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SIYE Time:10:37 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: 167848; Chapter Total: 4560





Author's Notes:
I'm very sorry it took so long to update, guys. Lots of things have been going on lately. I just started ninth grade, and it's more time-consuming that eighth grade. Also, a week or so ago, I became a published author. Seriously! Check out my book 'Ellyona, Lost' on Amazon.com or at the publisher's website. links to both ----> http://www.amazon.com/Ellyona-Lost-Avchi-Trilogy-Volume/dp/1500235962/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1412613756&sr=8-1&keywords=ellyona+lost and https://www.createspace.com/4862071 . So yeah. Enjoy chapter 28!




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Chapter Twenty-Eight
A Trade

“Yes!”

“No!”

I stopped, startled. Dreamkeeper walked up to me, and, putting her hand on my shoulder, stared down the two judges.

“I will not allow another soul to be sucked up by your temptations,” she said firmly.

“But they can heal me!” I said, staring aghast at Dreamkeeper. “What are you getting on about?”

“If you go with them to their realm, you will not be allowed to leave,” Dreamkeeper spoke gravely. “They will bind you to their laws tighter than Messiah’s hold on you.”

“My Lady Keeper of Dreams,” the first Judge said with a slight smile, “the mortal speaks true. Whatever could you mean?”

“Lies are full of beautiful words,” Dreamkeeper spat. “You know exactly what I mean.”

The Judge seemed to smirk, but the expression was quickly replaced with calm disinterest. “Dreamkeeper, you wish to lead this mortal astray. We can cure her; surely she is willing to do anything to remove the seed of insanity?”

“My point exactly. You leave the price of all your gifts vague until the taker has no choice but to pay them.”

“Wait!” Harry stepped between the three Judges and Dreamkeeper, looking between the two of them. He focused his gaze on the Judge. “What would we owe you if you healed her?”

The Judge looked him up and down, then stepped around him to stand before Dreamkeeper again.

“Hey!” I said. “Don’t ignore him!”

“He is another mortal,” the Judge said with a shrug. “Neither dead nor dying. He is of no interest to us.”

“That is my match,” I said sharply. “He has just as much say in this as I do.”

The Judge raised an eyebrow, turned to look at Harry, and then stepped back again. “What was your question?”

Harry’s jaw clenched before he spoke. “I asked what would we owe you if you healed her?”

The Judge shrugged. “Usually a few years of bondage.”

“Bondage?”

“You know, intern with us for a while.”

“How long a while?”

The Judge’s face was passive. “Until her debt is paid.”

“What he means is that she’d have to stay in their Realm for the rest of her life,” Dreamkeeper snapped. “If you let them cure her, then she owes them her life.”

“What other options does she have?” the Judge asked, his eyes darkening. “Let you babysit her like you do your demented husband?”

Dreamkeeper didn’t reply immediately. I could see hurt and anger in her eyes. “That would be better than being trapped in the Realm of Prisoners for the rest of her life.”

“Prisoners?” I repeated. “Who said anything about Prisoners?”

“You would have to guard low-level prisoners, people serving time for small sins in their life,” the Dreamkeeper explained. “Of course, the Judges wouldn’t say any of that until after you owed them your life.”

Harry put his arm around my waist possessively. I glanced over my shoulder at Lord Time, who was staring blankly into space, holding onto Fraya’s arm.

“Would there be any way to pay my debt early?” I asked.

“Well, that would depend on the type of service you do, how difficult it is to cure you; any number of factors,” the Judge said.

“No, there wouldn’t,” the Dreamkeeper said. “If they save your life, they own it. And they don’t like letting go of their slaves.”

“Madam Dreamkeeper, you are scaring the poor mortal.”

“No, she’s being honest,” I said. “There isn’t any way they could cure me and I not owe them my life?”

“I can’t think of any,” Dreamkeeper said, raising a hand to rub her temple.

“What if we paid them to do it?” Harry suggested.

“We have no desire for any goods you could offer us,” the Judge said.

“What about a trade?” I said. “We give you something you want, you give us something we want.”

“We already have the Demon King,” the Judge sniffed. “That was given to us with no strings attached.”

“What about the Demon King’s protégé?” I asked.

The Judge raised an eyebrow. “What protégé?”

“His name is Tom Riddle,” I said. “People call him Lord Voldemort. He is the greatest evil in the Mortal World since the Demon King himself was free.”

“We have taken notice of this Lord,” the Judge said. “He is quite powerful.”

“What if we defeated him and gave him over to you?” I asked. “Would that be a great enough service to grant me a cure without owing my life to you?”

“The events in the Mortal World are of no interest to us. If an evil man is killed, so what? That makes no difference to us.”

“What about two evil men?” Harry posed.

“Still no difference.”

“Two of the same evil man,” I added.

The Judge furrowed his brow. “Two of one man? That is not possible.”

“Yet, it has happened,” I said. “Lord Voldemort created Horcruxes, and he used one of those Horcruxes to bring a second him into the world.”

“That is against our most fundamental laws,” the Judge said softly. “There shall never be two of the same soul in the same universe ever.”

“We can deliver both to you,” Harry said, “only if you heal Ginny without taking ownership of her life.”

The Judge thought it over. My breath was caught in my throat. I squeezed Harry’s hand as we waited for the Judge to answer.

“I accept your offer,” the Judge said. “Slay the two Lord Voldemort’s and we will cure this mortal without expectation of any further payment.”

The Judges turned, and walked back towards the swirling vortex they had come from. They stepped through, and vanished.

I turned to Harry, inhaling deeply. “There’d better not be a lot of Horcruxes left to destroy,” I said.

Harry’s eyes were dark. “It doesn’t matter how many are left, I’ll get rid of them as fast as possible. What matters is how we kill Voldemort.”

The Dreamkeeper put a hand on my shoulder. “We can help with that,” she said with a smile.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ *~*

The fire demons were sent out to look for concentrations of dark magic. Dumbledore poured through old accounts of Voldemort’s movements after his years at Hogwarts, from the day he left until the attack on Hogsmeade. Harry spent every moment not searching practicing his dueling skills and elemental powers. Luna trained him daily in the Room of Requirement, with Frost’s help. Fraya visited just as often, trying to help coax elemental powers from me. However, no matter how hard I concentrated, I couldn’t produce a single spark without my wand.

“Come on,” I growled, jabbing a pile of dry grass with my finger. “Catch fire!”

“It takes patience the first time,” Fraya said, watching me struggle from across the room.

“Easy for you to say,” I grumbled, leaning up against a wall. “You were born with your head on fire.”

Fraya chuckled. “Actually, no. A fire demon’s hair doesn’t become flame until they are mature.”

“Oh, wonderful.”

Across the room, Harry aimed a bolt of lightning at a dummy of Tom Riddle. I watched it explode and fly through the air in a million pieces.

“Why can’t it be easy?” I asked.

Fraya followed my gaze and sighed. “Normally when a Storm Runner or Firefly tries to learn elemental powers, it takes months of meditation and mental training before they can begin learning just the basics. With your match, well, all the knowledge he needed was implanted in his mind the fast way. Unfortunately, that doesn’t work for Fireflies. Fire is more demanding than storm magic. It requires absolute concentration, power, and humbleness.”

“Humbleness?”

Fraya nodded. “If one becomes too arrogant in their power, it can turn on them and consume them. Fire doesn’t allow for weaknesses in its user, nor does it allow impurities.”

I laughed humorlessly. “Maybe I’m not pure enough.”

“I doubt that. You are very virtuous, courageous, and powerful. Those are the three most important qualities in a user of Fire magic.”

“I’m also insane,” I mumbled, dropping my chin onto my knees. Fraya touched my shoulder gently.

“Not yet,” she reminded me. “We’ll get this Lord Voldemort and the Judges will heal you. Don’t lose sight of that.”

“But I can’t set a stupid fluff of dry grass on fire!” I raged, throwing my arms in the air.

The stupid fluff of dry grass started smoking. I dropped my arms and stared at in in disbelief. Fraya chuckled.

“That’s one way to do it,” she said as a flame grew slowly in the grass.

“But aren’t we supposed to let anger affect our magic?” I asked.

Fraya shrugged again. “To use fire magic there must be a fire within. Frequently the best way to learn how to start the fire is to vent anger.”

I looked back at the grass, then waved my wand and conjured a clump of branches. I focused on the feeling of anger and tried to channel it towards my magic. My palm heated. I grinned, and pressed my palm to the wood. Nothing happened. I scowled, pressing harder. The bark smoked.

“Come on,” I muttered. I squeezed my eyes shut and imagined sparks flying at the bark of the branches. On impulse, I snapped my fingers. Heat caressed my arm. I opened my eyes to see the branches catch fire.

“Well done!” Fraya said, beaming. “Now, try to produce a flame in your palm.”

Five days later, I was with Fraya, Luna, and Harry, practicing using our elemental magic in duels, when Bill ran in.

“We found one of the Horcruxes,” he said shortly.

I snuffed out the fireball I’d been about to throw. “Where?”

“A seaside cave. Dumbledore’s waiting for us now.”

Harry and I followed Bill from the Room of Requirement to the Entrance Hall. Dumbledore was standing by the doors, wearing a traveling cloak.

“I can only bring one with me,” Dumbledore said.

“Me,” Harry said instantly.

I grabbed his arm. “Harry, no.”

“I have to go,” Harry said. “It’s my job.”

“He is correct,” Dumbledore said. “I will need his help. We must move quickly. Harry, when you are ready.” The professor stepped towards the doors.

“What about Bill? Isn’t he more experienced, wouldn’t he be better at this?”

“But I’m supposed to destroy these things,” Harry said. “It’s my duty.”

I bit my lip. I didn’t want him to leave me, but he was right. “Okay,” I said. “Just, be careful.”

Harry nodded; he kissed me quickly, then followed Dumbledore out the door. Bill put a hand on my shoulder and squeezed it reassuringly.

“They’ll be okay,” Bill said. “Dumbledore will protect him.”

I nodded, but I wasn’t sure if I believed him or not. Bill slid his arm around my shoulders, and steered me towards the Great Hall.

“How about some dinner?” he said. “You guys have been up there working all day.”

I shrugged. “Fine.”

Bill sat me at a table and served me a bowl of stew. I half-heartedly picked up my spoon and dipped into the stew. I raised it to my mouth, and dropped it with a gasp. My spoon clattered to the table, and the eyeball that had risen to the surface of my stew bobbed slightly. Something grabbed at my hand; something slimy and scaly. I jumped up, my eyes widening at the sight before me. A snake with legs, drenched in a thick green liquid. It leapt off the bench and stalked towards me. Its tail swished behind it; its tongue flicked from in between sharp pointed teeth. I drew my wand, my arm shook as I pointed it at the thing advancing on me.

“Back off,” I warned, hoping my voice wasn’t shaking.

“What’s the matter?” It hissed. “See something you don’t like?”

I stumbled backward. “Stay away from me!”

It lunged at me; I shouted in alarm. The thing’s hand latched onto my forearm, and it suddenly let go, grabbing at its hand and howling in pain. Its palm was an ugly red, and blisters were already forming over the skin. I turned and fled from the hall. I skidded to a halt in the Great Hall, my breath coming in heaves. I looked around frantically, searching for an escape. The doors to the grounds were ajar. The thing stumbled from the Great Hall, trailing the green goo behind it.

“Wait, Ginny,” it called. Its mouth split into a tooth grin. “I only want to eat you.”

I threw open the doors and ran out of the castle. I glanced behind me; the thing was pursuing me still. I pumped my arms, breathing heavily, trying to get away from it. I ran towards the forest.

“Ginny, stop!”

I ran harder; fear pushed adrenaline through my veins.

“Ginny!”

“Leave me alone!” I screamed.

“Stupefy!”

I glanced back, confused, to have a jet of red light hit me in the chest. My legs collapsed beneath me, my eyes rolled back in my head; I fell to the ground unconscious.

The first thing I registered when I woke was that I was warm. I was lying on a soft bed with a plush pillow propping me up slightly. Someone had drawn a blanket up over my shoulders, my arms tucked under it. I blearily opened my eyes and looked around; I was in the Hospital Wing.

“Anyone here?” I called.

“Mum and Dad just left,” said Ron’s voice from my right. I turned to look, and found him just out of my sightline. I tried to move to see him better, but something held me in place. Frowning, I tried to lift my arms to move the blanket, to see what held me down, but they were fastened too.

“They had to strap you down,” Ron said. I looked back at him, eyebrows raised. “You kept fighting them,” he explained. “Even after Bill stunned you.”

“What?” I said. “When did Bill stun me?”

“Something must have spooked you bad, because you ran out to the grounds,” Ron explained. “Bill couldn’t get you to come back inside so he stunned you. You started fighting to get away from him but you weren’t conscious, so he brought you here.”

I frowned again. I couldn’t remember any of that happening. In fact, I couldn’t remember much of anything. The last thing I could recall was waking up this morning and going to the Room of Requirement to practice with Harry.

“Where’s Harry?” I asked, looking around again.

“He’s with Dumbledore,” Ron said. “Don’t you remember?”

“Actually, no,” I said, a frown arranging my features.

“You don’t remember anything?” Ron asked. A similar frown etched itself into his face.

“I remember going to the Room of Requirement.”

“Anything past that?”

I shook my head; my gaze drifted away from my brother to the ceiling high above me. This blackout in my memory nagged at me, a subtle panic growing in the back of my mind. The last time I had experienced such gaps in my memory, I had been possessed by a diary.

Dust fell into my eyes. I blinked it away hastily. I frowned up at the ceiling. It was shaking.

“Ron?” I called.

“What?”

“Do you see that?”

“See what?”

“The ceiling. It’s shaking.” Dust cascaded from above me, crumbs of stone falling to the ground. I blinked hastily, the dust catching itself in the moisture of my eye sockets. A chunk of rock came crashing to the ground, shattering on the floor.

“Ron! The ceiling’s falling! Get us out!” I shouted. I strained against the straps that held me to the bed.

“Ginny, calm down,” Ron said hastily, “it’s fine. Nothing’s happening.”

“No, the ceiling! It’s falling!” Another section of ceiling fell, followed by another. The bed next to my collapsed in half as a large chunk of stone crashed onto it. “Ron! Untie me!”

“The ceiling’s fine,” Ron said. “You’re perfectly safe.”

The ceiling shook all the more violently. The ground was quickly covered in broken chunks of rock, coated in stone dust. I fought against my bindings, desperately begging my brother to release me. Ron shouted for someone; I wriggled my right arm, struggling to pull it out, but whatever held me down stayed fast.

I glanced up, and redoubled my efforts. The portion ceiling directly above Ron and myself was trembling violently. Dust flew down to us; I pulled on my arms as hard as I could. I looked back up, to see the ceiling groan and give way.

“Ron, get out!” I shouted. The ten foot long slab fell, turning in the air.

“It isn’t real,” Ron said. The chunk of stone hit the ground on its end, the floor shaking at the impact. My heart stopped. It wobbled, leaning to the right.

“RON!” I screamed, as gravity shoved the stone to the right. Ron opened his mouth to say something, and the ceiling slab squashed his bed flat. Another huge chunk fell on top of the slab, burying my brother.

Tears were streaming down my face, carrying dust and emotion from my eyes. I struggled, as the ceiling fell around my ears. Not one stone fell on my bed. I looked up at the sky, at the stones raining onto the Hospital Wing. The black night pushed the final few portions of ceiling still hanging on, shoving them towards the earth. A darker black silhouetted against the sky, three dimensional darkness grinning down on me as it flicked stone onto the floor.

“I’ve got you,” it rumbled. “It doesn’t matter that you got me, because I’ve got you.”
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