THE LIGHTNING LORD

Chapter 2 : The elven ritual

Vernon panicked. Had he truly killed the boy? He felt for a pulse, but in his haste and panic, he couldn't find one so he took the boy and stuffed him back in the cupboard. He would have to decide what to do before the freaks realised what had happened. As he turned, he looked at the horrified face of Petunia and tried to convince her that it was for the best and that they could get rid of the boy. He went to get changed so that they could dispose of the body whilst Petunia hastily decided to clean the blood stains on the floor, before Dudley or anyone else could see them. Twenty minutes later, an explosion rocked the house and the cupboard under the stairs was destroyed.

The boy had disappeared!

High in the sky above North America, a thunderbird was enjoying himself in a storm he created and suddenly felt a pull towards a certain young wizard. This confused him, as he had never heard of a bond he had formed with a wizard. No thunderbird in history had! It was due to this bind that he could sense pain and distress from the young wizard and was also on the brink of death. He concentrated on where his home was and where he was to be taken. Mind made up, the large bird disappeared with a flash of lightning, and appeared with another flash above Privet Drive. With another flash of lightning and a strong burst of thunder, the boy and the thunderbird disappeared.

The thunderbird then used his magic to detect a safe place for the young wizard through the house elf bonds connected to the boy's family and with a snarl, he appeared in the courtyard of Potter Castle. He was angry. He may not have yet understood why he felt a bond with his wizard, but harming him made him furious. Several elves popped next to the majestic bird and approached him with fear. He noticed the nearest elf and looked into its eyes and communicated what had happened.

The elf gasped "It's Master Hadrian! He be hurt!" she exclaimed. The other elves gasped, and one of them came up and looked at him. "Master be hurt very badly. Tippy needs help if we are to save Master's life!" The others agreed and they transported the young boy to the castle's ward room. The ward room was a large room where the primary ward stones were kept. Potter Castle was built on the merging of two major magical lay lines, thus creating a powerful concentration of magic. The elves placed him on the floor and drew Elvin runes around him as they knew they had to act quickly. They performed a diagnostic ritual and were appalled at the stage of their young master. Hadrian's arms and legs were broken, his face was puffed up, nose broken, had a concussion, a stab wound in his stomach, a large block on his magic and worst of all, a soul fragment lodged in his scar. The elves knew they had a lot of work to do. Eighteen elves surrounded Harry and began chanting, while the large thunderbird watched. A storm raged on outside the castle, rain pouring down with lightning flashing. As the elves started chanting, slowly Harry's body began to heal itself. The ancient castle, a stronghold of magic, started pumping magic into its Lord, ensuring his survival. The wounds healed, the block on his magic slowly came undone. By now, the elves were exhausted and another batch of eighty-one elves took over. They knew that getting that soul piece out without killing their Master Hadrian would be very difficult but they had to try. They started chanting causing Harry to look like he was having a seizure whilst screaming in extreme pain. The scar on his forehead looked red hot, but the elves continued, their volume increasing. After almost fifteen minutes of screaming and thrashing about the scar burst open and a black mist ascended in the air. The thunderbird screeched and let out a powerful bolt of lightning. The mist screamed and exploded causing Harry to faint and several of the house elves. However no one realised the unintentional battle of wills that Harry had won against Voldemort's soul, which would lead to Harry gaining a great gift that no one realised until much later.

Far away in Scotland, in a castle similar to where Harry was, a silver instrument monitoring the Horcrux inside Harry's head exploded; which caused the other instruments, one monitoring the wards around Private Drive, and the tracking charm which used Harry's blood to be destroyed also. Albus Dumbledore, who was attending an ICW conference in Japan, would not realise until it was too late and would be helpless to do anything about it.

********************TIME SKIP*********************

Harry woke up with a blinding headache with his body aching all over too. He tried to remember what happened but for the life of him, he couldn't. It felt like he was sleeping on a soft bed, which he knew there was no bed in his cupboard. Slowly, he started meditating and the activities of the night flashed before his eyes. The starvation, his intense anger, the prank he pulled on the Dursleys, and how Uncle Vernon had tried to murder him. He stiffened in panic and slowly opened his eyes and gasped. He was sleeping on a large four poster bed in a large room with beautiful wooden flooring and large windows adorned on the walls. The room was decorated in red and silver colours. Harry could not help but gape at the beauty and wealth of the place. Just as he was about to get up, he heard a crack and saw a creature; it was unlike anything had seen. It was short and had big green eyes and was wearing a dress made of scrap fabric. It had large ears and beady eyes which Harry could not help but jump back in shock. Something in his mind said that he knew what the creature was, but he couldn't get the words right.

"Master Hadrian is awake! How are you feeling sir? Should Tippy get you anything?" squeaked the house elf excitedly.

Subconsciously, Harry remembered what the creature was. It was a house elf. A magical species who loved to serve. Harry was confused on how he knew that. He knew it wasn't because of his eidetic memory, as he could not recall ever learning about house elves so he put that aside for now.

"Ahm, hello to you Tippy. Can you tell me where I am?" Harry asked hesitantly.

"Master is in Potter Castle, the ancestral home of the Potter family. How are you feeling Master Hadrian? Tippy and the other elves be very scared and worried" replied the elf.

Harry swallowed his nervousness. Potter Castle? What was going on here? He took several deep breaths and tried to calm down. His headache didn't make anything easier, he thought. "I'm fine now Tippy. Can you tell me what happened? How did I come here? How long have I been here?" he asked her.

Tippy looked down to the floor as tears welled in her eyes. "Master Hadrian arrived three days ago. Master's thunderbird friend brought you here. You were badly injured sir, close to death. The elves used our magic to heal young master. You has been unconscious ever since" said the elf tearfully.

Harry took a deep breath and exhaled. Thunderbird friend? He was really confused. "Please thank all the house elves for saving my life, Tippy. I'm sorry to bother you, but can you please show me to the bathroom? I want to take a bath" he asked her.

The elf looked shocked. "Master Hadrian not be bothering Tippy at all! Tippy lives to serve the Potter family! I will prepare a bath for you Master" she said and popped out.

Harry slowly got out of bed and made his way to the bathroom. He didn't know what was going on, but he was certainly going to find out soon.

**************END OF FLASHBACK**************