Fleur De Lis

Chapter 26

Chapter 26

When the portkey landed Harry felt the rage coursing through his veins. His own arrogance had led him to this moment of failure. His confidence in his abilities was absolute. For good reason too. Between him and his master they had taken down over thirty of the ICW's finest, not to mention Albus Dumbledore to boot. If he and Grindelwald had wanted blood that day then the streets of Britain would be swimming in it, but it was not them who sought violence.

The Elder Wand twitched in the hands of the young sorcerer as he felt the rage trying to tempt him to return to Fleur and his family. Just as he had all but made up his mind to go back and burn the village to the ground, the hearty laughter of his master snapped him back to reality. Emerald green eyes shot to the man he had worshipped for the last 7 years, and all he could feel was surprise. Their cover had been blown. Their plans were exposed. They would have nothing going for them at this point. The only thing they had to look forward to at this point was looking over their shoulders, yet his master continued to laugh.

After a minute Harry's agitation began to increase before he spat out, "I am glad you find our situation so amusing. We failed. We were exposed far earlier than we ever imagined."

Grindelwald merely turned his sparkling blue eyes towards his apprentice with nothing but a fond expression on his face, "My boy, if you think anything that just happened was short of destiny then you are mistaken. If you think that the unequivocal defeat we just handed the ICW was a failure then you are mistaken. You were half pissed and magically exhausted from your task this afternoon, yet we still managed to wipe the floor with the world's finest wizards. It may take a few days, but that realisation will grip the Hitwizards by the throat in the coming days. They will realise just how outclassed they are in the upcoming fights, and at the very least they will be discouraged, but I suspect more."

Harry's eyes widened at the insinuation. If sobriety had grabbed him during the battle earlier it now gripped him like a vice, "We just sent a message to the ICW didn't we?"

"Indeed." Grindelwald said with a slight smile, "But not just to the ICW, but to my old friend as well. He willingly gave you the Elder Wand, but undoubtedly he realised he had no hopes of defeating us alone. The Wand was going to be in your hand at the end of the day regardless of anything else. That now leaves you the master of two ancient Hallows, with only one remaining. It may soon be time to visit a certain childhood home of your enemy. Never have you, and by extension of me, been so close to the title of Master of Death. It is a moment in history that I had long since given up on 'til tonight. I always feared my only friend would pass without being defeated leaving the Elder Wand negated, but tonight you took a massive step towards victory. It is unquestionable that Albus was the master of this wand, and now it is your time to go forth and seize our destiny."

Harry fingered the wand in his hands while his eyes stayed on his master who paced the room thoughtfully. It was clear that the man was deep in thought. He could feel the power of his ancestor's wand flowing through him, but he had to ponder the cost of such an achievement. His exposure meant that his family would be taking a political pounding. The pressure to defeat Voldemort had never been as high as it was now. He had to now prove to a world that he had all but given up on years ago that he was worthy of being its champion. If he could topple the Dark Lord then all would be forgiven in Wizarding Britain, and he would be able to return to be with his family, to Hogwarts, and to Fleur.

"What do we do now?" Harry asked, giving the man his full attention.

Grindelwald smiled as he held out his hand. Knowingly Harry nodded as he allowed the Elder Wand to be wrenched from his hands. Thunder boomed as the wand connected with the man for the first time in 50 years. His eyes pulsed with power that Harry had never before felt from the man. The briefest moment of doubt flashed through his mind as he watched Gellert look at the wand reverently. What if the man decided redemption was overrated, and Harry had just handed the former Dark Lord the most powerful weapon in the world.