Author's Notes: Chapter edited and corrected by Scott Fellman.
Serena POV - January 28, 1977 Magical World - July 22, 2008 DxD.
There was exactly one week left until my wedding, which meant I had to take care of something really important.
Voldemort.
He was an annoying thorn in my side; I wasn't worried about him, but I definitely wasn't going to let him attack or do anything that would ruin my wedding with Bella because of him.
And that meant having to find him and finish him off. Luckily, with the Horcruxes, it was ridiculously easy to locate him, and in fact, I was surprised by where he was hiding. None other than the damned Rookwood Castle in Feldcroft, south of Hogwarts.
I'd admit it, I had to give Voldemort credit when I got it; it was practically a triple insult to Dumbledore, it was practically an art form at this point. The castle was an important location for Dumbledore in his role as Keeper of Ancient Magic; it was where one of the trials of ancient magic was located and the site of an old repository of ancient magic.
Not only that, but Feldcroft, being south of Hogwarts, close enough to be reached by flying on a broomstick in less than an hour, had practically been right under Dumbledore's nose all this time.
This meant Voldemort knew the importance of the place; it was impossible for him not to. He was too clever for his own good. Therefore, it was best to assume that Voldemort had been able to discover how to enter the Keepers' test rooms. This meant that he possibly had access to the map chamber, right below Hogwarts. Voldemort would be more than capable of entering Hogwarts practically whenever he wanted.
Once again, I really had to give Voldemort credit for the audacity to do that.
I looked towards the castle from afar; part of my vision could see the abandoned castle, destroyed and without a soul nearby, but my Six Eyes could easily see through the illusion woven by Voldemort.
The castle had been completely renovated to its former glory, or even better than before. Voldemort was ostentatious; he certainly wasn't going to let it fall into complete ruins, so he had definitely rebuilt it himself, or ordered his Death Eaters to do so.
In any case, the castle was truly impressive, and not only that, its defenses were truly insidious. The first, and relatively harmless, were the same as those used by Hogwarts, but in reverse; they only affected magical beings. Any magical being who saw the castle would only see ancient, destroyed ruins, and the defenses also exerted a mental influence that made them want to stay away.
But the following were the most dangerous; anyone who tried to enter would begin to rot slowly and painfully, prolonging the suffering as long as possible until it killed the victim. Once dead, the body would be revived as an Inferius forced to follow the magic to one of the castle's rooms.
What was he doing with the Inferi? Who knew? I suppose he was creating his army of Inferi to place inside the lake in the cave where he would hide Slytherin's locket. And that's where the next compulsion came in: it forced any curious Muggles who got close enough to walk directly toward the castle.
I didn't know how many Muggles could approach Feldcroft, since it was a magical village and we were in the middle of the Scottish Highlands. There were few ways for Muggles to come in actively, but there were definitely some victims. I could sense a couple of dozen of them inside the castle.
I just shook my head as I descended to the edge of the castle defenses, moved my hand, and began manipulating them to create a gap, finally walking inside them with ease and without any problem.
I wandered through the castle. It was night, so the place was eerily quiet, though I could see a few torches burning around the perimeter. I sensed several people inside, including some house-elves.
But most importantly, I could hear and see the whispers and traces of ancient magic. The final repository was definitely beneath the castle, throbbing like a rotten heart filled with malice.
Whatever Voldemort had done, he had perverted it even more than I expected; the ancient magic felt… corrupted, tainted, almost malevolent. I didn't know if this was how the corrupted ancient magic that Ranrok had accessed, the one Isidora had created, felt, but it felt bad, horrible.
I went into the castle, barely glancing at the decorations as I walked silently through the empty castle and followed Voldemort's presence. There were more people in here, half a dozen of them, but they were all in their rooms resting. I wasn't worried about them.
Voldemort was still awake, moving, waiting. I headed towards him, right from where the whispers and traces of ancient magic were coming from, traces I could now see more clearly with my eyes.
There was a huge difference between this and the little I could see of ancient magic when I had only returned to Hogwarts six months ago in this world; it was remarkable. It was truly fascinating to look at ancient magic, yet I was barely distracted as I opened the door that led to the testing rooms.
I started down and passed through Voldemort's defenses, each one more hideous than the last, but nothing I couldn't see or manipulate. Finally, I reached Voldemort.
Finally, I reached the room, the enormous cave where the Guardian of Pensieve was located, where there should have been a huge knight made of ancient magic to test the Keepers, but that was no longer the case.
I stood at the cave entrance, only able to see the platform in the distance. All the passages leading there were destroyed, leaving a huge chasm between me and the platform. Above it, floating gently, was the Final Repository.
The great silver structure forged by goblins, containing the corrupted ancient magic, glowed red with a constantly pulsing fury. To one side, on the ground, lay Voldemort. He seemed to gaze at the ancient magic with fascination and greed.
I simply took a step into the void separating me from the platform, began to fly, and slowly approached it. Voldemort finally sighed and turned to look at me mid-flight; he just stared at me coldly, showing no emotion.
"Serena. I must say... I expect more," Voldemort said coldly.
"But how? Did you expect the headmaster to come?" I mocked as I landed on the platform. Voldemort hummed.
"That old fool would be a better opponent than a student who hasn't even finished her studies yet," Voldemort said so easily; it didn't even sound like an insult.
"Are you scared?" I asked him with a cheeky smile. Voldemort hissed and glared at me.
"Be careful, Serena. My patience is linked to my curiosity, but neither is infinite nor important enough to prevent me from killing you this very moment," Voldemort hissed.
"We both know you won't do it; you need me alive." I said, shrugging. Voldemort narrowed his eyes and looked at me.
"I see you know more than I expected. Tell me, did the dear headmaster tell you everything? He has the irritating habit of keeping and hiding everything he knows," Voldemort asked mockingly.
"You've gone mad with ancient magic; you need me to control it, or at least a part of my soul, nothing really interesting." I said, shrugging. Voldemort laughed.
"I'm glad you think so, Serena. This will be easier then," Voldemort said, staring at me with a sadistic smile. "Now I will take what is mine. Once I am complete, I will be unstoppable. I will create the unimaginable." Voldemort said as he drew his wand and made an almost lazy gesture.
"Then you'll have to wait. I don't belong to you, and you won't get anything from me." I said with a sneer. Voldemort laughed amusedly.
"You speak as if you have a choice. You come here, like a pig to the slaughter, and you think you can leave whenever you want? " Voldemort asked mockingly.
"Leave? Why would I want to? I came here for one reason, and that's to kill you, as simple as that. You're crazier than I thought if you actually believe anything of mine belongs to you." I scoffed, shrugging. Voldemort hissed once more.
"I created you, girl!" Voldemort spat furiously. "Everything you are, everything you've achieved, you owe to me! It belongs to me!" he growled, his red eyes flashing with malice. I snorted.
"Are you finished?" I mocked. "You didn't create me, and even if you had, I don't owe you anything. You're more pathetic than I expected if you think I owe you anything simply for participating in some way, in my, as you called it, 'creation.'" I sneered.
"Insolent one." Voldemort hissed with a furious expression, before his face went white, at least his expression, I could still see the fury in his eyes as he looked at me, and they pierced my body.
"Call me whatever you like; it won't change anything." I shook my head. "So, what was your grand plan? To absorb my soul, or a part of it, gain access to ancient magic, and then conquer the wizarding world? Once again, truly disappointing if that's the level of your ambitions." I said dryly. Voldemort narrowed his eyes, but he didn't take the bait. He didn't get angry like before; he was really good with his Occlumency.
"You can think what you like, Serena Snape—no, Serena Prince—now, can't you? You can think what you like, but it doesn't matter anymore." Voldemort said calmly. "You came to me, uselessly and stupidly, without any support, especially from that fool Dumbledore or your dear fiancée. You're trapped here with me, and I won't be the one to fall. Surrender, and I'll make everything less painful for you." Voldemort said, sounding magnanimous.
"Confidence? Or arrogance? You really surprise me, you don't even have any doubt that you won't lose." I hummed softly as I looked at him.
"Why not both? I have studied, learned, and mastered magic so dark that you cannot conceive or imagine it. You may play with your potions, but in magical prowess, you were inferior to me—that is a fact," Voldemort said contemptuously. "And even with your access to ancient magic, however rudimentary, you are no threat to me."
"I have conquered death. Even in the unlikely event that you actually win, I will return. I will always return," Voldemort said with complete certainty. I stared at him, truly impressed. Voldemort really had a flair for the dramatic; it was breathtaking.
"Conquered death? More like deceive it." I mocked Voldemort, and he frowned. "I know all about your trinkets, Voldemort, about your Horcruxes. Who do you think stole them? Who destroyed them? You don't have a single one left." I mocked Voldemort, finally seeing the surprise in his eyes as they opened slightly. Then his Occlumency finally failed, and his face contorted abnormally into a rictus of fury.
"YOU!" Voldemort growled gutturally. I could feel the entire castle tremble as his magic surfaced. I simply drew my wand and held it gently as I stared at Voldemort.
We stared at each other before Voldemort made the first move. It was truly astonishing; his wandwork was simply phenomenal. His hand moved in a blur, and in that single motion, Voldemort was able to unleash four curses in my direction, all insidious enough to leave an adult writhing in agony if they struck.
I held Aria between my fingers before my hand moved swiftly, just enough for the tip of my wand to strike each curse and deflect it away from me with barely any effort.
Voldemort hissed and continued waving his wand; dozens of spells and curses were immediately unleashed with such speed and force that even a trained person could not. I could see how, even without ancient magic, Voldemort could become a true threat.
Even so, my hands moved even faster, deflecting each spell from side to side so that it struck the walls innocently without effect. Voldemort growled and moved his wand even more violently, but still with the same speed and dexterity.
The ground began to transfigure and change shape; spikes formed, trying to impale me. I moved my wand and struck the earth structures that tried to stab me before they turned to dust.
To my surprise, several knight-shaped statues began to fall, their reddish color from corrupted ancient magic. Finally, a huge knight, three times my height, fell from the air, kneeling with a huge sword in his hands, pointing towards the sky, the Guardian of the Pensieve.
The enormous knight stood up while oozing corrupted, ancient magic. I just moved my hand, Caelus Hildr. I created hundreds of lightning spears that flew at great speed against all the knights.
The knights were resilient, especially the Pensieve Guardian, and would have been a danger to anyone in this world, but they were only able to withstand the first wave of lightning; the smaller ones were torn apart almost immediately, and the Guardian crumbled after hundreds of shots before being dust.
I waved my wand and created a shield to receive the barrage of curses unleashed by a grim-faced Voldemort. I simply summoned Hati; the vast improvements to fire transformed it into a blazing inferno.
Unlike Bete's Hati, which was primarily summoned through his hands and legs, I could control it and preferred to use it as a wide-area spell. Hati absorbed all the surrounding magic—from the destroyed guardians, the chamber itself, and all ancient magic—and began to grow in intensity as it enhanced and spread.
Voldemort began hissing furiously, demonic fire erupting from his wand. A massive, sentient fire basilisk grew around him before lunging at my flames. I flicked my wand, and Hati collided with the demonic fire, both trying to consume each other. But my control over Hati was far greater than Voldemort's control over his demonic fire, so I quickly gained the upper hand, and that was all it took to seize the opportunity and consume the demonic fire completely.
Hati now spread throughout the chamber, a blazing inferno that was melting and consuming the walls. Only the center, where Voldemort was with the final repository, my body, was not being consumed. I was in the middle of the flames without being harmed; my resistance to fire made it impossible for me to be harmed. In fact, the fire was constantly improving me thanks to Hati.
Voldemort roared furiously, a wave of dark magic erupting from him, holding Hati's fire at bay. But slowly, my fire was gaining ground, consuming any magic around it. Truly, Hati was a nightmare for any magical being.
Finally, Voldemort began to look desperate. He went to the Repository and began to use it. The corrupted ancient magic responded immediately, like a rabid dog, lashing out in all directions. Voldemort used himself as a conduit for the corrupted ancient magic; red lines began to appear on his body as more of it coursed through him.
His spells and curses gained a strength that no one in this world would be able to compete with, except Dumbledore. Unfortunately for Voldemort, my Hati just kept absorbing everything; using ancient magic on Hati only made it stronger.
Finally, Voldemort tried to escape. I simply stopped his attempts at Apparition and other escape methods, each and every one of them futile. I could see Voldemort's desperate look before Hati's first burst of flame attached itself to one of his legs. Then Hati began to consume him.
Voldemort screamed as he used curse after curse, but to no effect. I simply waved my wand, letting all of Hati's fire converge upon Voldemort and begin to consume him completely.
Voldemort roared with fury. I could see his body trying to hold together as the corrupted ancient magic tried to respond to him in a surge of power. A huge snake's head emerged from his body, trying to escape the fire, but Hati just held it back and prevented it.
Finally, I could feel Voldemort's body turn to ash as he died. Voldemort's soul roared with fury. I extinguished Hati; with a single breath, the magic-eating fire vanished.
Voldemort's soul fluttered in the air. I just moved my wand and wove spells. I grabbed hold of his soul. I could see Voldemort fighting against them, but without a body, he was unable to cast any spell, any curse to prevent me from claiming and keeping his soul inside an orb.
Finally, everything went silent. I saw Voldemort's soul scream inside an orb. I pulled out the rest of his soul fragments. Now, with the main part, the Horcruxes tried to rejoin, but each fragment was separated and protected.
I sighed wearily as I looked at Voldemort and his fragments before putting them away. I'd figure out what to do with them later; for now, I had to finish this job. I looked at the final repository; it still contained a large amount of corrupted ancient magic that Hati hadn't absorbed, and, indeed, when Voldemort died, he left much of it in the air.
I moved my hand, grasped all the corrupted ancient magic, and returned it to the repository. Then I moved my hand again, creating a massive blaze around the final repository. My Sky Flame, belonging to my Adora Burst, erupted from me and engulfed the corrupted ancient magic.
The flames of the sky began to harmonize with the ancient magic as I cleansed and healed its corruption. I had to dedicate several minutes before finishing the job, but finally, the repository of ancient magic had been cleansed of its corruption; it was a latent source of natural ancient magic.
I smiled contentedly. I guess that was all.
Author's Notes: Well, just like that, Voldemort was gone. I really couldn't think of any way to make Voldemort a greater threat. At the moment, Serena is way above the power level of the wizarding world, which isn't funny.
If she didn't use Hati, she could easily have used half a dozen other methods to take down Voldemort, the easiest being to summon many fairies from Divining Divide and neutralize Voldemort's power and the repository, so yeah... I couldn't do much about that.