Harry Potter and The Twisted Laws

Preparations

It was a cold winter morning when Harry Potter was still fast asleep, unaware of the black shadow floating above him, waiting for him to wake up.

Harry shifted, reaching for the familiar warmth of his fiancée-only to find nothing but empty space and cold sheets. His eyes shot open. A second later, he looked up-

And yelped, scrambling upright as his heart pounded.

The shadow drifted back, coming to rest beside him.

"What the bloody hell, Death?!" Harry spat through heavy breaths. "Are you planning on taking me with you??"

The shadow materialized in thin air, the hooded figure tilting its head. "Not today, Master
Not today."

Harry groaned, running a hand through his hair. "Where is Ginny?"

"Down in the kitchen with her mother." The hooded figure answered, hovering lazily by the bed.

"And why the hell were you hovering over me while I slept?"

"Oh, I was bored sitting here, you see," The cold voice was tinged with sarcasm.

"Don't you have other work? Aren't you supposed to be busy?" Harry reached for his glasses.

"Not many are leaving this place today," Death said, floating a bit above the ground, sounding bored. "It's always exciting, meeting new souls and leading them to peace...or punishment."

Not waiting for Harry to comment, Death continued. "Never mind that, I am here to inform you of something."

"For a minute, I thought you had decided it was funny to leave my heart stop beating because you were bored." Harry replied sarcastically. "But oh, do go on."

If the hood wasn't there, Harry was sure he'd be on the receiving end of a very sharp glare. After all, not many people dared to give Death an attitude.

Death remained silent for a long moment, the air growing colder with each passing second. Then, finally, he spoke.

"I would not waste my time hovering over you if it were not important, Master."

Harry exhaled sharply, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Alright, then. What is it?"

Death straightened, his presence somehow feeling heavier. "The souls are ready to return."

"Oh." Was all Harry managed at that time. "Well, that's good."

"When shall they come?" Death asked, a bit of impatience in his voice, as if just wanting to get over with the job.

"Uh. Tomorrow? Or tonight at 12 sharp? It will be New Year and I will have enough time to prepare the brief description of what all has happened since the first individual died."

"You seriously did not prepare your speech in a week?"

"You expected me to?" Harry shot back.

"Wonderful." Death muttered.

"What? I just thought they had this television in the heavens and they can see everything happening on Earth....and then, after Christmas....I have been a bit.....busy. Private stuff."

Death's hooded face remained unreadable, but Harry could have sworn he felt a glint of amusement. "Indeed. And yet here we are."

Silence followed.

"Will they remember they died?" Harry asked suddenly.

"Obviously." The cold voice answered.

Harry squinted at him. "Why are you always so cold?"

"Uh. I am Death?"

"Right." Harry said, unconvinced. "So they will remember they died? And how am I supposed to explain them why and how they are back here?"

"Oh, I took care of that stuff. You just have to tell them what all have happened on Earth after their death."

Harry stared at the cloaked figure, not expecting this level of kindness. "Thank You." He muttered.

"Part of the Duty, Master." Death replied. "I should get going, I have someone to pick up in...5 minutes. I will be back soon to know the place they should come back to." And with that, the cloaked figure disappeared.

Harry slumped back in bed.

The door creaked open and Ginny peeked in, immediately pulling her jacket tighter around her. "Merlin, Harry, did you leave the windows open?"

"No." Harry says sombrely, not looking up at her. "Death just left."

Ginny paused, her eyes narrowing in confusion. "Death? What do you mean-wait, hold on." She took a step forward, her voice lowering with suspicion. "Are you telling me you had another chat with him?"

Harry finally met her gaze, his expression grave. "Yeah. He was just... hovering around, as usual. Bored, apparently." He rubbed his temples, trying to shake off the odd heaviness that still lingered in the room.

Ginny crossed the room and sat next to him, her brow furrowing. "And what exactly did he want this time?" she asked, pulling the jacket tighter around herself as if the chill had seeped into her skin, too.

Harry patted the empty spot beside him. "The Souls are ready to return." He flashed her a faint smile. 

"When are they coming back?" Ginny asked, taking a seat beside him and cupping his cheek.

"Tonight. At midnight."

"I am excited...." Ginny admitted. "But I don't really like the fact that Death just scares you all the time."

---

Harry paced around the room, trying to memorize his speech as Hermione gave it a once over.

"You should mention your adventures, you know?" Hermione suggested.

"I am not here to bore them, Hermione." Harry said in a deadpan manner. "They would have just returned from death in different states, I am just... updating them. Death said he had already told them a bit so I expect them to be a bit prepared."

Ron chuckled. "Can't believe we are working with Death."

Harry gave him a sarcastic look, "What else do you expect from a life which has been anything but normal?"

Ron shook his head, leaning back against the wall. "True. Anyways, are we prepared, guys?" He added as Hermione passed the notes back to Harry.

Harry exhaled through his nose, rolling up his notes and tossing them on the table. "No matter how much we prepare, it won't be enough. The moment they return, we'll just have to deal with things as they come."

"It has always been more fun that way." Ron noted.

---

The original plan was to write their return today, but because of academic work, and the late hour of the night, that's all for today.

HP_Always.