The Towers that Eclipes Darkshire

[Tom Marvolo Riddle]

It sounded eerily similar to what I had done with Ginny. Possibilities within possibilities. The idea of not just flitting about but actually taking a true body as my own…if such a thing could be used to dominate rather than cohabitate then it would be a particular boon to my ends. More so than even than the Imperious Curse. But it was a line of thought I’d need to peruse in private.

With Nippur already being the subject of discussion, mostly thanks to my own broadcast of the events. I was starting to realize just how easily information was disseminated across the Verse. I would have to be very careful in dealing with how I was perceived. Unlike the world I had come from, it seemed this one had an indelible memory. Already my compatriot had quite a bounty upon him and if something akin happened its way upon myself, I would be hard pressed to erase it.

An exit strategy would be needed, and perhaps the Portkey system would be the best way to go about doing such, and more to the point Nealaphh would need similar.

A stir in the air caught my attention as Hogwarts itself seemed to pick up on my desire. Though it was at the limit of what it could do conceptually beyond remaking itself or expanding its size. But I had just enough to settle that account as well.

I let Reality once again pool forth from my fingers and cast it behind me without a backwards glance. As the last of the Existence was released I hissed a single word of power with a grin cutting across my face, “Portus.”

The mass fell upon the Heartstone and the incantation given seemed to grant the raw force of the Verses a manner of shape, arcing with currents of magic, emerald fire and distorting whirls. The brilliance of it wasn’t even absorbed; the Heart of Hogwarts instead seemed to amplify it and cast that light across the entire area, channeling all thoughts and intentions I had for this working back upon the castle itself.

Immediately fireplaces began to shift into every major core room whose nature deemed them important. This was then followed by ones requiring more individual attention such as the Common Rooms of each House, the Staff’s Lounge, each Professor’s Study, the Headmaster’s own and myself. Each one ornately marked with a symbol matching their purpose.

The last bit though was not nearly so spectacular, though it was far more important. In the air, the burning trails of quicksilver coalesced from mist, taking shape at my latent behest. One fell at the talons of Nealaphh and the other in my awaiting hand. For myself, a simple golden pocket watch marked with an emerald snake that framed the face with smaller siblings securing its dials. Dials that controlled the clock mechanisms and the hidden functions that linked it and its owner back to the school.

I made a show of the one in my own fingers, pointing to either dial which could be pressed when in need, “One to command it to take one’s self to any place within the Hogwart’s floo network, and the other is an emergency activation that will take you to a secure room near where I intend the Medical Wing.” I gestured to Nealaphh’s own which remained an amorphous mass of liquid silver, perhaps waiting for its new owner to mark it as Its own.

“Once you accept it, no one else will be able to touch it or deprive you of such except myself. In theory it should be able to reach you in any Verse.” I didn’t pretend to understand the being in question, though the basic shape of the Portkey would match my own, how it adjusted itself to its owner… that depended entirely on Nealaphh alone. But regardless in this form or any other it would be workable.

~*O*~

It had taken both Harry and Ginny a good few minutes to overcome being unnerved by the mound of food laid out in the area that they had typically sat at Gryffindor table. While it wasn’t explicitly accurate, it was close enough to be notable. The only exception was that whoever had prepared the meal didn’t seem to know what time of day it was… which was to say what time it was for them.

Going by the Great Hall’s ceiling it was obviously late or at least early morning, and thankfully whatever heat that had built up in the castle seemed to have died off at the hands of the night’s cool air. Still though it didn’t help qualm the uneasy atmosphere that had settled over them.

Harry had spent a good number of scoopfuls of porridge watching the space behind Ginny’s back and her doing the same. It wasn’t until he had moved onto the bacon that he felt somewhat more relaxed in more ways than one. Ginny seemed to have settled for no longer tripping over herself due to his own presence. That didn’t stop the random blushing when they bumped into each other on piling food onto their plates, but at least she hadn’t put her elbow into the butter dish again. Yet.

“Who do you think cooked the food?” Harry asked after washing down the last of his food.

Ginny shrugged after a glancing back at what remained of the still overly large array, “House elves I reckon. Bound to be loads of them here.”

Harry felt the blood drain his face, “Like Dobby?”

“Dobby?” Ginny asked curiously, forgetting herself.

Harry nodded furtively and explained the circumstances that had led to him nearly dying no less than three times this past year. By the time he was recounting his encounter with mad House Elf in the hospital wing, the pair of them exploring the Entrance Hall that First Years entered Hogwarts from.

“Find anything?” Harry called from his inspection of a wall that he could have sworn had never had a fireplace when he had first arrived two years ago. He was sure because it was situated in the same place that he and Draco truly begun to hate each other rather than simple House rivalry. Within sight of the empty House hourglasses, he was sure of it. So many things were the same and yet different.

“I… think… so.” Ginny said cautiously, prompting Harry to look over. She was staring at a particularly uninteresting section of wall and now that Harry noted that she was he too felt something was off. Every time he looked at it and actually to look, he felt his eyes side off of it. As if something was pushing his concentration away from it.

It was an odd feeling.

“What is that?” Harry muttered as he tried unsuccessfully to imitate Ginny’s feat.

Shaking her head she stepped back and took up his hand again with less hesitation. Though it felt like she was still fighting some sort of inclination whenever they did. “I think it’s a notice-me-not charm.” She gave an unnerved shudder and her face gained a distinct look of distrust, “The trick is to not look at the wall but look at what’s behind it.”

Harry cocked his head, “What?”

Ginny readjusted her grip and moved in front of him so she was between him and the offending wall. Her face was a profuse red that was nearly as bright as her hair. But resolutely she stayed where she had planted herself despite something in her looking like it was fighting her every step of the way.

“D-dad taught me how to ignore them. Said it was to protect my v-“ She choked out though the last bit was a complete wash to Harry’s ears.

“What?” Harry repeated with an uncomfortable knot forming in his stomach.

“To p-p-protect my virtue.” Ginny said though it was a near thing as the last word nearly again came out completely garbled.

Harry felt his own face heating up nearly as brightly as Ginny. No wonder she was struggling. This was hardly a conversation he wanted to have with anyone, let alone Ron’s little sister. Obviously though something about it was important.

“So. To protect. It. He taught me to ignore the charm.” She finally continued, picking up some momentum as she focused at some spot on Harry’s face. Not missing a beat she kept on going, “The trick is to focus on something near the person or thing being protected by the ch-charm.” Her free hand reached suddenly and with little warning took him by the chin and forced him to look straight at her face.

“Ginny-“ Harry stuttered but she silenced him with a finger.

“Look-“ She almost seemed to lose her nerve for a second, “Look at me, not the wall.”

Screwing his eyes, Harry nodded only just barely and did his best to only look at her. Staring really. The heat was coming off his face like Hogwarts had felt when he first woke up. But he listened to her. First her face, how her hair framed it, her nose and the freckles that was splattered across it and her cheeks, but more catching that anything were her brown eyes. They were bright, almost golden and they met his if only for just an instant-

And that’s when he saw it. Well not so much as saw it directly but in his peripheral vision there was a large double door archway growing from almost nothing.

An electric shock went down his wrist and both he and Ginny jumped at nearly the same exact time. Turning to look at the place that Harry had saw, he couldn’t help but notice that the air seemed heavier, as if it were alive with diffusing power. The enchantment breaking? Or maybe it was just him and Ginny blushing so hard that they were heating it up.

Either way they could see what had been hidden from them moments ago.

“Should we go?” Ginny asked

“Do we have a choice?” Harry countered, not quite wanting to hear the answer he knew he was going to get.

“You said we always do. I reckon our answers are down there.” She said quietly, before taking a breath and the initiative and pushed the door open. Half a conversation seemed to be echoing up from deep below the ground floor. A person talking to themselves?

“…well it was a temporary defensive measure, I was going to move the opening once the rest of the castle was finished.”

“Tom?” They both exclaimed breathlessly. Ginny though paled instantly and turned to him looking more than a little shocked that the name had come from Harry’s lips. The grip on his hand tightened immensely and Harry was beginning to feel as if part of the puzzle that was the year began to fall into place. But something about the whole situation seemed not quite accurate.

“Whatever it is Ginny, it’ll be okay.” Harry found himself saying, part of him didn’t believe it but it felt right to say. He owed Ron that much at least to reassure her though.

She nodded slowly even as he led her down the stairs, and hopefully towards the answers they needed.