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batsutousaiTitle: Fallen Night
Fandoms: Harry Potter & Radiata Stories
Chapter: 8 of 11
Author:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
batsutousai/Batsutousai
Beta:tsuki_no_suzu/Shara Lunison
Rating: T
Pairings: Harry/Jack
Warnings: OoC, AU, slash, non-human arc
Summary: Harry slipped when he was standing a little too close, and the next thing he knew, he was far away from everything he'd ever known, with something like eternity waiting for him.
Disclaim Her: This story uses characters and settings owned by J.K. Rowling, her publishers, Square Enix and tri-Ace. No money is being made from the creation of this fanfic, and no copywrite infringement is intended.
There are a couple scenes in this chapter that were taken almost word-for-word from the game, with changes to include Harry and the changed circumstances his being there have brought about.
A/N: Cannot, for the life of me, remember where Jack got that freakin' orb. I've a sinking feeling it was after Baade's defeat, but why he'd pick something up that defeated a dragon... In-game or out.
-0-
Chapter Eight - Power Over Life
-0-
The week following the addition of the green goblins was spent bowed over maps in the strategy room, discussing where to move their troops to better protect themselves from attack. While Ridley and Harry were quite willing to join in on these meetings, Jack thought it was all boring as hell and spent his time instead joining Gil in training the troops or running errands for people in the fort, such as getting a history book for the black goblin Marco or getting some special ore for the dwarf Dyvad. He was often joined on these outings by Gob and at least one other fairy creature. Harry, Ridley and Gawain were too busy talking tactics, so they never joined him.
Jack really just wanted the war to start already. All this planning and sitting around was not his thing.
The only time Jack spent with his fellow humans and Harry was at breakfast in the strategy room. Harry would usually wake up first and, if Jack was there, would wake the teen up and drag him along for food.
The morning when things finally went to hell was just like every other morning since the goblins had joined them; Jack woke to Harry's smiling face and, yawning, allowed himself to be half-dragged down the hall to the strategy room, where food had already been set out. They sat down in the open seats and Harry started up a conversation with Gawain on his left while Jack gulped down some coffee and woke up a bit.
Jack was just turning to Ridley on his right when she jerked to her feet and stumbled away from the table.
"Ridley? Where are you going?" Jack asked in the silence that had followed the girl's sudden movements.
Ridley stumbled another step, then collapsed into a heap on the floor.
The elves on the other side of the table got to their feet even as Jack, Gawain and Harry hurried to the fallen girl. Gawain set a hand against her forehead while Harry quietly cast a spell to let him check her vitals.
"Ridley..." Jack whispered, worried and hating himself for not spending enough time with her. Maybe, he could have noticed something off sooner if he'd been around more.
"She's got a high fever," Gawain reported.
Harry sat back on his heels and sighed. "I feel like I should have foreseen this," he said quietly, smoothing the girl's bangs out of her closed eyes.
"What is it?" Jack demanded.
Harry took a moment to cast a spell on Ridley to help keep her temperature down, then offered, "This is something of a side-effect of the transpiritation ritual."
Jack glanced down at his unconscious friend. "Will she be okay?"
"Yes," Zane cut in, moving around the table to join them.
Harry shot the light elf a sharp look that had the man flinching, then looked back at Jack. "I'm not sure," he said honestly to the wide eyes. "Ridley's soul and Hap's – the light elf – soul are fighting each other for control of her body. If Ridley wins, nothing will change. If Hap wins, Ridley will essentially die and Hap will exist. If they manage to figure out how to work together... Well, the best would probably be the last for the both of them."
Jack chewed on his lip and asked, "So, but, wait... Hap is still alive in there? When light elves have the transpiritation ritual performed on them, does this also happen to them?"
"Of course," Zane replied, expression uncaring. "The transpiritation ritual involves two souls joining together. Light elves are just better at accepting other souls into them."
"Light elves grow up with the knowledge of how to accept another soul, and usually the transpiritation ritual is performed on willing participants," Harry replied, eyes shooting darts at the light elf leader. "Ridley was neither willing, nor does she possess the knowledge necessary to ease this part of the ritual." He sighed and looked back down at the girl. "I'm sorry, Ridley."
"Can you help her?" Jack pleaded. This was magic beyond Jack's understanding, so maybe Harry could fix it.
Harry glanced up, eyes thoughtful. "I can try," he decided, then met Jack's eyes, serious. "But it might only make things worse. There's already a war being waged inside her, any assistance I provide might very well be taken the wrong way."
Jack looked back down at Ridley's still face. Ridley liked Harry all right, and from what he'd heard from the other light elves, Hap had been fond of Harry. If anyone could help Ridley, it would be the dragon. "You'll find a way," Jack insisted, looking back up at the older man.
Harry nodded and, with Gawain's help, carried the girl back to her room.
Jack, feeling useless, decided to forego eating any more and left for the training out back.
-0-0-0-
Jack was fighting a dummy when Shin came rushing outside, face flushed and worried. "Gil! Gil!"
Jack hurried over to the stressed out light elf. "Gil's gone off to check over the black goblins stationed at the edge of the Nowem Region," he offered. "What's wrong?"
Shin stared at Jack for a moment, fighting with himself, then nodded. "Lord Parsec is being attacked by the royal knights! They've got him trapped in Fire Mountain!"
Jack blinked. "Crap," he replied, then turned to where the light elves who trained with Gil every morning stood, looking horrified. "Sian!"
The light elf in question jerked to attention, used to that tone coming from an angry Gil. "Sir!"
"I need you to fly out to the black goblin troops and let Gil know what's going on. Rupal!" Another light elf snapped to attention as Sian jumped into the sky. "I need you and two others to get to Shangri La and check on the green goblins that are there. If the humans are starting their attack, we need to know. Shin, have you alerted Zane yet?" he asked, turning back to the message-bearer while Rupal collected two friends and they made for the pig statue.
Shin nodded. "He told me to get Gil. Gawain and Lord Harry are still with the gi– Ridley."
Jack nodded and took a glance around the training grounds. "Gob! Want to go on an adventure?"
Gob looked up from where he was working with a couple of other green goblins who had decided to stay with the fort. "Gob always good for adventure," the green goblin informed Jack, grinning broadly.
"Dyvad!" Jack called to a dwarf who he'd recently made good friends with after bringing him some ore.
The dwarf in question glanced up from the weapon he was testing. "Bit busy, Jack!"
"I'm going to Fire Mountain!" Jack called back, ignoring the startled look on Shin's face and the mad grin on Gob's, who had joined him.
Dyvad turned his full attention to the human. "What, you need a better weapon?"
Jack touched the Deep Lance strapped to his back that Dyvad had made for him the evening before. "Not really. Just wondering if you wanted to come along."
Dyvad thought about it for a moment, then asked, "You'll be fighting humans, then?"
"Almost certain to," Jack agreed.
Dyvad's mouth split into a violent smile and he swung the hammer he'd been testing onto his shoulder in a comfortable motion. "I'm coming," he said, walking over to them.
Jack grinned. "Excellent. We'll take the pig to Shangri La, then walk to the Dichett Region and Fire Mountain."
"Just the three of you?" Shin demanded.
Jack shrugged. "Well, Gil should be coming with Sian, and we can pick up a couple of green goblins at Shangri La, so... Yeah. Just us three." He smiled at Shin. "You should probably make sure Gawain and Harry know what's going on, though. Just in case."
Shin sighed and muttered unfavourable things about humans under his breath while the party of three hurried over to the pig and set out.
-0-0-0-
They did pick up a couple of green goblins on their way through Shangri La – which was, oddly, not under attack. Jack only stopped long enough to tell the other green goblins and the three light elves guarding the place to keep their eyes peeled for retreating humans, then they were all running for the bridge to the Dichett Region, Jack promising himself to bring up the fact that the humans had gone through Shangri La without destroying anything to Harry and Zane once Parsec was safe.
On the bridge, they were stopped by a single human. When Jack, leading the party, reached the armoured form, she said, "I've been waiting, Jack Russell."
Jack leaned against his spear, which he'd pulled out as soon as he'd recognised the person holding the bridge. "Chief, I don't really have time to chat right now. Could we do this later?" He tried a winning smile, but had a feeling it fell flat.
"I cannot allow you to pass," Elwen replied. "Please retreat."
Jack swallowed hard and shook his head, stomach jumping to his throat as Elwen pulled out her sword.
"Gob destroy humans," Gob hissed from just behind Jack's left elbow.
Although Jack couldn't see her eyes, he had the distinct feeling that Elwen had just given the green goblin an unimpressed look. Not having time to deal with a long, convoluted argument about who Gob could and couldn't kill, he ordered, "Back up, Gob. Not a lot of room here."
Gob huffed under his breath, but did as ordered, directing the other green goblins to back up as well. Dyvad, who had been at the back of the line, had already stepped back off the bridge, having no intention of standing on it while there was a battle.
Elwen kept her sword at her side, posture slightly curious. "Why are you helping them to destroy us humans?"
"I'm protecting humans and non-humans alike by fighting with the fairy creatures," Jack replied tightly, lifting his spear off the boards under his feet. "I'm sorry the other humans can't see that they're destroying this world–"
"Humans destroying the world?" Elwen replied, sounding more curious that upset by the statement.
Jack bit the inside of his cheek. "Chief, forgive me, but I'm on a time limit. If you want to debate the destruction of the world later, I'm willing, but either let me pass, or fight me. Please."
"Indeed," Elwen replied, readying her sword. "One last question."
"Ask," Jack allowed.
"Why do you fight?"
"I fight for the people who don't know what they're doing," Jack replied without pause. "I fight for the friends who watch my back. I fight because it's the right thing to do."
Elwen nodded and something about the way she held herself seemed to slump. "You still haven't learned," she murmured.
"Wha–?" A memory came back to Jack, of the first time he'd met the Chief of Theater Vancoor, of her words on that long night about true strength coming from fighting to protect another. "So fighting for an entire world doesn't count on the way to finding true strength?" he snapped.
She considered him. "Jack Russell, is there anyone you would do anything to protect, even forsake the world?"
"Yes," Jack replied, thinking of Harry, "but he doesn't need my protection; he's strong enough on his own."
"Even the strongest have a weakness," Elwen reprimanded him, bringing her sword up to point at Jack's chest. "Fight now, for this person you hold so dear, Jack Russell, and fight me with your true strength."
That was enough for Jack and he knocked her sword away, using the motion of the swinging bridge to change his spear's direction and bring it back to bear upon her. Elwen stepped out of the way and brought her sword back around, but the spear's longer reach and Jack's lighter form gave him an advantage on the swaying bridge and he countered every one of her attempts to hit him, nicking her in return.
Their battle would have continued until one or both of them was too exhausted to continue, but Gil and a party of six other light elves came down and circled the bridge, weapons and magic aimed at the human woman.
Elwen turned her sword and held it out to one of the younger elves, who took it away from her with a scowl and a snapped, "We're wasting time!"
"I'm sorry some of us have to travel on foot," Jack shot back drily, keeping his weapon pointed at Elwen. "Will you allow us to pass?"
Elwen held her hands up in defeat. "You have won this round, Jack," she agreed, pride colouring her voice. "Now it is time for you to face the next one. Hold the one you care so much for close to your heart, and you can face down any obstacle," she finished, moving to the side to let Jack pass.
Jack frowned over her words as he inched past her, the green goblins and Dyvad hurrying to follow.
Gil landed as Jack stepped out onto the land on the other side of the bridge. "Walking will just waste more time. We'll carry you," he offered as the other light elves landed, looking displeased.
"Sounds good," Jack agreed and secured his spear before Gil grabbed him under his arms and lifted him into the air.
"Humans and your armour," Gil grunted as they zipped towards the mountain that was billowing smoke in the near distance.
"Be glad I talked Gob into leaving his elephant behind," Jack shot back.
Gil's only response was some breathy laughter.
A party of knights was waiting for them outside the entrance to the mountain.
"We'll let the others handle the knights," Gil hissed to Jack as he flew them around the shouting band of humans and through the entrance to the mountain. Inside, they ducked other knights crawling the path with a mix of flying and ducking around the piles of boulders that littered the ground.
The only guards they couldn't avoid were the two men left guarding the doors into the centre of the mountain, but Gil shot off a couple of long range spells from the air while Jack launched a ground attack and they felled the guards without any trouble.
Beyond the doors, they found Parsec, in dragon form, faced by Cross and General Dynas.
The scene was painfully reminiscent of another Jack had seen not too long ago and he dashed forward, heedless of the danger to himself, and rammed into Cross.
Cross kept his footing and turned to Jack, sneering. "Why are you here?" he wondered, pointing his sword at Jack's throat. "Never mind, I don't care. Just stay out of our way!"
Jack managed to block Cross' first swipe and ducked to the side of his second, but the third clipped his dominate arm and the whole fight just went downhill from there. Eventually, Cross managed to land a hit across Jack's legs, bringing him painfully to his knees, and another blow with the flat of Cross' sword left Jack reeling in the dirt, spear kicked out of his reach by his opponent.
While Jack had been getting his behind handed to him, Dynas had been fighting off Parsec and Gil. When the light elf saw that Jack was down, he made for his human friend, only to be caught by the boy's spear, which Cross had grabbed and thrown at the incoming elf.
"Gil–!" Jack gasped and tried struggling to his feet, but the room spun beneath him and he dropped back down, Cross' foot on the middle of his back helping him down.
The movement had jarred the pocket Jack kept some of his little odds and ends in, however, and a smooth stone he didn't even remember putting in there rolled out, coming to rest next to Cross' other foot.
Cross' face lit up and he leaned down to pick up the stone. "An orb! Of course... It was an orb that destroyed the earth dragon! You've done well, Jack!" he said, turning towards where Dynas was trying to dodge Parsec's flames.
"No..." Jack whispered, once again struggling to get up, blinking away the dizziness. "No... you... don't–"
But it was too late; Cross was already to the fight, sword out in one hand and the orb held up in the other.
Parsec gave a great pained scream and flames jumped up around his body, which was already starting to fade away.
"No!" Jack shouted, lurching to his feet and stumbling sideways on unsteady legs.
"I did it!" Cross crowed, picking up the now-red orb. "I destroyed the dragon!"
Jack's eyes lit on the glowing orb and his legs gave out again, dropping him to the ground. "Damn it," he hissed, not sure if he was cursing his own legs or Cross' victory.
"Did you see that, Jack?" Cross asked, stepping towards the younger man, a maniacal glint in his eyes. "The humans have won. We can't possibly lose now. We can wipe them out; goblins, elves, all the nonhumans. We will trample them into the dirt like cockroaches! Just like we did with your Adele."
"You've doomed yourselves," Jack replied in a monotone, eyes distant, the crack about his sister not even registering. "There's no 'win' or 'lose' any more."
Cross laughed and brought his sword around to rest just under Jack's chin. "You're wrong, Jack. I've won, and you're about to lose. Forever."
As Cross moved his sword back to give himself room for his swing, a loud 'pop' echoed through the room and Harry appeared near the door. He took in the scene in a blink, then pointed at Cross and intoned, "Exta Expellere."
Cross didn't even have time to scream as his stomach burst open and his intestines slid out through the bottom of his armour. Shock touched his eyes briefly before the life left them and he fell over sideways.
Jack tried to move back away from the growing puddle of guts and blood, but he only managed to half fall over, jarring his wounded arm as it caught his fall.
And then Harry was next to him, muttering healing spells and gently helping him up on legs that would finally hold his weight.
"Gil," Jack remembered and pushed at Harry, pointing to where Gil was laying, motionless, against the wall.
Harry nodded and led Jack over with him, leaning down to check on the light elf only once he was certain Jack would remain standing next to him.
Jack, once Harry was focused on Gil, glanced around the cavern. Seeing the empty ledge where Parsec had been resting made his chest hurt, but he was distracted from that by the sight of Gawain half-shoving a shell-shocked Dynas from the room.
Gawain turned to Jack once the large doors where closed again, expression grim. "How're you doing, Jack?"
Jack blinked. "When did you get here?" he wondered.
"He's suffering from shock," Harry offered as Gil let out a groan and opened his eyes. "Hey, Gil. How're you doing?"
Gil reached up and gently touched the healed wound from where Jack's spear had pierced his side. "Damn, that hurt," the light elf managed.
Harry offered him a tight smile. "Another couple of inches and that would have killed you." He paused for a moment and glanced up at where Gawain was talking gently to Jack, who was finally starting to come around. "How did Jack's spear end up in your side, anyway?"
Gil grimaced. "That human threw it when I was trying to help Jack. And is Jack–?"
"Jack's fine," Harry reported. "He had a few cuts and one hell of a concussion, but he's fine now."
Gil nodded, relieved, and let Harry help him to his feet. When the light elf saw the mess that had been Cross, his eyes went wide and he looked at Harry. "What happened?" he whispered.
Harry grimaced. "I may have lost my temper."
"You..." Gil shook his head, speechless. Sometimes, it was easy to forget exactly how dangerous Harry could be.
Jack approached the corpse, one hand held over his nose, and picked up the red orb, ignoring Gawain's gentle voice. He didn't need to be talked down like some animal, thanks. The haze that had covered everything since Cross had started talking about having won was gone and Jack was seeing things with terrible clarity:
Jack Russell had as good as killed Parsec himself.
Wings rustled quietly and a gentle hand took the red orb from Jack's hand. "It wasn't your fault," Gil said, quiet voice overly loud in the empty room.
Jack swallowed. "It was," he replied. "If I hadn't been here–"
"Cross still would have defeated Parsec without you here, Jack," Harry said.
"It wouldn't have been so easy!" Jack snapped, turning to look at where Harry and Gawain were standing a bit away from Jack and Gil. "He wouldn't have had one of those orbs! That–" Jack cut himself off, a terrible realisation suddenly appearing in his mind with stark clarity. "The orb... I had it for weeks. I've been..." His chest tightened and he found himself struggling to breathe.
"Jack?" Harry asked, stepping forward.
"I've been carrying that thing around in my pocket. I could have killed you at any moment! I've been carrying around your death in my pocket! I–!"
Harry grabbed Jack's shoulders and shook him. "Listen to me, Jack," he ordered and the teen's mouth snapped shut. "The orbs don't work like that; they don't just seal upon touch. It's intent that activates them, and unless you've been secretly harbouring the desire to send me to sleep these past few weeks..."
Jack shook his head. "No, I'd never–!"
"Then you've just been carrying around a pretty stone," Harry replied. "One made by dragons to seal dragons, but not in any way one that could have been used against me. Not by your hand. Do you understand?"
Jack nodded, the band around his chest loosening. "Yeah," he whispered. "Yeah, I understand..." He felt suddenly tired and it was a struggle to keep his eyes open.
Harry caught Jack as the teen finally succumbed to the exhaustion from the battle, his emotions and the healing. "Gawain, will you be able to see the others outside back to their posts?" he asked as he shifted Jack in his arms.
Gawain smiled and nodded. "Certainly."
"I'll go with Gawain," Gil said, slipping the orb that had sealed Parsec into a pocket.
"You'll do no such thing!" Harry snapped, giving the elf a sharp look. "Come here." He held out one hand, straining a bit to keep Jack steady against him.
Gil grabbed Harry's arm, free hand moving to help support Jack. Almost as soon as Jack was steady, there was this sensation like being pulled through something much too small and Fire Mountain turned into Jack and Harry's room in Fort Helencia.
While Gil was getting his bearings, Harry carried Jack over to his bed and set the teen in it. He'd managed to pull Jack's belt and bangles off before Gil spoke.
"I knew you could do that, but..."
"I don't usually," Harry agreed, smiling. "No. Apparation tends to react badly with some ingredients. I had to leave my potions belt in Ridley's room."
Gil nodded. "How is the girl?"
"She was awake before I left," Harry reported, easing off one of Jack's boots. "She's still fighting with Hap, but they're starting to accept each other. Finally."
Gil smiled to himself, watching the dragon take care of the human on the bed. "And Jack? I remember you saying something about a concussion?"
"I'll stay in here and make sure he's okay," Harry said, setting the second boot next to Jack's bed and pulling the teen's covers over him.
"I'll let Lord Zane know what happened, then," Gil decided.
Harry nodded, absently brushing a lock of hair out of Jack's eyes. "Sounds good. Ah...but you might want to avoid the mention of where the orb came from. For all that I don't blame Jack, Zane will."
Gil grimaced; yes, Zane would most certainly see this as a reason to dislike the human all the more. For all that the light elf elder was starting to accept the two young humans that lived in the fort, Zane wasn't yet to the point where he could over-look even so minor a transgression. "I'll make something up," he agreed.
"Good. And then get some sleep yourself," Harry ordered, looking over his shoulder at the light elf. "Your body's more used to healing magic than Jack's, but rest is the best thing you can do for yourself right now."
"Understood. Oh, and Lord Harry?"
Harry grimaced at the title and looked back at Jack's sleeping face. "Yes, Gil?"
"I think it's pretty obvious, but humans tend to be oblivious, so you might want to tell Jack how you feel about him."
Harry blinked a few times in surprise. "How I... feel?" He looked back over at the light elf, who was rubbing at his eyes and smiling helplessly. "Is that light elf code for something?"
"Humans are so dense," Gil muttered and left the room.
Harry huffed a bit. "Why do I bother putting up with elves?" he wondered aloud to the empty room. He glanced back down at Jack and smiled at him, then got up and wandered over to the small potions station he'd set up in a corner of their shared room. He'd been afraid, at first, that the smells would keep his roommate awake or give him headaches, but Jack hadn't seemed bothered at all. He'd even said, once, that the smells helped him drift off to sleep.
For all that he'd hated potions at Hogwarts, Harry had found himself relearning the skill out of necessity to survive in Tottaus on his own. Now, after so long, he found himself relaxing into the familiar motions of slicing and dicing and his mind wandered off on its own.
What had Gil meant? How he felt about Jack? They were friends, of course. He was a good kid, but always getting into trouble. Last week it had been his sister, this week Cross Ward. Would Harry always be saving Jack from people out to kill him?
The image of Cross, sword back and prepared to swing at the unmoving Jack came back to Harry and his heart skipped a beat, just as it had back in Fire Mountain.
The knife slipped from Harry's fingers and he gripped his potions table. Oh. Oh.
"Shit," Harry whispered and closed his eyes. He'd gone and fallen in love with a human.
It wasn't the first time Harry had fallen in love with someone else. There'd been Ginny back in his world, and a dark elf by the name of Belle. Belle had been one of the dark elves that Aphelion had killed for sport all those years ago, and the reason Harry had finally hunted the silver dragon down. It had taken years for his relationship with Ginny to develop, and he had only realised why he'd reacted so violently to Belle's death after Aphelion had been properly scared off; it shouldn't be such a shock that he hadn't realised why he was so attached to Jack, but it somehow did surprise him.
Never mind that a relationship between them would be impossible. They were both male, for Merlin's sake! And while Harry didn't have a problem with gays – he was old enough and travelled enough to know that prejudice based on the forms of love was just stupid – most humans did; Jack would never accept a relationship. And Jack was human. His lifespan was completely worthless; any relationship they started would leave Harry with a broken heart when Jack died.
Then there was Ridley. Jack was clearly in love with the girl; look at his reaction when she'd fallen ill at breakfast that morning!
No, a relationship between them would never work. Better to just remain friends.
His mind helpfully provided him with the memory of the fear in Jack's eyes when the teen remembered that he'd been carrying an orb around with him and could have sealed Harry.
"We're friends," Harry muttered to the bubbling cauldron. "Of course he'd be concerned."
His mind closed in on the absolute terror in the brown eyes.
"Friends," Harry insisted. "Either shut up, or help me with this potion."
He couldn't help but wonder if he was going a bit mad when he got the sense that his mind had thrown up its arms in defeat, but decided it wasn't worth wondering about; after a couple of centuries, anyone would start losing their mind a bit.
-0-0-0-
Jack sighed and lay back against the grass. Harry had finally let him out of their room, but he'd been ordered to take it easy for the day. No travelling, no training with the dummies or the elves and goblins, nothing. It was boring as anything else.
Gil sat down next to him. "You on light duty?" he asked.
"I'm on 'I'd keep you in bed if I thought you'd stay there without having to be constantly monitored' duty," Jack muttered back. "I can lay out here, in my room or sit in on a strategy meeting. I'd rather sit out here, where I can at least watch other people train."
Gil snorted and leaned back on his palms. "I'm sorry."
Jack sighed. Harry had explained that Jack had lost a lot of blood from the fight against Cross and that healing magic always left the recipient exhausted for days, especially with his blood loss and a concussion. Potions were better for a quick healing, but Harry hadn't been able to bring any with him, so magic had been required. Jack had understood that his twenty-hour sleep had been the result of the battle and the healing, but he wasn't really okay with having to relax for another couple of days, especially if the humans might attack soon.
"You're on light duty?" Jack asked the light elf.
"Harry's version of light duty," Gil agreed, "which involves pretty much what you're allowed to do, with the added bonus of being allowed to get up and show people, in slow motion, what they're doing wrong. If I strain something or try over-exerting myself, I'll be 'drugged to the gills and sent back to bed'."
Jack's lips twitched at the threat which Harry had delivered to him that morning as well. "He's worse than my sister was the time I caught the flu," he commented.
"If Adele is anything like your mother, I can see it."
Jack blinked in surprise. "You knew my mom?"
Gil shrugged. "We met a couple of times. I saw Adele when she wasn't quite a year old, too."
Jack chuckled at himself. At Gil's curious look, he said, "I knew you were friends with my dad, but I hadn't really thought about what that meant in the way of the rest of my family." He shook his head. "Yeah, Adele's a lot like Mom was, but she handles a sword like Dad. Taught me everything I know."
Gil's lips curled with a faint smile. "There's something of Cairn in your style," he agreed, "but there's a good deal more of a style purely your own. I don't know if that's because you learned your fighting from Adele, who wouldn't have remembered Cairn very well, or if it's because you've been fighting long enough to develop something of a style all your own."
"I don't know," Jack admitted. "Adele always swore up and down that she was teaching me Dad's fighting style, and I don't think I changed it that much..."
"Cairn was also much larger than you are," Gil offered. "Many of his moves required brute strength to successfully employ and you may not quite have that strength yet. It's probably best you develop your own fighting style, so you can fight now. As you get older and build your muscles, you'll probably find yourself once again leaning more towards your father's style."
Jack smiled at the light elf. "I figured," he agreed. "I'm only sixteen, after all, for all that I'm fighting on the front lines of a war."
Gil glanced up at the fort behind them. "As an elf, the idea of sending a sixteen-year-old to fight is almost like serving them a death notice, but humans age faster. You're probably about the same maturity level that I was when I first met Cairn." His lips twitched again. "We weren't friends on sight, you know. It wasn't until he and Gawain completely kicked all our behinds and then emptied his stock of potions to heal us that we became friends."
Jack closed his eyes. "And here I thought Dad made friends with all the fairy creatures from the start."
Gil snorted. "Not a chance. He had to fight for the elves' friendship, just like Harry did all those centuries ago, and just like you're having to now."
Jack blinked his eyes open. "Harry had to fight to make friends with the elves?" he wondered.
"The light elves, certainly," Gil agreed. "But he was quick friends with the dark elves, always has been. I think they were just human enough to be willing to accept him into their fold, and just elf enough that Harry felt comfortable with them when he had to flee the human world."
Jack frowned. "He fled Radiata?" That didn't sound like something Harry would do.
"Mmm... Maybe fled isn't quite the right word," Gil admitted. "He lived among them for a long time and eventually left because he wasn't growing older and he couldn't stand watching his human friends die. Dark elves live almost twice as long as humans, and light elves live almost twice as long as dark elves. If hatred of humans wasn't so engrained in light elves, he might have ended up spending most of his time in the City of Flowers."
Jack knew Harry didn't enjoy watching his friends die, so living among those who lived longer would have been something of a blessing, yes. Human life was far too short.
"Speaking of Harry, I told him he should tell you something when we got back. I don't suppose he's imparted any words of wisdom to you?"
Jack's lips twitched as he closed his eyes again. "Other than the list of ingredients he can't apparate with?"
Gil rolled his eyes. "I honestly don't know if he's being stubborn, or thick," he commented.
"Well, what's this thing he's supposed to tell me?"
"It's for him to tell you, not me. With any luck he'll find the nerve before the end of this war." Gil groaned and got carefully to his feet. "He's doing that kata wrong. Amateurs."
Jack snickered as Gil walked off to show a dark elf how he was screwing up. The light elf was very serious about making sure his troops could survive a battle with only minimal casualties.
Jack was just starting to doze off when Gil returned to his position next to him. "Jack?"
"Mmm?"
"Could I ask you a question?"
Jack cracked one eyelid open just the barest bit. "Sure."
"That knight on the bridge, who was she talking about? The one you hold dear."
Jack let his eye slip closed again. "Harry," he mumbled.
"Do you love him?" Gil asked, holding his breath.
Jack smiled sleepily. "Love..." he mused, opening his eyes and glancing up at the sky. After a moment of staring, he closed his eyes and agreed, "Love's a good word for it."
Gil let out his breath, eyes wide. He'd read them both right, then. They were both attracted to each other and completely oblivious to the other's affection. "Humans," he muttered.
"Why?"
"What?"
"Why'd you ask about me loving Harry?" Jack opened his eyes again, a bit more awake now. Even awake, he found himself oddly calm about the idea that he loved his best friend, and he wondered if he hadn't, somehow, accepted it a long time ago. Dragons knew he'd cared for Harry long enough, and there was always that saying: 'Absence makes the heart grow fonder.' There had been a lot of absences in their friendship, and each time had been harder than the last.
Gil glanced down at the human at his side, wondering how to put it so Harry would still have his privacy. "Harry deserves to have someone to love him," he decided on. "He deserves having someone around who will care for him like he's always caring for the rest of us."
"I don't know if I'm strong enough to care for him," Jack admitted. Harry was the strongest person he knew, for all that the mage wouldn't pick up a sword; but there was more to strength than swinging a slab of sharp metal through the air, a lesson Jack had learned from his friendship with the powerful mage.
"I don't mean care for him in the sense that you're fighting back his enemies," Gil clarified. "I mean..." He shifted slightly, frowning. "Jack, we elves have grown up with stories of how wonderful Harry is, how much he cares for us and protects us. We grow up expecting the dragons to correct all the wrongs of the world, and Harry's a dragon. Even though I've been friends with him for fifty years, a part of me still thinks of him as 'Lord Harry', an elder who must be obeyed at all costs. Sometimes, I even slip up and call him that, even though I know he doesn't care for it.
"But you don't have any of that. You got to know him as a human, as a person. An exceptional person, sure, but still just a person. To the elves, he's something like a god; to you, he'll always be a person first and a dragon second. He'd never say anything, but I think he needs that. It may not seem like much, but it's something you do for him. Something only you can do for him."
Jack glanced back at the fort, expression thoughtful. "Yeah?"
"Yeah."
Jack nodded and closed his eyes again, brow furrowed with thought. "Thanks, Gil."
Gil touched the human's shoulder briefly. "Any time," he replied, then got up to yell at his trainees, leaving Jack with his thoughts.
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A/N: I know, I know, Cross didn't die in that scene in the game. But Harry had a moment, and I never liked Cross anyway. He's a slimeball. (This, coming from someone who's favourite HP character is Voldemort. XD)
The spell Harry used is my version of the Entrail-Expelling Curse from the books, for which an incantation was never given. It translates, roughly, to 'entrails expel'. I didn't bother trying to remember how to decline 'expel', but Jo's spells have never been exact, so I figure it doesn't matter. You may use it, certainly, but please credit me?
I'd meant to get the scene with Ganz and Jack and Adele in this chapter, but then the boys had to finally get around to thinking about their feelings. (Which is okay, I guess, since I wasn't much looking forward to writing that part right this moment. It's going to involve a lot of script from the actual game, I think. *sigh* ) Next chapter should start with that scene and cover at least through Jack receiving the Arbitrator.
I think that was all for this chapter. And, yes, the boys'll get together one of these days. They're just dense. XD
~Bats ^.^x
Chapters:
Prologue - Falling
1 - Elves ||| 2 - Humans ||| 3 - Let It Go
4 - And If It Returns ||| 5 - It Was Meant to Be ||| 6 - Ways of the Dragons
7 - To Build an Army |||8 - Power Over Life ||| 9 - Arbitrator
10 - Blood-Filled Days ||| 11 - Hic Sunt Dracones
...
Fandoms: Harry Potter & Radiata Stories
Chapter: 8 of 11
Author:
batsutousai/BatsutousaiBeta:
tsuki_no_suzu/Shara LunisonRating: T
Pairings: Harry/Jack
Warnings: OoC, AU, slash, non-human arc
Summary: Harry slipped when he was standing a little too close, and the next thing he knew, he was far away from everything he'd ever known, with something like eternity waiting for him.
Disclaim Her: This story uses characters and settings owned by J.K. Rowling, her publishers, Square Enix and tri-Ace. No money is being made from the creation of this fanfic, and no copywrite infringement is intended.
There are a couple scenes in this chapter that were taken almost word-for-word from the game, with changes to include Harry and the changed circumstances his being there have brought about.
A/N: Cannot, for the life of me, remember where Jack got that freakin' orb. I've a sinking feeling it was after Baade's defeat, but why he'd pick something up that defeated a dragon... In-game or out.
Chapter Eight - Power Over Life
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The week following the addition of the green goblins was spent bowed over maps in the strategy room, discussing where to move their troops to better protect themselves from attack. While Ridley and Harry were quite willing to join in on these meetings, Jack thought it was all boring as hell and spent his time instead joining Gil in training the troops or running errands for people in the fort, such as getting a history book for the black goblin Marco or getting some special ore for the dwarf Dyvad. He was often joined on these outings by Gob and at least one other fairy creature. Harry, Ridley and Gawain were too busy talking tactics, so they never joined him.
Jack really just wanted the war to start already. All this planning and sitting around was not his thing.
The only time Jack spent with his fellow humans and Harry was at breakfast in the strategy room. Harry would usually wake up first and, if Jack was there, would wake the teen up and drag him along for food.
The morning when things finally went to hell was just like every other morning since the goblins had joined them; Jack woke to Harry's smiling face and, yawning, allowed himself to be half-dragged down the hall to the strategy room, where food had already been set out. They sat down in the open seats and Harry started up a conversation with Gawain on his left while Jack gulped down some coffee and woke up a bit.
Jack was just turning to Ridley on his right when she jerked to her feet and stumbled away from the table.
"Ridley? Where are you going?" Jack asked in the silence that had followed the girl's sudden movements.
Ridley stumbled another step, then collapsed into a heap on the floor.
The elves on the other side of the table got to their feet even as Jack, Gawain and Harry hurried to the fallen girl. Gawain set a hand against her forehead while Harry quietly cast a spell to let him check her vitals.
"Ridley..." Jack whispered, worried and hating himself for not spending enough time with her. Maybe, he could have noticed something off sooner if he'd been around more.
"She's got a high fever," Gawain reported.
Harry sat back on his heels and sighed. "I feel like I should have foreseen this," he said quietly, smoothing the girl's bangs out of her closed eyes.
"What is it?" Jack demanded.
Harry took a moment to cast a spell on Ridley to help keep her temperature down, then offered, "This is something of a side-effect of the transpiritation ritual."
Jack glanced down at his unconscious friend. "Will she be okay?"
"Yes," Zane cut in, moving around the table to join them.
Harry shot the light elf a sharp look that had the man flinching, then looked back at Jack. "I'm not sure," he said honestly to the wide eyes. "Ridley's soul and Hap's – the light elf – soul are fighting each other for control of her body. If Ridley wins, nothing will change. If Hap wins, Ridley will essentially die and Hap will exist. If they manage to figure out how to work together... Well, the best would probably be the last for the both of them."
Jack chewed on his lip and asked, "So, but, wait... Hap is still alive in there? When light elves have the transpiritation ritual performed on them, does this also happen to them?"
"Of course," Zane replied, expression uncaring. "The transpiritation ritual involves two souls joining together. Light elves are just better at accepting other souls into them."
"Light elves grow up with the knowledge of how to accept another soul, and usually the transpiritation ritual is performed on willing participants," Harry replied, eyes shooting darts at the light elf leader. "Ridley was neither willing, nor does she possess the knowledge necessary to ease this part of the ritual." He sighed and looked back down at the girl. "I'm sorry, Ridley."
"Can you help her?" Jack pleaded. This was magic beyond Jack's understanding, so maybe Harry could fix it.
Harry glanced up, eyes thoughtful. "I can try," he decided, then met Jack's eyes, serious. "But it might only make things worse. There's already a war being waged inside her, any assistance I provide might very well be taken the wrong way."
Jack looked back down at Ridley's still face. Ridley liked Harry all right, and from what he'd heard from the other light elves, Hap had been fond of Harry. If anyone could help Ridley, it would be the dragon. "You'll find a way," Jack insisted, looking back up at the older man.
Harry nodded and, with Gawain's help, carried the girl back to her room.
Jack, feeling useless, decided to forego eating any more and left for the training out back.
Jack was fighting a dummy when Shin came rushing outside, face flushed and worried. "Gil! Gil!"
Jack hurried over to the stressed out light elf. "Gil's gone off to check over the black goblins stationed at the edge of the Nowem Region," he offered. "What's wrong?"
Shin stared at Jack for a moment, fighting with himself, then nodded. "Lord Parsec is being attacked by the royal knights! They've got him trapped in Fire Mountain!"
Jack blinked. "Crap," he replied, then turned to where the light elves who trained with Gil every morning stood, looking horrified. "Sian!"
The light elf in question jerked to attention, used to that tone coming from an angry Gil. "Sir!"
"I need you to fly out to the black goblin troops and let Gil know what's going on. Rupal!" Another light elf snapped to attention as Sian jumped into the sky. "I need you and two others to get to Shangri La and check on the green goblins that are there. If the humans are starting their attack, we need to know. Shin, have you alerted Zane yet?" he asked, turning back to the message-bearer while Rupal collected two friends and they made for the pig statue.
Shin nodded. "He told me to get Gil. Gawain and Lord Harry are still with the gi– Ridley."
Jack nodded and took a glance around the training grounds. "Gob! Want to go on an adventure?"
Gob looked up from where he was working with a couple of other green goblins who had decided to stay with the fort. "Gob always good for adventure," the green goblin informed Jack, grinning broadly.
"Dyvad!" Jack called to a dwarf who he'd recently made good friends with after bringing him some ore.
The dwarf in question glanced up from the weapon he was testing. "Bit busy, Jack!"
"I'm going to Fire Mountain!" Jack called back, ignoring the startled look on Shin's face and the mad grin on Gob's, who had joined him.
Dyvad turned his full attention to the human. "What, you need a better weapon?"
Jack touched the Deep Lance strapped to his back that Dyvad had made for him the evening before. "Not really. Just wondering if you wanted to come along."
Dyvad thought about it for a moment, then asked, "You'll be fighting humans, then?"
"Almost certain to," Jack agreed.
Dyvad's mouth split into a violent smile and he swung the hammer he'd been testing onto his shoulder in a comfortable motion. "I'm coming," he said, walking over to them.
Jack grinned. "Excellent. We'll take the pig to Shangri La, then walk to the Dichett Region and Fire Mountain."
"Just the three of you?" Shin demanded.
Jack shrugged. "Well, Gil should be coming with Sian, and we can pick up a couple of green goblins at Shangri La, so... Yeah. Just us three." He smiled at Shin. "You should probably make sure Gawain and Harry know what's going on, though. Just in case."
Shin sighed and muttered unfavourable things about humans under his breath while the party of three hurried over to the pig and set out.
They did pick up a couple of green goblins on their way through Shangri La – which was, oddly, not under attack. Jack only stopped long enough to tell the other green goblins and the three light elves guarding the place to keep their eyes peeled for retreating humans, then they were all running for the bridge to the Dichett Region, Jack promising himself to bring up the fact that the humans had gone through Shangri La without destroying anything to Harry and Zane once Parsec was safe.
On the bridge, they were stopped by a single human. When Jack, leading the party, reached the armoured form, she said, "I've been waiting, Jack Russell."
Jack leaned against his spear, which he'd pulled out as soon as he'd recognised the person holding the bridge. "Chief, I don't really have time to chat right now. Could we do this later?" He tried a winning smile, but had a feeling it fell flat.
"I cannot allow you to pass," Elwen replied. "Please retreat."
Jack swallowed hard and shook his head, stomach jumping to his throat as Elwen pulled out her sword.
"Gob destroy humans," Gob hissed from just behind Jack's left elbow.
Although Jack couldn't see her eyes, he had the distinct feeling that Elwen had just given the green goblin an unimpressed look. Not having time to deal with a long, convoluted argument about who Gob could and couldn't kill, he ordered, "Back up, Gob. Not a lot of room here."
Gob huffed under his breath, but did as ordered, directing the other green goblins to back up as well. Dyvad, who had been at the back of the line, had already stepped back off the bridge, having no intention of standing on it while there was a battle.
Elwen kept her sword at her side, posture slightly curious. "Why are you helping them to destroy us humans?"
"I'm protecting humans and non-humans alike by fighting with the fairy creatures," Jack replied tightly, lifting his spear off the boards under his feet. "I'm sorry the other humans can't see that they're destroying this world–"
"Humans destroying the world?" Elwen replied, sounding more curious that upset by the statement.
Jack bit the inside of his cheek. "Chief, forgive me, but I'm on a time limit. If you want to debate the destruction of the world later, I'm willing, but either let me pass, or fight me. Please."
"Indeed," Elwen replied, readying her sword. "One last question."
"Ask," Jack allowed.
"Why do you fight?"
"I fight for the people who don't know what they're doing," Jack replied without pause. "I fight for the friends who watch my back. I fight because it's the right thing to do."
Elwen nodded and something about the way she held herself seemed to slump. "You still haven't learned," she murmured.
"Wha–?" A memory came back to Jack, of the first time he'd met the Chief of Theater Vancoor, of her words on that long night about true strength coming from fighting to protect another. "So fighting for an entire world doesn't count on the way to finding true strength?" he snapped.
She considered him. "Jack Russell, is there anyone you would do anything to protect, even forsake the world?"
"Yes," Jack replied, thinking of Harry, "but he doesn't need my protection; he's strong enough on his own."
"Even the strongest have a weakness," Elwen reprimanded him, bringing her sword up to point at Jack's chest. "Fight now, for this person you hold so dear, Jack Russell, and fight me with your true strength."
That was enough for Jack and he knocked her sword away, using the motion of the swinging bridge to change his spear's direction and bring it back to bear upon her. Elwen stepped out of the way and brought her sword back around, but the spear's longer reach and Jack's lighter form gave him an advantage on the swaying bridge and he countered every one of her attempts to hit him, nicking her in return.
Their battle would have continued until one or both of them was too exhausted to continue, but Gil and a party of six other light elves came down and circled the bridge, weapons and magic aimed at the human woman.
Elwen turned her sword and held it out to one of the younger elves, who took it away from her with a scowl and a snapped, "We're wasting time!"
"I'm sorry some of us have to travel on foot," Jack shot back drily, keeping his weapon pointed at Elwen. "Will you allow us to pass?"
Elwen held her hands up in defeat. "You have won this round, Jack," she agreed, pride colouring her voice. "Now it is time for you to face the next one. Hold the one you care so much for close to your heart, and you can face down any obstacle," she finished, moving to the side to let Jack pass.
Jack frowned over her words as he inched past her, the green goblins and Dyvad hurrying to follow.
Gil landed as Jack stepped out onto the land on the other side of the bridge. "Walking will just waste more time. We'll carry you," he offered as the other light elves landed, looking displeased.
"Sounds good," Jack agreed and secured his spear before Gil grabbed him under his arms and lifted him into the air.
"Humans and your armour," Gil grunted as they zipped towards the mountain that was billowing smoke in the near distance.
"Be glad I talked Gob into leaving his elephant behind," Jack shot back.
Gil's only response was some breathy laughter.
A party of knights was waiting for them outside the entrance to the mountain.
"We'll let the others handle the knights," Gil hissed to Jack as he flew them around the shouting band of humans and through the entrance to the mountain. Inside, they ducked other knights crawling the path with a mix of flying and ducking around the piles of boulders that littered the ground.
The only guards they couldn't avoid were the two men left guarding the doors into the centre of the mountain, but Gil shot off a couple of long range spells from the air while Jack launched a ground attack and they felled the guards without any trouble.
Beyond the doors, they found Parsec, in dragon form, faced by Cross and General Dynas.
The scene was painfully reminiscent of another Jack had seen not too long ago and he dashed forward, heedless of the danger to himself, and rammed into Cross.
Cross kept his footing and turned to Jack, sneering. "Why are you here?" he wondered, pointing his sword at Jack's throat. "Never mind, I don't care. Just stay out of our way!"
Jack managed to block Cross' first swipe and ducked to the side of his second, but the third clipped his dominate arm and the whole fight just went downhill from there. Eventually, Cross managed to land a hit across Jack's legs, bringing him painfully to his knees, and another blow with the flat of Cross' sword left Jack reeling in the dirt, spear kicked out of his reach by his opponent.
While Jack had been getting his behind handed to him, Dynas had been fighting off Parsec and Gil. When the light elf saw that Jack was down, he made for his human friend, only to be caught by the boy's spear, which Cross had grabbed and thrown at the incoming elf.
"Gil–!" Jack gasped and tried struggling to his feet, but the room spun beneath him and he dropped back down, Cross' foot on the middle of his back helping him down.
The movement had jarred the pocket Jack kept some of his little odds and ends in, however, and a smooth stone he didn't even remember putting in there rolled out, coming to rest next to Cross' other foot.
Cross' face lit up and he leaned down to pick up the stone. "An orb! Of course... It was an orb that destroyed the earth dragon! You've done well, Jack!" he said, turning towards where Dynas was trying to dodge Parsec's flames.
"No..." Jack whispered, once again struggling to get up, blinking away the dizziness. "No... you... don't–"
But it was too late; Cross was already to the fight, sword out in one hand and the orb held up in the other.
Parsec gave a great pained scream and flames jumped up around his body, which was already starting to fade away.
"No!" Jack shouted, lurching to his feet and stumbling sideways on unsteady legs.
"I did it!" Cross crowed, picking up the now-red orb. "I destroyed the dragon!"
Jack's eyes lit on the glowing orb and his legs gave out again, dropping him to the ground. "Damn it," he hissed, not sure if he was cursing his own legs or Cross' victory.
"Did you see that, Jack?" Cross asked, stepping towards the younger man, a maniacal glint in his eyes. "The humans have won. We can't possibly lose now. We can wipe them out; goblins, elves, all the nonhumans. We will trample them into the dirt like cockroaches! Just like we did with your Adele."
"You've doomed yourselves," Jack replied in a monotone, eyes distant, the crack about his sister not even registering. "There's no 'win' or 'lose' any more."
Cross laughed and brought his sword around to rest just under Jack's chin. "You're wrong, Jack. I've won, and you're about to lose. Forever."
As Cross moved his sword back to give himself room for his swing, a loud 'pop' echoed through the room and Harry appeared near the door. He took in the scene in a blink, then pointed at Cross and intoned, "Exta Expellere."
Cross didn't even have time to scream as his stomach burst open and his intestines slid out through the bottom of his armour. Shock touched his eyes briefly before the life left them and he fell over sideways.
Jack tried to move back away from the growing puddle of guts and blood, but he only managed to half fall over, jarring his wounded arm as it caught his fall.
And then Harry was next to him, muttering healing spells and gently helping him up on legs that would finally hold his weight.
"Gil," Jack remembered and pushed at Harry, pointing to where Gil was laying, motionless, against the wall.
Harry nodded and led Jack over with him, leaning down to check on the light elf only once he was certain Jack would remain standing next to him.
Jack, once Harry was focused on Gil, glanced around the cavern. Seeing the empty ledge where Parsec had been resting made his chest hurt, but he was distracted from that by the sight of Gawain half-shoving a shell-shocked Dynas from the room.
Gawain turned to Jack once the large doors where closed again, expression grim. "How're you doing, Jack?"
Jack blinked. "When did you get here?" he wondered.
"He's suffering from shock," Harry offered as Gil let out a groan and opened his eyes. "Hey, Gil. How're you doing?"
Gil reached up and gently touched the healed wound from where Jack's spear had pierced his side. "Damn, that hurt," the light elf managed.
Harry offered him a tight smile. "Another couple of inches and that would have killed you." He paused for a moment and glanced up at where Gawain was talking gently to Jack, who was finally starting to come around. "How did Jack's spear end up in your side, anyway?"
Gil grimaced. "That human threw it when I was trying to help Jack. And is Jack–?"
"Jack's fine," Harry reported. "He had a few cuts and one hell of a concussion, but he's fine now."
Gil nodded, relieved, and let Harry help him to his feet. When the light elf saw the mess that had been Cross, his eyes went wide and he looked at Harry. "What happened?" he whispered.
Harry grimaced. "I may have lost my temper."
"You..." Gil shook his head, speechless. Sometimes, it was easy to forget exactly how dangerous Harry could be.
Jack approached the corpse, one hand held over his nose, and picked up the red orb, ignoring Gawain's gentle voice. He didn't need to be talked down like some animal, thanks. The haze that had covered everything since Cross had started talking about having won was gone and Jack was seeing things with terrible clarity:
Jack Russell had as good as killed Parsec himself.
Wings rustled quietly and a gentle hand took the red orb from Jack's hand. "It wasn't your fault," Gil said, quiet voice overly loud in the empty room.
Jack swallowed. "It was," he replied. "If I hadn't been here–"
"Cross still would have defeated Parsec without you here, Jack," Harry said.
"It wouldn't have been so easy!" Jack snapped, turning to look at where Harry and Gawain were standing a bit away from Jack and Gil. "He wouldn't have had one of those orbs! That–" Jack cut himself off, a terrible realisation suddenly appearing in his mind with stark clarity. "The orb... I had it for weeks. I've been..." His chest tightened and he found himself struggling to breathe.
"Jack?" Harry asked, stepping forward.
"I've been carrying that thing around in my pocket. I could have killed you at any moment! I've been carrying around your death in my pocket! I–!"
Harry grabbed Jack's shoulders and shook him. "Listen to me, Jack," he ordered and the teen's mouth snapped shut. "The orbs don't work like that; they don't just seal upon touch. It's intent that activates them, and unless you've been secretly harbouring the desire to send me to sleep these past few weeks..."
Jack shook his head. "No, I'd never–!"
"Then you've just been carrying around a pretty stone," Harry replied. "One made by dragons to seal dragons, but not in any way one that could have been used against me. Not by your hand. Do you understand?"
Jack nodded, the band around his chest loosening. "Yeah," he whispered. "Yeah, I understand..." He felt suddenly tired and it was a struggle to keep his eyes open.
Harry caught Jack as the teen finally succumbed to the exhaustion from the battle, his emotions and the healing. "Gawain, will you be able to see the others outside back to their posts?" he asked as he shifted Jack in his arms.
Gawain smiled and nodded. "Certainly."
"I'll go with Gawain," Gil said, slipping the orb that had sealed Parsec into a pocket.
"You'll do no such thing!" Harry snapped, giving the elf a sharp look. "Come here." He held out one hand, straining a bit to keep Jack steady against him.
Gil grabbed Harry's arm, free hand moving to help support Jack. Almost as soon as Jack was steady, there was this sensation like being pulled through something much too small and Fire Mountain turned into Jack and Harry's room in Fort Helencia.
While Gil was getting his bearings, Harry carried Jack over to his bed and set the teen in it. He'd managed to pull Jack's belt and bangles off before Gil spoke.
"I knew you could do that, but..."
"I don't usually," Harry agreed, smiling. "No. Apparation tends to react badly with some ingredients. I had to leave my potions belt in Ridley's room."
Gil nodded. "How is the girl?"
"She was awake before I left," Harry reported, easing off one of Jack's boots. "She's still fighting with Hap, but they're starting to accept each other. Finally."
Gil smiled to himself, watching the dragon take care of the human on the bed. "And Jack? I remember you saying something about a concussion?"
"I'll stay in here and make sure he's okay," Harry said, setting the second boot next to Jack's bed and pulling the teen's covers over him.
"I'll let Lord Zane know what happened, then," Gil decided.
Harry nodded, absently brushing a lock of hair out of Jack's eyes. "Sounds good. Ah...but you might want to avoid the mention of where the orb came from. For all that I don't blame Jack, Zane will."
Gil grimaced; yes, Zane would most certainly see this as a reason to dislike the human all the more. For all that the light elf elder was starting to accept the two young humans that lived in the fort, Zane wasn't yet to the point where he could over-look even so minor a transgression. "I'll make something up," he agreed.
"Good. And then get some sleep yourself," Harry ordered, looking over his shoulder at the light elf. "Your body's more used to healing magic than Jack's, but rest is the best thing you can do for yourself right now."
"Understood. Oh, and Lord Harry?"
Harry grimaced at the title and looked back at Jack's sleeping face. "Yes, Gil?"
"I think it's pretty obvious, but humans tend to be oblivious, so you might want to tell Jack how you feel about him."
Harry blinked a few times in surprise. "How I... feel?" He looked back over at the light elf, who was rubbing at his eyes and smiling helplessly. "Is that light elf code for something?"
"Humans are so dense," Gil muttered and left the room.
Harry huffed a bit. "Why do I bother putting up with elves?" he wondered aloud to the empty room. He glanced back down at Jack and smiled at him, then got up and wandered over to the small potions station he'd set up in a corner of their shared room. He'd been afraid, at first, that the smells would keep his roommate awake or give him headaches, but Jack hadn't seemed bothered at all. He'd even said, once, that the smells helped him drift off to sleep.
For all that he'd hated potions at Hogwarts, Harry had found himself relearning the skill out of necessity to survive in Tottaus on his own. Now, after so long, he found himself relaxing into the familiar motions of slicing and dicing and his mind wandered off on its own.
What had Gil meant? How he felt about Jack? They were friends, of course. He was a good kid, but always getting into trouble. Last week it had been his sister, this week Cross Ward. Would Harry always be saving Jack from people out to kill him?
The image of Cross, sword back and prepared to swing at the unmoving Jack came back to Harry and his heart skipped a beat, just as it had back in Fire Mountain.
The knife slipped from Harry's fingers and he gripped his potions table. Oh. Oh.
"Shit," Harry whispered and closed his eyes. He'd gone and fallen in love with a human.
It wasn't the first time Harry had fallen in love with someone else. There'd been Ginny back in his world, and a dark elf by the name of Belle. Belle had been one of the dark elves that Aphelion had killed for sport all those years ago, and the reason Harry had finally hunted the silver dragon down. It had taken years for his relationship with Ginny to develop, and he had only realised why he'd reacted so violently to Belle's death after Aphelion had been properly scared off; it shouldn't be such a shock that he hadn't realised why he was so attached to Jack, but it somehow did surprise him.
Never mind that a relationship between them would be impossible. They were both male, for Merlin's sake! And while Harry didn't have a problem with gays – he was old enough and travelled enough to know that prejudice based on the forms of love was just stupid – most humans did; Jack would never accept a relationship. And Jack was human. His lifespan was completely worthless; any relationship they started would leave Harry with a broken heart when Jack died.
Then there was Ridley. Jack was clearly in love with the girl; look at his reaction when she'd fallen ill at breakfast that morning!
No, a relationship between them would never work. Better to just remain friends.
His mind helpfully provided him with the memory of the fear in Jack's eyes when the teen remembered that he'd been carrying an orb around with him and could have sealed Harry.
"We're friends," Harry muttered to the bubbling cauldron. "Of course he'd be concerned."
His mind closed in on the absolute terror in the brown eyes.
"Friends," Harry insisted. "Either shut up, or help me with this potion."
He couldn't help but wonder if he was going a bit mad when he got the sense that his mind had thrown up its arms in defeat, but decided it wasn't worth wondering about; after a couple of centuries, anyone would start losing their mind a bit.
Jack sighed and lay back against the grass. Harry had finally let him out of their room, but he'd been ordered to take it easy for the day. No travelling, no training with the dummies or the elves and goblins, nothing. It was boring as anything else.
Gil sat down next to him. "You on light duty?" he asked.
"I'm on 'I'd keep you in bed if I thought you'd stay there without having to be constantly monitored' duty," Jack muttered back. "I can lay out here, in my room or sit in on a strategy meeting. I'd rather sit out here, where I can at least watch other people train."
Gil snorted and leaned back on his palms. "I'm sorry."
Jack sighed. Harry had explained that Jack had lost a lot of blood from the fight against Cross and that healing magic always left the recipient exhausted for days, especially with his blood loss and a concussion. Potions were better for a quick healing, but Harry hadn't been able to bring any with him, so magic had been required. Jack had understood that his twenty-hour sleep had been the result of the battle and the healing, but he wasn't really okay with having to relax for another couple of days, especially if the humans might attack soon.
"You're on light duty?" Jack asked the light elf.
"Harry's version of light duty," Gil agreed, "which involves pretty much what you're allowed to do, with the added bonus of being allowed to get up and show people, in slow motion, what they're doing wrong. If I strain something or try over-exerting myself, I'll be 'drugged to the gills and sent back to bed'."
Jack's lips twitched at the threat which Harry had delivered to him that morning as well. "He's worse than my sister was the time I caught the flu," he commented.
"If Adele is anything like your mother, I can see it."
Jack blinked in surprise. "You knew my mom?"
Gil shrugged. "We met a couple of times. I saw Adele when she wasn't quite a year old, too."
Jack chuckled at himself. At Gil's curious look, he said, "I knew you were friends with my dad, but I hadn't really thought about what that meant in the way of the rest of my family." He shook his head. "Yeah, Adele's a lot like Mom was, but she handles a sword like Dad. Taught me everything I know."
Gil's lips curled with a faint smile. "There's something of Cairn in your style," he agreed, "but there's a good deal more of a style purely your own. I don't know if that's because you learned your fighting from Adele, who wouldn't have remembered Cairn very well, or if it's because you've been fighting long enough to develop something of a style all your own."
"I don't know," Jack admitted. "Adele always swore up and down that she was teaching me Dad's fighting style, and I don't think I changed it that much..."
"Cairn was also much larger than you are," Gil offered. "Many of his moves required brute strength to successfully employ and you may not quite have that strength yet. It's probably best you develop your own fighting style, so you can fight now. As you get older and build your muscles, you'll probably find yourself once again leaning more towards your father's style."
Jack smiled at the light elf. "I figured," he agreed. "I'm only sixteen, after all, for all that I'm fighting on the front lines of a war."
Gil glanced up at the fort behind them. "As an elf, the idea of sending a sixteen-year-old to fight is almost like serving them a death notice, but humans age faster. You're probably about the same maturity level that I was when I first met Cairn." His lips twitched again. "We weren't friends on sight, you know. It wasn't until he and Gawain completely kicked all our behinds and then emptied his stock of potions to heal us that we became friends."
Jack closed his eyes. "And here I thought Dad made friends with all the fairy creatures from the start."
Gil snorted. "Not a chance. He had to fight for the elves' friendship, just like Harry did all those centuries ago, and just like you're having to now."
Jack blinked his eyes open. "Harry had to fight to make friends with the elves?" he wondered.
"The light elves, certainly," Gil agreed. "But he was quick friends with the dark elves, always has been. I think they were just human enough to be willing to accept him into their fold, and just elf enough that Harry felt comfortable with them when he had to flee the human world."
Jack frowned. "He fled Radiata?" That didn't sound like something Harry would do.
"Mmm... Maybe fled isn't quite the right word," Gil admitted. "He lived among them for a long time and eventually left because he wasn't growing older and he couldn't stand watching his human friends die. Dark elves live almost twice as long as humans, and light elves live almost twice as long as dark elves. If hatred of humans wasn't so engrained in light elves, he might have ended up spending most of his time in the City of Flowers."
Jack knew Harry didn't enjoy watching his friends die, so living among those who lived longer would have been something of a blessing, yes. Human life was far too short.
"Speaking of Harry, I told him he should tell you something when we got back. I don't suppose he's imparted any words of wisdom to you?"
Jack's lips twitched as he closed his eyes again. "Other than the list of ingredients he can't apparate with?"
Gil rolled his eyes. "I honestly don't know if he's being stubborn, or thick," he commented.
"Well, what's this thing he's supposed to tell me?"
"It's for him to tell you, not me. With any luck he'll find the nerve before the end of this war." Gil groaned and got carefully to his feet. "He's doing that kata wrong. Amateurs."
Jack snickered as Gil walked off to show a dark elf how he was screwing up. The light elf was very serious about making sure his troops could survive a battle with only minimal casualties.
Jack was just starting to doze off when Gil returned to his position next to him. "Jack?"
"Mmm?"
"Could I ask you a question?"
Jack cracked one eyelid open just the barest bit. "Sure."
"That knight on the bridge, who was she talking about? The one you hold dear."
Jack let his eye slip closed again. "Harry," he mumbled.
"Do you love him?" Gil asked, holding his breath.
Jack smiled sleepily. "Love..." he mused, opening his eyes and glancing up at the sky. After a moment of staring, he closed his eyes and agreed, "Love's a good word for it."
Gil let out his breath, eyes wide. He'd read them both right, then. They were both attracted to each other and completely oblivious to the other's affection. "Humans," he muttered.
"Why?"
"What?"
"Why'd you ask about me loving Harry?" Jack opened his eyes again, a bit more awake now. Even awake, he found himself oddly calm about the idea that he loved his best friend, and he wondered if he hadn't, somehow, accepted it a long time ago. Dragons knew he'd cared for Harry long enough, and there was always that saying: 'Absence makes the heart grow fonder.' There had been a lot of absences in their friendship, and each time had been harder than the last.
Gil glanced down at the human at his side, wondering how to put it so Harry would still have his privacy. "Harry deserves to have someone to love him," he decided on. "He deserves having someone around who will care for him like he's always caring for the rest of us."
"I don't know if I'm strong enough to care for him," Jack admitted. Harry was the strongest person he knew, for all that the mage wouldn't pick up a sword; but there was more to strength than swinging a slab of sharp metal through the air, a lesson Jack had learned from his friendship with the powerful mage.
"I don't mean care for him in the sense that you're fighting back his enemies," Gil clarified. "I mean..." He shifted slightly, frowning. "Jack, we elves have grown up with stories of how wonderful Harry is, how much he cares for us and protects us. We grow up expecting the dragons to correct all the wrongs of the world, and Harry's a dragon. Even though I've been friends with him for fifty years, a part of me still thinks of him as 'Lord Harry', an elder who must be obeyed at all costs. Sometimes, I even slip up and call him that, even though I know he doesn't care for it.
"But you don't have any of that. You got to know him as a human, as a person. An exceptional person, sure, but still just a person. To the elves, he's something like a god; to you, he'll always be a person first and a dragon second. He'd never say anything, but I think he needs that. It may not seem like much, but it's something you do for him. Something only you can do for him."
Jack glanced back at the fort, expression thoughtful. "Yeah?"
"Yeah."
Jack nodded and closed his eyes again, brow furrowed with thought. "Thanks, Gil."
Gil touched the human's shoulder briefly. "Any time," he replied, then got up to yell at his trainees, leaving Jack with his thoughts.
-0-0-0-0-0-
A/N: I know, I know, Cross didn't die in that scene in the game. But Harry had a moment, and I never liked Cross anyway. He's a slimeball. (This, coming from someone who's favourite HP character is Voldemort. XD)
The spell Harry used is my version of the Entrail-Expelling Curse from the books, for which an incantation was never given. It translates, roughly, to 'entrails expel'. I didn't bother trying to remember how to decline 'expel', but Jo's spells have never been exact, so I figure it doesn't matter. You may use it, certainly, but please credit me?
I'd meant to get the scene with Ganz and Jack and Adele in this chapter, but then the boys had to finally get around to thinking about their feelings. (Which is okay, I guess, since I wasn't much looking forward to writing that part right this moment. It's going to involve a lot of script from the actual game, I think. *sigh* ) Next chapter should start with that scene and cover at least through Jack receiving the Arbitrator.
I think that was all for this chapter. And, yes, the boys'll get together one of these days. They're just dense. XD
~Bats ^.^x
Prologue - Falling
1 - Elves ||| 2 - Humans ||| 3 - Let It Go
4 - And If It Returns ||| 5 - It Was Meant to Be ||| 6 - Ways of the Dragons
7 - To Build an Army |||
10 - Blood-Filled Days ||| 11 - Hic Sunt Dracones
...
