"It's no use trying to attack me," said the boy wearing Malfoy's face with a nonchalant shrug. "I know you're thinking about it, but it won't get you anywhere. Rather, let's put it this way… do you really have time to waste on me? Don't you have somewhere else you need to be?"
Oleandra gritted her teeth in frustration. It was only now that she understood why Merlin had advised her to keep Malfoy close, but it was too late for that. The boy she'd once known was gone, replaced by an ancient monster born at least ten thousand years ago. And the same thing had probably already happened to Tracey, the last member of the Starshower club.
"Tracey…" Oleandra whispered.
Merlin's voice echoed in her mind as she recalled his last words: if you prioritise what's most important, you can make up for your mistake and still save the second one in time. He had emphasised the words most important and in time.
Most important…
In time…
Most important…
In time…
Oleandra's eyes widened. Theo's Time Turner—the very thing that had sparked this entire mess! He'd stolen it from the Department of Mysteries, snatching it before the rest were destroyed during battle. If she could get her hands on it, she could go back to the moment the gods descended and save Tracey from possession!
Technically, she wouldn't be changing the past if she succeeded; according to the laws of time, one couldn't change what had already happened— but as long as Tracey's state remained unknown to her, her fate would remain in flux. So, whatever she did, she could not learn with certainty what had happened to her girlfriend before she turned back the clock.
"A word of advice," said the stranger in Malfoy's body. "My brother Baldr… he's allergic to mistletoe. Doesn't react well with the enchantments his dear mother placed on him, you see."
Oleandra looked at the blond boy warily.
"Why are you helping me?" she demanded. "Why tell me any of this?"
"Out of the goodness of my heart? Because it's to my advantage? To build a relationship with the woman who brought low the mighty leader of the Aesir?" said the boy, grinning. "There are too many reasons to count, really. Pick whichever one tickles your fancy."
Pain flared behind Oleandra's eyes, and she flinched, raising a hand to her face. There was something horribly wrong with what the man before her had said— yet his words rang with truth… or did they?
A tense silence fell upon the two.
For a brief moment, Oleandra considered finishing off this hidden threat then and there, before he grew used to his new body. But even assuming the Aesir inhabiting Malfoy was in a weakened state to begin with, he certainly wouldn't go down without a fight. Right now, saving Tracey was Oleandra's only priority.
Everything else could wait.
"I see you've made up your mind," said the Aesir, giving her an irreverent bow. "A wise decision, indeed."
Oleandra shot him one last look of frustration before taking off into the air and flying through the doorway leading back into the castle. And just like that, she was gone.
"Well, now, wasn't that something?" commented the Aesir. He bent down, his fingers closing around something unseen. "What a frightful girl, wouldn't you agree, my friend?"
With a flourish, the Aesir pulled Harry's Invisibility Cloak off his trussed-up body. He admired the way the silvery fabric flowed and cascaded through his fingers before sweeping it around himself, vanishing from sight. Harry growled through his gag, his eyes burning with fury.
"Thanks for this rather marvellous artefact," the Aesir's disembodied voice echoed through the air. "You'll forgive me for borrowing your Invisibility Cloak— I daresay I'd have trouble escaping the mess I've found myself in without it. Now, let this be a lesson to you about thinking twice before attacking your betters… Mr Chosen One."
Malfoy's footsteps echoed across the stone floor. As soon as the door to the castle swung shut, the Conjured ropes restraining Harry dissolved into nothingness, as did his gag.
"Murderer! You give that back!" screamed Harry, scrambling to his feet and sprinting for the door. "Come back here, Malfoy! YOU COWARD!"
Harry threw open the door and sprinted down the spiral staircase, arms outstretched, hoping to catch Malfoy's invisible form by doing so. But the effort was pointless. Malfoy— or, at least, his body— had never left the Astronomy classroom on the roof.
"Why do they always fall for that trick?" the Aesir chortled, reappearing in front of the door. "Idiots, the lot of them."
He pondered his next course of action, rubbing the golden stubble growing out of his chin. Odin, Freyja and Baldr were permanently dead, marking the beginning of the twilight of the gods. There hadn't been a suitable vessel for Thor this time around, so he was still alive, unfortunately… as much as a disembodied soul could be.
"This body follows this era's Dark Lord, eh?" the Aesir muttered, glancing at the Dark Mark hovering above his head. "That fellow sounds dreadfully dull. This dreary country could certainly do with a trickster such as myself to liven things up…"
"Gungnir!"
After a moment, a golden spear shot from the Headmaster's Tower and flew into the waiting hand of the golden-haired boy. Gathering the Invisibility Cloak under his arm, he leapt from the Astronomy Tower into the void below, using the spear in his other hand to slow his fall and glide through the darkness of the night to safety.
…
"Wait, it's me!" Oleandra shouted, skidding round a corner after flying down the stairs, only to find two dozen wands pointed at her. "Don't attack me, I'm on your side!"
Oleandra could recognise a few familiar faces that she hadn't seen in quite some time; a few members of the Order of the Phoenix, a few teachers, some members of the RC (Temp) club in their pyjamas…
"Could it be?" gasped Professor McGonagall. "Miss Greengrass? You were alive?"
One by one, the wands were lowered.
"What exactly happened here, Miss Greengrass?" Professor Snape asked sharply. "Why were there Death Eaters and Dwarfs streaming out of the Room of Requirement? You must tell us everything you know. Now."