“You’re back!” Gandalf was sitting at the table with the others. “You’ve been gone for hours. What did Death want from you?”
“Hours?! Time is weird all over the place.” Said Harry. “We’ve been gone for days, or hours… I have no idea anymore. Death wanted to tell us about the Adam Paradox, heard of it?” No one in the room spoke. “How about you Lilith?”
“It seems to ring a very distant bell, but I have no idea, nothing at all.” Lilith looked serious and a little frustrated.
“Ok, so I have a lot to tell you. I think even though we don’t need it, we will need Coffee… and Bacon. I think I need bacon. I feel like I had bacon and now it’s missing!”
“Sounds serious,” said Gimli, chuckling. “I’ll go get supplies, come on Mr Tumnus.”
“Just get coffee and bacon. OK, the Adam Paradox…” He started to relay the meeting with Death, Susan, the Freds and Barnaby while Gimli and Mr Tumnus headed to the kitchen. “Oh, and toast would be good,” shouted Harry.
———————————————————————————
A few hours and a lot of coffee, bacon and toast later. “It’s interesting that our totems increase in power in his workshop. Useful to know.” Gandalf mused, while picking bacon from his teeth. “I think we should train with them so we have an idea how to use them if we get the chance.”
“And we need a plan to work out how to beat Smedley.” Harry had finished the update. Everyone was silent. Lilith stood up and left the room without speaking. Cinderella nodded to Harry and followed her.
“I think we should take a break, a moment to think on this,… and I need to refresh my pipe.” Gandalf left the table and went outside, followed by Gimli.
“I have questions for Gandalf,” said Harry.
Lucy smiled at him. “About you becoming a ‘Real Boy’?”
“Hang on, how did you know? Did Susan tell you?”
“We all know you are different, Harry.” Huck spoke, “We just don’t know the details.”
Lucy turned to Huck, “Oh, Susan told me. I didn’t know. She told me about the ‘Real Boy’ joke.’ She turned back to Harry, “We talked a lot about you, Harry.”
“OK, I’m going to talk to Gandalf now.” He stood up and left the table.
“What did she tell you?” Asked Huck.
“Not much, but it’s fun playing Harry up. Ok, I need a drink, if only I could get drunk.”
———————————————————————————
Harry found Gandalf and Gimli sat in moonlight on a bench. “Ahh, here he is now. I’ll get some more whiskey. We might need it.” Gimli headed past Harry and back into the building. “Big night for you, lad,” he said and was gone.
“Gandalf.” was all Harry said.
“Yes, I know. You are becoming human, and you want to know why.” He sucked on his pipe and exhaled the smoke. The pipe was lit! “So the truth is Smedley didn’t conjure you. We conjured you using our version of Smedley’s incantation.” He took another drag on his pipe. “As we don’t have access to the totems he has, we asked a favour of Death, who provided the creation energy we needed, and here you are.”
“Ok, so how am I becoming human-alive though?”
“Creation energy from Death is made from life-force, and that had an unexpected side effect on you. None of us was brought into life complete or tried to integrate as you are, seeking jobs, etc. You were so integrated into the world that it’s taken two years to find you, hence the ‘kidnapping’.”
Harry felt a tap at his shoulder. Gimli had returned with a bottle of whiskey and a glass. “It’s all yours, laddie. I have my flask… And my.”
“Don’t you dare, Gimli. You and that bloody axe luv, stop with the gag. It wasn’t funny the first 26 times.”
“The luv thing, it seems out of character for Gandalf,” Harry said unconsciously.
“Oh, he saw a video of Ian McKellen who played Gandalf in the films, and he’s been doing the luv thing ever since,” chuckled Gimli.
“He seemed like a lovely guy… An actoorrr… I’d love to try acting” Gandalf and Gimli were smiling. “It’s where he got that bloody ‘And my axe’ thing from.”
“But why me, why my character?” Harry spoke softly, “You could have brought anyone back, someone far more powerful.”
“It’s because the world Smedley wants to create is ‘Your World’, or should I say, the Wizarding Universe filled with Hogwarts, mythical beasts and magic, so we figured…”
“You think he’d be less likely to kill me, at least at first.”
“Actually, we thought he’d more than likely want to meet you, but yes and less likely to kill you. We thought you might be able to talk him down. However, that was a while ago. We took so long finding you that he has changed. His ideas have changed, got bigger, and he’s more determined now.”
“I see.”
“Still, I think you are our best hope. He still has some connection to you which might work to our benefit, and of course, you are somewhere between the 2 worlds. He has less power over you than he has over us, the ones he made.”
“I hope you are right, Gandalf.” Harry hadn’t noticed, but Lilith had joined them along with Cinderella. “He’s gone mad, I think,” she said.
“I think you might be right,” said Gandalf, “but it’s the only chance we have, and it’s worth fighting for.”
“But is it worth dying for?” said Harry. “I’ve only just begun to live, and I have things worth living for, I think.” Cinderella took his hand.
“You do, Harry, which is what makes it all the more important,” she said.
Harry squeezed her hand and stood up. “It’s time to make a plan. Let’s get back inside, save the world, and work miracles no one will ever know about.”
“The people important to you will know, Harry, and you will know,” Gandalf said as they headed inside.
———————————————————————————
Inside, Batman, Huck and Lucy were already around the table. Everyone else had gone apart from Mr Tumnus, who was sitting on a couch with Geralt chatting. They made no attempt to join the group and fell silent, obviously listening while the plan was discussed.
Batman was speaking, “There are entrance points, here, here and here.” He was pointing at a cardboard model of Smedley’s Comic and Toy shop. “I should go in alone. I work alone.”
“You’re going to have to speak up, and what’s with the voice?” Gimli said.
“I’m Batman. It’s what I do.”
Gandalf spoke next. “I think you need to be our backup Batman, our escape plan.”
“Extraction plan!” Batman said.
“Yes, escape plan,” Gandalf responded, thinking Batman was confirming what he said. “If things go wrong, you, armed with your tools, are best placed to get us out. You do not need magic to do what you do.” Batman nodded. “I think we materialise close to the shop using the Wardrobe and that is also our escape plan.” He nodded to Batman. “Can you take care of the locks and alarms?”
Batman nodded, “I can. I’ll also do a quick scan of the windows, see if I can see anything useful.”
“Good. Then you’ll return to the Wardrobe and stay with Lucy to guard and keep it ready for our exit. If we fail and are captured, you will have to escape quickly and take the wardrobe far away from him.” He looked at Lucy. She had moved closer to Batman, who was trying to ignore her.
“You can call me Robin if you like.” She said, smiling. If it was possible, Batman retreated even further into his suit.
“Then we split into 2 groups,” Gandalf continued, “Myself with Gimli from the first group, and Harry, Huck and Cinderella in the second group. We need to locate his Grimoire and steal or destroy it, and his totems, try and find out where they are, how they are linked to him and how to break that link before dealing with Smedley. There is no point confronting him without severing the threads first.”
“We are going to have to kill him?” Harry asked, knowing the answer..
“Yes, Harry, I’m afraid so.” Was Gandalf’s simple reply.
“There’s no other way?” This time it was Cinderella, “I have never killed anyone. I mean my character hasn’t.”
“Gimli and I have killed in character, so has Harry, I believe. But never anything real. I’m not sure it will be easy, but probably Gimli and I should do the deed if possible. After all, I have my sword and…’ He placed his hand on his sword and looked down at Gimli. “What! Now you stay silent at the appropriate moment?”
Gimli smiled a huge grin, “AND YOU HAVE MY AXE!” They shared a chuckle.
Cinderella took off her backpack and pulled out a pair of nickel-plated pistols. “They aren’t fake. I’ve become pretty good with them, mainly the boredom, I guess.” Her face was serious, a little sad. This was not something she was comfortable with. “I will do what it takes to protect my friends, but I don’t think I can kill a man in cold blood.”
Gandalf’s face softened. “War makes everything worse and monsters of us all. I hope you don’t have to use them.”
“I believe, being an American and all, that I would be expected to be comfortable and willing to bear arms to defend myself and my liberty. However, I don’t carry a gun. I do have a cane I procured a while back. It does have a sword in it, though I have never used one of those, beyond stick fighting with friends in my youth. I will defend my friends, though, to the best of my ability.”
“When are we doing this?” Batman interrupted the conversation using a much clearer voice.
“Tomorrow night, if everyone agrees?” He looked around the group. Several nodded, and no one spoke. “Ok, at 11 pm we leave via the Wardrobe. In the meantime, prepare yourselves, your equipment and… try and have some fun. It could be our last night.”
Everyone stayed seated except for Batman, who made a quick exit through a skylight. “I don’t feel like drinking,” said Harry, “and I really need to practice with my wand. I’m basically useless with it.”
“I don’t think the battle will rest on your skills with a wand,” Gandalf said. “ I think you have some natural ability with magic, and your progression to becoming a ‘real boy’ is enhancing that.”
“Does everyone know about the ‘Real Boy’ joke?” Everyone smiled and nodded. He looked at Lucy and sighed. “Still, I might find Olivander in a bit, see if he can offer advice on focus.”
“Cinderella and Huck, you should come with me, both of you. We need to enchant those weapons for you if we can.” Lilith gestured over to the sofa. Geralt stood up and joined them as they left the room.
“Who’s he?” asked Harry, pointing at Geralt.
“A backup plan,” said Gimli.
“I’m going to get some sleep,” Lucy said and stood up. “I’m not convinced we can stop him, but it’s better than dying of boredom. Mr Tumnus,” She shouted, “We are going to rest, bring booze.” She left the table.
Harry was next, “I’m going for a walk, and then an early night. I’ll find Olivander in the morning with a fresh head.”
“I hope you can sleep, Harry. Did you want a wee dram?” Gimli offered him his flask.
“No thanks, I might actually get drunk now, and I don’t want that before tomorrow,“ he laughed and hugged Gimli, who wasn’t much shorter than him. “See you tomorrow.”
———————————————————————————
Harry was sitting on a bench in the garden watching the moon. He pulled a bottle of water from his pocket, the one Susan had grabbed from the table before heading into the stacks, and took a swig.
“Don’t overdo it,” came a voice. He jumped. It was Susan.
“What, how…”He paused for a moment. “Why are you here?”
She cast a cheeky smile. “So many questions!” She flicked the scythe, and it shrank down to pocket size and slipped it into her jeans back pocket like a penknife. “I just wanted to see how you are. It’s a big day tomorrow.” She sat on the bench and looked up at the moon. “Nice spot.”
“I didn’t know you could come here?” He said, sitting down.
“Well, I’m not death, but there are perks to being Death’s ‘granddaughter’. The Scythe grants me a few additional powers, like portal travel.”
“So why are you here?”
“End of the world and all that, I thought I’d come and cheer for the team… Go, team.” There was very little humour in her voice. She was obviously worried. She took Harry’s hand in hers. “Close your eyes.” He did, and she leaned in. Harry felt something extremely cold in his hand. He looked down. It was a silver blade similar to the one she carried in her sleeve but bigger, and it hummed with power. “You didn’t think I was going to kiss you, did you?” She was smiling but not in the cheeky way she had before.
“Err, No.” Harry looked at the dagger. “Thanks for this. It might come in handy.”
“It has a couple of enchantments on it, and it’ll cut through anything. It might help. I’m loaning it to you, but you must promise to bring it back to me.”
“I will, I promise”.
“When you do, then I’ll kiss you.” He was sure her pale complexion pinkened slightly, and then she hugged him, and he hugged her back. It was a perfect night.