Work Text:
Harry felt very confused, he where rather sure he was supposed to be in bed at the Dursleys yet here he was. wherever here is that is.
“where am I?” he asked looking at the room somewhat confused. crystals where coating the walls forming various mirrors.
but they didn’t exactly show him. no the reflections showed someone else.
each different.
there was another reflection that looked like him as a adult grim reaper? body far to thin, even if covered in skin and flesh that reflection looked distinctly skeletal. another looked like someone had turned him into a vampire.
“do these show different versions of myself?” Harry wondered somewhat intrigued as he continued on. seeing what look to be a steampunk wizard lord, while another made him look like a vampire hunter out of fiction both adult or close to it.
he’s rather curtain he saw a version of him that fit into ancient Greece, citon and all even the leaf-crown resting on his head.
yet,
Each mirror’s very presence echoed something deep dormant in his body in his magic and blood.
a flash of red instantly caught harry’s attention felling more drawn to it then any other mirror in this place. but when he got there to said mirror it didn’t show anything.
no reflection, not even the room was reflected in it’s dark surface, as if it’s been drowned in a shadow nothing in it could bee seen.
glancing at the two neighboring mirrors, one dark the other pale.
the dark mirror showed a image that was almost him yet not. eyes glowing electrical green, his skin pale and no scar in sight. his black hair long flowing past his shoulders and waist before stopping at mid thigh. yet there this reflection had pointed animal ears equally black as his hair on top of his head and was that horns, or no antlers coming out of his head?
dressed in dark black robes, metal necklace covering his collar, and what looks sash dark purple wrapped around his waist keeping said robe in place.
the dark reflection looked so human yet not, the look in his eyes was cold, bloodthirsty for destruction, the playful smile almost serene spoke of nightmares and pain that he’ll induce on others.
Harry moved away from that one and openly stared at a white reflection. this, this didn’t make any sense. his eyes being gold instead of green wide and innocent but keen power restrained. short black hair seem to curl and spike like he was used to but gold and crimson feathers where tied into his hair.
a white shirt, and red colored pants, didn’t seem to be wearing any shoes either, and if he saw right then there was a pair of pale gold wings coming out from this reflections back. not really large but they’re definitely not small either having a wingspan equal to his height, yet the tips tinted with crimsons, and more vibrant golds.
“the polar opposite” Harry muttered glancing between those two reflections before ignoring either, not sure what any of this was about.
a flash of red caught his attention again but it vanished quickly as harry looked at the center mirror.
the one who felt the most right.
“why don’t you show anything?” Harry asked, placing a hand on it’s surface and felt shadows flow over his hand. a familiar feeling a feeling he’s taken comfort in so many times before.
whatever truth in his blood this mirror showed it tied to the sleeping shadows that he’s always been bonded to. shadows he more then anything want to be awake yet that sleep prevented them from interacting.
something flashed red in it again, and harry felt his hand sink thru the surface, causing his eyes to widen.
the shadows rippling as if water, stirring and harry felt a distinct feeling of eyes opening.
a muffled yelp was heard just before he sank into the mirror vanishing from the room
the mirror glowing an eerie crimson thru the blackness of the shadows, that coated it who where quickly starting to overflow spreading past the mirror and over the ground.
but as the other mirrors started being devoured by shadows the crystalline-mirror rippled as if water before an image could be seen yet no one was there to cast it anymore.
it looked like harry no different from normal unlike the other mirrors that’s drowning in the unleashed shadows.
a roaring flood crashing against them breaking them apart or swallowed others whole, yet as the ceiling started being blackened by the shadows, leaving only the sole crimson mirror in a void shadowing his mind with natural ease.
the lingering reflection started shifting green bleeding over to red, as a fanged smile stretch before the reflection vanished under crimson static unseeable by anyone.
not that anyone where there.
///
Harry woke to pain, as if he’d been dipped in molten lava spreading thru his limbs, thru his muscles and bones, even running thru his mind.
preventing him from moving even breathing as his mind started to numb under the strain.
shadows flickering wildly around him as a wave of magic crashed down and everything suddenly distorted, twisting shifting around him as if a crackling storm.
the air filling with what sounded like static, glowing red light and markings seemingly flickering to life even if every single one seemed unreadable.
then it started to sink into his body, unleashing forces that ran thru his body, sinking deeper and deeper seamlessly merging with the dormant forces within him waking them as his magic stabilized with a sudden thunder and fierceness of a raging storm.
pain wrecked his form, as his body started changing, shifting, twisting into something more inhuman.
fingers twisted, nails and tips turning into sharp dangerous claws.
eyelids shading dark crimson, and eyes shifted unseen under his eyelids while his teeth sharpened into sharp row of fangs while his gums darkened.
his dark hair colored turning a brilliant red before fading halfway down to a deep black color, his ears twisting, raising to the top of his head as they grew longer pointed gaining long fur in brilliant red with the edge and top dyeing a deep black.
between the ears, antlers grew out stretching twisting in shadowy color.
bones and muscles formed before feathers grew out and wings quickly took form growing in size and power draping over his form and the ground as Harry was finally allowed to breath.
gulping for air, before he finally was allowed to fall unconscious, in the soft grass, no where near any house or city anymore.
///
Harry groaned softly as he opened his eyes but his whole body felt alien. sitting up on shaky limbs,
ear tilted to the side in utter confusion. where was he? what happened?
He noticed everything where brighter, more vibrant and so far clearer then his glasses have ever allowed. unnoticed to him, Harry’s eyes were no longer green or human, but rather pupils slitted dangerously thin in glowing red on faint darker red.
the area looked to be a meddow of all things, soft grass, fresh air, no trace of any building or city ever existed here. did he get transported?
last harry remembered where pain, and before that... the mirror?
but hadn’t that been in his mind or a dream? it didn’t make any sense, why would being pulle dthur it in a dream affect him in the real world?
what happened to him?
why did everything feel like it suddenly decided to turn upside down then twist and make grass liquid or something equally insane and bizarre even by magics standard.
Harry stilled as he finally noticed something soft against his bare skin and ears who pressed down against his head. the alien sensation didn’t vanish but remain very blatantly there, sending out a bright red flare thru his consciousness.
lifting a undeniable clawed hand he felt ears, fluffy pointed ears, long ones to that slowly rose up as the pain got lighter and twitched under his touch.
looking over his shoulders which he somehow manage to do without breaking his neck, harry absently noticed. was a pair of wings, large wings powerful ones to but they hung almost limply form their folded state, a deepest black but the tips where coated in brilliant crimson as if they’d been dipped in blood and harry wasn’t sure if that feeling was a good one.
“what ha-” he startled and promptly stopped short. “wait-” he stopped again looking rather confused.
his voice sounded like someone decided to put a radio filter over it. there was even sound of static and a faint crackle actually the static was still there even when he wasn’t speaking, but far softer.
‘what’s going on?’ Harry thought
“okay this will take time getting used to” Harry decided blandly rubbing his forehead and absently noted that his scar wasn’t lighting formed it was barely there anymore.
ears perked up as another feeling overpowered the alien feeling of his body
a slow pleased purr of affection coming from his magic as it playfully weaved and twined with primal forces. causing the surroundings to darken as the bright daylight suddenly blackened into night.
shadows and darkness.
“Hello darkness my old friend” Harry murmured softly noting that the radio effect softened somewhat. ‘so, I can control it’ he thought.
“hello to you as well” a distinctly non-human voice said out, it where distorted fading in and out of your hearing with a faint static like effect, making Harry turn around.
his eyes widen seeing the shadow, a very much animated shadow darker then black, white mouth formed into a Cheshire grin, glowing white eyes, and undeniable inhuman. wings spreading out behind them, and what looked to be antlers growing out from the shadowy head, ears perked up proud and strong, dressed or well actually he could only tell that the shadow where probably wearing pants.
“you’re my shadow” Harry said out aloud realizing what the being is, and he could feel the pure thrill of joy roaring thru him. his shadow was awake, no longer in that deep slumber where it couldn’t wake from.
he could almost hear an upbeat tune, words forming just ever out of reach, as music turned almost hearable.
“I am. we’re finally reunited” the shadow agreed thought it’s form where confusing him slightly.
“I’d admit I don’t have any clue how this works” Harry stated, it’s his shadow but they’re separate?
“I do have my own body” Shadow agreed with a nod “but I am still your reflection, part of your feelings, your true motivations, your instincts, and your partner for a long time to come”
Harry nodded, “you wouldn’t happen to know where we are?” Harry asked, gesturing to the twisted landscape.
“from looks of things we’re in a forest” he paused as a radio with wings flew by with a quite literal horse fly chasing it. and it was rather literal horse, even if the wings on the tiny thing where insect like.
Harry tilted his head “a forest” he deadpanned. “a dream sent me who knows where” Harry repeated blankly and the shadow gave a helpless shrug because that sounded well extreme.
rubbing his templets for a moment “I’m not sure what will take more getting used to the voice or the species change” Harry shook his head,
“well my dear friend lets find a village then” Shadow suggested.
///
it’s been years if not centuries sense he got his inheritance and he quickly figured that he were not in his own time anymore, which explained why no one where searching for him.
it’s pretty hard to be when they probably haven’t even noticed him missing, and the fact that the villages he found from the first one to every following village or city. every single one of them where of the dark ages, or perhaps Victorian he’s not all to sure.
but one thing was obvious, the statue of secrecy didn’t exist.
still he tended to assume a human form when he visited villages for most part, not really needing one in magical places. thought even if he assumed a human form, Harry didn’t really feel human.
probably didn’t act like one anymore either and it’s been a long time sense he was human or well rather wizard.
Harry is rather sure he seemed mad at times, and he’d sense long ago chosen to go by his real middle name instead of the nickname of his first-name.
the ancient magical world was fascinating, harry quickly decided, and he didn’t age either having stopped aging after 5 years or so... which means he would return to his original time the long way.
Harry where rather sure that centuries had past sense he ended up in the past, and he’d probably traveled all over the world at one point or another, the library of Alexandria had been a sight, as had other places ancient roman cities to the Egyptian, the great wall of china, or jungles of Africa and America.
and while interacting with the magical world wasn’t an issue, he already had a name, an identity and allot of power and weight that name caused.
in the non-magical it where starting to become problematic as establishing an identity there is getting harder, even if he used his pull elsewhere to do so. which made the current sight so very interesting.
a portal, it where an old one made by a mayan magical probably some centuries ago from looks of things, and for the magical world portals weren’t normal at all. no they’re spoken off but actually seeing one he wasn’t the cause of.
now that’s interesting.
it were even standing in the middle of nowhere, nothing else seen other then forest which made it much more interesting. walking around it he noticed that the inside of the door was separate from the surroundings, showing that it lead to a completely different place entirely.
“a true portal” Harry hummed ears flicking as he looked at it curiously taking in the symbols.
it didn’t appear to be the magical world it seemed a bit to stable for that. but it wasn’t a human world either as the sky was shown to be red not blue.
then a scent wisped into his nose.
a shuttered breath left him.
‘that scent’
savored, marinated, smoked, meat of all kinds but it had that curtain little marker. the mark of someone who’s induced vengeance upon them, somone who causes pain and suffering of any form on others.
Prey true honest for real prey and that set off his instincts. his mouth watering at the thought of eating that flesh.
his shadow swirled into sight next to him “the door may vanish if we go thru it” Shadow stated absently and licked their none seen lips at the scent.
“so? our own portals can reach thru worlds can they not” Harry responded, not saying it out loud that if they wanted to return they could even without this door.
Shadow flashed a hungry grin before fading, as Harry’s own spread further. sure walking thru the portal had risks, and he have no way of knowing where it leads.
yet right now he didn’t care if it was insane or mad to pass thru the gate.
Harry’s sure he’s madder than a hatter at this point.
but this is something new, something he’d not seen before only heard of and that scent was far to enticing to outright ignore.
no he had his own portals if he needed to return, either way this place should hold some entertainment for a while at least