CHAPTER {330-332}

****A-PROPHECY-FULFILLED? (III)****

After Harry left, Hela sat down on the ground and started at the spot where Harry was sitting with a complicated look on her face. Affection was not something Hela was familiar with and even love was a completely foreign concept to her. When she first decided to seduce Harry, she had no feelings for him.

She simply wanted to use their marriage to form an alliance… It was a pretty common means to form an alliance in the nine realms. She had seen it herself happen multiple times. Even Frigga had done the same when her people lost the War. Hela started to seeth in fury as the face of that hateful woman came to her mind.

Frigga was the reason why her dear father started to change… Frigga and her people might have lost the fight, but they were the ones who won the War… 

Now Harry… Harry was way more interesting. There was no way he was going to change his ways. Hela was never going to allow that and it wasn't even going to be that hard of a task. Harry was a mama's boy and with his mother on her side, there was no way they were going to let someone change Harry. 

Tonks was a bit soft-hearted for her tastes, but she would do, since she was a fanatic at heart… Hela had noticed the fanaticism and madness in her eyes when she suggested Harry to keep Pettigrew alive and torment him for the rest of his life. Hela would have loved to see that, but Harry obviously had other ideas. 

Hela was a bit disappointed when Harry killed him, but she was fine either way… That mortal was simply an entertainment to her, nothing more, nothing less. However, Harry was different even though he was mortal… He was not a toy, but a strong ally. He was a blank canvas and that was why she reached out to him in the first place.

However, she had no intention of falling in love with him even though she wanted to take him as her husband… When Harry had refused her offer at first, she had felt anger like never before. It hurt her pride to be refused like that, but she had learned from her mistakes and she simply used that anger to fuel her determination to have him.

For a moment, she wanted to fall back to her true nature and use intimidation to get her way, but she was not a fool… Hela had used intimidation as her go-to solution for years, but when she hit rock bottom all of them simply laughed at her misery from the sidelines before they walked away. 

That was why she decided to give up on intimidation… Even if it would have worked in the short term, Harry would have betrayed her in the long run. Since intimidation was not an option, she decided to go with the next best option, seduction. However, she had no idea how to seduce someone, but she was still a woman. 

She instinctively knew what to do even though her methods were crude… Her plan also seemed to be working and Harry had agreed to accept her as one of his wives, but recently, she had started to have some weird feelings… Hela had no idea what she was feeling or how to deal with them and they were extremely confusing to someone like her.

'What is happening to me?' Hela asked herself as she felt a pang of pain in her chest when she saw Harry leave. Hela had no idea how to deal with the feelings she was having.

'I haven't killed anyone for ages… That must be it' Hela nodded in determination as she decided to go on a killing spree as soon as she was free. After all, killing was her go-to solution whenever something bothered her…

~~Malfoy Manor~~

Back at Malfoy Manor, Harry who was still asleep, decided to visit his mother and as soon as he appeared inside his mindscape, Lily wrapped him in her arms before capturing his lips with her own. It had been quite some time since they made out and with how busy he was, it was quite understandable. 

Only after making out for a couple of minutes, the two of them finally separated… "I missed you" Lily said in a longing tone as she caressed his cheek lovingly.

"I missed you" Harry said softly as he snuggled into her generous bosom.

"Come here, sit down. Let me take a look at you" Lily said cheerfully as he pulled him down to sit beside her before she climbed into his lap so that she could be as close to him as possible. "So, did you get what you wanted?" Lily asked curiously. She couldn't be with him whenever he went to meet Hela, so she wanted to know all the details.

"Yes, but quite reluctantly" Harry answered with a sigh. 

"Do you think she is trying to hold you back?" Lily asked with a frown. Limiting information was a niche way to manipulate and control someone. Albus was a master in that regard.

"...No, I don't think so" After thinking for a bit Harry shook his head in denial. "I am going to become a second-step Martial Artist within a week at most, so withholding information doesn't make any sense to me" Harry added after a moment. Hela had promised to teach him Soul Magic after he became a second-step Martial Artist and going against her word would simply ruin their relationship.

There was no way Hela was going to do that at this stage if she had a working brain inside her head and Hela wasn't planning on a short-term relationship. She was planning to marry him and if her words were to be believed, Cultivation would dramatically extend his life span…

"Well, at least you got what you wanted" Lily finished with a grin earning a nod from Harry.

"That I did" Harry smiled in satisfaction. "Now, I simply need to grab the last Horcrux and wait for Voldemort to make his move" Harry finished with a savage grin on his face. Harry wanted to take his time with Voldemort, but Voldemort was someone who was holding him back.

Now that Lost Garden was established, he needed to leave this back water community and carve a place for him in the world…

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****THE-FOUNDERS-&-SECRETS (I)****

~~Hogwarts~~

Harry walked through the empty halls of Hogwarts unhindered… The repairs were almost done, but the school wasn't going to open for at least the next couple of months thanks to politics. However, he did not have intentions of getting involved unless someone paid him to get things moving.

Harry finally arrived at the 7th floor and started to walk in front of the Room of Requirement or the Come and Go Room as the elves liked to refer. This was where he met Daphne Greengrass for the first time… He always wanted to ask her more about the room, but the topic never came up. 

The room was quite an impressive piece of Magic and Harry wanted to learn all of its secrets, but he never got the time and now that he was here, he had other things to worry about…

Feeling a bit disappointed, Harry started to walk in front of the blank wall while thinking about the Room of Hidden Things. Voldemort knew quite a few things about this room thanks to the ghost of Helena Ravenclaw, but even he didn't know everything. After he accidentally killed Myrtle, he was being closely watched by Dumbledore, so he was unable to explore the room completely.

Regardless of his actions, Voldemort always considered Hogwarts to be his true home and that was why he returned to Hogwarts after years to join as the Defense Professor, but when he was denied, he decided to place his Horcrux inside the school and use his Horcrux as a medium to cast the Curse on the position of the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor.

At that time, he was in a hurry, so he decided to place the Horcrux inside the Room of Hidden Things. He would have preferred the Chamber of Secrets, but the entrance to the Chamber was on the 2nd floor, which was quite far from the Headmaster's office. He was afraid of Dumbledore discovering the entrance to the Chamber.

Harry finally walked past the blank wall for the third time and the entrance to the Room of Requirement revealed itself… Without wasting any time, Harry entered the room only to be greeted by huge piles of knick-knacks. He looked around the room in awe… The room was HUGE with a capital H and it would have taken him months to find the Horcrux if he already didn't know where it was.

|I hope the elves didn't find it| Harry hoped as he started to make his way to where Voldemort kept the damn thing. He finally arrived at the place where the Horcrux was supposed to be according to Voldemort. He grabbed the drawer handle and pulled it open and much to his relief, the Horcrux was still there, lying innocently. Just like the ring, there was some sort of Compulsion Magic on the diadem, but it was much weaker than the ring.

The Compulsion Charm wanted him to put the diadem on top of his head and Harry didn't need to be a genius to know that the result of such actions was going to be quite unpleasant. He pulled out a dragon skin pouch from his robes and levitated the Diadem out of the drawer before carefully placing it inside the dragon skin pouch. 

|Such a waste…| Lily muttered solemnly just after the diadem disappeared from her sight. |I wonder why Voldemort never used the diadem to boost his intelligence| Lily wondered aloud.

|It was his arrogance… Voldemort decided that he didn't need the Diadem| Harry answered simply. Thanks to the Mark he placed on Voldemort, all of his memories were available to Harry. |Though I wonder how Rowena is going to feel if I tell her about the Diadem| Harry wondered while rubbing his chin.

|You should summon her| Lily urged him to summon the legendary Witch since he had the means and she wanted to see if the Witch really lived up to her name or if it was all just propaganda.

|Hmm…| Harry simply hummed as he opened a Portal leading back to the Malfoy Manor. He always wanted to summon the Founders and Merlin, but he never got around to doing that. He stepped through the Portal and arrived inside his office. He placed the pouch on the table and pulled out the Resurrection Stone from one of his pockets.

He rubbed the Stone three times while thinking about Rowena Ravenclaw and moments later, a spectre of the said woman appeared in front of him. The woman looked older than any of her portraits, which was to be expected since the woman probably got the portraits made just after they established Hogwarts.

The woman slowly opened her eyes and looked around curiously… "What is this?" The woman asked as she looked down at her hands. "...I remember dying" The woman mumbled before her gaze finally focused on the sole person inside the room. "Are you responsible for whatever this is?" The woman asked curiously.

"Have you read the Tales of the Beedle and the Bard?" Harry asked instead of answering. It was a fairy tale, but it was a pretty old fairy tale, older than the Founders and considering Rowena's deposition, it was quite likely that she had read the story, at least once.

The woman narrowed her eyes at the question… "Are you talking about the children's fairy tale?-" The woman asked before she frowned. "-Unless it is not just a fairy tale" The woman muttered as her eyes started to gleam in excitement. "Fascinating!" The woman exclaimed and floated close to Harry. "Show me the Stone" Rowena asked excitedly.

Harry simply revealed the Stone to her and she barely held herself back from squealing… "Such a marvel!" She exclaimed as she leaned forward to get a close look at the Stone. "So, the rest of the Hallows must be real too, right?" Rowena asked as she finally looked up at Harry.

"Yes, I have all three of them" Harry revealed with a nod and Rowena gasped.

"You are the Master of Death?!" Rowena blurted out, not knowing how to react.

"Unfortunately, that is just a hoax" Harry revealed much to her shock. 

"What? Then what about the brothers and Death? They must be real, right?" Rowena asked hurriedly, totally engrossed in the fascinating conversation.

"The answer is yes and no. I believe we have much to discuss, so why don't we start with introductions?" Harry suggested and even though Rowena wanted to continue their conversation, she decided to calm down and follow his suggestion…

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****THE-FOUNDERS-&-SECRETS (II)****

"Since you summoned me, you probably already know me, but for formality's sake… I am Rowena Ravenclaw" The woman slightly bowed her head, according to the tradition of their time. Even though Rowena was probably the smartest woman of her generation, she still looked down on by others just because she was a woman.

"Hello, I am Hadrian Potter, but you may call me Harry" Harry introduced himself, but he didn't offer her anything as she was just a specter. It would have been a rude gesture and to show his respect, he decided not to take a seat. 

"So, we were talking about the three Brothers and Death?" Rowena asked giddily. Now that the introductions were out of their way, she was eager to return to their initial conversation.

"Yes, we were" Harry nodded his head with a soft chuckle. From their brief exchange, Harry could already tell what kind of person Rowena was. The woman was clearly a fanatic when it came to knowledge. "The brothers were real, but the story, not so much and as for Death, the facts are slightly skewed" Harry answered.

"Really? Can you tell?" Rowena eagerly asked. 

Harry had no problems sharing his knowledge with the woman without any worries for basically one reason. Rowena Ravenclaw was dead and from what he had noticed, the dead were placed in some kind of limbo after they died. "How about we exchange?" Harry suggested, instead of answering her question.

Rowena frowned for a moment before she nodded her head in agreement. "That is only fair, I suppose. So, tell me. What do you want to know?" Rowena asked calmly.

"What can you tell me about the diadem?" Harry asked and Rowena immediately grimaced at his question.

"I was expecting that" Rowena admitted. "There is not much to tell… It was my greatest invention, but at the same time, it was one of my greatest failures" Rowena sighed as she floated away from Harry. "How many years has it been since I died?" Rowena asked, changing the topic.

"Almost a thousand years" Harry answered without missing a beat.

Rowena chuckled mirthlessly… "So for a thousand years, my name was associated with one of my greatest failures…" She mumbled helplessly before she finally turned around to stare at Harry. "You see, the diadem was just a prototype. I never managed to finish it. Initially, it was supposed to enhance a person's wisdom, but the prototype could only enhance a person's concentration" Rowena revealed unhappily.

"Then why did you reveal it to the people?" Harry asked, looking confused. He even saw her most famous quote engraved on the diadem. So, if it was really a prototype then why did she go to such lengths?

"Politics" Rowena answered simply, but there was a hint of bitterness in her voice. "Even though I helped them establish Hogwarts, Helga and I were rarely mentioned. First of all, we were women, and at the time, warriors held more importance than scholars. Helga was a healer by profession, so her skills were held in high regard whenever it mattered, but I was being constantly sidelined" Rowena paused as she looked outside the window.

"I realized that I needed something to make history. The diadem was supposed to be my magnum opus, but I had to show something to keep my name afloat. That is why I was forced to reveal the prototype to the people. I know it was the wrong thing to do, but what other choice did I have?" Rowena asked with a self-loathing smile on her face.

"However, I was still determined to finish the diadem even if it took me years, but my foolish daughter stole the prototype and ran away before she got killed…" Rowena sighed, looking bitter and disappointed.

"I will be honest, I was never a good mother… The only reason I married was because it was expected of a woman at that time and I had a child for the same reason" Rowena finished.

"Your daughter ran away with the prototype, right? You could have still finished it, right?" Harry asked with a frown. 

"I could have, but as I said, a lot of men were against my research… They wanted to see me fail. So, I was afraid that my research might get stolen or worse, destroyed, so I never kept physical records of my research. After my daughter stole the prototype, it took me years to years to retrace all of my steps and I had to do all of that in secret, or risk losing everything I had ever worked for" Rowena finished bitterly.

Harry didn't know what to say after that… It was obvious that she was a bad mother. She never cared for her daughter Helena and he couldn't bring himself to blame her, at least not completely. Rowena never wanted to get married or have a child of her own, her only desire was to seek knowledge, but she was forced to marry and have a child due to the pressure of being a woman.

"Now, enough about the diadem… Why don't you tell me more about the brothers and the death?" Rowena asked eagerly, hoping to sate her curiosity.

"...Alright" Harry wanted to ask more questions, but they could wait for now. He wanted to show her the diadem and what happened to it, but he didn't want to be cruel to her, especially when she was cooperating willingly. "What do you know about Asgardian lore?" Harry asked, only to receive a frown in return. 

"You mean those Muggle Gods?" Rowena asked as she scrunched her face.

"Yes them" Harry nodded his head, but Rowena simply shrugged.

"Not much. I always sought knowledge, but I was never a fan of mythology, especially Muggle mythology" Rowena answered lamely.

"Apparently, they are real" Harry revealed, but once again Rowena simply frowned.

"Really? The Muggles could have mistaken our kind for Gods, you know?" Rowena asked with a disbelieving look on her face.

"I don't have a reason to lie" Harry retorted and after thinking for a bit, Rowena seemed to relent even though she didn't believe him, at least not completely. "The Asgardian Goddess of Death, Hela was strolling by a river bank one day when she came across the three brothers. They recognized her and begged her for power" Harry started to recall the whole incident when he saw that Rowena was at least ready to listen to his story.

"However, Hela is an extremely bloodthirsty Goddess. At first, she wanted to kill all three of them for interrupting her walk, but she decided to have some fun instead. So, she came up with the idea of the Deathly Hallows and handed them over to the three brothers. Unfortunately, Hela cursed the Deathly Hallows to create conflict. The title 'Master of Death' was nothing but a bait" Harry finished and Rowena was left completely speechless…

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