Demented Beginnings
“What you doin’?” A quaking voice asked, blue eyes staring into bespeckled bright green. “I’m not doing anything!” The smaller figure shouted before urging the bigger boy to run. Together, they ran from the park and tried to take cover under a bridge in a service walkway. There, the cold became unbearable. Lights flickered as their breaths misted before them. And then, they were there.
The wraith flew in and trapped the smaller boy, pinning him against a wall with bone-like hands. “Dudley! Run!” He choked as he struggled in the creature’s hold. The bigger boy, Dudley, didn’t make it far before another creature cornered him as well. And then, the misery truly began.
The smaller boy could only hear the screams as he watched his cousin be attacked. He tried to reach for his wand, stunning the wraith holding him for freedom, but in the midst it was lost as he hit the ground. The screams continued, getting louder and louder until all he could do was scream as well.
Pain. So much pain. Dudley whimpered nearby but all he could do is scream alongside his lost mother as pain ripped through him. And then, he felt a snap.
Pain. Anger. Fear. Attack.
He screamed as he lunged at the figure hovering over him, scratching, biting, ripping any part he could reach to make it stop. Make the screaming stop. Make the pain stop. Make it stop. Make her stop.
But he wasn’t done with just one. There were more and he had to destroy them. He had to protect. That was a young boy. A child and this creature was attacking them. They had to die. With a screech, the smaller figure continued his attack against the wraiths as they appeared, using his wings to knock them back, biting or clawing any part he could reach. He would protect the young one. He would protect his family. This darkness would not take what was his. He lunged, jumped, blocked, flapped, and roared. Claws, teeth, anything he could do until nothing was left but wisps for darkness and dust floated around him.
He breathed heavily as he stood over the unconscious boy, sharp eyes taking in all around him to make sure nothing was left. A slow clapping from behind him made him pivot however, lower into a crouch to prepare to attack. A stranger, unlike the wraiths, stood there, an amused smirk on their face.
“Well done, little one. Now, it’s time to come back to us so we can talk.” The man intoned. The feral boy didn’t listen and lunged. The aura of the other was too strong. They could kill them and he couldn’t let them. Quickly, he found himself pinned however, a rumbling purr against his back in an effort to calm him.
“You’ve done good, Harry. Come back now. Your friend and I need you here.” The man soothed, the rumbling purr continuing in an effort to sooth the distressed boy. Slowly, Harry stopped fighting, the cloud of instinct fading as he came back to himself. He couldn’t move, but he wasn’t hurt this time. He wasn’t in danger. The calm, soothing feeling helped as he slumped to the ground below.
“What happened?” He whispered. Remembering all he had done, all he had felt and thought. He didn’t understand, but he knew something had changed once more. Nothing ever stayed the same anymore for him. Too much loss. Too much change. Too much pain. “What did I do now?”
The dark haired male chuckled as he climbed off of the smaller male, crouching next to him with a small smile. “You survived, little one. And now, you will be reborn.”