Chapter 37 : The Dark Lord is gone

[Author note : You know it all already... And if you don't, you just have to go back to read the last author note. So I'll only say : Read on, folks !]

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Ned, out of breath and almost out of magic reserve, stood in his augmented armor, after he fused with Winston's body to not only replenish his reserve but also increase his battle prowess. The Gorilla's face and head stood above his own, still able to talk and obviously, unlike the squib, he wasn't winded in the least.

Underneath their crouched form lied the bodies of countless spiders, piling up into a small hill. And around them, the dead and unconscious forms of the last giants on Earth. Another species humans had led to extinction… Ned thought. Whether it was no-maj or wizarding kind, it seemed inherently their species were the same : destructive and selfish.

« Can I… Get back my body now, Ned ? » Winston asked, in a slightly bashful tone.

« Yeah… Ugh ! It's hard to move in this… I need to rework the actuators or something. » He inhaled a deep breath and exhaled shakily. « T-transfer what little power you can spare to my armor, please… »

« Already done ! » And as the gorilla said this, his form detached itself in a symphony of grinding and whirring noises. Soon, Winston was back to his full form. He then dropped the truck and un-shrunk it.

« Thanks, man ! » Ned sighed after saying this and climbed into the truck to let Bastion do its magic. A couple of minutes later, Ned was back out and wearing another armor. Not that he really needed it, but… Well, he figured it was appropriate to wear something battle ready at this point. Who knew ? Maybe a couple of Death Eaters were still rearing to go ?

However, when he came out, both his gorilla-shaped Tech-spirit and Mel were there, acting leisurely. Winston was inspecting an acromantula's corpse, probably analyzing its poison and taking DNA samples while Mel, AKA Widowmaker was sitting on another corpse, one leg propped up while the other carried her weight, her rifle resting on her shoulder.

« The… battle's over. Already ? »

« Oui ! » Mel answered casually and continued with her heavy French accent : « It seems like most of the Dark Lord's forces surrendered when their master died. A few of them tried to flee and fought pretty valiantly… But the aurors and I took them out. » A predatory smile appeared on her beautiful face as she eyed something from the corner of her vision. « I enjoyed putting that one, down ! »

Where she looked lied the form of Bellatrix Lestrange. There was no mistaking it : she was dead, alright ! In the middle of her forehead, a hole the size of a bullet dug in her skull and the grass was dyed red underneath her unmoving form. Her crazy gaze was forever fixed upon the clearing sky.

At least, she didn't toy with her, Ned thought. One shot, one kill ! He added to himself with a smirk. Looking around and scanning, Ned commanded Bastion to update him on the casualties. He had done his best to prevent the deaths of people close to the Golden Trio but… He wasn't sure that he was successful. At least, McGonagall heeded his warning about the secret passages in and out of Hogwarts and had them sealed with Harry's help. Nifty thing it was, the Marauder's map ! A surprise attack from inside the castle's ground might have been devastating, after all…

All Weasley's were present and accounted for. So, neither Fred nor George had to lose their twin. Ned knew one of them died but he was never sure who it was… Moreover, they didn't get a battle scar on their face from one of Fenrir's attack. The feral beast had died before being able to do anything to the children… Not that they were much younger than he was.

The Lupin couple, Nymphadora and Remus, were also alive and well ! They'd be there for their child in the future and Ned had managed to at least save two of the three remaining Marauders. It was like the author wanted to kill them all off, along with Snape ! In the original story, James was killed by Voldemort, along with his wife. Sirius died in the Ministry's battle by falling through the Veil. Pettigrew pretty much killed himself, albeit unwillingly, after he saved Harry and the hand gifted by Voldemort choked the life out of him. Finally, Remus, the last remaining marauder died in the battle of Hogwarts against some Death Eater. Probably one of Voldy's big shot, since he wouldn't just be killed by a nameless one. The male Lestrange, Dolohov or Macnair, perhaps… Not Malfoy. The man never really fought in the books. Ned wondered if he even could… His guess was he was only useful for his money !

« Oh ! He did take part in the attack on the Ministry… Don't remember if he was in any fight though. » Ned muttered to himself. « I think the man would rather play all sides like the politician he is. That would mean he did the absolute minimum required for his master, and also had the excuse of acting reluctantly or under duress. » He paused again before adding : « …or he's just terrible at his job. Could be Harry's plot armor, too, if there is such a thing. »

« What are ya mumbling, mate ? » A voice came from behind him. When he turned around, he saw a ginger man, a bushy-haired woman and another man, with jet black hair and green eyes. They were all looking at him. A little behind them, he could see not only the people of Hogwarts, but also those of the Ministry, looking at the scene of carnage he stoop atop of…

« The Golden Trio… » Ned said and nodded.

« Golden trio ? » Hermione repeated, puzzled.

Ned shrugged :

« You always seem to be together you three. You're all Gryffindor, so… »

« Golden trio… Got it. » Harry nodded. « I wanted to thank you for all your help. If you hadn't warned Headmistress McGonagall, or helped the aurors… More people would have died or been hurt. »

« Don't mention it ! And I mean, really ! My own government is already breathing down my neck as it is, and even though I knew they'll find out… » He sighed : « … They'll be a pain, again, huh ? »

Mel nodded with a bright smile on her face. She eyed him, and Ned wondered if she took pleasure in seeing him struggle. The thing was, he would have preferred still being unknown. Working in secret in the comfort of his workshop, with no one trying to bother him apart from the occasional criminals or villains he faced. Maybe assist in a disaster or two when he had the time…

It seemed now, his full time job was to speak with annoying people in order to defend and keep his creations. That's not how he would help shape the next era of magic ! He shook his head, trying to bring his focus back on the present. He jumped lightly to the ground, approaching the Boy-Who-Lived… Had he evolved into the Boy-Who-Vanquished now ? When he was close enough, he whispered for only the scarred young man to hear :

« Tell me you didn't just drop the rock in the forest… And what about the wand ? »

Surprised, the boy turned a sharp eye on Ned and warily asked :

« You know about them ? Why do you want to know ? »

« Relax, Harry ! Can I call you Harry ? » The young man nodded. « I'm a squib, remember ? I have no use for those artifacts. Well… That's not entirely true. I wouldn't say no to studying them… But what I am curious about is if you've met with the Endless… After all, one of them is supposed to have created those artifact. »

« The Endless… ? Do you mean Death ? »

Ned nodded :

« Yes. Death is one of the Endless. Did you meet her ? »

« So, Death really is a woman ? I can't say that I have… Then again, I wasn't really paying attention to everything. I was in King's cross on platform 9 and 3/4… A screeching deformed baby was there, and Dumbledore. He explained what the wand and the rock, as well as my cloak were and what his plan was… »

« Yeah, yeah ! I get it, Harry. Master of Death and all that… You talked with the dead and peered on the other side. I was more interested to know if you had seen the master of the Domain while you were there, but… Looks like you weren't. » He let silence drop for a second or two, thinking about what he should say before he spoke up again : « If I were you, I'd keep the artifacts somewhere I could get access to them. You never know… This world is crazy and it might need you as a Master of Death in the future. »

Although power-wise, Harry could be considered pretty weak if he were to fight threats on the cosmic scale, he was young and had had a rough childhood. Now that his country was at peace, he'd be able to settle down, recover and even with a decent training become much stronger. Plus with a reality warping and versatile ability like magic at his fingertips, there was really no reason why he shouldn't be hold his own during a demonic incursion or something along those lines. If he kept the Deathly hallows however, maybe he could be as powerful as a Green Lantern…

With the Death Stick in hand, he was able to repair his wand, something that was normally impossible. Ned wondered what else he could do with it…

What Ned didn't know at the time, was that his remark had had a great impact on not just Harry, but the whole golden trio. Ron Weasley had always craved attention and the idea of being propped up on a pedestal, like those muggle 'super-heroes' was quite… exciting ! Hermione was more pragmatic. Knowing that Ned had faced an alien invasion opened up whole new possibilities of what the world could face. Some she could think of, but probably a lot more that she couldn't even fathom. With an alien on their side like Superman, what else could lurk out there ? Something stronger ? Or things insidiously more dangerous ? The two of them decided then and there to work much harder on their magic. Meanwhile, although Harry was glad that it was all over, some part of him still felt a bit… restless. He had always had this huge goal, even before he was made aware of the prophecy. Everyone considered him some kind of savior, before he even did anything. He worked hard in at least, feeling like he earned a bit of this undeserved reputation during his Hogwarts' years. Now, with the Dark Lord truly gone, Harry was anxious about his future. The young wizard had decided a couple of years ago, to become an auror…

But what if he could do more… Should he ?

* * * * *

After a while of talking with the various people wishing to express thanks, or the Ministry's people looking to grill him about his uncanny knowledge into the Dark Lord's movements, Ned decided to bid his farewells. Truth be told, it might actually be Rufus Scrimgeour's incessant questions that pushed him to leave prematurely. After all, he couldn't exactly explain… They might be wizards and whacky in the head for some, but believing in reincarnation ? Moreover, believing that the world they lived in had actually been written about in his past life as a series of books about a young boy ? Why not buy himself a straight jacket, 'cause then they'd send him in a psychiatric ward. Or, they would think he was lying and trying to hide some kind of involvement with the Death Eaters.

So, instead, all he said was :

« I'm Big Brother. If you don't know what that means, look up 1984 from Georges Orwell. Now, people… I think it's time for me to head home. » To Hermione, he said : « Call me if you guys need anything, or just to chat… Bye ! »

And he activated his international portkey.