Chapter 29: Blood, Bone, And Flesh
Harry's feet slammed into the ground hard enough to knock him off his feet; his hand finally allowed itself to release the cup at long last. The Triwizard Cup was flung out to someplace outside of Harry's vision. The world kept spinning for an agonizing few seconds.
Harry lifted his head. "Where... Where are we?" he asked.
Nearby, Cedric shook his head. He got up, pulled Harry to his feet, then took a look at their surroundings. The place looked nothing like the Hogwarts grounds; they were miles— possibly hundreds— off of the campus. Even the ever-present mountains and forests were nowhere to be seen. Instead, the two were standing in an old decrepit graveyard. Graves lay about in various states of decay, some simple while others grand. A few dead trees littered the grounds. Off in the distance sat the black outline of an old church. A hill rose to their left. Harry could just make out the outline of an old house on the hillside, it looked oddly familiar.
Where have I seen that mansion before? Maybe from above?
Cedric looked around for the Triwizard Cup, then back at Harry. "Did anyone tell you the cup was a portkey?" Cedric asked.
"Nope." Harry shook his head. He looked about the graveyard; the place was eerily quiet, even for a graveyard. "Cedric, I don't think this is part of the task."
"What makes you think that?" Cedric said, pulling his wand out. Harry did the same, but far more tense.
"We're not at Hogwarts anymore, the teachers can't keep an eye on us. If the Ministry was so careful this year, why would they make a portkey to an unsupervised graveyard of all places? Something's wrong, Cedric, very very wrong." Harry turned around rapidly, searching the graveyard. "I mean, isn't it odd that Krum used an unforgivable curse? He'd never get away with that, he should've known better. Isn't it odd that I was put in the tournament on purpose? I, the Boy Who Lived, got placed here. Isn't it odd that unicorns, whose blood can sustain those on the verge of death, started slowly disappearing?" Harry's eyes darted about, the feeling he was being watched only increasing in strength. "Something's coming."
Sure enough, a short, hunched figure was making its way through the graveyard. They squinted as it walked towards them steadily, shuffling between the graves. Its face was concealed, but it was clear it was carrying something in its arms. The person was short, every part of them was covered in a dark cloak that hid every detail but the bundle in its arms. Harry watched the closing gap between them and was soon able to see the bundle of robes more clearly.
Harry kept his wand up, just shot a wary look to Cedric, who likewise kept his wand raised.
"Stop right there!" Cedric shouted.
"Who are you?!" Harry demanded.
The figure stepped next to a large headstone, and the three looked at each other.
And then, without warning, Harry's scar felt warm. A wave of vertigo nearly cost Harry his balance. Cedric reached over to stop Harry from falling. Harry's muscles tensed, recognizing exactly the feeling that he had become familiar with since his last visit to Equestria. But this was worse, this was a warning.
No...
No...
The bundle in the figure's arms spoke in a cold, high voice; a voice Harry recognized from his dreams. "Kill the spare."
No no no no!
"Cedric!"
"Avada Kedavra!"
The world moved in slow motion, yet too fast to process. The wizard raised a wand and pointed at the Hufflepuff. Harry didn't stop to think as he tackled the older student, the two being consumed in a flash of green light.
The curse hit empty air.
Harry and Cedric teleported across the graveyard, behind a grave large enough to hide them. They pressed their backs to the cold stone, breathing hard and fast. Neither boy dared to move. Harry's scar still felt warm, like it was seething in anger.
"Find them!" the same voice screeched. Harry's scar seemed to vibrate in tandem with it.
Harry and Cedric looked at each other, fear written across their faces. Both were alive, though for how long remained uncertain.
"What the hell was that?!" Cedric whisper-shouted. He tried to peak over their hiding spot, seeing the short figure, a man if his voice was anything to go by, dashing about the graveyard. Harry remained rooted in place.
It all made sense now. The tournament, the Goblet, the dreams, the portkey. Harry wasn't entered to die, he was entered to be abducted. This was why his scar was acting up. More and more pieces started to fall in place. A Death Eater put in Harry's name under a fourth school (placeholder name: Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns) so he had to participate. The unicorns were disappearing because someone was hunting them before Celestia sent them home. Whoever it was was on the brink of death, and Harry could only think of one person that desperate. Harry had seen him in his dreams, obsessing over him. How had he not seen it before?!
"It's him."
"What?"
"It's him, Cedric, it's Voldemort."
Cedric paled.
"You-Know-Who? How, why?"
"I don't know everything, but we have to get out of here, now." Harry peeked over the gravestone. The figure had put down the bundle and was searching the graveyard.
"Got any ideas?" Cedric asked.
"Can you apparate?" Harry questioned.
"Failed my tests. How about you? You can do it, right?"
Harry shook his head.
"I never got past short-range teleports, I'm too tired to get more than a few good jumps left in me, I can't take both of us for long. That can only buy us time if he can apparate. We need another way out."
Cedric and Harry looked back over the gravestone. The figure was getting closer to finding them with each second. He (Harry assumed it was a man from the voice) was getting more frantic by the moment, fear emanating from his body.
Cedric pointed to where the two had landed in the graveyard. "The portkey. Most have a return function; you touch it a second time and get sent back to wherever it came from. We find the portkey, we might be able to get sent back to Hogwarts."
"Alright." Harry nodded. "I'll distract them, you get the cup."
Cedric gripped Harry's arm, keeping him in place.
"Harry, you can't—"
Harry scolded Cedric in a hushed voice, "I'm the one he wants, Cedric! He said to 'kill the spare' immediately, that's you! The moment he sees you, he'll kill you!" Harry locked eyes with Cedric, neither breaking contact. The severity of the moment was sinking in. "Here's what we'll do. I get his attention, I can dodge whatever he hits me with. You move towards the cup, and I'll teleport to you when you get there. We grab it and get back. Simple as that."
Cedric seemed reluctant to agree with Harry. Eventually, Cedric, nodded, agreeing on the plan. "Good luck," Cedric said.
Harry felt fear try to grasp his heart. This was serious, possibly more so than any year yet. No one was coming, they had one shot to survive.
"On three." The two nodded. "One, two, three!"
The two broke off in different directions, Harry loud and Cedric silent.
"Stupefy!" Harry yelled.
Nonverbal casting would have been more practical, but Harry needed the man's attention away from Cedric. The man blocked the spell with a shield charm and returned fire with a hex of his own. Harry vanished in a flash of green, reappearing across the graveyard so that the man was between Harry and Cedric. The two exchanged another blast of spells. The stunning spell narrowly missed the dark wizard, and the curse sent at Harry impacted a nearby tree, causing it to shrivel and die.
"I need him alive!" the same voice said. "Kill the other boy!"
The figure looked over his shoulder to Cedric. Taking advantage of the man's distraction, Harry cast petrificus totalus with all his might at the wizard. A hastily-cast shield spell tried to block it, but the spell was deflected to strike the wizard's legs. Harry's opponent's legs locked up, but not the rest of his body. Harry sent a strong swarm of levitation charms at nearby statues and stones, picking them up and flinging them at his opponent. Another weak shield shattered the first projectile but not the rest. Dirt and stone were piled over the man, who lost his wand in the ensuing attack. Harry teleported above his opponent, dropping squarely on the trapped man's back. Harry pointed his wand at the base of the man's skull.
"Stupefy!"
The spell knocked the man out cold. With his opponent neutralized Harry looked for Cedric, seeing the sixth-year just a few steps away from the cup. The two locked eyes, and nodded. Harry vaulted over the pile of stones covering the wizard and engaged one last teleport. He emerged in a flash of green magic next to him, staggering.
"The cup, Cedric, now!" Harry heaved.
Cedric raised his wand at the cup. "Accio cup!"
The cup wobbled for a moment before it bolted towards Cedric. Harry felt his hopes rise, just a little.
His scar was getting warmer.
"Avada Kedavra!"
From the bundle on the ground, a jet of green lightning shot forth. Harry reflexively covered his eyes against the light. It raced against the speed of the cup, catching up quickly. Luckily, Cedric's summoning spell placed the cup between himself and the bundle of cloth. The cup was almost within Cedric's grasp when the curse hit it and rebounded. The spell flashed past Harry's face, blinding him as he fell back. Harry could faintly see the cup touch Cedric, the sixth-year's eyes wide with fear as he looked at Harry. Someone screamed in agony. A split second later, both Cedric and the cup were gone.
Harry felt feelings of dread and hope bubble in his chest as he collapsed. Cedric was safe, he'd gotten out alive, hopefully unharmed. But, at the same time, that left Harry trapped here with whatever was in that bundle of cloth, and he had no way out. He was exhausted and out of tricks.
"Stupefy!" the cold voice shouted.
Harry was knocked clean off his feet, soaring through the air. His vision clouded, and Harry lost consciousness before his body could return to the ground.
When Harry started to regain consciousness, it was to a throbbing headache the likes of which he hadn't had since the Crystal Empire. Thankfully, it seemed to be a very nonmagical headache. Harry moved his head around, trying to come to terms with his environment.
Harry first noticed that he was tied to a marble headstone, neck to ankles.
The stone read Tom Riddle.
What Harry noticed next was the massive stone cauldron, far larger than any Harry had used. A roaring flame crackled underneath it. The liquid inside was bubbling and spewing violent sparks, and a pillar of steam was rising above it.
Harry heard the same cold high voice speak from the bundle lying at the base of a grave.
"Hurry!"
Harry knew that whatever was in the bundle, he didn't want to see it.
"It is ready, master."
"Now, Wormtail..."
Harry suddenly recognized the man. Wormtail, the man who had betrayed his parents. If Harry were more conscious he'd blast him then and there.
Wormtail untied the robes, unveiling what lay inside. Harry felt his heart clench. The thing Pettigrew had been carrying had the shape of a crouched human child, except that Harry had never seen anything less like a child. It was hairless and scaly-looking, a dark, raw, reddish black. Its arms and legs were thin and feeble, and its face- no child alive ever had a face like that- flat and snakelike, with gleaming red eyes. Harry had expected something, but this was worse, a thousand times worse. It looked feeble, weak, but Harry knew better. He had just seen it cast the killing curse on its own.
Wormtail picked up the thing, carried it over to the bubbling pot, and dropped it in. It hit the bottom with a dull thud.
Harry's scar felt like it had a heartbeat of its own, whaling against Cadance's reinforced spell.
Please let it drown. Harry wished in his head. Let him drown.
Wormtail raised a shaking wand, and his voice sounded terrified beyond all measure.
"Bone of the father, unknowingly given, you will renew your son!"
The grave beneath Harry cracked, and a fine white powder floated out, which was dropped into the cauldron.
Harry struggled against the bonds tying him down. Harry had a terrifying idea of what Wormtail was doing and knew it had to stop. Harry searched the ground. Where is my wand? If he could get his wand, he could do something, anything. A teleport, a cutting charm, anything to get out of here!
Wormtail pulled a long, thin, shining silver dagger from inside his cloak. His voice broke into petrified sobs.
"Flesh... of the servant... w-willingly given... you will... r-revive... your master."
Harry realized what was about to happen a second early, and he managed to close his eyes before Wormtail's screams pierced the night. There was a sickening plop as something landed in the bubbling liquid. Harry opened his eyes as Wormtail stalked towards him. Harry looked back, towards where Cedric had disappeared. There! Harry's wand was lying in the grass, undisturbed. He tried to grab it in his magic, to summon it, but it was just a little too far to comfortably focus on, not when Wormtail was getting so close.
"B-blood of the enemy... forcibly taken... you will... resurrect your foe."
Though it couldn't prevent the inevitable, Harry struggled harder against his bonds. He saw Wormtail pull out the silver knife again, and pressed it to Harry's arm, letting a trickle of blood flow out. Harry hissed as the blade cut him. The blood was collected and brought over to be dropped in the cauldron.
It turned violent, sizzling and bubbling over. Sparks flew everywhere and a thick plume of steam and smoke rose from its surface.
Harry struggled ever harder. He focused on calling his wand to his hand. It was wobbling around, making little jumps toward him. Please, just a little bit more...
Suddenly, all the liquid evaporated in a giant plume of smoke. Harry watched wide-eyed as a skeletally thin figure rose from the depths of the cauldron. An overbearing feeling of dread threatened to swallow Harry.
"Robe me," said the high, cold voice from within the steam, and Wormtail, sobbing, moaning, and still cradling his mutilated arm, scrambled to pick up the black robes from the ground and pulled them one-handed over his master's head.
The man stepped out into the cold air, and Harry finally got to see the face that had plagued his life for so long and had been the cause of so much suffering.
Lord Voldemort had returned.
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Funny thing, iirc the author did an official AU story where Cedric survived. The twist in it revealed about his character however lessens any and all impact his death in the original timeline had to most fans.
11632757
Are you talking about Harry Potter and the Cursed Child? I assure you, Cedric is not going to feel so humiliated he turns into a Death Eater. Not in a million years.
Next Time on 'Equestrian Vacation':
"Now, you die."
"Nope!"
"TASTE THE RAINBOW MOTHER BUCKER"
This is a good harry potter crossover. It's enjoyable with little to no spelling errors and most importantly it comes at it from a new angle. It's similar in a small way to the tri-wizard pony one where he gets summoned from equestrian but it's very different. Also alot of the times Harry's problems are instantly solved as they come up in these crossovers but this one feels more realistic for two equal universes coming together.
Since you let this scene play out Either your going to end it with the ole' magic laser of friendship once and for all. Or he's gonna slip away and we get another year of Hogwarts and at least 30 more chapters. Or a he is gonna escape and you end the book saying a book 2 will be coming. Then a few months later it comes out and we get 3-7 new chapters until it stagnates forever.
11633178
I can't read, sorry I'm tired. Yes they are. Especially comparing things like Pinkie and Maud to their parents, though Pinkie had been living away for a while when we met her, I doubt anything could influence Maud enough to change her tone, even her parents
(Also including the bit about how it's weird Twi isn't more posh since she's basically been bolted to Celestia for half her life since the Rainboom from the deleted comment.)
"Lord Voldemort had returned" to receive a Harmony Layzor to the face.
11633146
Harsh, but understandable. I've seen enough canceled fanfictions in my years to know how much that hurts. I have no intention of stopping soon. And, in the worst case scenario, I'll skip the "filler arcs" to get to the ending. This fic is my outlet. I'm not letting go anytime soon.
First, well done on a re-write of the battle scene. I like how a more active Harry is willing to push Cedric out of harm's way at risk of his own life without thinking.
Second, I could not help but get a "Vader vs Luke, episode 5" feel to this scene. Not a complaint, just an observation.
But with Harry in the role of Vader, immobilizing his opponent and pummeling them with debris.
Yes! Thank you for showing a limitation to "unicorn magic automatically wins". So presumably there is a benefit to Apparatation; perhaps a longer range in exchange for all the other limits and problems it has?