Chapter 24. When Life Gives You Lemons
Taking the wand from his dead body, she stepped out of the room in which she was born and trapped for her whole life. It was the first time after her creation that she was able to cross the threshold of this chamber.
She moped around for a bit before slumping into her husband's throne, curling into a small ball and trembling from exertion after the night's irrevocable event.
She knew it was necessary and that she was in the right. She wouldn't have killed him otherwise. This was the only way she could have escaped from her gilded cage. And it wasn't as if her husband had been a selfless innocent victim.
No, he had been far from innocent, he was a cruel paranoid bastard who had taken away her freedom to love and to choose.
If only he had trusted her, if only he had given her a real opportunity to fall for him, then she would have sacrificed her freedom, her everything and would have gladly returned his affections twofold.
Alas, that wasn't how it was meant to be.
He might have loved her truly, but she couldn't ever be sure if what she felt for him was true love or a pale cruel imitation of it. Even now she was questioning whether the hurt she was feeling from taking his life was real or just an ingrained mechanism to stop her from betraying him.
It was fake, she decided. She was a fool to shed tears over a man like that. No more, she would do it no more.
Was the poor facsimile of love worth more than her genuine dream of freedom? Absolutely not. So, she had stewed and pondered how to achieve her goal after the Creator had shown her the truth.
She could have killed Tom when the Creator had frozen him and given her a knife and an easy shot. But she hated the Creator as much as she hated Tom. She didn't need his help to do this simple task. And so, she had thought and thought, trying to form a failsafe plan. Trying to do it by herself.
At last, she had opted for the most uncomplicated strategy, which was to murder him when he was vulnerable during sex. While she was equal to him in terms of power and knowledge, her practical knowledge compared to him was close to none. She had read many spells and curses, but had been able to perform only half of them wandlessly. Fighting him head on was suicide.
He must have denied her request for the wand because he didn't want to put more power into her hands. And yet, here she was with a wand and life while he was dead. Even his paranoia hadn't saved him while he was thrusting into her madly.
It had been all a part of the plan. She had denied him sexual relief again and again on every night, building up his stress and lust so he would be more careless and enthusiastic during that particular coupling.
She had realised how powerful sex was, there would hardly be any man who would remain guarded while plunging his cock into a woman's body.
She hadn't needed a wand to overpower her husband. No, all it took was her womanly charm to curse him with death.
Even after taking all the precaution from getting betrayed, Tom had forgotten that sex was an overly intimate act, where both parties bared their bodies and soul to each other, where a man and woman were at their most vulnerable.
She vowed to herself to never let her guard down during sex. She wouldn't make the same mistake as her stupid paranoid husband. She would learn from it.
As her raging emotions finally calmed down, as her guilt and sorrow got buried underneath her growing excitement, she decided to start anew.
She would not be Voldemort now. She wasn't his half-soul anymore and had finally stopped being his personal whore.
She really could start fresh, she thought gratefully. She would be now her own person. She would have her own name instead of living with his given name. She would have her own life where she could do everything she ever wanted without needing anyone's permission.
She was free and the terrible night had passed from her life. A new dawn had risen instead, filling her with hopes and desires.
"My name is Eos." She mumbled to herself, reluctantly at first, testing the name on her tongue, but then she repeated it with more confidence and a strange little smile.
"My name is Eos."
~xXxXx~
Harry shook his head in annoyance. It was the morning after the fight with the Dark Lord. He was sitting in the Room of Requirement, using his [Soul Searcher] skill to see whether Voldemort had really fled or if he was hiding again and preparing to spring an unpleasant trap.
As his [Soul Searcher] failed to find any Voldemorts, he was astonished and drowning in apprehension. He couldn't seem to find their souls. It was as if they had just vanished into thin air.
He had tried again and again with the same disappointing result.
The truth was that there were no Voldemorts anymore. Either they had killed each other or had started to cloak their souls from his system's senses, which was impossible. No power was greater than the Creator's.
To understand what the hell had happened, he thought to teleport directly into the Creator's castle where the Voldemorts lived together. It was a risky move but a necessary one. He needed to know and it wasn't as if he wouldn't be able to just teleport away at the first hint of danger.
He took out his Invisibility Cloak and wrapped it around him. He would try to stay concealed and unnoticed.
Knowing that his new [Unbarred] perk would bypass any complications caused due to the castle being a construct of Creator himself, he teleported directly into the throne room which he had visited only in his dream.
Hidden under his Cloak, he silently walked up to the throne. He again used his [Soul Searcher] hoping that it might work since he was literally in Voldemort's abode.
It didn't.
As he approached the wall of the secret room where the other Voldemort was trapped, it slid open on its own, letting him enter.
He stepped inside.
His eyes widened as he approached the canopied bed, where the dead body of the Dark Lord was laid. He scrunched his nose seeing that the flaccid dick of Voldemort was out.
He gagged and looked up at his neck instead, where a deep cut was made, which was the source of all the blood that had soaked the bed and pooled on the floor.
It took him only seconds to realise what might have happened here.
Apparently, the other Voldemort had killed this one while they were having sex and then she had fled to her freedom.
Though that still didn't answer why she was not visible to his [Soul Searcher] skill.
It was as if his plans were all made to fail. Not a single thing was going as he had envisioned.
He had thought, he really had thought that his enemies would be trapped in the castle until he would amass enough power and come here to slaughter them.
How stupidly optimistic of him.
Now he had a runaway Dark Lady on his hand.
Fuck it!
He stopped stressing about something which he had no control over. He ceased to worry about where she might have gone. There was no use crying over spilled milk. There was no use making elaborate plans when none of them were going to work. Wherever she might be, he didn't care. He would find her and kill her when he maxed his [Death Knight] Class and was absolutely assured of his victory.
Until then, she was free to enjoy her freedom, and he was free to have this respite from these constant pressures of keeping tabs on them.
Still, this situation wasn't totally hopeless, he thought.
He was going to get something invaluable out of this unpredictable disaster.
He pointed his finger at the dead Voldemort and mumbled, "Repair. Arise."
The cut on the neck mended and his skin gained back a very little colour. His black eyes snapped open and he sat up abruptly.
He looked around dazedly before his gaze locked onto Harry. His eyes shone with devotion and he slid off the bed, putting his hanging dick back into his trousers and kneeling before him subserviently.
"Master."
A smile creeped over Harry's face as he stared at his new servant. He silently used [Observe] on him and his growing smile abruptly vanished, replaced by a grim look of acceptance.
Name: Voldemort
Race: Undead
Class: Divine Mage
Lvl: 5000
HP: 250,000
MP: 500,000
Affection: 10
Obedience: 100
Thoughts: Nothing
So, this was Voldemort at half his power. Meaning, he was actually level 10,000 when alive. Such an ocean of raw power his enemy had. And let's just not talk about his skills and experience. Combined with the unbridled power and knowledge, Voldemort really was the epitome of Mage.
At this very instant, running around the world with that same strength was a beautiful harmless looking woman, who was decried by the system as his enemy.
He would be careful, but not overly paranoid. She was totally an unknown being to him. She could be either a kind and genial woman or a megalomaniac bloodthirsty woman.
He didn't know and that was a point of worry.
It really was hard to not be paranoid when a monster with that level of power was his new opponent. Although he wasn't sure if she saw him as one.
Did she even know him or about him?
Harry shook his head, not wanting to dwell on it too much. He would take care of her when the time was right. And it wasn't now.
"Go away." He told his new undead and added him to his inventory. It was almost funny how he had two Voldemorts stashed in his infinite pocket. Now, he only needed to kill the last one too and add her to the set.
What was better than two undead Voldemorts? Three undead Voldemorts.
~xXxXx~
The rest of the academic year went by quickly enough. Harry and Iris did their quests when given and studied daily to keep up their rankings.
Harry's teaching sessions with Astoria also went quite well, barring the few occasions when he needed to be strict to keep her from getting too out of hand.
Daphne and Tracey did not face any more attacks from their house. The 'Butchering' (that's what everybody called the incident with the Red Grim) was still clear in their minds to moronically antagonise anyone. They were totally left alone to do whatever they wanted. Which was fine by the girls since that's all they had desired.
They already had great friends, and didn't need or want to make more in the Snake Pit.
Everything was fine really, except the many curious glances of Dumbledore during the dinners as he conversed with the professors. He wasn't really keeping an eye on them, or scrutinising them, more like he was just intrigued and mesmerised at how easily Harry went through the spells and the curriculum.
Harry now had the attention of the headmaster. Which he wasn't exactly happy with. But he wasn't in any position to do something about it. So, he ignored it and remained on guard.
The day of the results came and all his friends passed with flying colours. Harry gathered with the crowd and looked at the bulletin board in the Gryffindor common room, where the rankings were pinned.
SECOND YEAR RANKINGS:
1. Harry Potter
2. Daphne Greengrass
3. Hermione Granger
4. Padma Patil
5. Iris Potter
6. Susan Bones
7. Neville Longbottom
8. Sue Li
9. Terry Boot
10. Tracey Davis
He glanced beside him, at Hermione, who frowned at the sheet before sighing in acceptance.
"One day, Harry, one day I'll beat you both." She groaned.
"Good work, Hermione. Rank 3 is not bad, but it isn't rank 1 either." Harry smirked, dodging her elbow and slipping past her.
"One day, Harry, one day I'll defeat you and wipe off your smirk." She grumbled, walking beside him as they approached their group.
The first thing Harry did reaching them was, pull up Iris on her feet and give her a tight hug and a proud smile. "You did great. You jumped directly to rank 5. That's good progress."
"It better be or I'd be kicking you now for all the time you forced me to study." She complained with no heat in her voice, grinning in self-satisfaction and offering him a kiss on the cheek for all his hard work.
"It's good that we all are in the top 10, even Tracey, which is a pleasant surprise." Neville remarked, having already seen the rankings.
"Heh. Daphne must've been her minder as I was to Iris. That explains why Tracey was so exhausted recently." Harry commented, sliding down beside his sister on the sofa and across from Neville and Hermione.
Just at that moment, Astoria came running towards them and stopped before Harry.
"So, Tori, should I congratulate you or punish you?" he asked.
In response to his question, she just gave him a thumbs up with a wide grin. Harry chuckled, standing up and taking her in his arms. She immediately melted into him, pressing her face on his chest and vibrating with exhilaration.
QUEST:
– Make Astoria rank first in her end of the year exams.
Success!
REWARD: Gained
– Perk [Mentor]
Gives the user the ability to masterfully convey his teachings.
It wasn't something flashy, but Harry wasn't too disappointed by getting it. A perk was a perk, no matter how useless he thought it was.
"Great. You were a good student, sometimes an annoying one, but on the whole, a really good student." He smiled when he pulled back, patting her head. "Have you informed Daphne yet?"
"No, I'll when we meet for breakfast." she piped up, leaning into his palm.
When all the friends met in the Great Hall, they were graced with Daphne's rare wide pleased smile as she heard about Astoria's accomplishment. The little blonde was happy to bring this smile out of her sister. It felt like a bigger and greater victory than achieving first rank itself.
~xXxXx~
"Are you ready?" asked Harry, standing straight with his wand ready by his side.
The three Potters were in the duelling room. It was the second day of the summer holidays and Lily had decided to stand true to her promise of providing daily practice. So, she brought her children here an hour after breakfast.
It was decided that since Harry was level 410 and way more powerful than them both, he would be handicapped.
"Remember, no system skills. You're allowed to use only your wand and the normal spells. No system help. Are we clear?" Lily warned from the other side where she was standing beside Iris.
"Yes, yes. I've heard it already, mum. Let's start." groaned Harry, impatiently waving at her to just be done with the instructions.
"Guard me, Iris. I'll take the offence." Lily whispered to her daughter.
"Beat him to pulp, mum." grinned Iris, squaring her shoulders and taking her position as the defender of the team.
Oh yes, it was also a two-on-one match.
Lily ignored her violent suggestion and yelled, "Begin!"
Harry easily dodged her first array of spells since his speed was godly compared to theirs. He returned fire immediately and sent an abundance of disarming spells at them. In just a second, he had sent almost half a dozen red jets of lights.
Iris jumped forward and used her [Energy Shield] skill, easily dissolving all his spells. She was the only one who could even come close to evading his unnaturally quick attacks with her speed of being level 240 Mage.
Lily's eyes widened at seeing Iris. She didn't even see what happened in the last microsecond. For her, it felt like Iris had just apparated right in front of her. Such was her children's speed. She didn't let this derail her momentum, continuing on with the spells. She would have added other branches of magic in her spell chains, but decided against it. This was the first day of their training, she didn't need to go all out on them just yet.
Iris kept on being her shadow, snapping around her and intercepting spells, which Lily missed, with her [Energy Shield] skill.
"Don't use system skills. And what's Iris doing? Exploiting it to a shameless degree." He grumbled under his breath on the other side, not moving too much since their spells almost came at him in slow motion. He kept his movements short and crisp, jerking here and there, letting her spells pass by him.
He was impressed by how his sister was able to thwart his inhumanely quick attacks. He knew she wasn't able to see his strikes. He was way above her levels for her to be able to see that in real time. But she felt his attacks and used her shield to obstruct his spells. She was somehow able to guess his attack patterns, no matter how random he tried to be.
His mother though was no match for him. She was too slow and weak to trouble him. She was just a toddler compared to them, crawling around while they were flying. And she herself realised that as the minutes passed and none of her spells struck, her face showed her growing agitation and annoyance.
"Iris, switch!" Lily barked and stepped back, murmuring her special spell while her daughter tried to distract him.
Harry was more curious than scared of what his mother was going to do, so he let her be and concentrated on Iris instead.
She showed him her bare teeth in blatant challenge. He grinned back and let loose, stabbing his wand around him so quickly that even Iris could see only a blur where his hand was supposed to be.
Her eyes widened and she hid behind the shield, all her dare evaporating, as tens of spells collided against it in the next second.
She was immensely thankful to this [Energy Shield] skill, due to this very skill, she didn't even feel a little push after the collision with so many spells. If it was the normal shield spell, it would have broken like a glass and she would have been flung against the wall due to the impact.
She heard Harry's loud groaning and complaining about her flagrant cheating, her lips spread into an amused grin. Though it disappeared soon when a heavy presence filled the duelling room.
Both her and Harry gaped at the spot where their mother was earlier. In her place now stood an abomination.
Their beautiful mother had been turned into an ugly horrific monster. Her head which housed her pretty red curls was now the nest of slithering crimson snakes. Her soft white skin was now sickly pale blue as if she had been fed buckets of poison. And her eyes, her alluring kind emeralds were replaced by malicious green orbs. But the most bizarre thing about her appearance was the leathery bat-like wings sprouting from her lower back.
" Helloo, chiiiildren." She giggled in a raspy voice. A chill went down their spine as they witnessed the maniacal grin plastered on their mother's blue face.
Iris dropped down on her knees, pale and shaking, as a fear so strong which she had never felt before, enveloped her in its vice grip. Her own senses betrayed her and kept multiplying her fright and anxiety.
Iris had never seen a more horrifying creature than this one, she had never heard such a cold crazy voice or smelled something so disgusting. Her skin crawled and her heart thumped erratically inside her ribs. She closed her eyes and clasped her hands over her ears. And yet the demonic image refused to go away from her mind, the stench continued suffocating her. And she could hear it still, the demonic giggle which promised nothing but torture and death.
"STOP IT! PLEASE! STOP IT! NO MORE! NO MORE!" Iris cried, curling into a ball and shivering and sweating hysterically.
Harry too was captivated by the spell. But wasn't affected too strongly due to his [Gamer's Mind] perk.
While the perk didn't stop the illusion from ensnaring him, it did mute its effect enough for him to be not deceived into accepting the illusion as a grim reality.
Iris though didn't have the Gamer's Mind and her reality changed so drastically that her mind couldn't take it.
Her once lovely mum was turned into a monster and she hated it. She hated it with all her being. She didn't want her to become that creature. She didn't want her mum to be that.
She didn't want to die. People would think that surviving death would have lessened her fear of it. Instead it had made Death more forbidding and cruel.
She didn't want to die. She wanted to be with Harry forever. She wanted her kind mother, not this demon.
The presence vanished at the first sound of her scream. Lily ran to her daughter and pulled her into her arms.
"It's fine, sweetie. I'm back. It was just an illusion. Don't worry, nothing happened to me." She mumbled reassuringly, squeezing her gently and placing kisses all over face.
Iris opened her eyes to see that her mum was back. Her eyes were filled with the familiar love again. Her skin was soft and warm again. The red snakes had disappeared and her beautiful hair was back.
She threw her arms around her and hugged her firmly. "Don't do that ever again. Never again. Please don't use that spell around us."
"Okay, sweetie. I'll never use that spell around you. I promise. I thought since you both are so strong, you'd be able to handle that. I'm sorry for springing that on you without a warning." Lily apologised deeply, cradling her daughter in her arms.
"Yes, Iris is right. Don't use that spell around us. It's blasphemy to mar your beauty with that." Harry kneeled beside them and nodded in favour of Iris, trying to distract them a little.
Both Iris and Lily gave him a deadpan look.
"That's the first thought you had after seeing me in that illusion?" asked Lily, trying not to feel flattered and exasperated.
"Uh, yes. Don't get me wrong. Your spell was powerful, but I've got the Gamer's Mind which diluted your illusion's potency. Honestly, instead of being scared, I was just appalled that my beautiful mum was turned into that creature." shrugged Harry, caressing his sister's face with a worried look in his eyes.
She shook her head, cupping his hand over her face, smiling at him, silently conveying to him that she was fine now.
Lily hummed with a thoughtful look, smiling at their wholesome interaction. "I see. So that's why you weren't as devastated as Iris after my transformation. An incomplete illusion is a worthless illusion after all."
"Let's take a break. I don't want to train anymore today." Iris requested abruptly, not wanting to think about this illusion thing ever again.
"Sure. You both are free to go. I'll make your favourite pies in the meantime." Lily smiled at them as Harry took Iris from her.
"Great! I'll carry Iris to her room then." Harry cheered, picking her up in a bridal carry.
"I'm not hurt, Harry. I can walk just fine." Iris groaned fondly.
"Nope, you might fall off the stairs and break your neck. We're not taking unneeded risks." He grinned mischievously, carrying her out of the room. Iris didn't complain again, opting to cling to him.
~xXxXx~
The days melted into a routine and the Potters trained and enjoyed each other's company. Soon, the day came without much fanfare.
Harry awoke on his birthday with Iris excitedly jumping around his bed. Which was usual and had become a sort of tradition.
"Happy birthday!" She yelled, falling and sprawling on top of him.
He smiled, a bit drowsily with his eyes still closed. He wrapped his arms around her waist and held her close.
Opening his eyes, he greeted her softly. "Happy birthday to you too, dear Iris."
Her smile wavered.
"Uhm...yes. Thank you." She suddenly blushed, feeling a certain part of him poking her stomach. Harry himself coloured slightly, though the embarrassment was still not enough for his raging lust to subside.
Instead he tightened his hold around her, his fingers digging on the curve of her waist.
She looked down at him, her red hair falling in curtain over him, her warm green eyes wide with wonder and a dusk of pink sprinkled on her cheeks.
Something had changed drastically, Harry realised. Her face was longer and more angular. The little remaining baby fat which was on her face by yesterday had vanished. And her body too had grown unnaturally, more than a few inches.
She didn't feel like his cute little sister in his arms. No, she felt more like a half-grown woman. He could feel her heat and most of her skin over his. Her tight pink flimsy top was barely able to hold back her big round breasts from spilling forth.
He couldn't blame the clothes for it. Until yesterday, they fit her, but not now. Her boobs weren't monstrously huge or anything. But they would have been more appropriate for a 15-16 year olds rather than a girl her age.
They both were staring at each other with a barely contained lust. A new type of hunger had awakened inside them due to their fast maturing bodies. And they were starving. This hunger was all-encompassing and they could think about nothing but it.
She caressed his hair, leaning down, her warm breath wafting over his lips.
"Have you seen yourself in the mirror? You have changed too much." she whispered on his lips, her hand slipping under his shirt and tracing the outline of his recently formed abdominal muscles.
Harry felt goosebumps rise on his skin as her touch and her sweet breath drew a hazy fog over him.
And he let himself get lost in that fog.
His palms slid over her curvy buttocks, cupping them. He gently squeezed them through her shorts, feeling her soft-firm voluptuous arse cheeks. Grabbing her butt, he adjusted her position a little so her groin was atop his concealed length.
They both gasped, staring at each other as her crotch settled over his hidden boner.
"Harry." she mumbled in a squeaking voice, all the breath leaving her lungs at once. She wasn't scared, far from it. She was trembling with want as he ground his morning wood under her covered flower.
She too started moving, pressing herself against him, feeling his hardness, rolling her hips against his.
Harry withdrew his one arm from her arse and cupped her face. He dragged his fingers through her hair then. Curling his fist into her red hair, he brought her face closer to his.
Iris laid atop him and again pushed her arms underneath his shirt, her finger gently moving around his torso, getting familiar with all the curves and contours.
She closed her eyes and met his lips with hers.
It wasn't like any of the kisses she had shared earlier with him as kids. No, it was vastly different. Heat bubbled in her stomach and the movements of her hips became frantic, they moved their lips around each other, kissing and mashing, breathing and exhaling.
She pressed herself harder against him, moaning when he creeped his hands under her top, fondling her bare breasts and turning her on fire.
A pressure was building in her core, which she at the moment was rubbing insistently against him.
She prodded his mouth with her tongue and he opened up without a delay. She hugged him close and kissed him hotly, her tongue fitting into his mouth, tracing the insides of it and marking it as hers.
He tasted so sweet and electric. He felt so soft and fiery. She was burning and she wanted to keep on burning for eternity.
They kissed and groped. They thrusted against each other, humping their hips, sliding up and down together, generating friction and pleasure.
"Iris!" He hissed on her lips, squeezing her tits under her top as he felt himself reach his limit.
"More. Just a little more." She begged, recapturing his mouth and snogging him senseless, wildly moving her core on his throbbing hardness.
Few seconds later, Harry moaned in her mouth, quivering underneath her, biting her tongue and twisting her nipples.
Iris too spent herself, clenching her arse cheeks and desperately squashing her crotch on his.
She sighed in pleasure, relaxing and slumping atop him. She nuzzled his neck affectionately as she felt him soften.
They laid there together, with Iris lazily spread on top of him.
And as soon as the haze of lust disappeared, she jumped away from him and the bed.
Her face flushed red and her eyes filled up with shame and apprehension. "What have we done?"
Before he could answer her, before he could console her, she fled his room, wiping her wet mouth and rearranging her hair, trying to look as if she hadn't just made out with him.
"Iris!" he called behind her back, but she was already gone.
He massaged his forehead in frustration. "What the hell just happened?"
See your trait, Harry. You are in big trouble.
Isis' exasperated sigh didn't bode well. He opened his stats and clicked on the [Lustful] trait.
[Lustful]
– You are incarnate of Lust. Be drawn to opposite sex and sexual acts.
This trait will start acting when you turn 13.
Note: After the activation of the trait, the user must engage in sex every day. Or else he will fall into a feral crazed beast state, where he would fuck the first woman he comes across, whether the female be willing or unwilling.
"That's a joke. Please tell me that's a joke. It can't be happening. This is some cruel prank." begged Harry, looking at the screen with a bewildered look.
I am afraid not, Harry. It looks like a joke and you are butt of it. You are punished again for messing with the system. This is the price for creating the category of Combined Class and overpowering yourself with the [Death Knight] Class.
"Fuck!"
Yes. Better fuck literally than get fucked symbolically.
Harry just groaned and buried his face in the pillow. "Why do you sound so amused?"
Well, I am a forever virgin sixteen year old girl, I need some lewd entertainment and this seems to be it.
"You suck!"
I would, suck your dick that is, if I had a body. Alas, it isn't meant to be, my dear Harry. We are star-crossed lovers who can feel each other's thoughts and emotions and love, but not the pleasures of each other's flesh.
"Just shut up!"
Hehe. Fine. Good luck in finding a pussy. Can't believe I am siding with the Creator on this one. This was really a brilliant move. A ludicrous joke.