The Looming Threat

Disclaimer: I own nothing but my original characters and works, if you recognise it from somewhere else, surprise it isn't mine.

Betad by morde24, OoalGown, Hermes, Priapus Old Man of the Mountain, and TheDonFluffles

A Sorcerer's Ambition

Chapter 21: The Looming Threat

— Fleur Delacour —

"The champion for Durmstrang is… Cerys An Craite!" Dumbledore said, his voice not registering for her as she stared at the Slytherin table with a mixture of anger and frustration.

The redheaded witch rose proudly and headed to the front of the great hall, but Fleur didn't even glance at the newly chosen champion as she looked over the table once more, searching for her prey.

Where the hell was Gray!? She could see his idiot brother, his bitchy sister and even the little brat that followed him around, Astoria or something like that. He usually sat with his fiancée and their families.

But today of all days, Gray and his fiancée were missing, both having decided to skip the feast and choosing of the champions.

He was avoiding her, he had to be. He knew how desperate she was getting and wanted to make her sweat. He was probably laughing at her even now.

"The champion for Beauxbatons is… Fleur Delacour!"

He knew that Lady Henrietta's gala was going to be held soon, that her Grandmother wanted the portrait before then.

He probably even knew that her grandmother had asked her about her progress on her mission, that she'd not been able to admit her failure and had practically promised that Gray was open to painting her soon.

So now she had to get that bastard to agree or she'd be made a liar before her grandmother, the woman she respected the most.

"Fleur!" Leliana whispered quickly, making her snap her head towards her friend, annoyed to be knocked out of her thoughts.

Nodding towards the front, Fleur glanced over and spotted everyone staring back at her, Professor Vivienne giving her a very disapproving stare.

Oh right, the tournament.

Forcing down her embarrassed flush, she rose and elegantly strolled to the front of the room, taking her spot beside the amused-looking redhead, hearing some muffled laughter at her expense.

This was also entirely Gray's fault, and certainly not in any way her's

Even being picked as the Champion, the entire reason she came to this cold, wet country, her mind was elsewhere as she glared at the conspicuously empty spot at the Slytherin table.

Damn you, Grayson Raum.

— Morrigan Raum —

She'd considered approaching Gray about her power boost before she put her name into the tournament, but in the end, she was a prideful woman.

She wanted to prove she was the best in Hogwarts, even before she got any power boost from her brother.

Being subservient to anyone irritated her, but if there was anyone she could tolerate working under, it'd be Gray. More importantly, she wouldn't allow him and Keira of all people to leave her behind.

Despite her confidence, she couldn't deny the tension she felt as the cup spat out another piece of parchment, easily caught by Dumbledore.

What if it didn't pick her and her pride had caused her to lose this opportunity to prove herself?

What if it spat out Damian's name instead? As much as she disliked him, her twin was both powerful and while she didn't want to admit it, he was talented as well.

She could see him staring her down out of the corner of her eye because one of them would be picked. They were better than everyone else who put their name in.

As if someone like Diggory or Johnson would get picked, even Damian thought it was funny that his cocksleeve put her name into the cup.

Or the twins? They were sneaky but they lacked power, besides… they weren't going to survive this year given what they tried to do to Gray. That was one thing she and Damian agreed on.

She didn't know what Gray had planned, but she would take her own vengeance on the pair of fools for targeting her brother with their idiotic schemes.

"The Champion for Hogwarts is…" Dumbledore started, pausing for dramatic effect as she scowled.

Spit it out already you decrepit old fool.

"Morrigan Raum!"

Turning to Damian, she ignored the cheers from the Slytherin table as she rose, giving her twin a triumphant smirk.

Some of the other seventh years in Slytherin looked angry, but they cheered all the same. All Slytherins had been taught to put up a united front where the other houses could see them, half the house didn't like her and the rest were scared of her but they'd cheer anyway because a Slytherin had been chosen instead of a member of any lesser house.

Damian himself was obviously angry, and though he tried to hide it as he cheered for his twin, she could read her twin better than anyone.

His anger and frustration made her walk taller, proud to get one over him.

Keira just rolled her eyes as she clapped

With her point proven, she'd approach Gray before the first task and go through with the ritual, giving herself fully to her brother for power as so many witches had likely done for other demons.

But she'd made her point, she was better than Damian, or any of the other fools who thought they could be the Champion.

Dumbledore started to speak again, before the cup flared up once more, drawing all their attention.

As one last name was spat out, she frowned in confusion and annoyance. The champions had been picked, what nonsense was this?

Catching the final name, Dumbledore frowned as he read it, looking over the students. Who was she going to have to crush for marring her moment of triumph?

"Rose Potter."

Her eyes flickered towards the girl who wouldn't live much longer before she saw the shock and confusion on the girl saviour's face.

So she didn't expect this? Well, of course. Only a fool would think that someone like Potter would be able to manipulate such an ancient and powerful artefact, but then this school was full of fools, wasn't it?

"Rose Potter!"

The school would inevitably turn on their hero once more, and that represented an opportunity.

As Rose slowly made her way to the front of the hall, well aware of the utter silence compared to the cheers each other 'champion' had, Morrigan made a decision and gave Rose a slow nod, making the younger girl blink in confusion.

Every Demon Lord needed a cult, and who better to be inducted into her brother's than the supposed saviour?

She always liked the stories where the heroes fell into darkness after all.

— Grayson Raum —

"You don't even want to know who the champions are to be then?" Daphne asks as we sit at the edge of the great lake, making me chuckle.

"I don't care about the other two schools, and I'm sure either Damian or Morrigan will be chosen for Hogwarts. I have faith in my siblings but frankly speaking, I don't want to be there when one of them doesn't get chosen. I certainly don't want to be sat next to Morrigan if Damian's name comes out," I say bluntly, making her giggle slightly as she nods in understanding. "I'll find out later, one way or the other. Besides, how often do we get a chance to spend time together without Astoria showing up?"

In truth, I skipped because I have a strange sensation of dread that is only growing stronger and I don't know why. It's unnerving but I won't show that weakness.

"A fair point, she does tend to show up where she's not wanted," Daphne admits. "Personally I see this entire tournament as a waste of time, it was cancelled for good reason."

This is another of the walks/picnics we've taken together, and I have noticed that Daphne has been warming up to me ever so slightly but it's a slow process.

"True, it's a diplomatic incident waiting to happen. Still, it represents a rare opportunity to mingle with the students of other schools, which could be useful in the future," I point out, making her nod.

"You've certainly been mingling with Miss Delacour. I can't tell whether she likes you or hates you," Daphne says with a chuckle, making me smirk.

"I don't think she can either, but it's all good. She's getting more desperate to get me to agree to paint her grandmother, so I've been 'accidentally' avoiding her. Naturally, I intend to get as much as I can from them, especially since I know the deadline," I say with a chuckle, making her tilt her head cutely.

"Oh?" Daphne asks, making me smile.

"I got an invitation to a gala Duchess Henrietta will be holding, Duchess Valmont will apparently also be in attendance, as well as Fleur's parents and grandmother," I explain, making Daphne pause before she laughs.

"And Fleur's grandmother wants the portrait to show off before the gala," Daphne realises.

"Duchess Henrietta was impressed with my work, Auriane Delacour wants to get a portrait before Henrietta, who will likely ask me to paint her at the gala. Turns out the French really like their art. My little hobby has proven quite beneficial," I say with a chuckle. "Naturally, you're invited as my plus one if you'd like."

Daphne pauses, before giving me a warm smile, by her standards.

"I'd like that. You're certainly right about it being a rare opportunity," Daphne admits, giving me an approving look. "I really underestimated you, I'm not too proud to admit that," Daphne says with some fondness as I chuckle.

"Most people do, it's actually worked out rather well for me so far," I admit with a small smile.

I might not like being looked down on, but I will happily take advantage of their error in judgement.

"True enough, you might just be the most Slytherin man I've ever met," Daphne says, giving me a strange look.

"What is it?" I ask, my eyes widening slightly as she leans in and places a light kiss on my lips.

We've kissed before of course, but that's usually where people can see us for the sake of appearances. There's nobody around this time, the gentle kiss lingering for a moment before she pulls back.

"Oh, what was that for?" I ask, giving her a slight smile as she returns it, unusually shy as her ice queen persona drops briefly.

"I just felt like it, we're engaged after all," Daphne says simply. "I've realised that I've been rather cold towards you, upset at my situation instead of seeing it as the opportunity it is. Between the two of us, I think we could achieve just about anything if we work together."

Leaning forwards, I kiss her myself, my tongue pressing against her lips as they hesitantly part, she's still nervous but she leans into the kiss anyway, even as I pull her towards me and into my lap.

I'm careful not to let my hands wander and lower as they stay at her waist because I don't want to mess up my progress with her by being too hasty.

Breaking the kiss, I smile seeing her blush and look away, but not try and move out of my lap.

"Greedy," Daphne mutters to herself. Heh, if only she knew just how right she was.

"Is that a problem?" I ask, squeezing her waist as she rolls her eyes.

"No, I suppose not. I should get used to this if we are going to be married," Daphne says after a moment before she freezes.

Occlumency or not, I still have trouble controlling my lust and she can definitely feel something hard beneath her as her cheeks burn bright red.

"Don't get any ideas, we aren't doing that yet," Daphne warns as I chuckle.

"I know, but I still have a beautiful woman sitting in my lap, it's a natural reaction," I reply, making her roll her eyes even as she looks slightly pleased.

"I… have a request of you," Daphne admits after a moment of silence, making me smirk.

"I assumed as much," I say simply, making her scoff.

"That's not why I'm being nicer, I really do want to make this work," Daphne mutters again, fidgeting in place which only makes the hardness beneath her grow more prevalent. "I don't think you'll mind anyway."

"Then ask away," I say easily.

Daphne pauses, taking a deep breath before she stares into my eyes.

"I want you to take Tracey and Astoria as your mistresses," Daphne says, making my eyes widen.

"Oh?" I ask, already getting an idea of why.

"Tracey is little more than a slave as it stands, she deserves better than that. When you become Lord Greengrass, I want you to officially take her as your mistress. She likes you anyway," Daphne says, making me nod easily.

"I can do that, I like Tracey as well after all," I say before pausing. "So why do you want to subject us both to a lifetime of Astoria?" I ask playfully, making her snort in a very unladylike way.

"Because I know my mother won't give up, she agreed not to force Astoria into a marriage if I agreed to marry you, but she will find a way around that promise or just break it entirely. You like Astoria, even if you don't want to admit it, and I know Astoria has a crush on you. She'll be happier and better off with us than with whoever mother sells her off to," Daphne says with a scowl.

"Hm, I'll admit I do like Astoria even if she can be rather… frustrating," I say easily.

Daphne doesn't know that Anastasia plans on having Astoria become my mistress, so she thinks she's somehow getting one over her mother by doing this.

Which means I have to do practically nothing and Daphne will be grateful for it?

"You have no idea. You've dealt with her for a couple of years, I've had over a decade of her," Daphne laughs. "I know how annoying she can be, but I want this all the same."

"Very well, I'll talk to your mother and make it happen," I say, making her smile gratefully. "Maybe I should get Anastasia as well and get the whole set," I say with a playful smile making her scoff before she pauses.

"If you took my mother as your mistress, specifically as Lord Greengrass, she'd be under me wouldn't she?" Daphne asks with a growing smile.

"She would, she'd also be under me, probably several times a day," I say, making her blush at the lewd implications.

It's funny that she still gets embarrassed despite having seen me and Tracey together several times.

"If you can pull that off, I'll be very impressed. I might even spend some time under you to show you my gratitude," Daphne finally says, yelping as my hands finally move lower to her ass, giving her ass a squeeze through her robes.

I wasn't going to but she started it.

"I'll see what I can do," I say, giving her a hungry look as she blushes deeper.

Whatever she was going to say is cut off as I lean forwards and kiss her again, the rest of our picnic 'date' spent in surprisingly comfortable silence as we exchange kisses with the occasional grope here and there.

It's nice to have a moment of peace while Astoria and Keira are occupied with this tournament nonsense.

— Nymphadora Tonks —

Should she point out that she was here?

Hiding under her invisibility cloak, she watched as Gray and Daphne's cute little date started to become hot and heavy, biting her lip.

Nah, she was just doing her job and she should stay hidden and enjoy the- watch. Watch over her charge.

Like a good auror who definitely wasn't getting turned on by watching her cousin practically molest his cute little fiancée.

— Rose Potter —

Storming through the halls she threw a glare at a pair of whispering students, making them go silent as they paled.

Her reputation had its advantages. Sure, she had a part in Quirrel's death and Lockheart was still in the long-term ward of St Mungos, but she wasn't that bad.

She didn't even kill or cripple the defence teacher last year, a new record for her.

Reaching the library, a place she knew she could talk to Hermione without being bothered, as Madam Pince wouldn't allow any nonsense in her library., She paused as she spotted Hermione's little sister sitting on her own reading a large book.

"Come on, we'll sit with Juliet," Rose decided, Ginny and Hermione following behind her.

The youngest Granger jumped as she sat down, but relaxed after recognising them, giving them a polite nod before she immediately went back to reading.

They really were sisters.

"So, there's no way out of it then?" Ginny asked as they sat down, Juliet mostly ignoring them as she was apparently enraptured with whatever she was reading.

"Not according to Dumbledore, apparently it's a magical contract and magic doesn't care that I didn't put my name in it. That doesn't make sense to me, but apparently because whoever put my name in used something I'd actually signed it counts?" Rose said, grumbling.

What a load of shit. She loved magic but it could be complete bullshit at times.

"Surely there's a way we can get you out of this?" Hermione asked, making her shrug.

"The Triwizard cup is a powerful artefact and it's what made binding me to this stupid contract possible in the first place, and if I don't compete I lose my magic. That's not an option," Rose growled.

Lose her magic and go back to the Dursleys? Absolutely fucking not.

The other 'champions' weren't happy at her stealing their glory, except oddly enough Morrigan.

She didn't know the older student, but she knew Morrigan's reputation. She made the Ice Queen of Slytherin seem approachable and kind.

And yet while Delacour and Cerys An Craite seemed pissed off, Morrigan was surprisingly not angry at her.

She wasn't warm or friendly, but she looked like she'd already worked out that something was off with this whole situation.

Of all the people she expected to maybe understand, Morrigan Raum wasn't one of them, but maybe she was misjudging her somewhat distant cousin?

"So what happens now?" Hermione asked, making Rose scowl.

"Why, the annual attempt on my life of course. It's Halloween after all. I have to take part, and this tournament apparently killed everyone last time it was held. Lucky me," Rose grumbled.

Was it too much to ask for a year off from the ridiculous shit she ended up dealing with? She loved Hogwarts but god damn was there always some bullshit happening to her.

"Gray has some books on magical contracts, I read a couple of them while I was looking into how the magical government works," Juliet added, making them blink as they turned to the quiet girl.

She still hadn't looked away from the book she was reading, turning the page as she ignored their stares.

"The Raum library is supposed to be massive, but they don't let anyone see it," Ginny said, making Juliet finally look up, a confused look on her face.

"It is truly impressive, but I don't think that second part is right. Gray has taken me and Astoria there a couple of times, he thinks the Hogwarts library is… disappointing and lacking," Juliet said simply, her lips twitching into a small smile.

Blinking, she looked around the countless books that made up Hogwarts library, wondering just how big the Raums' collection was.

"Wait a minute, what are you reading?" Hermione asked, making Juliet pause and look at the thick leather tome in her hands.

"The Last Grimoire of Orepius Hawthorn, he was a famous wizard who mastered illusions. Most of it is way beyond my level but it's interesting anyway," Juliet said, turning the page again.

"Isn't that a banned book?" Hermione asked, scowling as Juliet blinked again before she giggled.

"It's illegal to buy or sell, yes. I didn't buy it, I'm certainly not selling it since it's Gray's, not mine. Gray said the law was written in that way so older families with large libraries didn't have to give up their collections," Juliet admitted.

"Gray let you borrow a book from his library?" Hermione asked, going quiet as her jealousy became clear for all to see.

Ooh, 'Mione was getting upset that Juliet had access to a better library than her?

"Yup. I showed some interest in illusions so he recommended a few books on it. It's not like there's any real risk, these books have a hilarious amount of spells on them to prevent theft or damage," Juliet said calmly. "I couldn't even lend it to someone else, I don't know how the spells work but apparently they're pretty common in noble libraries."

"I- lucky you," Hermione finally said, her tone clipped. "Why are you reading in the Hogwarts library then if it's so disappointing?"

"Oh, I like the atmosphere. Plus as much as I like Astoria, it's hard to read when she's around since she's always planning something," Juliet admitted with a giggle.

"The Slytherins aren't messing with you, are they?" Rose asked, making Juliet blink before she shook her head.

"No, nobody has tried anything. I think they're scared of Gray… or maybe Morrigan? She kinda scares me as well, to be honest but she's actually an interesting person to talk to if you don't annoy her," Juliet said with a small smile. "And if you do annoy her, just don't keep annoying her and you'll be fine."

"Morrigan is kinda intimidating, I bumped into her once and I learnt a dozen new insults on the spot," Ginny admitted with a quiet laugh. "It was scary back then since I was just a first-year, but it's actually kinda impressive how many insults she could put into one sentence without cursing."

"Wait, how were you even allowed to leave Hogwarts?" Hermione asked, looking triumphant before Juliet returned her stare.

"Professor Snape signed off on it, all heads of house can do that," Juliet replied, equally triumphant as Hermione deflated.

Which meant no Gryffindor would be able to without a very good reason, because McGonagall wouldn't sign off on it without one.

"I, hmm," Hermione said, trailing off as she couldn't think of a proper response.

"Anyway, thanks for the idea Juliet, I might have to talk to Gray again soon," Rose said, making the younger girl give her a shy smile and nod before she went back to reading.

— Grayson Raum —

Despite how well things have been going lately, I can't shake a growing feeling of what I can only describe as dread.

My ancestor had the power of foresight, and while I have had a single prophetic dream I have no idea how to unlock or utilise that power myself.

The feeling is that a minor threat is approaching that heralds the coming of a great one, but I can't work anything more out. It's been getting stronger all day, on Halloween of all days.

But I'm sure my feeling isn't misplaced, and it's convincing me that I need to get stronger before this greater threat arrives.

At the very least I feel like the great threat is in the somewhat far future, it feels distant, simply looming over the horizon.

Walking along the bank of the Great Lake, I look out over it with a frown. I have plans to grow stronger of course but I didn't plan to fully put them into action for at least two years.

I was going to focus on political power for the next year so that I could use my influence to avoid the consequences if I get caught enacting my larger plans.

Demons don't get more powerful by being nice after all, very little about my plans will be seen as legal or morally acceptable.

I'll have to alter my plans' timeframe because the more this feeling grows the more I'm convinced I might not have two years before this threat arrives.

The dread has been growing all day, but as I stop my late-night walk, my eyes widen as I look around in confusion, feeling my senses practically scream 'danger' at me.

I don't understand what is happening, but my eyes lock onto an owl in the sky, frozen mid-flight.

It's then that I realise that everything is silent, the night's ambience having vanished as I look around in growing worry.

I don't even have a fully compatible wand, I went to Olivander's of course but none of his wands felt right, my new wand was simply the best match.

The lack of sound seems secondary as my nose picks up a revolting scent, it smells wrong, and it almost makes me gag as I try to place where I have smelt this before.

I place it a moment too late, turning as I hear the sound of flapping wings.

I smelt it at the church I visited, and as a lance made of golden light flies towards me, I realise that my feeling of dread was very well placed.

Whether it is my own reaction times or my inherited 'third eye' warning me, I barely manage to stumble out of the way as the lance flies past me and slams into the ground, somehow burning my skin as it merely passes by me.

I see it dissipate into motes of golden light out of the corner of my eye, but I'm more fixated on the way it reforms into the hand of my attacker as they stare down at me in disdain.

Looking into the sky, I don't need the moonlight to illuminate her as she literally glows with a soft golden light, clad in white armour that does nothing to hide her feminine curves with golden scripture carved into it that makes my head throb just from trying to read it.

But even with her impressive armour and intimidating lance, it's not what draws my attention. It's not her almost glowing golden hair or eyes either, but the pair of massive white wings coming from her back that catch my eyes.

I haven't grown up in the muggle world where Angel imagery is so prevalent, but there isn't a single doubt in my mind of just what I am staring at.

"Did you think hiding in the form of a human would protect you from our eyes, demon?" she sneers, her voice almost song-like despite the words that leave her mouth.

I could lie, but I can already tell that's going to be a useless endeavour.

"Weren't you all trapped up in your precious heaven?" I ask, trying to buy time as I think of a plan, making her sneer grow even more prevalent.

It looks out of place on her otherwise beautiful face, she is truly celestial in appearance but as much as her looks make my loins stir, I need to focus on what matters, like surviving the next few minutes.

I tried to use my eyes on her, but that proves to be a colossal mistake as my eyeballs burn, some form of protection preventing me from reading anything from her.

"The barrier our Father erected to allow the mortals to choose their own path has started to fall, thanks to the demonic filth parading around this plane like you belong here," she says, waving her hand in an arc over her head as a dozen small golden arrows form. "Heaven will permit your kind to corrupt this world no longer."

"I was born on this world, I have more right to be here than you ever will, you feathered pest," I reply, making her hesitate for a moment before her glare intensifies.

"I can already sense your taint on the mortals here, you may have acted slowly to try and avoid our ire but your caution was for nought, or did you think hiding behind these mortal wards would save you?" she asks, seeming triumphant as I frown.

Hogwarts should have some of the best wards humans have to offer, and they did seemingly nothing to stop this angelic bitch.

I know my demonic heritage is colouring my thoughts about her, but given that she already tried to murder me I don't think my growing hatred is misplaced.

Giving up my mortal form, I rapidly grow in size, my robes tearing apart as they fail to cover my bulk.

Her look only becomes more triumphant as I grow to around eight-foot-tall, two long black horns growing out of my head.

"I don't know why or how you're here, but I won't allow you to threaten what I'm working towards here," I say simply, the black flames of hell forming in my hands.

Angels and demons are allegedly weak to the other's magic. Her light magic will tear me apart but my demonic power is equally effective against her, so using my mortal magic is a poor choice here.

Getting an idea, I send out a mental command as I sneer up at her. Almost everyone seems to be frozen in place by the angel's little trick, but I still have one option I can call on.

The time for talk has ended, and we both know it as she thrust her hand forwards and sends the golden arrows toward me at incredible speeds, faster than any spell I've seen cast before.

But while my strength and endurance have grown considerably, so have my reaction times as I wave my hand and form a wall of black flames, her arrows dissipating when they strike it.

The wall itself grows visibly weaker when our magic clashes, sputtering out as she flies through it, her lance extended towards me.

But I wasn't idle either, and her focus was on my hands as I sidestep her thrust I spin around and my tail lashes out at her.

Even as the surprisingly sharp end of the long black tail slashes against her face, allowing me to draw first blood in the form of some golden liquid that leaks from the thin cut, I slam my hands down on the ground and engulf myself in a circle of flames.

My flames can burn me, but it's like submerging my body in a bath that's a little too hot; barely a problem in the grand scheme of things.

The screech of pain that comes from my attacker makes me smirk, I imagine for her it's a little more troublesome as she rapidly flies away again.

Her flight is going to be a problem because hellfire is fairly slow and even as I toss a ball of flames at her, she easily dodges it.

We're destroying the area around us and I'm sure that'll be a problem later on, but if I'm alive to worry about it later that will be a victory.

Trying a new plan, I instead send a wave of flames through the air, it's less powerful than a more direct attack but she can't dodge all of it as she flies higher, my enhanced hearing picking up a pained hiss as the flames lick her back.

But there's a problem with this attack as well, as my vision is entirely obscured by my own flames, I fail to see the arrows until it's too late.

The first fails to penetrate the wave of flames, but she knew that would happen and as it puts out a small gap in the wall of fire, a second arrow shoots straight through the newly formed opening and straight into my shoulder as I barely avoid being struck in the head.

The arrow doesn't stick around, turning into motes of light once more, but it did what it needed to as I growl in pain, a feeling of utter wrongness spreading from the gaping wound as a golden mist comes from it.

I don't know what she's done, but I can't allow it to continue as I create a pitch-black ball of flames in my hand and press it against the wound, barely stopping myself from roaring in agony as I burn the angelic corruption out of my wound, glaring up at her now that my flames have faded.

She isn't going to sit there and let me as she pulls out another new trick, vanishing from sight in a flash of bright light.

My senses scream out again, making me spin around again as she reappears right behind me, lance already thrusting towards my heart.

It's that warning that allows me to avoid being pierced straight through my heart, which I'm still rather certain that even demons need to live, but that doesn't mean I'm unscathed, as even the flags of light from her appearance burn my skin and blind me for that crucial moment I needed to avoid being struck.

Instead of being stabbed through the heart, it's just a kidney or lung that she pierces, you know, nothing important, as she smiles triumphantly, even with a nasty-looking burn across her face.

If the arrow was painful, this is excruciating as I feel the disgusting holy energy permeate through my body, and with my mind clouded with pain I can't stop her as she clicks her fingers, golden chains forming and lunging for me, binding me in place as they wrap around my body and limbs.

The metal scorches my skin as it rapidly tightens around my body, and the smile on her face becomes almost serene as she lands before me.

My hellfire can't work while I'm bound in these chains, and she obviously knows this. It's annoying to be at an intelligence disadvantage after dedicating so much time to studying magic in all its means.

Clearly, I need to further my studies and more importantly grow far more powerful. Yes, I'm still planning for the future even as I'm bound and immobilised in chains, with an Angel approaching me ready to end my life.

But I'm not as worried as I should be, even as she creates a spear of golden light and walks towards me.

"I do not know why you were born in this world, demon, but die knowing your world will be a safer place without you in it," she says, sounding almost apologetic as she pulls back her spear.

You see, my Hellfire was damn effective against her, even her white shining armour has been clearly marred by the few flames that managed to hit her, though the scripture is unharmed, glowing just as brightly as before.

Some form of angelic enchantment perhaps?

As for why I'm not worried? As I said, the main issue was hitting her because she was just too fast with the advantage of flight.

She's not flying now, and while it's stopping me from creating the flames from my body… I have a familiar.

Lurking in the grass, barely the size of an ant, Tyche, my demonic moke, grows to the size of a large dog and opens his mouth, a ball of black flame forming in its maw.

I've done some experimenting with my familiar, and while I can't use mortal magic through it, I can use my demonic magic through it.

It should go without saying that I never planned to fight fairly, and as she goes to stab me, the orb of flames strikes her in the back, hitting her majestic wings as her eyes widen in shock.

She screams in agony as she spins wildly, one of her wings ignited by the flames as she struggles to put out the fire that's consuming her wing.

I'm still bound, but then I can do this.

Shrinking back to my mortal form, the chains that were so tight on my much larger demon form simply fall to the floor and I lunge forwards, my hand coated in flames she spins back around in shock and fear.

Now I have the advantage, and I don't intend to fuck it up as she did, my hand clutching her throat, still burning as her screams grow in intensity.

Being this close to the scripture on her armour hurts me, but I'm clearly coming out on top of this encounter.

Plus, I just learnt how to do something new.

I'm still not 100% sure how demons learn skills but seeing her act has unlocked something within me, and with an almost mocking click of my fingers I watch as a small red portal forms in the air, shooting a deep black chain towards her with a hook at the end.

The chain immediately wraps around her, the hook stabbing into her as she gasps, true fear in her eyes as more portals open and the chains keep coming, the tables truly turned.

They struggle and vanish as they attempt to wrap around her armoured body, the scripture flaring up, but with every chain, the golden glow becomes a bit dimmer and her struggles become more intense until the light fades entirely, my chains no longer repulsed.

I watch all this with cold eyes, even as I feel her fear feed me, far more efficiently than any mortal's emotions ever could.

It's an addictive feeling, the negative emotions of an angel, and one I want more of as I approach her, forming a dagger out of dark energy, a mockery of her own light weapons.

I have flashes of an older me standing over a slain army, thousands of weapons made of this same material piercing their bodies, but I shake it away as I find the clasps of her armour, her struggles only growing as she realises my dark intention, piece by piece her armour is removed and the chains find purchase in the flesh beneath.

She knows where this is going, how could she not, as the chains wrap around her now exposed pale legs and force them apart, the tunic-like silk she had on beneath the armoured plates pushed up to her waist exposing equally silky white undergarments.

My new dagger makes short work of her dress, even with the chains making things a little awkward, and as the cloth is pulled away and her perfectly pert breasts revealed to my gaze, I give her a dark look that only promises pain.

Retaking my demonic form, I look down at my body, deep burn marks where her chains wrapped around me and the large gouge where she impaled me, but while it's extremely painful, the energy she is unwillingly feeding me is helping me too much to stop.

The dread has faded now, the looming threat is still there but I don't feel any immediate danger.

A clawed hand reaches forward and gropes one of her breasts, sinking into the insanely soft flesh as she finches back.

"S-stop this at once, you know not what you are doing," she says, still sounding so holier than thou (probably because she is) even as I escalate from roughly groping her tits to slowly digging the points of my claws into the soft flesh of her breast until she screams in pain, trickles of her golden ichor dripping from my claws.

My other hand clutches her panties and tears them from her body, exposing an incredibly small slit.

"Kill me, demon, you are the victor. End my life," she says, sounding increasingly pleading as the chains hold her aloft, her legs forced apart despite her best efforts to close them.

As her chains messed with my powers, my chains clearly have the same effect on her and unlike hers, mine aren't so easily shaken as the hooks dig cruelly into her flesh and take hold.

My clothes are a lost cause, destroyed by my transformation, and she can clearly see my large cock growing erect as I grasp it and move between her legs, true fear in her eyes as I slap it down atop her cunt.

"Kill me!" she shouts, watching as I pull back and line myself up with her dry slit, the fat tip of my dick pressing against those lower lips as her flower starts to spread.

"No."

With that simple statement, I thrust forwards into her unprotected quim, a pained gasp leaving her as my thick manhood penetrates her most sacred spot.

She's insanely tight, making every human I've bedded so far seem almost loose by comparison. The despairing wail that leaves her as I sheath myself inside her satisfies something dark inside me that has gone unfed and until now unkown.

I can't stop myself, gripping her hips and slamming forwards, uncaring of the way her almost painfully tight pussy tries to push me out, because she's right.

I am the victor this time, and to the victor goes the spoils.

The still frozen and silent area is filled with the sounds of our flesh slapping together and her horrified wails and groans.

My fingers grip her hips hard enough to draw blood, my sharp claws digging into her soft creamy white flesh.

This isn't about her pleasure, it's not even about mine though I'll admit that pounding her insanely tight cunt (now somewhat lubricated by the thin trail of golden blood leaking from her abused hole) is a very pleasurable experience, it's about a demon defiling an angel, a tale as old as time.

The sheer demonic energy I can feel being produced from this depraved sinful act surpasses any ritual I have done, any foul deed I have committed, and even as the pain in my chest grows, I rut into her with a primal need to defile this holy symbol.

"Y-you cannot breed me, demon scum," she grunts out between whimpers, staring up at me defiantly. "The holy power infused in my body will burn your foul seed up before it can take root in my holy womb."

Pausing, her eyes widen as I slowly pull out of her abused slit, now almost gaping from having to adjust to my size.

"You understand the futility of your deed? Then kill me and be done with it, you will pay for this violation in time," she says defiantly, making me stare at her with cold eyes.

The chains move and flip her over, held aloft facing the ground as my hands reach her buttocks, spreading the firm ass cheeks as she blinks in confusion for a moment before her eyes widen, feeling my bulbous tip press against her virgin asshole.

She goes to speak but whatever she planned to say is rapidly cut off by a pained scream as I slam my hips forwards and split her ass in two.

It's slightly lubricated by the blood and pre-cum on my cock, but if I thought her pussy was tight I had no idea what tight really meant, and it takes my enhanced strength to even move inside her as she tries her hardest to push me out and stop this latest violation.

She fails, and as I sheath myself inside her back door with a single hard thrust, her eyes widen in shock and pain.

Nothing she can do can stop this defilement, her body is mine to use for my pleasure and she knows it as she clenches her teeth to try and stop me from getting any satisfaction from hearing her whimpers.

She somewhat succeeds in muffling them, but it's not as effective as she clearly wishes as I grip her hips and slam forwards, the occasional whimper of pain leaving her, but I don't care about what small victory she's convinced herself that she has won, rutting into her with increasing ferocity until I slam my hips forwards and let out a triumphant grunt, my seed spurting out and flooding her back passage, painting her insides white with my essence.

Pulling out, I watch as a trail of blood and semen leaks from her abused rosebud, but her eyes remain defiant as she stares at me.

The sight of her so thoroughly defeated and used calms my demonic side, allowing my senses to return to me as I wince in pain once more.

I still have a gaping hole in my stomach that isn't healing and with the adrenaline fading, the pain is only growing.

My dagger reforms in my hand as I flip her over again, and she closes her eyes, seemingly at peace as I plunge it down into her chest.

The possessive side of me wants to keep her, but it's not viable in my current position.

The dagger finds purchase, and it comes as little surprise to me when her body starts to fade into nothingness, wisps of golden light leaving her corpse.

Even her armour, stripped from her, fades leaving nothing but a somewhat destroyed lakeside as I watch the owl once more.

It's still frozen, but I can feel something coming undone, the stench of heaven lessening rapidly.

I can't be caught here, and as I grit my teeth and work through the rapidly growing pain, I grab what scraps are left of my clothes and burn them to ashes, saving only my actual important belongings as I make my decision.

With so much essence gathered, I gather it up and cast the spell I've known for so long, creating my first demonic lair deep beneath the halls of Hogwarts.

There is no physical entrance to this lair yet, only teleportation allowing access to my first lair.

Calling Tyche to me, I move us both deep underground as I reappear in the throne room of my lair, barely giving the extravagant throne a second glance as I push through into where I know the master bedroom is.

I don't even give the demonic core hovering above my throne room a glance, the massive black orb humming with power.

Reaching the bedroom, I collapse onto the bed with a pained groan, hoping my Grimoire was right about demons healing faster in their lairs.

Tyche grows in size once more, growing to the size of a large horse as she climbs onto the bed and glares at the door, ready to make any intruders suffer if they try to threaten me.

As my vision darkens, I know only one thing.

Heaven has declared war on me, and I don't intend to lose.

— Gaunter O'Dimm —

Chuckling to himself, he waved his hand and watched as the signs of battle vanished, leaving nothing but a very confused Auror behind, panicking as her charge seemingly vanished midstep.

Well, he couldn't have the mortals messing up the game just yet and with barely a twitch of his fingers the surprisingly well-defended mind of Nymphadora Tonks was clouded and altered to suit his whims.

Whistling to himself, he hopped off the rock he had watched the fight from, walking into the night with a growing smile.

The first stone had been thrown, the first blood had been shed, and things would only get more interesting from here.

For the first time in thousands of years, even he didn't know what would happen next.

— Grayson Raum —

Waking up, my chest still aches as I rise but the wound seems to have closed up.

I survived, and despite the pain, I feel I can't help but think I came out on top of this singular encounter.

Even with my impulsive decision to create a lair, whose placement will probably become a problem eventually given that it's directly under Hogwarts and not hidden in the forest like I originally planned, I still gained far more essence than I spent.

I defiled an angel, so it doesn't surprise me. It actually gives me some ideas.

Sitting up, I reach over and scratch Tyche under the chin, making her hiss happily as she rapidly shrinks back to her usual size.

She saved my life in that fight, the trick up my sleeve that saved me from being exterminated by some zealous fool.

I have three things on my mind.

How long have I been asleep, which Tyche helpfully informs me through our link was less than a day. I shouldn't have missed any classes or raised too many eyebrows yet since it's a weekend.

How the hell did an angel find me, and should I expect more to follow?

For those, Tyche cannot help as wonderful as she is.

This means I need to pay a visit to a certain nightclub and see if Luci is up for a drink and a chat.

What I do know is that heaven, and by extension the church has declared war upon me, and they struck first.

This means they have everything I'm going to do to them in response coming. They want a war? They'll get one.

It's time the world remembered why the name of Raum was so feared in times past.

Thankfully, I didn't have any plans for this Saturday so nobody should be missing me just yet.

— Fleur Delacour —

WHERE THE FUCK WAS GRAY?!

He was avoiding her, he had to be, hiding away somewhere and laughing as she searched high and low in this damnable castle for him.

Why did the staircases keep moving, why wouldn't the portraits shut up, why did some of the staircases have false steps?!

What fresh hell was this castle, who thought any of this was a good idea?!

When she got her hands on that smug bastard, she'd fuc- curse the life out of him, nobody ignored Fleur Delacour.

As another of her admirers attempted to introduce himself to her, she turned to him with an almost feral expression, her wand already in her hand as it sparked in response to her rage.

Many people would tell you that Cormac McLaggen was not a wise man, they'd actually tell you that he was a fucking idiot, and yet as Fleur glared at him with fury and frustration in her eyes, waiting for him to give her a reason to take that anger out on him, he did the smartest thing he'd ever done.

Watching the idiot literally flee away from her, running down the hall away from her, Fleur scoffed and continued her hunt, stalking through the halls angrily as her reputation quickly grew to match Morrigan's in terms of sheer unapproachability.

— Bonus Scene — Molly Weasley

"Vassalisation? That's…" Arthur trailed off, an unusually serious look on his face. "It's better than the Raum's declaring a feud, but we'd be putting ourselves entirely at their mercy."

"The twins have truly gotten themselves, and the rest of us, into a mess this time," Molly agreed with a sigh.

"I honestly don't see any other choice, unless we let the Twins go to Azkaban of all places," Arthur said with a deep sigh. "Which isn't an option. We should have put our foot down on their games much sooner. At least if we go through with this, and I can't see a way for us not to, you'll be in Hogwarts to keep an eye on them. Will you be okay playing maid for Grayson?"

No, she absolutely wouldn't be. Gray has already made it clear that he planned to use her for his entertainment and pleasure.

The idea of letting some kid her son's age abuse her body to his content infuriated and disgusted her even if she could admit that Grayson looked older than he was, but letting the twins go to Azkaban?

He had her between a rock and a hard place, unfortunately, the hard place was his cock and he was going to bend her over the rock, and she had little choice but to let him.

"I'll be fine, dear. He's just a lazy teenager wanting someone to clean up after him," Molly replied, making Arthur chuckle.

"True enough. Let's just hope he doesn't realise what else he can have you do," Arthur said with a sigh, making her freeze.

"What do you mean?" Molly asked, making Arthur give her a sad smile.

"We're putting ourselves completely at the Raum's mercy, you'll be by his side daily, following his orders and he's likely going through puberty. I know where my thoughts would go if I was his age and had an attractive older woman doing whatever I said," Arthur said with a dark laugh.

"W-well, let's hope he isn't interested in such things. He's engaged after all," Molly said, before pausing. "Arthur, if Grayson does order me to- if he does go down that path, what should I do?"

"The husband in me wants to tell you to slap him and come home immediately, but the realist in me knows that'd be the end of our family. I don't think there's anything you could do aside from trying to convince him not to, and if that doesn't work? I'm sorry, honey… but I think you'd have to go along with his demands. Let's just hope it doesn't get to that stage," Arthur said with a sigh.

"If it does come to that… I'll try and deal with him without it going all the way, there are ways I can try and… serve him without letting him between my legs," Molly said, making Arthur shrug helplessly.

She knew her breasts were very above average, perhaps she could convince Gray to just use her breasts and maybe her mouth instead of using her pussy or perhaps even her ass.

It still wouldn't be good, by any stretch of the word, but it'd definitely be better than having him actually fuck her… but he'd also told her to either wear some sexy underwear or nothing at all, she'd definitely have to find some sexy underwear because she didn't want to give him any ideas by not wearing undergarments.

She wasn't going to risk ignoring his first order, especially when he could just rip any underwear he didn't see as 'sexy' off her body and she couldn't lift a finger to stop him.

In the worst case, maybe she could at least convince him not to finish inside her, even if it meant taking his seed onto her face or breasts. She'd even prefer swallowing if it stopped him from pumping his load into her womb.

"I'd rather it not happen at all, but we'll just have to wait and hope. In the end, it'll all come down to Gray himself, it won't matter what you try if he decides he wants to fuck an older woman and won't change his mind," Arthur finally said.

"Yes, I suppose we'll just have to hope he is reasonable," Molly said, knowing full well he wouldn't be.