The Wizard and the Lonely Princess: Hallowe'en Special

by Harry Leferts


Chapter 3

Disclaimer: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is owned by Hasbro and Harry Potter is the property of JK Rowling.

"Hello"-Normal Speaking
"Interesting..."- Nightmare Moon speaking.
'Huh'- Normal Thoughts.
'All mine...' Nightmare Moon's thoughts
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Hades glared at the rest of the group, he knew that each of them had thoughts regarding their chances if they tried to take him down. He knew that his best chance to regain control was to take care of that idiot John, but he couldn't take the chance to leave his back exposed. His thoughts, and theirs, were interrupted however by a scream. They glanced at each other and took off in the direction it had come from. When they entered the kitchen, however, they found that the entire area had been wrecked. And then their flashlights catch a glimpse of what is on the walls and they swear. One of them inched around the now cooling puddle of red on the floor and grasped the doorknob and yanked... Only to discover that it would not even move. "What the fuck!?"

It only took Hades a minute to realize what was wrong as he spotted the shimmer on the door. "There's a ward on the door..." He then narrowed his eyes. 'Did the brat know about whatever this... thing is...?'

The man still tried to yank the door open, when he let go. He then kicked it only to be flung back in a burst of light. He got up as he shook his head. "What the hell?!?"

Hades snorted before he motioned at the door. "Still think that you can take off without the boy?" As the others looked away from each other, Hades smirked as he realized that he was in control once more. "Now, we need to kill whatever the hell is after us before it kills us. Chances are that once we do, we can escape." He than pointed at two of the men. "From now on, two of us will be together at a time." He growled. "We will not be taking any more chances." He than looked at each one. "Now then... the pairs will be..."

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Having reached the stairs to the main foyer, Harry made his way down until he finally reached the bottom and ran to the door before he stopped. Nightmare just looked up from where she was in his jacket. "Well? What seems to be the issue, child?" She then shook her head. "We should leave now before anything actually happens."

Harry just pointed at the bottom of the door where the hole he came through was...

And now longer existed.

Luna just stared before she looked around them nervously. "Something doesn't want us to leave..."

Harry just walked closer to the door and examined it before he stilled as his eyes caught something that he had missed. "There's something... carved into the door? Can you read it Luna?"

She blinked before she hovered above him and her eyes widened. "'We cannot get out...'" She then looked at her friend. "Harry, we should keep moving. As long as we do, we should last for the night." She then frowned. "And if this is a creature of darkness, then the rising of the sun should weaken it's magic enough to escape."

Harry nodded. "Okay Luna..." Together, the three friends headed out, this time along the other second floor corridor that they had before now avoided. As they walk, Harry shivered some as the oppressive atmosphere of the house seemed to press in on him, the shadows seemingly impenetrable beyond a certain distance from the light in his hands. He licked his lips before he looked at each of the two Alicorns. "What do you two think it is...?"

Luna just shook her head. "I... haven't the foggiest." Her head turned as she looked behind them. "But... It has as much a connection to the darkness as I do the night." She frowned as she didn't say the next part. 'And whatever it is, the cloying stench of death clings to it enough that it needs not be near for me to sense it.'

After he frowned, Harry just shrugged. Several times they can hear footsteps, but avoid it until they come to a room. Seeing the door open, Harry walks in to find that the room itself is in shambles with a bookcase smashed along with some of the plaster on the wall gone. "What the bloody hay happened here..."

As she gave the room a look over, Nightmare shook her head. "I don't know, child. But whatever happened, it wasn't good."

As Harry spotted something, he made his way to one end of the room as Luna picked up a strip of cloth. "Now what do we have here...?"

Harry glanced over as he picked up a piece of paper. "Looks like an old rag." He then looked at the paper and shivered.

' Why... why did we come here? Joel, Sara, Paul... they're all dead. We needed a place to hide out from the cops after that bank job. Those idiot cashers were going too slow! They were putting the cash too slow, trying to stall for time. Shame we only got two of them. But that's no reason for this!

Joel... he came up with the idea to hide here until the heat died down. But... then it came! One by one it took them... I... I don't want to die! I can hear it. Just out of my sight, though sometimes when I turn I can see it from the corner of my eye... stalking me... hunting me... It's teeth glinting and... Oh God! I just want out of here. Why won't it let me just lea-'

Harry didn't need anything else to have figured out what happened to the bank robber, as the rust brown stain covering the rest of the paper told him everything. He then threw it as far from him as possible and quickly wiped his hands on his jacket. After he calmed down some he started to look around and stopped as he noticed something from the corner of his eye. He slowly made his way to the partially closed closet and threw it open. "What the..."

Luna had watched him and blinked as she walked over and looked in. There, where it floated just above the floor, was a tiny glowing orb the size of a match's flame. "I never expected to see one of those here..."

Her human friend looked at her as a curious expression crossed his face. "You know what this is Luna?"

She nodded as her face took on a grim expression. "I do and it's not something good." Now more concerned, she looked around. "In Old Equestrian it was Omortis Luxa. A 'Death Light'." She turned back and fixed it with a glare as Harry backed away from it a little. "It is an evil little creature that feeds on energies and emotions associated with death, violent ones most commonly." She shook her head as she slowly guided Harry from the closet. "It can feed on the energies of a single violent death for years before needing a new source. The more violent the death, the more powerful emotions and thus the better it feeds."

Harry looked around and gulped. "Makes sense then that one would be here..."

Nightmare grimaced. "More then you know, child. More then you know." Seeing the look, she sighed. "It will often be attracted to places of darkness where such deaths commonly occur. Usually, they're the size you just saw or even smaller as they can be the size of an ember. However... sometimes they wish to draw in their food source if they sense their death is close and draw them in closer by glowing brighter. They themselves are quite harmless... but the creatures they associate with on the other hoof..."

Luna's ears swiveled and she looked Harry. "We need to leave, now." Once they turned, she shook her head. "Some of them are heading for us." Seeing the dumbwaiter, she nodded as she opened it to find nothing there. She looked down to see it at the bottom of the shaft below the ground floor. After a moment of thought, she turned and looked at Harry. "Harry, I need you to trust me. I am going to float you down to the ground floor. Nightmare, open the door once you reach it." After they nodded, Luna's horn glowed and she grunted as she slowly floated Harry into the shaft and down it until he reached the ground floor level and opened the door. Once he was through it, she shut off the spell and breathed Heavily before she followed, taking a moment to close the shaft door once she was through. Luna floated down and out into what looked like a long disused bedroom. Looking around through, she could spot footprints in the dust from a previous search that night and sighed in relief. 'Good. That means that we can rest for a bit.'

Harry meanwhile, cleaned a spot and sat down before he groaned as he held his head in his hands. "I just want out of here..."

Luna suddenly remembered that for all his apparent maturity, Harry was still a ten year old boy. Making her way to him, she wrapped a wing around Harry and drew him close. "It's okay Harry, we'll make our way through this."

Harry just nodded as he sniffled a little while he took some comfort from her embrace. They stayed like that for a time before they heard shouts from above them, some of which caused all three of their eyes to widen. "Luna... did he just ask where the body went to!?"

She just nodded before shaking her head. "Harry, let's go."

He just nodded and they soon left the room and went into the hallway...

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It slowly strode down the hallway, all the while it took in it's surroundings until it stopped. The being sensed something nearby. Very close. At first, it thought it was another one of the adults until it realized that it was the child.

The boy that the others were after.

What an intriguing development. It had not planned on meeting him yet, wanting to wait until it needed to do something, but with the opportunity having come about... it wasn't about to waste the chance it had been given. No, time to see to him.

This was going to be fun...

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Every part of Harry and the two Alicorns was alert as he slowly strode down the hallway, they all kept watch over each others backs as they slowly advanced down the hallway. "Luna... are you positive that you don't know what this is?!"

She bit her lip a little and sighed. "Like I said, I may be thousands of years old Harry, but not even I know everything..."

Harry glanced at her. "Do you know anything about it?"

Luna shook her head. "Some, but not a lot." She gestured at the area that they currently they were moving through. "The air in this house has become more and more oppressive as the time has gone on. The shadows themselves seemingly watching as I am sure that you noticed."

Harry just blinked. "I did actually..."

All three flinched as they heard another scream from a different part of the building. They started moving a little faster as Luna cleared her throat. "Yes, well..." She then shook her head. "That is due to it's aura. It's something primal and the aura is both generating and amplifying fear and unease." A shiver ran down her back at that. 'And the fact that it's affecting even me...'

Harry frowned a little. "So it's trying to scare us?"

Nightmare scowled a little before she looked up at him from where she was in his jacket. "No, it's doing it because fear and terror makes one sloppy and thus easier to take out. But it is powerful nonetheless."

Luna nodded. "She's right." She shivered again. "The thing that I find disturbing is that I can only smell it when it's near. After it's gone, the smell disappears... but the smell is the cloying scent of death. And it's aura from what I can tell positively reeks of it."

Harry then gulped a little. "Where did something this evil come from then..."

Luna then closed her eyes. "That's the thing Harry, if this was truly evil then I would feel a lot better about it then I do. Evil I can deal with and understand... but this? If it's anything it's not evil.

Harry suddenly stopped. "Bu-but..." He licked his lips. "How isn't it evil!? It's killing people!"

Nightmare shook her head. "Child, it's doing this for a reason only it knows. It's dark but not evil. There is a difference between the two. I can tell from what I am sensing from it." She then frowned. "But for what reason it is killing..."

She just shrugged as Harry looked around. "You're right... that does make it worse..."

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It could sense the boy better now. He was close...

Ever so close...

Soon, it would get it's chance and then it would take it. It did spend a second and wondered about the two presences with him before it dismissed them as they were obviously weakened. Hmm... they shared a connection with the child... how... interesting. And unless the being was mistaken, if the child died, they could do nothing to it and would simply vanish.

Nonetheless, now was the time to prepare...

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The three had been making their way down the corridor when Harry suddenly stopped and sniffed. "Luna... what the hay is that smell..."

What he hadn't noticed was her glance back as she paled. "Death..." Her eyes widened as a moment later, a large shape cloaked in shadow strode into view from the end of the hallway. "Oh horsefeathers..."

As it stood there, glints showing up around it's form, Harry gulped. "Please tell me that you know what that is now..."

Luna shook her head. "I can barely even see it... it's using the shadows to cloak itself..." It took one thunderous step and then another. "Run."

And with that Harry and Luna took off, the growls of the thing behind them turning into a roar as it bounded after them. 'Oh hay! Oh hay- it's getting closer! Oh hay!' He shouted inside his head as tears of fear began gathering in his eyes. 'Faster! Faster! FASTER!'

Whipping around a corner, Harry nearly lost his balance though he recovered in time. Jostled some by Harry's fast, panicked movements, Nightmare poked her head out and looked behind them to see the creature leap into the air as it rounded the corner and then bounce off the wall, hunks being torn out of the plaster as also rebounded off the other before rushing at them still. "Don't stop!"

Harry just stared at her with terror written across his face. "YOU THINK!?"

The creature began to reach behind it's back as the three passed by a door that had just opened with two men coming out as they stared at the boy. "What in the hell... is that the brat!?"

The other opened his mouth to answer only for a liquid sounding gurgle to come out instead moments after a meaty thunk is heard as he stumbled forward some from the impact of something. He blinked some before he looked down and saw the large curved sword-like blade projecting from his chest in surprised shock. 'So that's why it hurts to breath...' He then turned to the other as some blood dripped from his open mouth as he crumbled to the floor. "Uhhh..."

The other stared in shock as his partner fell to the floor. "Sigil!" He snarled as he turned and pulled out his shotgun and fired of one blast after another into the approaching beast causing it to stumble back with a howl. "FUCK YOU! YOU SON OF A BITCH!" Soon, however, he's out and he ducked back into the room and slammed the door shut. He reloaded rapidly and then waited with the gun pointed at the door. And nothing happened. He started moving toward it cautiously until he reached it and flung it open while he jumped back. Upon the sight of the empty hallway, he once more moved forward, his gun aimed ahead before he poked his head out and looked down to either end. And there was nothing but the cooling body of the other man though he heard shouts that were headed for him. Eyes still narrowed, and assured of the soon arrival of backup, he stepped out fully. "Now where did it go...?"

His answer came a second later as a large hand dropped from above and grabbed him below the chin before it propelled him head first into the ceiling as he struggled with it's arm, scratching and clawing at it as he tried to make it drop him.

And did so again as the impact of the first had only partially stunned it's victim.

And with the third time there was a sickening crunch as he went limp. A moment later his lifeless body dropped to the floor and is followed by his attacker, who landed on two legs and turned to look in the direction Harry had gone in as it growled softly...

With Harry, he just kept running as he whipped around corners trying to put enough distance between him and whatever it was that chased him. Finally however, he was out of breath and leaned against the wall. He shook his head and looked at Luna. "I... I..."

A moment later he screamed as the door behind him was flung open and something yanked him into the closet and slammed the door shut, Luna diving in a moment later screaming as was Nightmare. "HARRY!"