Ch. 108 Ritual

6th of July 1994, my 17th birthday was just around the corner. My ritual would take place at the stroke of midnight, signifying the change to the day of my birth. The 17th year of life for a body that was born on the 7th day, of the 7th month, in the 77th year of a century.

Everything was ready, but I had to do one thing before I left. I had to tell my aunt. She deserved to know what I would be doing at least. In case the worst happens.

*knock knock*

"Come in." I heard her say from her room.

I come in and see her reading in her night gown before really sleeping.

"Aedan? Why do you need to see me?" She asked calmly as she put her book down and reading glasses away.

"Aunty, I'm going out and I might not be back for a few days depending on how things go." I say to her after I take a deep breath.

"Out? Aedan, it's already dark. Why I'm the world do you need to go out now?" She asked slightly incredulously.

"Well, I need to fix a problem." I said a bit awkwardly.

"Aedan. What are you going to fix?" She asked as her eyes narrowed in suspicion and her voice become more stern.

"I-I-I need to fix me aunty." I forced out nervously.

"What? Aedan, what's wrong? Why would you need to fix yourself?" She suddenly asked feeling nervous herself now.

"Well, this has to do with what happened when I was young." I answered her with some difficulty.

"Tell me what's wrong right now young man. I will not let you go out and do Merlin knows what, and hope you are ok." She declared with a lot of worry in her voice.

"My beast parts are losing balance as I get older Aunty. I've been getting more aggressive and dangerous urges as time passes. The only reason nothing bad has happened is because I've been keeping myself under strict control and no one has challenged me." I answered truthfully.

"How long have you known about this?" She carefully asked.

"Two years ago when I snapped at an older prefect for challenging my position as Head boy." I answered with my head down.

"Why did you not tell me Aedan? Do you not think I could help? Did you believe I would lock you up? Stop you from going to school? Why wouldn't you tell me you were struggling?" Asked my emotional aunt.

"Because I already have my solution aunty." I answered quietly at her questions.

"And what did my genius nephew decide and hid from me?" She then asked.

"A ritual. I have to do one last ritual to bring my body back into an equilibrium. It's the only way." I say, feeling guilty for never telling her.

"I will never allow that! You suffered for almost a year because of rituals and now you want to risk your life to go through another one! Do you think I'll allow this?" Burst out Amelia in outrage.

"Aunty, this is my only way. And tonight is my best and probably only chance. If I don't, I might lose myself in my predatory instinct and fall. I can't let myself do that. I need to do this for myself and everything I believe in." I say sadly, but there is conviction in my voice.

"You're serious? You want to go through with this and risk your life? Leaving Susan and me even more alone in this world?" She questioned, with a voice loaded with emotions. Looking like she would break if I left.

I just couldn't take seeing my aunt so fragile, so I rushed forward and hugged her. I used my large frame to hold my aunt, my mother in this world.

"I will never leave you two. I will fix myself. I will come back. And I will never let you two suffer. You two are my beloved sister and mother. And I will do anything to protect you both." I declare as I speak softly to my aunt.

She was speechless when she heard me call her my mother. She simply hugged me back and let some silent tears of reluctance, happiness and fear slide down her usually stoic face.

"I won't be alone tonight. Sol will be with me. So will Dumbledore. And even if you have mixed feelings about the man, it cannot be denied how powerful and intelligent the man is. We've both tripled checked everything about the ritual. So please just believe in me. Believe in the son you've raised. The son that you have, who already stands shoulder to shoulder with genius' of the past. If you can do that, I will always come back." I comforted her was we hugged.

We stood there in silence as my mother composed herself. A few minutes later she lightly pushed me back to separate.

"Then go. If I don't believe in this crazy son of mine, who will?" She said as she wiped her wet eyes.

"Thank you mom. I will make sure to make you proud." I stated with confidence.

"You And Susan have always made me proud. But I just want you two to be happy. So please don't disappear, you are too important for everyone's happiness." Amelia responded, filling my heart with the love I could feel from her.

"And you two are part of mine. I'll never let you feel that sadness. So i guess i just have another reason to come back don't i?" I said with a little grin.

"Yes you do. Now go. Go and come back. Then show the world that my son beat the odds and will continue to shine like he has." She gently said to me as we looked into each other's eyes.

"You got it mom." I say with a little nod and a gentle smile. "SOL!" I then call, resulting in the both of us to flame away.

"You can do it, my beloved child." Quietly said Amelia as she stood in the now lonely room.

-Special open air ritual area, private site on the Skellig Islands. (They exist!)

I appeared on the prepared area for my ritual. The floor was pure white marble, laid in a circle 20 meters in diameter, with seven Corinthian columns surrounding the edge of the marble flooring.

The floor itself was reinforced to be able to withstand tremendous force and heat, while still being magic conductive. The columns were designed to form a protective barrier to not let the flames escape, conceal any light or sound coming from the ritual, and act as a focus for the lay-lines this place was built on.

Yes, I had researched quite a lot to give myself every possible edge I could, and my search led to here: the Skellig Isles. Sites of very old magic, which I managed to purchase and set up as a world heritage site. It cost a lot, but I am not playing with my life. So I removed the ruins on this spot left by the ancient wizards of the time and created my own. I then incorporated the lay-lines into my ritual and this site perfectly, letting me have the most ideal environment for tonight.

I then began to set up my ritual. It mainly revolves around the concept of a pyramid to channel the flames into myself and Sol. She will be the tip, I will be the base, the four flames will be the sides, and the marking and support items will be the foundations to reach the top.

The drawing of the ritual was done in a mixture of my blood and Sol's. Slowly collected during the last year and a half, used to empower and link the magic. I started with a square shape on the inner layer, surrounding it with two circles within which I wrote in my own runic language to set this layers purpose. The middle layer was diamond shaped, following the same procedure. Finishing with the outer layer being back to a standard square encompassing everything prior and that itself having a circle to dictate its purpose.

On the four corners of the outer square, I place the boxes contained the Alpha Swedish Short-Snouts flames. On the diamonds corners, I gently lay Sol's tail feathers. And on the inner squares corners, I place and suspend vials of her tears.

With everything ready for the ritual, and only the stroke of midnight left to signal the beginning, I wait.

During my wait I turn and look at the stars shining brightly above me, looking even more sparkling tonight because of the moons absence.

'A beautiful sight to behold. The new moon makes this night even more perfect for me. But aside from that, I think I'll build mine and Tory's real house on an island like this. A place where we can just look up as we sit, and gaze at the heavens together. Just us, away from trouble, stress, duties and worries. Only the two of us and the stars.' I thought with a gentle smile on my face.

I was only broken out of my thoughts by a flash of light and the appearance of the Headmaster and his own Phoenix.

"Hello Aedan, it looks like I pulled you out of some pleasant thoughts." Said the Headmaster as he saw my smile.

"Just another of many reasons for me to succeed." I answer with determination.

"Indeed. It looks like everything is ready as well. Truly a meticulous set up you've made. More than perfect in every aspect. In fact, I have never seen, read, or heard of any ritual coming anywhere close to how you've made yours." Said the impressed Dumbledore.

"One tends to not take chances when ones life is on the line." I simply said as I stared at the stars.

"Yes, that is a human instinct isn't it?" Agreed the man with a chuckle.

With a bit of chatting to pass the time, and to not let each other get tense as we wait for the moment, until midnight was finally upon us.

"We both know what should happen, and you know your role Headmaster. But thank you, for everything." I say sincerely.

"Just make sure you succeed my boy. I wish you fates blessing on you tonight." Gently said the old man as he readied himself.

I nod and walked to the centermost position, where I am meant to stand. Sol flies up and sits on her suspended perch directly above me.

"Are you ready girl? This will be hard." I asked my closest companion.

I simply received a determined chirp in response.

"Then let's do this." I declare as I draw my wand and ceremonial dagger.

"Time came and went, with it came a child of seven's advent."

My magic filled voice hummed in the air as I began.

"Bonded through flames, living as fire

I stand on this night, becoming a pyre."

I rhythmically continue as I slice my wrists with the blade, letting my blood flow out. At the same time Sol nips her own body to let her blood flow.

"I ask the flames which bind me, love me, and freed me

Rise again at my word to cleanse me."

The vials containing her tears start to glow as the magic flows through the circles, the the feathers start to float and rotate along their own circles lines.

"Primordial flames, pure and strong, you are called to test my bond."

The whitish-blue flames erupt from their seals in a torrent of destruction, but are gently guided to flow in a circle by the ritual markings.

"Through life purity, through death nihility

Strike and test me, the bond that saved me."

Sol starts to ignite her own flames, the blue fire picks up speed as the feathers rotate with it as well, and the tears float out of their vials.

"So let the cleansing flame rise again and TRY TO BURN ME!"

I shout as the last verse on my chant is spoken, letting the flames rush towards me and Sol.

The ritual lines act like the guide, the feathers are the filters and the tears are the pacifiers. Together they moderate the extreme violence of the flames to a tolerable degree.

But that tolerable degree, well it is only for people who have suffered to horrible levels of pain and come out of it stronger.

Unfortunately, even for someone like me, the feeling of having such powerful flames come into me was unimaginable. I couldn't even scream as I focused every inch of my mind, Magic and soul to properly guide the flames.

The blue flames also flowed upward towards Sol, slowly but surely forming a pyramid of fire surrounding the both of us as we madly refined the flames.

Sol herself was undergoing continuous rebirths as she experienced too much power and burst into flames, only for her strength to be filled to the brim and grow again. Starting a cycle of life and death.

My experience was quite different, but it was also very similar to something I experienced a long time ago: Sol's forceful bonding to me.

It was different since I wasn't being forced to absorb the soul of the beast which blew these flames, but something similar was happening in my mind scape.

So I sat down and focused everything on what was going on within me, letting the energy flow freely in and out of me.

I was even receiving so much energy that I started to float in my seated position. Without any conscious effort on my side, I was floating.

In my mind and cores however, chaos was ensuing.

Blue fire filled my mind as it did with Sol, but this time i didn't fight it, I slowly refined it.

I used it to illuminate the deepest parts of my being as I searched within myself, looking for my target.

Soon enough I could see it. A piece of a beasts soul. It was shaped like a great big cat, with six legs and burning eyes, but it's body was dark like a shadow. It was hiding in the depths of my being, bidding its time as it fed off of my strong energy, hoping to strike like the hunter it was.

Instead of attacking it directly I did something else, I looked for my bond with Sol. This was the key to this whole thing. I didn't just need to get rid of the Whampus Cat's spirit, I needed to strengthen myself and Sol in the process to end this once and for all.

It only took a moment to find the constantly brightening and dimming bird within me. So what I did was strengthen her through me. Letting feed off of my refined energy to acclimatize herself to all this fire.

Slowly but surely i nursed her spirit with the flame. As the process was ongoing, her spirit was changing from the gold and red, to white and blue like the dragons fire. As the change happened, she grew stronger and stronger, capable of withstanding more every time, until I could see our bond stabilizing.

With the first step done, it was now time to deal with the annoyance in my soul. Together, my spirit and Sol's began to attack the cat's. It furiously tried to dodge our combined assault, while trying to swipe at Sol whenever she dove towards it and bite at me when I was pinning it. But it was at a severe disadvantage. We kept getting stronger and had a constant supply of energy, whilst it was a fragment sneakily trying to gain strength based on its instincts. It's struggle was fierce like any beast, but in the end it could do nothing against such empowered foes.

The result was the spirit being consumed by Sol's, causing her to undergo even further of an evolution as she strengthened herself through the dragon fire.

I on the other hand cleansed my soul and body of anything undesirable. I vaporized the waste within my body, further perfected it by letting soak in the flames, bathed my own soul gently in it, strengthening it as well as purifying it to a perfect degree. I even helped my mind in a very careful manner, improving my thinking speed, calculative abilities, memory and brain capacity. I would most likely have the best human body in existence as a result. That's even when I'm comparing to how I was before.

With all of that done, it was time for the final objective: third maturation.

I had already planned out how to achieve this theoretically after experiencing my second, and I'm sure this will be even harder.

So I entered the depth of my self, the core of my magic, where a rotating orb divided into a silver and gold yin and yang was.

I looked at it calmly one last time and began to let the refined flames envelop the orb. It began to rotate at crazy speed as it received the fires stimulation, until it finally started absorbing some of the blue flame. Gradually both sides became fuller, and their colors were changing the match the overabundant amount of energy in the fire. At the exact moment both sides were filled with the same energy, i collapsed the last barrier between the two, finally letting them become one.

The two sides still had a small percentage of their original energy, so instead of letting them clash, i forced everything to rotate once again. I mixed everything together and make them become one slowly but surely. Speeding up gradually as everything became more stable, until only a shining and shimmering blue liquid filled the large orb completely.

Analyzing my core for a moment, I determined that this was as pure and strong as it was possible to have during ones second maturation, hence it was time to start my third.

Using the blue energy, i started condensing everything further. I pushed and pressured the orb into shrinking while keeping the exact same amount of liquid inside of it. And with the continued pressure, it started to solidify. I gradually shaped the formerly round core almost double the size of a basketball, to an octahedron the size of a baseball. I slowly smoothened on all sides, polished it to leave no flaws, and let it absorb everything I had to give it.

I could feel the density of the magic this much smaller core had. It ways impossible to even compare the previous state to this one. It was also no wonder Dumbledore and Voldemort could be so far ahead of everyone, it's just ridiculous. I feel like my new core could cast magic at least twice the speed and ease, with between a 1/3 or 1/4 of the cost, whilst also having a big boost in any spells power and opening up your options by letting to manipulate magic in a more direct manner.

It just felt fantastic. I could now stand on the same level as those two monsters.

With all my own goals done, I decide to use everything else to solidify my foundations even further, not wanting my efforts to go to waste. I also decided to assist Sol with her own transformation now that she had completely stopped her constant cycle of rebirth.

Letting myself simply lose track of anything outside of the flow of energy, I decide to let it flow through me freely and relaxedly. It would follow the paths of least resistance and I would learn from it, understanding how magic itself wanted to flow, losing myself in it until the constant stream of energy finally stopped.

I focused on my body, feeling the forces keeping it afloat loosening, making me slowly descend upon the floor. And as I sat there, feeling all the changes within myself, I could hear the Headmaster approach me in a hurry.

"Aedan! Are you alright? I need a response quickly or I will assume something went wrong." He quickly said as he reached for me.

"It's alright sir. I am feeling my changes. It just feels amazing." I say in an excited voice.

"That's good. Everything went as planned then? No more pieces interfering with you?" He asked to confirm the original goals were met.

"Yes. My soul is now pristine and only Sol's link remains outside of my own. It will never be an issue again." I confirmed with a smile.

"That is a relief to hear. Are you ready to go then? It has been over 9 hours that we have been here. I am sure Amelia will be worried sick by now." Informed the Headmaster to my great surprise.

"9 hours!?" I exclaimed in shock as I opened my eyes to see the bright sun in the sky.

"Aedan, your eyes. They've changed." Said the Headmaster with his own surprise.

I quickly take out a mirror to understand what he meant and he was right. My eyes were no longer their usual mix of red and gold which made them look like a burning flame. They were know a flickering electric blue and white, resembling the torrent of flames I had absorbed with Sol. I also notices that my little golden streaks in my hair were gone, replaced by pure white ones as they weaved into my silver, making it even more ethereal than before.

'Wait if i changed, what about Sol?' I thought as I looked up to the flying Phoenix.

As if she felt my thoughts about her, she descended and landed on my outstretched arm. What Dumbledore and I saw was shocking. Sol had actually grown to be 1.5 times the size of a normal phoenix, but the most shocking was that her feathers were now royal blue, with white and silver interwoven amongst them to accentuate her new regal aura. Her eyes were near identical to mine and I could feel that she now had legilimantic abilities and heightened spell resistance, making her a completely new breed of Phoenix compared to others.

"Marvelous. Even she has changed so much." Softly said the Headmaster.

"Yes, but unfortunately testing and recording will have to wait for another time sir. I am very grateful that you were willing to protect and aid me during this time. But like you said sir, my aunt must be worried sick so I have to leave. It is my birthday after all." I said with a small grin on my face.

"That is true. We will have plenty of time to speak at a later time. But do enjoy your time with your family and give my best regards." He said with a knowing smile.

"I will. Thank you again. I will have people come and clean up this site as soon as possible, so you won't have to worry about it Headmaster. Now goodbye and I'll talk to you soon." I say with a quick explanation as Sol envelops is in a now blue flame and flashes me away.

"Third maturation at 17 years old. Truly monstrous. I hope he will help when Tom returns. It would be invaluable help. What am I saying? He is already more than willing to do so." Dumbledore quietly said to himself before he left as well.