter Twenty-Two

The Story of Amor and Abhor


The next morning started far too early. Harry shook me awake, saying that Dumbledore and the others were waiting for them in the Entrance Hall. I had time to run up to my dorm to throw on clean clothes before we ran, hand in hand, to meet the rest of the group in the Entrance Hall.

Dumbledore, Lucius, Remus Lupin, and Charlie stood by the doors, talking in low tones. My brothers looked up as we approached, causing Dumbledore, Malfoy, and Remus to notice us as well.

“Ah, very good,” Dumbledore said, smiling tightly. “We are all here, good. If you will follow me please, we will walk to the gates and Disapparate.”

When we reached the gates, Lucius gave us the address of the place we were Apparating too, and vanished. Dumbledore glanced at me and Harry, before Charlie waved him on and he Disapparated as well.

Charlie offered me his arm. Harry's grip on my hand tightened.

“I can take her,” Harry said. Charlie looked at him strangely. “Dumbledore's been teaching me,” he added. Charlie's brow furrowed.

“Do you have your license?” he asked.

“Not officially, but Dumbledore says I pretty much pass the test.”

They exchanged looks. I edged closer to Harry.

“I trust him,” I said. My brother sighed.

“Fine. You go, we'll follow.”

Harry's arm moved around my waist. I held tight to him, as we twisted into the rubber tube. I may have been used to the effects of Apparition, what with my many trips across Europe, but that did not mean I liked it.

We arrived on the edges of a thick forest that reminded me of the Forbidden Forest. Harry's arm around my waist was tight. He looked slightly green, so I left my arm around his waist, lending him my strength.

“I hate Apparition,” Harry mumbled as Charlie appeared with a pop.

“Let's go!” Lucius called, from his place by the trees. “We've got a ways to walk.”

“Why do we have to walk everywhere?!” I complained loudly as we set off. “First we walked to Israel, then to Godric Gryffindor's tomb, now to a portal!”

“We did not walk to Israel,” Lucius said, scowling. “We Apparated to Israel, and walked to a tree.”

“We still walked!”

“Portals leak a great deal of magic,” Lucius said. “The one leading to the Realm of Memories leaked magic that would have made Apparating directly to it hazardous. The same is true for this portal, only it is much stronger. And as for Gryffindor's tomb, we had to walk because there were ancient wards surrounding it. ”

“Then why could we Apparate to Stonehenge?”

“Because that magic was different. Just walk, Weasley.”

“When did you go to Israel?” Harry asked in a low voice.

“For the second test,” I replied quickly.

“Oh.”

Lucius's telling off worked for the most part. I kept my complaints mostly quiet from then on anyway. The entire time, I had my arm around Harry, or his arm around me, or both, or my hand in his. I never stopped touching him. I had noticed the pattern yesterday. As long as I kept touching him, I was safe.

At least I was until we neared the portal.

The further into the forest we walked, the tighter knit the branches above us became, until the feeble morning sun was completely blocked out. Mist ran along the ground, stirring as our feet carried us on. My grip on Harry's hand grew tighter and tighter as the mist thickened, and shifted. The magic was certainly getting stronger. I could feel it, I could even see it. The mist felt charged with power, and I didn't need the demon's helping hand to be scared witless by the shapes made in the mist.

I wasn't the only one. Every wand was out. Harry's jaw was clenched, and his arm was soon around my shoulders, almost pinning me to his side. I didn't mind the closeness, but I saw the way his eyes were darting around. He was tenser than I had ever seen him. Behind me, Lucius was jumpy and on my right, Charlie kept pointing his wand into the mist. Remus slightly behind Harry, his wand raised as well and his eyes moving around restlessly. The mist kept forming shapes, and I kept hearing vague whispers, in a language I did not recognize, in the darkness.

Suddenly, Lucius let out a shout of fright. A hulking figure had formed in the mist, and it was advancing on us, striking anything that was in the gap out of its way. Disturbing laughter rang in my ears, shaking the ground, mixed with the whispers that rattled my courage. I shot a Reductor Curse at it, but it passed right through the figure easily. Both Charlie and Remus cursed the figure, but it was still moving closer, and it was getting both bigger and more solid. Harry waved his wand in a half desperate move, and a glimmering gold shield appeared between us and the figure.

The figure struck the shield, and shattered into mist. I turned to Harry and planted a kiss right on his mouth.

“Harry, what- how-” Remus stuttered.

“I don't know,” Harry said, after I let his mouth go. “I just- I don't know-”

“We should keep moving,” Dumbledore called. “Lingering will only encourage the images to form faster and stronger.”

The magic only grew stronger. We walked closer together. I glanced at Charlie, who was probably seeing and hearing just as much as I was, and held out my hand to him. He glanced at it, his face shifting from fright to confusion, to relief barely masked with an 'If you insist' look. He took my hand and walked level with me.

“Stop!” Lucius called, not ten minutes later. He didn't need to. Everyone had already stopped, wary of the way the mist was swirling together in the middle of the path. I felt a strong urge to turn and run all the way back out of the forest. The whispers weren't so vague anymore. And now I could understand them. They all said the same thing.

Turn back... The voices sent shivers down my spine. Keep away... I shifted my weight nervously. Go home...

“This is the portal,” Lucius said. “Get in, get out. The sooner we leave, the better.”

I shivered again as I stepped closer to the swirling mist. There was a black point in the midst of the cyclone of mist. Black wasn't really the right word though. More like unending darkness.

Dumbledore approached it with us, his wand out.

“Might as well put that away,” I said. “It won't work in the Realm.”

Dumbledore glanced between me and his wand, and, with a sigh, pushed it into his robes.

“Ladies first,” Lucius said softly. I shot him a look of displeasure. Lucius shrugged. I sighed, and set one foot into the cyclone. Deadly cold spread through my leg, up through my body. Goosebumps rose all over my body. Harry stepped into the mist beside me, and I felt the hairs on his forearm stand up as he pressed close beside me. I glanced back at Dumbledore, who was standing just behind me, and stepped into the dark point.

My foot sunk into the ground like I had stepped off a cliff. I shot downwards. My hand was ripped from Harry's as I was sucked through the portal. I did not have time to shout even.

And then I was lying spread eagle on a grassy field. A ways to my left, though, the grass turns to rocky ground. Above me, a cyclone of mist like the one in the forest hovered. I sat up slowly, looking around warily. A thud beside me made me jump, but it was just Harry landing beside me. He grabbed my hand as Dumbledore fell from the cyclone, landing on the ground behind me.

“Oh, that must have broken something,” Dumbledore moaned softly, rubbing his back.

“It would if you were in the natural world,” a man's voice said.

The three of us started. Both Dumbledore and Harry went to draw their wands, and both gasped when they did not find their wands. I had expected something like this, so I just looked around to see who had spoken. A golden figure stands on the grass before me. It is just a figure; a human shape made out of gold. No face, no definition to the body, just a figure. Like that of a child morphing clay into a human.

“Hey!” Harry said loudly. “I've seen you before!”

The figure bowed his blank head. “Yes, Storm Runner, you have. However, I have not had the pleasure of speaking with your match before, nor your older companion.”

“Oh, this is Ginny,” Harry said, glancing at me with a smile, “and that's Albus Dumbledore.”

The figure extended an arm and bowed to us. “I am enchanted to meet you, Firefly. And you, Master Dumbledore. My name is Amor. Now, may I ask what brings you to my realm, Storm Runner?”

“What is a Storm Runner?” Harry asked. “You keep calling me that, but I don't know what that is. And what's a firefly?”

“A Storm Runner is the offspring of a mortal soul and a storm demon,” Amor said. “It is the same for Fireflies, but that of a fire demon.”

Harry stiffened. “Demon?” he repeated.

“It's just a term,” I assured him. “Like spirit. Saying something is a demon doesn't actually mean it is evil.”

“Your match is correct,” said Amor. “The fire and storm demons are creatures of nature. Storm demons range from wind spirits to Earth-shakers to water demons. I see you are the offspring of a pure Storm demon, one who controls winds and earth and rain.”

“Hang on, my parents were normal,” Harry said, “how can I be.. offspring of a demon?”

“You are a thirteenth generation Storm Runner. Thirteen generations past one of your ancestors fell for a Storm demon. Demon power runs in your veins, just as powerful as the first Storm Runner in your line.”

Harry blinked. I could tell most of this was escaping him. I sort of understood as it was.

“But we are moving from our point. What is your reason for entering my realm? I should hope it is a good reason, because by setting foot in an Untamed Realm, as the foolish Tamed call my realm, you have damned your souls.”

“Pardon?”

“I have kept my realm out of the hands of the Tamed, as they would ruin it and damn Abhor, and so they call my realm Untamed. As most Untamed Realms are dangerous to the point of destroying any being that entered them, the entrance to any Untamed Realm earns one hundred years damnation for the foolish soul that broke this law. While I am sure you have a valid reason, the Tamed do not like what they do not understand, and they would not understand any reason to enter an Untamed Realm. So, speak your reason, and leave soon. The longer you stay, the longer your damnation.”

I glanced at Harry. The fact that I had just earned my soul a load of damnation hadn't quite sunk in yet, and since I had no idea who or what Abhor was, I decided to push this law out of my mind and move on. “We needed a way into the Realm of Dreams, and since the portal to that realm is closed, we had no choice but to go through here. I was told there is a way from this realm to the Realm of Dreams.”

“You were told correct. There is a portal to the Dreamkeeper's home here. All Untamed Realms are connected.”

“The Realm of Dreams is untamed?”

“No, not anymore. It once was, and so it has a portal to the other Untamed Realms.”

“Right,” I said. “Could you point us in the direction of the portal?”

Amor turned towards the wasteland to our left. “It is that way. But it would do no good to approach it now. The Dreamkeeper, as she prefers to be called, is not in her realm at the moment, so the portal is closed.”

“Where is she then? When will she be back?”

“I'd say she's visiting her husband at the moment. He does need regular check-ups. As for when she will return to the Realm of Dreams, I cannot say. Time is difficult.”

“I've noticed,” Harry said, “but could you give us a general schedule?”

“No, I did not mean it is difficult to discern time, I mean Time is a difficult individual.”

“Huh?”

I wondered if Amor was smiling. If he was, I couldn't tell. “Time. The Time Lord to be specific. The Dreamkeeper married him several centuries ago, and so it is now her duty to keep him sane.”

“Of course,” I said, a little flustered. “There can be a little girl working for Death and a demon beneath our school, of course the Dreamkeeper can be married to time.”

Amor bowed his head again. “I am glad you understand. Now, while you wait, I should like payment for allowing you to enter my realm.”

“Payment?”

“Your story,” the figure said. “Tell me how you came to be here, and in return, I will explain something that has been confusing you.”

I glanced at Harry, who shrugged. And so I found myself telling a man made of gold everything, about Harry and Voldemort, about my journey's into the Realms, about meeting Godric Gryffindor and his match's ghosts, everything. I even told him about the demon who had threatened me. Amor listened to my story in silence, nodding his head and giving an occasional sound of understanding. When I finished, he turned away from me to the wasteland, his hands clasped behind his back.

“And now for my part. You may each ask one question, and I will explain everything about it that I can. Knowledge is power, remember. Ask a good question.”

I looked at Harry. His brow was furrowed and he was looking at his feet. My gaze flicked back to Dumbledore, who had been silent this whole time. By the look on his face, I guessed he had his question. I knew I did.

“How do I defeat Echidna?” I asked the figure.

Amor let out a slow sigh. “Echidna is a powerful being. She has lived for many millennia, but has been content to stay close to her brother's prison these past thousand years. Yes, the demon you must defeat is Echidna's brother. Echidna feels a fierce protectiveness of him, and she will defend him to her last breath. There will be no tricking her or changing her mind. She is not a being of reason. Even evil has its loyalties, and its love.” Amor trailed off into silence for a moment, staring off into the wasteland. He sighed, and continued. “She has not only her magic to aid her, but poisonous breath, and poisoned swords. She drips poison, everywhere. The poison will not kill you, but trick you so it is easier for her to kill you. Her snake body is several hundred feet long, and at the end of her tail she has poisoned barbs that she can throw, like that of a manticore. Her scales are harder to penetrate than a thousand dragons' hide, and even her humanoid body is scaled.”

“So how do I kill her?”

“She has three weaknesses that I know of. The first is her eyes. She is blind, but her hearing and sense of smell are strong. The second and third are harder to take advantage of. But, if you can manage to do so, you could defeat her with one strike.”

“What is it?”

“She is deathly afraid of the dark. She keeps fire with her at all times because of this. Even her hair is enchanted to burn everlasting. If you extinguish the fire, and all light, you will have a greater chance of winning. She is also so filled with poison, that to purify her would kill her. A single touch of a unicorn horn would kill her. To get near enough to touch her with the unicorn horn you would need to plunge both yourself and her into darkness. This is all I can tell you. I hope you succeed. Next question.”

“Where are Voldemort's Horcruxes, and what are they?” Dumbledore asked.

Amor turned to him. “The man calling himself Lord Voldemort has seven Horcruxes, three of which are already destroyed. The very first was a diary, which young Harry Potter destroyed saving his match. The second was a ring, belonging to his grandfather. I believe you have already destroyed this one, Master Dumbledore.”

Dumbledore nodded.

“The third is a diadem that belonged to Rowena Ravenclaw, which was enchanted to bring the wearer wisdom. This Horcrux has been revived, so to destroy it you must destroy the being that rose from it. I would advise you to use Mercy's Killer to kill this Horcrux.”

“Mercy's Killer?” I said. “What's that?”

“A curse, created by Godric Gryffindor, that will instantly and painlessly kill any creature it is cast on. I believe it is now called simply the Killing Curse.”

“Godric made up the Killing Curse?” I gasped.

“He did. He created it so he could put Salazar Slytherin out of his misery. There were other curses to kill in those days, and none of them provided what Godric needed. Mercy's Killer, as I said, kills instantly and painlessly. I make my point again, kill the resurrected Horcrux with Mercy's Killer. It is the quickest and best way, as the being risen from that Horcrux really is now a being while it lives. The fourth Horcrux is a cup, belonging to Helga Hufflepuff. This one rests in the Gringotts vault of Bellatrix Lestrange. Voldemort's fifth Horcrux is a locket that was Salazar Slytherin's. You will find it in the House of Black, as a reformed Death Eater known as Regulus Black gave his life to steal it, and entrusted it to his house-elf, Kreacher. The sixth is already destroyed, as it rested in this young boy here. When Miss Weasley pulled his soul from the Waiting Realm, the part of Voldemort's soul was left behind as it was placed in him in an unnatural way and did not belong to him. Now, the part of Miss Weasley that is in Master Potter was there naturally and did belong to him, so it came with him. The seventh Horcrux rests in a living being, a python he calls Nagini. Nagini remains with Voldemort at all times. Does this answer your question adequately?”

“Yes, thank you,” Dumbledore said, bowing his head.

Amor turned to Harry. “It is now your question, Master Potter.”

Harry did not look at Amor; his eyes were locked onto me. Slowly, he looked down at my hand, and inhaled deeply.

“How do I fix Ginny?” Harry asked quietly.

Amor's shoulders slumped; he exhaled slowly and looked up at Harry. “You cannot. What the demon has done cannot be reversed.”

“No! There must be a way!”

Amor bent his knees and knelt before Harry. “I am sorry, but there is not. The mind is a fragile thing, no matter how strong the soul. The demon has driven others farther than he has your match. Her sanity will go, whether you defeat the demon or not.”

“You- you're lying.”

Amor shook his head. Bright golden liquid was seeping down his blank face. He was crying. “I am not. I swear, I know no way to heal a mind that has been affected by the demon. No mind can hold up to his power. Not even the Time Lord could.

“I know this first hand,” Amor said. His voice was growing softer and sadder with each word. “I was the first mortal to fight him after he was imprisoned. My match suffered the fate your match will. I have tried to heal her mind, but it is impossible. I am sorry. It cannot be done.”

“What happened to her?” I asked. “How did you get here?”

“This is a fourth question,” Amor said, turning his body away from me. “I have no need to answer.”

“I asked you to clarify things before,” I said. “So did Dumbledore. You answered those questions. I am asking you to clarify something you have already said. It isn't a fourth question, it is a request for understanding.”

Amor turned back to me. I felt his magic emanating from him in waves; I felt his anger and pain rolling off of him in the air. I feared for a moment I had overstepped my bounds, but then the power faded; the anger turned to appreciation.

“You are very clever,” he said, nodding. “Very well. I will tell you my story, for it is the best way to explain, and to be honest, you could use the knowledge.

“I was born a mortal, long before the Tamed gained control and long before death was a permanent separation. People traveled the realms at whim, created portals when they wished, some even created their own realms. There were not Tamed Realms. Everything was wild and free. I was a simple farmer. I did not visit the realms often, only once a month to visit my mother in the Realm of the Blessed. I had met demons and beings from these Untamed Realms, but no more than most people. I was an ordinary soul. Until I met Abhor.”

“Doesn't 'abhor' meant hate?” I asked. Amor inclined his head.

“It does now,” Amor sighed. “Then, it was simply a name, like mine. Abhor was a girl, the most beautiful girl I had ever seen, and she was a powerful witch. Even though people traveled the realms, not many were magic-users, as magic was picky in those times. I had some magic before I met her, but only enough to aid me in working my farm. Abhor and I had a special bond. We were the first Fidelis Animas, the very first. After I met her, my magic grew alarmingly fast, and I was quickly just as powerful as she was. We fell in love instantly. We married, and she joined me on my farm.

“She visited the realms more often than I did, for she had lost her whole family when she was young. One day while she was visiting them, the demon broke from his prison. My match fought with the other beings to push him back into his prison, and as soon as I heard of the fight I joined her. We won, but at great cost. The Time Lord had trapped him, with Abhor's help, and even though the Time Lord caught the brunt of the demon's wrath and poison, Abhor was quickly driven insane. Her magic became unstable, and dangerous. Her mind had been lost, as had been her soul.”

Amor turned his body to face the wasteland again. “I tried to heal her, I took her to every healer in all the Realms, but no one could help her. The only being with the power to heal her mind was the very demon who had destroyed her. She was a danger to herself as well as others. I tried to keep her safe by keeping her on my farm. I warded my home against intruders of any kind. I tried to keep her happy, and safe.

“But after she lost her mind, she lost her love for me. My attempts to keep her safe, and away from others drove her to hate me. Her hatred was stronger than I, and she had always been more powerful than I was. I saw no other choice to keep her safe than to take her out of the Mortal World. I created this realm to hold her. I created even stronger wards around the portal, and pushed her into this realm.” Amor's voice cracked. “Though I succeeded in trapping her, her power was greater than mine. Her hatred killed me.”

“Even then, the Judges of the After-World controlled where souls went after death. I was not a pure soul. I had done things that I am not proud of in life. And, in a way, I killed Abhor when I pushed her into the prison I made for her. The Judges decided that my punishment not be damnation of the normal kind. They sent me to the realm I created to hold my love. It was cruel and unusual, but I had done cruel things before I met Abhor. This is not an unpleasant realm. It provides me with everything I need to remain, so to speak, alive in death. My punishment is no matter how far I go, I am always not far from Abhor. Her hatred has strengthened over the millennia. That is my punishment, to love someone who hates me.”

Amor's story finished, to be met with silence. Sometime while he was speaking, tears had slipped from my eyes, and Harry had pulled me into his arms. My eyes moved to the wasteland again, and I saw in the distance a crooked and dead tree, and a woman's figure struggling to pull free from a chain that bound her to the tree.

“So now abhor means hate,” Amor said, “and amor means love. The Tamed do not understand my realm, nor why I and Abhor are here, but I have done all I can to keep her from them. If they were to get to her, they would send her to Insanity’s Realm, with all the other poor souls that are too poisoned to be healed.”

“How did the Time Lord imprison the demon?” Dumbledore asked.

Amor thought a moment. “I don't actually know. The only people who can tell us, well, they can't really tell anyone anything.”

“Will I go to Insanity's Realm?" I asked in a soft voice. Harry stiffened beside me. Amor turned his head to face me with blank gold again.

“Perhaps,” he said. “You are not yet as insane as those in Insanity’s Realm. If you were to die now, you would not. You would be sent to the Realm of Kings, most likely, to honor what you did to thwart the demon.”

“You won't die,” Harry whispered in my ear. “I'll find a way to heal you.”

I wasn't listening. “If I died now, I would go to the Waiting Realm first, right?”

Amor nodded.

“And I wouldn't move on until Harry died too, right?”

“Yes,” Amor said slowly, confusion clear in his voice.

“But Harry could pull me back. He could bring me back to the Mortal World. If that happened, would I still lose my mind?”

Amor was silent a moment. “The Waiting Realm is not a place for healing. You would be sent from the Waiting Realm to the Realm of the Broken so your mind would be healed, and then back to the Waiting Realm to wait for judgment.”

“So that could work!” I said. “Harry would pull me back after I was healed, and then I wouldn't be insane anymore!”

Amor shook his head. “You have already pulled him from the Waiting Realm. What you did can only be used between Fidelis Animas once.”

My heart sank. I had been so sure...

“Why can't you do it twice?” Harry asked.

“It is not a simple thing,” Amor said. “When she pulled you, Master Potter, you exchanged the parts of soul that belonged to the other, so for a moment, your soul was entirely yours and none of her was in you. When you met again, part of you and part of her switched again so you were the way you were before you died, but if they were to be traded back, they would be destroyed. The soul is not meant to be moved once it has settled into a body.”

Harry's shoulders slumped behind me.

“As I said, there is no way to reverse the demon's work. I am sorry.”

“You're wrong,” Harry growled. “I WILL find a way. I swear it.”

Amor sighed, and rose to his feet. “I see it will do no good to try and convince you. The Dreamkeeper has returned to her realm. I will take you to the portal.”

Harry pushed himself to his feet, and then pulled me up. Dumbledore rose to his feet rather easily for an old man, and we followed Amor to the edge of where the grass ended and the wasteland began. It was a simple hole in the ground, fortunately large enough for us to jump down. Amor bowed to us, and retreated back to the grass.

Dumbledore jumped down the hole first. Harry waited for me. I glanced at the tree, at the woman still struggling to break free of her chains, and jumped down the hole.
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