Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or Elfen Lied, the best anime out there!
Summary: Harry has a secret: he's a diclonius. After abused by the Dursely's for four years, Harry is sent to the institution until he meets Lucy and breaks out. They get their Hogwarts letters and attend school, and are sucked into a whirlwind of murders, death, and crazy teachers.
Quote: When you're miserable, you need something that's even more miserable than yourself. Lucy, EL episode 8
Lucy lugged a huge book off the shelf, staggered over to the table, and dropped it with a loud bang. The table wobbled violently and Harry watched it fascinated, certain it was about to break, but it remained upright and still after a single shiver. Lucy jerked the book he was reading out of his hand and tossed it onto the next table, swiping the careful piles of parchment onto the floor. Harry sighed and knelt down to reorganize the papers while Lucy opened the tome, the table swaying and creaking with every page turn. Harry glanced curiously at the book. "It's a wizard geology book. It lists every single stone in the world along with its properties, the stone meanings, which stones that should be used to make grounded wards… it's all written in the table of contents." Lucy shoved the book towards him and Harry grabbed the table as it started to lean to one side. "If it's made out of earth it's in this book."
"Good. I want to get the dirt on this rock," Harry murmured. Lucy rolled her eyes and pushed her finger onto a page.
"See here? There are certain stones that have magical properties, that do certain things, and when combined with runes and arithmancy, they can as powerful as spells. That's where magic started in the first place, with stones, runes, and plants." Harry raised an eyebrow.
"How did you find this out?"
"It was in one of the creature books. After the wizards denied non-human's the right to bear a wand, and thus use our kinds of spells, they went back to using the original magicks." Lucy thumbed through the page corners before opening to 'Sight.'
"I always wondered why our spells are Latin based. It would seem that magic should have its own language that wizards would have used before Latin even reached England. That might be an interesting topic to research. I wonder why we don't use them now?" Harry snorted. "Probably because wizards are fat and lazy. They're too content with their own power, stolen from other races that they subjugated, and can't be bothered to get up off their asses and do something for someone else for a change. Where did you find this book anyways?"
"Pince showed me after I asked. She's a strange human. She seems to like us, probably because we spend so much time here." Harry glanced over at the librarian, who was hunched over her desk, rapidly flicking through several piles of parchment. Lucy licked her finger and set to flipping the pages, glancing at each rock but none of them seemed to match. Harry watched, head resting on his hand, as she flipped through the book with a look of utter concentration. Sunlight from the window was shining in her face, making her crimson eyes glow and warming her pale skin. They hung around the library for another hour before admitting defeat and wandering off.
With several hours to kill before dinner, they both decided to explore. They had both seen older students pop out of secret passages in a hurry to their classes, and wanted to find them for themselves. Or rather, just wander around until they got hopelessly lost. Secret passages were hidden all over the school. Harry found one by accident, tripping over an invisible stone and falling into a solid wall, only to pass through. They followed the hallway. It angled steeply downwards and became very slick at one point, in which Harry and Lucy eagerly dropped to their seats and slid down. The walls were a blur, several flashes of color indicating the rare portrait or another secret passage. They hurtled along at great speed until they suddenly were catapulted through the air. Harry caught a brief glimpse of the rising floor and hastily shote four vectors out, catching himself right before he would have splattered on the floor. Lucy shot out behind him and slammed him back onto the floor. She smirked at him, standing up and dusting off the bottom of her robes, looking around curoiusly. They were in an old classroom, the long desks pushed back against walls, tall stools piled on top. A sheet cover a tall object, stuck in the corner. Harry walked to the door and twisted the handle, pushing hard on it, then pulling when the door remained fastened shut. He griminced and tried again before giving up with a sigh.
He turned to Lucy, who was running her vectors along the walls and ceiling trying to find where they had come out. "I think we're trapped in here," she said finally. "The passage must only be accessible from the other side of the passage." Harry sighed and tossed a stool down, plopping on it and looking around the bare room. He used his vector to lazily jerk the sheet off what ever it was covering. It looked a bit like a stone muggle fountain, without the faucet the water came out of. Curius, Harry looked inside. The basin was empty, with no clue as to what it held. He ran his finger down the inside, marveling at the silky texture and ran his finger along hair-thin runes cut into the outer sides. He leaned over the shiny basin, lifting his hair off his forehead to check for a bruise, when something caught his eye. He paused, looking into the basin at another angle and stepped back, crouching on his heels and looking up at the bottom. "Hey, come over here and look at this…"
Lucy glanced at him. "What are you doing?" Harry ran his hand from the bottom of the basin to the middle of the side and put his other hand on the inner ledge.
"I think there's a false bottom in this." Harry slid his hand downwards and hit the bottom of the basin, more than half way from where it shouild have been. "Ah, thought so. When you look down, or at an angle, you can't tell that its fake. If you hold your head at just the right angle though, you can see right past they spell."
"I wonder whats in it?" Lucy mused. "By the way, it seems your door is just a piece of the wall pretending to be the door."
"What?" Harry turned around, surprised, and Lucy used her vectors to push hard on the door. Sweat stood out on her brow as the door refused to move. Harry joined her, and they both struggled to move the door. With a heavy scraping noise, the door pivoted on a hinge, and they were able to slip through the gap into another room. They slipped out of a door and came to a stop, surprised at seeing Dumbledore perched on top of a desk.
He too looked surprised at seeing them. "What a coincidence!" he said, beaming at them. His eyes twinkled merrily at them, nearly outshadowed by his flashing robe. "How have your holdiays been, my children? Lemon drop?"
"Fine," Harry said and reached out for the candy. He slipped it into his mouth, enjoying the sweetly sour face. Dumbledore's eyes sparkled ever more. "Yours?"
Dumbledore beamed. "Just splendid. I got a whole new collection of books to add to my library. People insist on sending me them, for some reason. Do you know what I really wanted?"
"What?"
"Wool socks. You see, these floor get dreadfully cold in the winter, and when the heating charms wear out, well, it's a bit of a nasty shock. And one can never truly have enough socks, you know. Enough about that though. Are you excited about the new year? How are you liking your classes so far?"
"They are fine, Headmaster. I'm learning a lot," Lucy said.
"That's good," the headmaster said with sincerity. "It does my heart good to know that my students are getting a wonderful education and having a great time here." He stopped and looked at them curiously, their sweaty, damp robes handing haphazardly off their shoulders. His eyes twinkled and rose to his feet, starting out the door.
"Wait, Professor!" Harry called out.
"Yes?"
"Would know the way back to the common room?"
He smiled again, chuckling. "Of course, my boy. I know nearly every passage in this castle, spending my early youth exploring like yourselves. Of course, I still find new rooms and hallways every day. Just last night, I came across a room full of the most exquisite chamber pots you've ever seen!"
After such a frigid winter, the chilly spring seemed almost like a sauna. The final exams were drawing near, and a sense of urgency had settled over the school. Even Harry and Lucy got caught up in the feelings, preferring to spend their time pouring over books and notes then talking quietly in the corner. The teachers too had assigned more homework and started drawing up a basic study guide for their classes. Even Malfoy and Weasely had called an unofficial truce so they could concentrate on their books.
Harry's scar had been prickling for several weeks and it was really beginning to annoy him. The area around it was enflamed and raw from his constant rubbing. Harry put it off to stress of the exams but couldn't shake the feeling that it meant more than that. The pain increased as the weeks went on, and reached its threshold in the middle of the History of Magic Exam. He felt dizzy and hot, and put his hand to his head to wipe the sweat off, and when his hand came back down, it was smeared with blood. He quietly ripped off a section of his shirt and dabbed at his head, discretely trying to staunch the bleeding. He was distracted the rest of the exam, switching Igor the Terrible with Ogar the Horrible. Lucy seemed unconcerned, but Harry saw the worried looks she had.
It was at the end of the exams and the second-to-last week of school that it finally happened. Harry and Lucy were relaxing by a tree, watching Hagrid shell peas on his porch when Weasely, Finnegan, and Thomas had raced up the steps of the hut, voices clamoring over each other as they all attempted to ask something. Hagrid had laughed, voice echoing back against the forest. Harry and Lucy had caught the tail end of the conversation, something about music, before going off to search for Kouta. The last thing Harry remembered was a sting in his back and the hard cold floor rushing up to meet his head.
Everything was blurry when he woke up. Harry blinked and squinted as he tried to make out the shapes around him. He tried to rub his eyes and found that his arms had been bound tight to his sides. He lifted his head slightly and groaned as it swam and a headache began to pound furiously at his temples. He managed to roll over in just enough time to be sick all over the floor. He inched away from the puddle, concentrating on the other feelings to take his mind away from his stomach. The floor was icy, and he was startled to realize that all his clothes had been removed. Harry tried to pull his vector out, only to find them unresponsive. The action caused another sharp pain in his head and he gritted his teeth, whimpering slightly through the pain, almost falling unconscious again.
"Mr. Potter, so good of you to join us," someone said. The voice was deep and cold, and sent shivers down Harry's body. He tilted his head slightly, eyes focusing on the figure. Harry barely stopped himself from summoning his vectors. The figure shifted and walked towards him, grabbing him by his messy hair and hauling him up to his feet. Harry swayed, his eyes rolling back in their sockets, but the man shot a spell at him to keep him conscious and forcefully opened his mouth, and poured a potion into it. The effects were immediate. His head finally cleared and he was able to think again, and he was able to see the man who had abducted him.
It was Snape. He stood over Harry, sneering, with his wand positioned point blank at Harry's forehead. "Surprised to see me Potter? Of course you are. You're just the same as your father, an arrogant, selfish, spoiled bully." Spittle flew from the teacher's lips, and a few sparks appeared at the end of his wand. Harry took the time to look around him. A magical fire burned at one end of the room, and a mirror stood at the other.
Harry licked his dry lips. "Where is Lucy?"
"Lucy? Your "sister?" A leer replaced the smirk. "She was not needed for our plans, and thus she was removed."
Harry stared at him, uncomprehendingly. "What have you done with her?"
Snape causally reached into his pocket with his free hand and drew out two white shapes. He threw them at Harry, and they landed in his lap. He looked at them, horror dawning in his eyes at the sight of two white horns. He felt a shock go through him, and bitter desperation. To have here horns cut off, then that would mean that she really was dead. Harry's eyes started to burn. "It was lucky for me that I knew how to get rid of diclonius. Kakuzawa was most eager to spill all your secrets in return for a little of my help. It's a shame he had to die so soon, but he was a fool, and fools shouldn't expect to have long lives. Oh? You thought no one knew what you are? Contrary to your belief, the world does not revolve around you. I've already called the Ministry; they were quite shocked to find there were two dangerous half-breeds strutting around Hogwarts and killing students. And you, distraught over the untimely death of your whore attacked me, and I was forced to kill you… By the time the Ministry gets here I suspect that you will have met a grisly end at my hand. I, of course, will no doubt receive an Order of Merlin for services to humanity."
Harry slowly shifted to one side, noting the drug in his system still made his movements sluggish. "Do you really think you'll get away with your plan? Dumbledore-"
"Dumbledore," Snape hissed, "will be able to do nothing. Once the Ministry finds out that he allowed you in, he will find himself in a cozy cell in Azkaban. Already he has been detained in the holding cells, and I have been given the honor of exterminating your filth." Snape raised his wand, a spell on the tip of his tongue, and brought the tip slashing downwards. A streak of light cut through the air and Harry lurched backwards in desperation, avoided the worst of the attack. The ropes binding him fell to the ground, and Harry had a wild thought, that he had avoided the attack, when a thin red slash opened up and blood began to drip onto his chest. Pain flashed white hot and he grimaced, grateful at the very least that he was still alive.
"Avada Kedavr-"
"SEVERUS!" Both teacher and student whipped around, Harry taking the advantage to back away, optimizing the chance of his survival. Harry peeked around a column, noticing the trail of blood he had left, and was startled to see Quirrel.
"Severus, your orders were to retrieve the stone," Quirrel said in a high tenor, much different from his usual, "not fool around with children."
Snape dropped to one knee, resting his left arm, palm up, on top on his knee. "Master," he said reverently, "Dumbledore has place many protections on the mirror. I myself was unable to access the stone, but it showed me that I first must defeat an enemy before I would be deemed worthy." 1
"You fool. Step aside." Quirrel stepped full in front of the mirror, gazing into it. "I see myself with the stone," he said, voice lower, "and I am presenting to my master. But where can it be? Should I break the mirror?"
"Use the boy." Quirrel whirled around, wand up at the ready.
"Yes, Potter, come here." Harry crouched at the base of the pillar to make himself a smaller target. He could feel the drug weakening, and tried summoning his vectors again, and bit through his lip when he felt the pain again. He was so distracted that he didn't hear Snape come up beside him and forcefully drag him out.
He was shoved in front of the mirror and held up until he could stand on his own. He saw his reflection, bloody and naked, with a wound opened on the side of his head. Lucy too was there, standing behind him, and a smaller figure wrapped in trailing strips of cloth kneeling at their feet. Harry gasped involuntarily, and jerked his head around, seeing his professors watching him. He turned back to the mirror, seeing Lucy come to stand beside him, wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her head on his shoulder. Her hand moved, sliding down his body to touch the head of his diclonius, who looked up, single eye bright and bloody. It winked at him and opened its mouth, and inside Harry saw a red stone. The mouth closed and it swallowed the stone whole. 2 Harry felt a weight settle in his chest and he choked, gasping for breath. Quirrel tore him away from the mirror.
"Well? What do you see?"
"I see myself, and my sister," Harry answered truthfully.
"He lies. Let me talk to him, face to face."
"Ma-master, you are not strong enough."
"I am strong enough for this Quirrel. Do as I command." Quirrel bowed his head, and began unwrapping his turban. He turned around, and to Harry's horror, he found a face on the back of Quirrel's head.
"See what I have become Harry Potter? Mere shadow and vapor, forced to live off the lives of others. See what you have made me become." Harry stumbled backwards, too horrified to speak. "We could have been great together, Harry Potter. I am a generous man though. Join me, willing serve me and do all I command and I will grant you power. I can even raise your parents from the dead. All you have to do is say yes, and it will all be yours. Do you not wish for power, to destroy your enemies?"
"My parents?" Harry sneered, reaching deep inside him. "The only one I care about is myself. I live for myself, serve myself, and will die by myself if need be. I will not be a slave to a thing who couldn't even kill a baby. I will get my own power with time. I do not need yours."
Voldemort hissed. "Only yourself? What of your sister? Do you not care for her? Do you not wish you could be with her again? I can bring her back, if you do not care for your parents. We could be great together. We are so alike as well. Both of us, abandoned by society, both of us who see that there is only power, and those who are too weak to see it."
"I am not going to be your slave."
"No? Then I guess I will just take the stone from you by force! Quirrel, Snape, attack him." Quirrel jumped at him, intending to get a hold of him, and Snape cast a spell from the side. Harry ducked under both, whirling around to Quirrel's back and with Voldemort's malevolent stare on him, Harry cocked his hand back and let his arm fly with as much force as he could. Voldemort's eyes widened, and Quirrel jerked around, eyes a dull red, and received the punch full in the face. The soft nose cartilage broke under the pressure, and a gush of blood came forth. Quirrel fell to the floor screaming, and Harry dove forward over another spell and physically grabbed Quirrel to use as a shield. The spell hit, and Harry heard Quirrel's ribs crack. Steam rose from beneath Harry's hands and he let go, surprised, as Quirrel's flesh blackened and flaked off. Harry lifted his hand and forced it onto Quirrel's face and held it. He felt another of Snape's curses hit him in the back, and saw the world dim, and Quirrel's screams of anguish, Voldemort's shrieks of anger muffle before he fell unconscious for the second time that night.
When he woke up he was lying on a bed, dry, warm, and comfortable. "Ah, you're awake then. I was hoping you would come too soon." Harry turned his head, sighing as it stretched the stiffness out, and saw the Headmaster sitting calmly beside his table. He sat up, and Dumbledore reached for another pillow, fluffing it and putting it behind his back so he could rest comfortably. "How are you feeling?"
"Fine," he answered truthfully. His head no longer hurt and he felt fresh and awake. He reached up, feeling a bandage wrapped around his head and gave Dumbledore an inquiring look.
"You had a concussion," he explained. "Although it looked like someone had healed the internal effect, there was a large bruise and a deep cut left. I must ask you, if you don't mind, what happened in the chamber."
"Where is Lucy?"
Dumbledore smiled softly. "She is sleeping peacefully in the dorm rooms. Your friend, Kouta, is with her. She has barely left your side since you were brought in."
"She, she is alright?"
"Of course she is. Why wouldn't she be?"
"We were walking back to the common room after the exams, when I was hit from behind with some kind of spell. I woke up in the chamber and Snape gave me a potion that cleared my head and… He told me she was dead." Harry looked down at his hands, clasped on the sheets. "He gave me her horns, as proof. He tried to kill me when Quirrel showed up and stopped him. He was possessed, I think, by the spirit of Voldemort." Harry went silent. Dumbledore watched him intently. I looked in a strange mirror, that didn't show my reflection. Quirrel insisted I hand over the stone, and Voldemort tried to convince me to join him for his power. When I refused Quirrel and Snape attacked me. I feel unconscious soon after. What happened, Professor?"
Dumbledore sighed, leaning back in his chair, looking older than ever. "My old friend, Nicholas Flammel, once created a wondrous stone, which could turn any metal it touched into gold and make a person immortal. Earlier this summer, he got wind that someone would try to steal the stone. He gave it to me to hide and I did so, keeping a close eye on it. Obviously I didn't keep a close enough eye on it. I am an old man, Harry, a mere mortal, and I make mistakes. My first mistake was trusting Severus. Perhaps if I hadn't, the death of that poor girl might not have happened." Dumbledore raised a shaking hand to his head and rubbed his eyes. "I never dreamed he would attack a student like he did, and Quirrel completely fooled me.
"I was called to the Ministry earlier that evening, under an emergency order. The aurors had tracked down the dark magic back to Severus, you see, and wanted me to know so I could keep the students safe while they arrested him. It was too late, as I saw in your case. I ran to the chamber to check on the stone and knew immediately that it had been compromised. I arrived in just enough time to save you from the effects of a dreadful curse. Unfortunately, by the time the aurors arrived and subdued Severus, the stone was gone."
"Why did they attack me, and not Lucy?"
Dumbledore looked worried, and reached over to pat Harry's hand. "My boy, that is something I don't think you're ready to hear. You should enjoy life as much as you can before shouldering responsibility."
"I want to know, Headmaster," Harry said. "I need to know. If Voldemort could attack me so easily now, then I can't afford to be kept in the dark. I can handle the responsibility."
Dumbledore scanned Harry face, hard and determined. "Very well," he said. "Many years ago, just before you were born, I heard a prophecy, a prophecy that stated that a child would defeat the dark lord…" Dumbledore talked with Harry for another hour, handing him a small, cloth package, before patting him on the hand again and leaving. Lucy came in several minutes later, face somber and pale, and stared at him for a long second before crushing him in a hug. She crawled onto the bed next to him, and carefully unwound the bandages. Harry reached up, running his hands through her vermillion locks and tugged on the end of her hair tie. It unraveled, revealing a horn, bleach white and whole. Harry gasped, ripping the other hair tie out and realized why he couldn't summon his vectors. He reached up, feeling the rough edges of the remaining stumps of his horns. Lucy held his face in her hands, forehead touching his, as he wept.
The ride home on the train was silent. Slytherin had won the house cup, much to the anger of the other houses. The final Quidditch match had been played, Hufflepuff pulling in front of Ravenclaw by a mere ten points to victory. Dumbledore had thankfully given no mention of the kidnapping, although he did tell the students that Snape and Quirrel had been arrested for illegal activities. Everyone had been buzzing about the announcement and sprouting fantastical ideas which got more ludicrous as time went on. The ride home on the train was silent, Harry still feeling out of his element without his horns and unable to summon his vectors. Kouta had dropped in, and they made small talk about the year between them before the train began to slow and shuddered to a halt outside the platform. Kouta said his goodbyes to Harry and Lucy and departed, slipping unobtrusively through the barrier into the muggle world. Harry and Lucy followed, standing in the midst of the bustle, and started off into the crowd, loosing themselves as they left the wizarding world for the summer.
Sorry this chapter is a few days late; I wanted time to fix a few mistakes and add here and there. I didn't expect this chapter to be twice as long as normal, but I guess it doesn't really matter, does it. The sequel will be up after I have written a majority of the story. It was really hard to keep up with the chapter while studying for classes and writing other papers at the same time. The story will include a bit of the summer (maybe) and into the next school year. I hope you will enjoy it as much as you enjoyed this one.
1 Snape is actually seeing himself finally get back at James Potter through his son. It seems that this is a prevalent theme through the books, Snape always comparing the father and the son. What Snape needs is an excuse to hurt Harry, a justification if you will, for his actions. So he sees himself killing his greatest foe (James inside Harry) and retrieving the stone, which is what his second greatest wish is. That is why he thinks Harry must die by his hand first.
2 Harry knew nothing about the stone in the first place, and thus doesn't want it for his own purposes, or even care about it. This is a slightly different protection than the cannon that Dumbledore set up. After all, why would someone get through all the protections if they didn't want the stone, to keep it safe or to use it? It's safer this way, right?
Ja ne.