"There is no good and evil. There is only power, and those too weak to seek it."

— Lord Voldemort

The Battle of Hogwarts

"The boy... Is he dead?"

A stillness permeated the clearing as the air crackled with dark magic — a smell of sulfur, nightshade, and fresh blood. On the ground lay a body, prone on the graying grass, untouched by the silvery light of the pale dawn.

"You," Voldemort rasped, "examine him."

Lucius Malfoy limped towards the body then slid two fingers along the boy's neck. A pulse.

"He's alive."

"Excellent."

***

Hermione Granger stood on a field of dead bodies, hands trembling, dirt and blood caked underneath her fingernails. Her heart hammered, adrenaline thrumming through her veins, her magic exhausted. She tried to block out images of limp red hair and brown eyes that lost their mischief, of two pale hands entwined even in death. No, she couldn't let herself think, couldn't let herself feel.

There was a moment of stillness, time slowing as the flashes of green, red, and yellow simmered as a figure walked out of the woods.

Harry.

Hermione exhaled a sigh of relief as her best friend walked out of the fog. Despite the dirt and blood, he seemed unharmed. She felt familiar hands, calloused and trembling, slip into hers.

"He bloody did it," Ron exhaled.

She almost called out, almost reached out but paused upon seeing his face. Gone were his glasses and gone was the boyish charm of the boy she grew up with. Instead of green eyes staring back at her, crimson ones gleamed in return.

"Harry?" Ginny called out in confusion, walking forward but stepping back immediately when Nagini slithered around Harry and hissed in her direction.

"Foolish girl, Harry Potter is dead," a voice laced with venom hissed out of Harry's mouth. A cruel smile stretched over Harry's lips as a laugh resonated eerily through the space.

"I must thank you all, for without you I would not have been able to obtain this form. You see, by the time I imbued my soul into the third horcrux, my form began deteriorating. My body weakening from all the power I amassed. And so, on October 31st 1981, I sought to prepare a vessel."

"No," Hermione whispered in horror.

"Did you truly think that a mere child could defeat me? That that night when Harry Potter lived, it was because of goodness and love?" He laughed, a triumphant and dangerous look in his eyes that did not fit Harry's kind face. "That night the Potters died, I imbued a part of my soul into a child. It hadn't worked before but this time it did."

"Harry, I know you're in there! Fight him! I know you're in there!" Ron shouted. Hermione clutched his hand tighter, pulling him back. This was not Harry.

The Dark Lord chuckled.

"He's dead. The moment I struck him with the killing curse when he so bravely gave himself up in the woods, it killed the part that was Harry Potter. All this time I have been waiting for his body to acclimate, to surrender to my soul and the moment he selflessly gave himself up to me? He was ripe for the taking. And you were all too foolish not to see it," he hissed.

Many gasped and wept as the Death Eaters on the other side leered with a hungry look in their eyes.

"I own this vessel, I own this body now. Had you noticed Harry's struggle all these years instead of putting your faith blindly in the idea that good always triumphs, maybe you would have realized what was festering in his soul instead of feeding him false hope that he could overcome it. But your ignorance has cost you. And now, not only am I back, but I am restored to my full power.

"Come forward and join us," his crimson eyes gleamed triumphantly. "Or die." Bellatrix cackled, a wild look in her black eyes. Some wept and others stuttered forward, too shocked that their saviour, their friend stood before them, gone in every way that mattered.

"From this day forth you will put your faith in me. I am merciful. The world I want is for all the wizarding kind after all, where our natural power is unleashed as it is meant to be." Voldemort smiled as his followers cheered.

Just then Neville raced forward, arms raised, the Sword of Gryffindor glinting as he pulled it out of the ragged hat. But before he could even lift his arms, Nagini struck, sinking her teeth into his neck. Hermione stood paralyzed, watching his body spasm as Nagini wrapped her body around him, the sword winking out into existence.

"I have been reborn and so will this world," Harry — Voldemort — continued. Neville gurgled, eyes rolling back as blood dripped from his lips. "On this day, let it be known that the Order of Serpents has begun."

Neville's body went rigid as cracks of apparition rumbled through the air, many escaping the horror before them.

They lost. They lost.

Hermione remained unmoving, watching the light fade from Neville's eyes. Hermione choked on her horror, bile rising in her throat. She looked up, watching Harry's face as a crazed triumphant look entered his eyes upon seeing her. He lifted his wand but before he could utter any words, she was pulled into darkness.

A/N: This is a work of fanfiction — Harry Potter characters and canon elements belong to JK Rowling. Elements from both the movies and books have been used in the piece, however I have changed or diverged from canon elements for this fic. Please do not post this fic anywhere else (it is cross-posted on Wattpad and AO3).

And this is a friendly reminder that this is all for fun! If you're not into the pairing or the fic, please don't force yourself to read or leave negative comments. I appreciate any constructive feedback for my work, especially any typos or errors since I don't have a beta. Enjoy!

— bl

EDIT: Lovely cover art by elivrayn 🥺 thank you @bookingitwithcarmen and @thatswhatnatread for commissioning this piece. 😭