Shadows, Discipline, and Something Worse in the Forest
Since their arrival back home, Harry and Percy had been circling around their mother, happy to be back, while attempting to help with absolutely everything she did. At first, that seemed to make Sally very happy; seeing her work with two sons so attentive was truly charming.
But when they started fighting over nonsense, the magic broke. Now that they were in their comfort zone; unlike at Hogwarts, they fought far more. They were in a safe place; therefore, their only enemies were, basically, each other.
"Come on, little Harry; you don't have to be cruel to your older brother, who only wants the best for you. And eat your spinach," Percy said while both were sitting at the table, having dinner with Sally and Mor, who watched them with clear anticipation that at any second one of their classic fights would begin.
Percy held in his hand a fork full of spinach that did not look appetizing even with a miracle, while he tried to make Harry eat it.
"That's YOUR spinach.," Harry said with annoyance, pushing Percy's hand away before the spinach touched his mouth. "And you're not my older brother," he added, as always.
"Come on; you and I both know you need them more than I do. Or you'll end up as tiny as Professor Einjard," Percy said with a teasing tone.
Ever since he discovered he was about two centimeters taller than Harry, he had become unbearable; now he said things like the older brother was obviously the taller one, or that Harry wouldn't grow strong if he didn't do his homework.
It was ironic, considering Percy was the one who didn't actually do his schoolwork. He always ended up being caught by Hermione, who forced him to complete it. Although, unfortunately for him, that also made Percy raise his grades quite a bit. The real problem was that, as long as Hermione was nearby, he couldn't use the Mist to cheat. She wouldn't rat him out; but she would keep looking at him with that expression of disapproval and disappointment that unsettled him more than any punishment.
With Harry, however, Hermione seemed to have a small academic rivalry. Especially knowing that Harry could use magic she couldn't; that increased the competition. But it didn't affect their friendship; Harry saw it as a healthy competition. After all, he had at his side the guy who always challenged him to duels to prove he was the older brother.
"Why are you so annoying," Harry said, already fed up, hitting the table in frustration.
But before it turned into a serious argument and they ended up genuinely upset, Sally intervened.
"Alright, alright; alright. Percy, eat your spinach and stop bothering your brother," she said quickly, looking at him with seriousness.
Normally she would have intervened sooner; but at that point she was very exhausted. Not because of the kids, but because of many things spinning through her mind, which kept her distracted.
Mor, who had been watching silently, looked at the children for a moment before speaking. "You haven't visited your cousin Dred for a while. Why don't you go check whether he died of hunger or something?" she said with absolute calm, referring to her dead son with such naturalness that anyone would think they were not mother and child.
"Eh… but we haven't finished eating," Percy said, although he actually seemed happy not to have to try the spinach.
"Go before I throw you through the fireplace," Mor said, looking at them with a smile that didn't reach her eyes.
Percy, seeing that smile he knew far too well, understood she wasn't joking. He immediately stood up, grabbed Harry by the arm, and dragged him quickly toward the fireplace. A green flash lit up the room for a second, and both disappeared into the magical flames.
Mor turned her gaze back to Sally before asking casually: "So, what happened; it has to do with yesterday's attack, right?"
Her tone was apparently calm, but deep down it hid a terrible desire to destroy anyone who had touched Sally. Luckily for the enemies, she couldn't intervene… at least not until Sally was attacked directly.
"Everyone who was arrested committed suicide last night," Sally said as she let out a sigh and a wave of real exhaustion crossed her face. With those men dead, it would be difficult to find the person who sent them. Even if they had a suspect, they couldn't catch him without evidence.
And that suspect wouldn't be stupid enough to leave any useful proof against himself. Obviously, he had erased his tracks thoroughly.
The Knights could go and apprehend him easily; but at the point the relations between Knights and wizards were in, a single misstep could cause a confrontation. If they had justification, nothing could stop them. But without it, the influential families in the Ministry would use everything possible to expel them. And the minister himself would be delighted; because he could regain the power he was slowly losing with the intervention of the Knights and the muggle government.
Although, to be honest, that would hardly happen. Only an idiot would believe he could rule in foreign lands.
"Mmm," Mor said without giving it much importance. "Then why don't you simply bring them back," she added as if it were the most normal thing in the world.
"What… bring them back? Is that possible? Wait; wouldn't we get into trouble with… you know?" Sally said, instantly tensing up.
"As long as it's temporary, he won't mind. You know how many people die every day. Many don't even go to the Underworld immediately, and that idiot in the Italian suit makes them wait for fun," Mor said, waving her hand with annoyance. "Maybe those guys are still there," she added. "I know a way to bring them back for at least two hours. I'll show you."
"That would help immensely. Seriously. Even Mark was attacked right in the middle of the muggle world, and we haven't found any of the underworld bases. After all, wizards are incredibly fast when escaping," Sally said, letting out another sigh.
Eliminating a threat directed at her, which could also target her children, obviously relieved her. And discovering the routes of the magical underworld would be a decisive blow.
"Ah, but first we should ask for permission," Mor said after thinking about it for a moment.
Sally opened her eyes with some unease. "You mean…"
"Not him, no," Mor said quickly. "The one who has more power in the Underworld; his wife," she added with a smile that conveyed danger and amusement at the same time.
…
"I don't know if I should feel good about them being sent to me whenever you two become a nuisance at home," Dred said, looking at the two children standing in front of him with innocent… far too innocent smiles. He shook his head, resigned.
"It was Percy's fault," Harry said instantly.
"Harry can't handle anything," Percy replied at the same time.
"It's because you always bother me with the same thing. You're an idiot. Seaweed brain," Harry said to his brother.
"And you're four-eyes. Potter pig," Percy shot back as both were about to start another fight.
Dred rolled his eyes hard before giving each a light but firm smack on the head to shut them up.
"Ow!" they said in unison, rubbing their crowns, eyes slightly irritated from the sting.
"Well, it seems you two have a lot of energy built up from your days at that witchcraft school," Dred commented, looking at them with a severe expression.
"It's magic and sorcery," Harry corrected automatically.
"It's the same," Dred said without flinching. "Let's see if you paid attention to your training."
He took his sword, resting inside its sheath at his side.
Harry and Percy swallowed hard at the same time. They knew perfectly well what was coming.
…
Near nightfall, the two were spat out of the household fireplace, sore and in pain, crashing onto the ground with a loud thud. They landed side by side, covered in dirt, though without a single real injury. And that was worse; Dred's hits always hurt, but he never actually harmed them. He was like a monster born to inflict suffering without leaving marks.
Percy lifted his head slightly and looked at Harry, who was lying on the floor with his eyes closed, though obviously conscious.
"Eh… um… sorry for bothering you so much today," Percy said, with a surprisingly sincere tone.
Harry opened his eyes and looked at him for a moment. "Mm… well, it's fine. I'm already used to it," he answered calmly.
Meanwhile, Mor, sitting on the couch, observed them intently with an amused smile. She rested her head on the back of her hand, legs crossed, as if she were enjoying a family play.
"I see sending you to Dred when you become too annoying still works just as well as always. You two better calm down a little," she said with amusement. The boys looked up at her; they said nothing, but their expressions were truly somber.
"Sometimes Aunt Mor is evil," Harry whispered under his breath.
Percy nodded quickly; out of everyone, he knew it best.
"She's an old witch," Percy muttered quietly to Harry, making both smile in complicity.
"Oh, by the way, Percy," Mor said with a soft, sweet smile… too sweet. Enough to make anyone's skin crawl. "Your teacher is here to see whether you've been keeping up with your sword training."
She pointed toward the corner of the room.
There, waiting with an annoyed expression, was Einjard, the goblin, staring at him with disapproval while shaking his head at Percy's filthy state.
"Ma… ma… master," Percy said, surprised and horrified at the same time. He had just come from training with Dred; the last thing he expected was another session.
"What a disappointment. At first glance I can see your muscles haven't grown at all. You must have been slacking off. Five-year-old goblins have more muscle than you," Einjard growled. "Come. Let's see if you've at least improved with your sword."
He approached, grabbed Percy by the ankle, and began dragging him toward the backyard while Percy screamed for help:
"Harry! Harryyyyy! Do something! Treason! BROTHEEEER!"
But Harry could only watch him disappear, wishing him luck from the deepest part of his soul.
Harry looked at Mor, who had the exact same smile as before… and had clearly heard Percy's insult.
"Aunt Mor… you called him, didn't you?" Harry asked with a bad feeling.
"No. He was already here for some matters he has with me. He's helping me find something," Mor said simply. Then she fixed her gaze on Harry. "Now that Percy has been taken by his teacher to be tested… as your magic teacher, perhaps I should do the same."
Her sweet smile turned dangerous in a second.
Harry felt exactly what Percy had felt; fate had decided that today they would both pay for mocking Aunt Mor.
He didn't have time to say anything before Mor snapped her fingers and his body began to float. She dragged him toward the backyard as well, while he mentally tried to apologize to any available deity.
…
Meanwhile, in the United States.
A woman in a completely silver knight's armor was running through what looked like a dense forest. Although her armor should have been quite heavy, she moved with skill and speed, though her breathing was ragged from exhaustion.
"Uf… uf… uf…" Gema groaned, stopping for a moment and hiding her body behind a large tree while trying to catch her breath. "What is that thing…?" she murmured.
Huge footsteps resounded nearby, like the trotting of something gigantic. A furious snort echoed as a tree was toppled not far away.
"Fuuuu…" came a deep exhalation, followed by tense silence.
Gema, with her bow already drawn, peeked slightly to the side to shoot whatever was following her.
But when she did, she found a massive head already there, waiting for her. Red eyes. Black skin. Enormous horns. A face reminiscent of an infernal bull.
The moment it saw her, the creature tried to gore her with its horns, supported on four legs.
Gema leapt to the side, rolling across the ground as her armor clattered loudly.
She quickly planted one knee on the dirt, raised her bow with a loaded arrow… and fired at point-blank range.
The arrow struck the creature square in the chest; but it failed to pierce the skin. At least it pushed the beast back several meters, giving her a moment to flee at full speed.
The creature staggered from the hit. Not much, but enough to momentarily lose sight of her. Still, it sniffed the air before turning its head directly toward the trail Gema had left as she ran.
It was about to charge in that direction when a rain of arrows fell on it. They did not pierce its skin; but they did stun it hard, even forcing it to raise an arm to protect its head.
When the rain ended, Gema was already too far away for it to catch her scent. Or rather… too far to smell the lingering trace she carried from spending so much time around the Potter-Jackson brothers.
The creature let out an enraged snort before turning around and standing tall on two legs. Every step it took made the entire forest tremble.