Not Alone Anymore

The Great Hall was a flurry of activity as Harry walked in, students talking loudly about their summers and excitement for upcoming classes. Professors distributed schedules, pausing to look over their charges before moving on. Breakfast foods were laid out on the tables, normally enticing smells causing his stomach to churn. He sat down at the Gryffindor table, a pit settling in his stomach as he noted that he was on the fringe of their year group. Alone, again. Chewing his lip, he began placing food on his plate despite his nonexistent appetite.

Professor McGonagall appeared with his schedule and narrowed her eyes at his appearance — his forced sheepish grin seemingly did little to reassure her, yet she quickly moved on to addressing the fifth years. He could almost feel himself slipping through the cracks, everyone's lives seemingly moving on as he floundered. His voice escaped him, as absent as the magic he missed despite the instincts urging him to cry out for help. His doubt that anyone would answer when none had before had him shaking off that desire.

Directing his gaze downwards, he carefully dragged his fork through the applesauce and beans only to start when the Great Hall began to shake. The wards, a voice in his mind hissed, Voldemort. He couldn't have possibly known that, and yet he was certain of its truth.

Voldemort was here. Why?

For him. Voldemort was here for him.

For him. He'd be alone, again. He could almost hear Dumbledore's voice reminding him of the prophecy, encouraging him to fight and follow his destiny. But he was tired, the bone-deep tiredness that had shrouded his mind since his birthday only growing deeper at the reminder that a madman wanted him dead. The reminder that even here, the only place that had ever been anything resembling home for him, he wasn't safe and never would be.

The wards shuddered again, a loud groan echoing through his mind as Hogwarts struggled to keep its attackers at bay. Professors began shepherding younger students into hidden hallways, eager to protect those who wouldn’t be able to protect themselves. He couldn’t protect himself, he realized. No magic meant that he would die. Voldemort would come for him and at last, he would die. 

Something in him shattered at that realization, his breath catching in his throat as pain flooded his senses. He would be alone, as always, doomed to face a monster that he couldn’t beat despite everyone else’s expectations. Tears streamed down his face as he choked back a sob, the burning pain seeming to grow more intense as his vision blurred and the realization gave way to denial, to rage.

No. He couldn’t, he wouldn’t be alone, not again. He paused in thought as his instincts surged to the forefront and he submitted to them, content to risk everything on the idea that maybe they would save him. That maybe, for once, he wouldn’t be the one on the frontline risking everything, that he wouldn’t be so bone achingly alone. All of these desires swirled in his chest, mixing with the burning pain that was already there as he cast his eyes to the sky and thought please.

Then his thoughts raced until they seemed to blur together into a demand that he not be alone, that someone, anyone join him and fight for him, protect him, love him. A scream escaped his lips, echoing in his mind as he begged the universe for a solution. His throat ached as the scream continued, scales settling onto skin and clawed hands digging into the wood of the table. Even as flashes of light brought his soulbonded to him and the wards fell to Voldemort's attacks, he remained unaware of anything but the scream and the pain and the fear.

Voldemort | Tom Riddle

He watched with glee as magic battered against the wards of Hogwarts, secure in the knowledge of the legions that had joined him to fight against the blasted half-torvak that ruled over its hallowed halls. The wards rippled under the force, struggling to maintain themselves against the constant blow. He was certain that they would fall soon and then he would be able to get inside and destroy both Dumbledore and his little golden boy for good.

Voldemort laughed as holes began to show, the ancient wards unable to stand against the efforts of so many of Britain’s dark creatures. He was so busy celebrating that he did not see the reconsidering looks of many of those who had supported him, nor the way the efforts to break the words paused as those casting the spells hesitated for just long enough for them to repair themselves.

Rage flooded his senses when he did notice, a curse already on his lips when his wand was knocked from his hand by the magical force of a chilling scream coming from the castle. He was blown back by the impact and watched as several of his followers shuddered before fleeing the scene, terrified of dealing with the threat that screamed promise.

Stubborn as he was, he stood again and rallied the remaining troops to attempt again. He could not risk Dumbledore escaping again, no matter what happened. 

Theodore Nott & Blaise Zabini

The wards were shuddering and he was desperately tugging on his mentorship bond, hoping that Ilsa would be able to reach Hogwarts quickly. He had the feeling something big was about to happen, even as Professor Snape started to lead them away. Theo paused slightly as he felt a tugging in his chest, an aching need that came from somewhere deep inside of him. A hand came up to absently rub at the spot, eyes flickering around before meeting with Blaise’s and realizing the other was doing the same. His mind went blank as a piercing scream echoed through the quickly emptying Great Hall and the magic enveloped him, pushing instinct to the front.

In a flash of golden magic, he found himself hovering over a familiar face. “Oh, Harry,” he breathed out, feeling the sadness and fear emanating in waves off of the submissive. As the Weasley twins appeared and immediately settled into a protective stance around his still screaming form, he stepped slightly forward so that he could watch as more people were brought into the room. He would need to get them out as soon as possible, he knew, but nothing could be done until the scream stopped. Until everyone was here and Harry was somewhat settled, an impossible timeline to calculate when you had someone waiting to attack. Still, there was nothing for him to do but wait.

Hadrian Maruke & the Vega Twins

Despite the early morning hour, the Cunningham’s training grounds were shrouded in darkness, as could be expected from the pseudo-royals of the Shadow element. Hadrian stood off to the side, claws digging into the palms of his hands as he watched the others run through warm-up exercises. They were preparing for fights, which he had been explicitly banned from participating in by Lady Mariana. His annoyance peaked at the memory of just why he was on the sidelines instead of participating but he quickly pushed it back down refusing to acknowledge that particular issue. 

Instead, he focused on the forms of those he was newly responsible for, the training circle that he never asked for and certainly did not want, as they ran through a series of stretches. “Did you do each stretch twenty times?” he asked when it appeared that they were trying to move on to the next step before they were ready.

“But Lady Mariana —” a young voice protested, cutting off as he turned to glare in their direction. 

“Lady Mariana is not your training ACE. Start over and do twenty of each.” He swallowed the urge to tell them that if they didn’t like it, they could ask about getting a new ACE. Certainly, if he said that, he would regret the punishment that would follow when Lady Mariana eventually found out that it had been his idea. Perhaps, one of them would decide to do it themselves and then he could get out of this situation and back into the pits.

As he settled back into watching, content to sit back and count the stretches as they were completed, he felt something tugging at his chest. Or rather, he realized with a tinge of bloodlust at his soul . As the golden magic swallowed him up, he noticed with growing dread that it had also snatched up the Vega twins that he had been set to train. He supposed he wouldn’t be getting off easily after all if the feeling of pure fear that was echoing through the new bond told him anything. 

Zandian & Ter

Watching over the Judgement portal was a dull task, one assigned on a rotating basis to different suites. Rarely did anyone arrive through that method of transportation given where the entrance was currently located; the Earth wizards had sent only one person through in the last 200 years. Successfully, that was. Nobody could say how many had been sent through only to be judged as unworthy and spat out wherever the portal sent those unfortunate souls. 

Naturally, Zandian had very little interest in the portal even if it was his assigned shift; more so because that shift was almost over without incident. He stood leaning against a wall, considering the fight that he had scheduled with his soul-bonded King. He rather hoped that the Ter was in the same sort of vicious mood that he was quickly falling into.

Wait. Why was he suddenly feeling so bloodthirsty? He had only just begun to question it when he felt a sharp tug and a new bond settling. Oh. Well, Ter had better be wherever he ended up or this could become incredibly complicated and irritating. He leaned into the golden magic even as he attempted to push feelings of comfort and safety through the barely formed bond to the screaming submissive. 

Seeing familiar eyes staring at him from across the hall comforted him for a brief moment before the wards around the building rippled and groaned. They were under attack, he supposed, which meant that it was time to fight. Stretching as he looked for the other Gheyos, he was startled when his eyes landed on a familiar mask. “Blood Raven,” he whispered. Two blood titles would certainly make this interesting and was indicative of the power levels of their shared submissive. Oh yes, he thought with a bloodthirsty grin, I will enjoy this.

Alec & Alden

Alec resisted the urge to roll his eyes as Advisor Keiran continued with his lecture, though his arms remained crossed over his chest. Perhaps he shouldn’t have been so hasty in jumping through the portal after Killigan, but was it his fault? If they hadn’t gone through the portal in the first place, he wouldn’t have been chasing them. Either way, neither of them had been hurt so he hardly understood why Alcandor had decided that he needed to be assigned a personal guard.

Judging from Alden’s pursed lips as he stood listening to Kieran’s lengthy rant, the older merrow was equally as annoyed. Actually. “Kieran, I hate to interrupt you but —”

“You love to interrupt me. Alec, do you not understand the importance of —” 

“Shh, shh. Anyways. Assigning Alden to follow me around, is Alcandor punishing me or him more?” He tilted his head to the side, watching as Kieran flushed purple with rage. The older man sputtered for a few minutes before throwing his hands up in the air and swimming off in a fit of rage. He would return, probably, maybe. If not, well, Alec did have work to do no matter what Advisor Keiran had to say about it. “Okay, Alden. We’re off to train Goonter now, let’s go!” Without waiting for a reply, he quickly set about leaving the palace and swimming in the direction of where he had left the Harron’s Sea Dragon.

The Gheyo let out a loud sigh as they arrived, settling against a chunk of coral as he stared at Alec. “I agree that it’s a punishment for both us,” he offered, withdrawing a knife and using it to carefully sharpen his nails. Alec winced as the echoing sound of a scream reached his ears, quickly shifting into his land walking form and watching with barely disguised interest as the gheyo did the same.

“I don’t think you’ll be required to follow me,” he got out just before being whisked away by a cloud of golden magic. It stung against his scales before burrowing deeper and demanding that he fight and protect. 

“You were wrong,” he heard as he landed in the dry room, bare feet wincing at the feeling on dirty stone floors. At least he could sense a large source of water nearby, otherwise fighting might be harder than he would like. As the statement sunk in, he turned towards the source and carefully took in everyone standing around. At least he wouldn’t be the only Merrow, he thought, noting that Alden would have a full suite of them from the looks of things.

Ariki & Ethan

The market was quiet for once, the early hour meaning that vendors were still setting up for the day and only a few people were waiting to start their daily tasks. It was for that reason that he had been allowed to make the trip to the square alone, instead of one of his parents accompanying him. Naturally, the small pastry stall was still in the process of setting up for the day even as the smell of rich spices started to waft from the freshly baked goods. 

He ended up waiting nearby with a familiar face, a Hartwood Scholar named Ethan who he remembered from long hours spent on the flight range. The memory of large ombre wings danced across his mind as his cheeks tinged pink. The other was quite attractive, despite spending most of his days inside bent over books. Ariki blinked, shaking himself slightly and redirecting his thoughts away from where they had been heading. 

“Ariki,” a familiar voice crooned, and the target found himself shuddering and shuffling slightly closer to the Pareya even as his eyes sought out the source. Based on the way that Ethan stiffened and fell into a protective stance, he wasn't the only one who felt uneasy about the approaching figure.

Yanek was all smiles as he approached, looking suitably graceful for a dragel of his social standing but friendly. Ariki knew that to be a mask, the other was conniving at best and persistent about his desire for Ariki to join his circle. “Ethan,” he added, looking extra pleased at discovering them together. “Oh, this is just wonderful. I was hoping to arrange a meeting with both of you separately but —”

“I have made my answer clear previously, have I not?” Ethan interrupted the annoyed tone of voice surprising Ariki and prompting him to speak up.

“Indeed, I have as well. I see no reason —” he cut off, gasping at the sharp pain in his chest as he made eye contact with a gheyo across the square just before they were whisked away by golden magic. Oh. “If you'll excuse me.” He had barely finished the words before the magic enveloped him, golden and warm and thrumming with a desire for companionship.

For a brief second upon landing, he felt guilty about leaving Ethan behind. Upon spotting those familiar wings spread out across the room, he settled next to who he believed to be the Alpha and Beta content to join their watch. He would deal with Yanek later, once he figured out why his new Alpha seemed so familiar.

Raspen & Peryton

The hunt was still months away, and yet the slog of meetings had already started. Each acting royal needed to agree on the feast schedule so that mixed-court feasts didn’t overlap with other events that needed royal attention, despite already knowing that preventing such a circumstance was nearly impossible. In Raspen’s opinion, it was almost tradition that the royals would be drawn away from such events by a catastrophe or something of the sort. Still, Dawne and Ebony argued about the date of the final feast — both insisting that their court’s date couldn’t be moved in favour of the mixed-court finale. 

“Excuse me, Dawne?” a voice spoke from the doorway, as her older brother Peryton stepped inside and allowed the door to close behind him. “Mother and Father would like to see you, it’s an emergency. If you are still debating about the final feast date, perhaps Raspen would be willing to move his feast?” Blue eyes met his as he struggled not to scowl at the fact that he had missed that obvious solution. 

Instead, he offered a warm smile at his dear friend, “That’s an excellent idea. I will move my feast to another date and we can plan the final feast for that day once Dawne is free again. Perhaps with Alcandor present?” The last question was targeted at the representative that the other royal had sent, who only nodded deeply. Dawne made her apologies and quickly left the room, promising to be in touch about a follow-up meeting for actually planning the feast (or at least the selection of which nobles would plan it in their stead). 

He was standing to leave when he realized that his hand was rubbing at an ache over his chest, looking over in alarm at Perry meant that he spotted the other royal doing the same. And really what were the odds of it being unrelated? “Oh shit,” whispered Peryton as he came to the same realization once that haunting scream reached his ears. Turning slightly, he looked at the single guard in the room and managed to say, “Soulscream —” before both royals were pulled away in a flash of golden light.

Harry could feel other people in the room, a rich mix of scents that blanketed him in an unfamiliar feeling. So many emotions swirled in his chest as the scream came to an end, but he had barely a second to consider them before instinct grabbed hold and he found himself lunging towards the nearest neck with fangs bared. They were his, he wasn't going to lose them. 

Fangs sunk into flesh, happily drinking down blood that soothed his sore throat even as in the back of his mind he wondered why it felt so right. Licking the skin left behind a mark that made something inside him purr though, and instinct hadn’t been wrong so far so he continued, hoping that maybe this meant he wouldn’t be alone after all.