Disclaimer:
Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.
I own nothing but the original characters I create.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
Chapter 300: The Fourth Deadly Hallow: Death's Visage
A.N - 300 Chapters!, yay!. We are getting there guys. Thank you for all the support and hope you keep enjoying this fic until its conclusion. -
"Death's warning…" Xenos muttered. "It appears that the warning left behind was not a mere bluff."
"Harry… are you sure about this?" After seeing those corpses, Daphne was more than worried.
"According to the diary, this was only meant to be opened by one chosen individual." Harry ran his fingers across the box's surface. It felt cold to the touch, but the connection was stronger than ever.
Whatever it was that had been calling for him… it was inside this box.
"I have no doubt that Harry is the one meant to open this," Xenos said with confidence.
"You were also sure he could open the door...and if he isn't… we are going to end up like them?" Daphne's eyes moved over the several skeletons scattered across the vault.
"I have a lot of confidence in this," Harry said.
"But you can wait outside of the vault if you want. I understand."
Daphne sighed.
"Fine… open it. I'll stay."
"Very well…" He picked up the box and held it in one hand. It was a lot lighter than he expected.
"There we go…" He pulled on the lid, and this one opened with almost no effort.
Xenos and Daphne stared intensely at the box.
They were all holding their breaths as Harry pulled the lid up.
And then… nothing happened.
"Well? What's inside?" Daphne could not see the inside of the box from where she was standing. Harry was holding it too high for her to peek.
"How can it be?!" Xenos exclaimed.
"Mmm… I don't know how to say this…" Harry lowered the box a bit so now they could all see the inside.
"It's empty."
Unlike the pitch-black exterior, the inside was very light in tone and they could all clearly see that it was completely… empty.
"Empty?!" Even Daphne could not believe it.
"This is impossible! No one else could have taken its contents without suffering from Death's punishment," Xenos said.
"Could it have been a different Master of Death?" Harry asked.
"There has never been another one. Since their inception… the Deathly Hallows have only been reunited once," Xenos explained.
"Still…" Harry stared at the box. The feeling had not disappeared. He still felt its calling.
"But if the box is empty, what is… oh." He then realized the truth.
"Is the box…"
"What do you mean?" Daphne asked.
"I mean that there was never anything inside this thing… the box is the Fourth Deathly Hallow." As Harry said this, the black box closed by itself. The lid became sealed shut and the opening disappeared, leaving a completely smooth black cube.
"What's happening?" Xenos exclaimed.
The black cube in Harry's hand began to dissolve before their eyes.
Its previously solid surface turned into a dark thick mist.
Harry did not panic. He felt that this was supposed to happen. The cube had only been a temporary shape. That was not the real visage of Death's last artifact.
"Harry!" Daphne was extremely nervous. She was watching as the mist began to encircle Harry.
The cube had completely disappeared, leaving only the mist behind.
The dark substance was so thick that it almost looked like a liquid.
It was now covering Harry from head to toe.
Harry's shoes were the only thing left visible.
"Harry! What do we do?" Daphne wondered.
"Nothing!" Xenos hurried to say.
"Look closely… he is not struggling or making any painful noises. Harry is fine. I believe we are about to see the real Hallow!"
Daphne did not take her eyes off Harry for one second. If he even gestured to ask for help, she was going to do something.
But Harry never made a sound as the mist began to take shape.
It seemed to mold around his body like a piece of cloth, but it still covered everything in such a dark tone of black that it almost seemed to eat away the light around him.
"I see now! I know what this is!" Xenos said with excitement.
Daphne had no idea what he was talking about, so she remained quiet.
The material covering Harry had gone completely from gas to liquid and finally to solid.
There was a thick fabric covering his body from head to toe, not even showing an inch of his skin.
His face remained hidden beneath a cloak, and no matter how much they tried, they could not see his face at all.
Then, all of a sudden, a pair of green beacons of light appeared on his face.
Daphne got startled and almost fell on her back.
Xenos was smiling the whole time.
"The Visage of Death! These are the robes used by Death herself!. What a magnificent sight!."
"Death…" Daphne mumbled.
It was true. Right now, the figure of Harry has been replaced by the God of Death. Or at least, the depiction that most people had agreed on when creating their drawings and paintings.
The pitch-black robes moved slightly as he took a step forward.
Its two shiny green eyes were now focused on the scared girl.
Daphne felt shivers and had the sudden need to get away from him. "S-Stop, don't get an-"
"Daphne… it's me." The voice of Harry washed away her fear.
The cloak was pulled back, revealing his usual face.
"Sorry for startling you. I was trying to get adjusted to this… still feels a bit strange." He moved his hands a bit while saying this.
"So this is the Fourth Deathly Hallow… I was not expecting clothes," said Harry. He thought it was going to be some sort of weapon.
"Comparing Death's Visage with simple clothes is a bit…" Xenos murmured.
"So… you are fine… when I saw that black thing wrap all over you, I got scared…" said Daphne.
Harry looked at her.
"I'm perfectly okay, Daphne. I just need t-"
They heard a commotion outside.
"Oh, what now?!" Daphne asked.
"That may be the goblins, I presume," said Xenos.
"That's alright. We got what we came for. Let us go outside and deal with the goblins," Harry said.
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