Harry Potter-A New Future

I am 15 chapters ahead on my patreón, check it out if you are interested.

https://www.patréon.com/emperordragon

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Chapter 2: A Storm of Ash and Lightning

Diagon Alley was a battlefield. What should have been a bustling street filled with witches and wizards going about their business was now in chaos. Spells flew in every direction, painting the air with flashes of deadly light. Charlus and Dorea Potter stood back-to-back in the middle of the carnage, their wands raised, their movements precise and deadly.

"Keep moving!" Charlus barked as he deflected a sickly green curse aimed at his wife. His lion Patronus roared, barreling through a cluster of Dementors as they swooped down from the darkened sky.

Dorea spun gracefully, her raven Patronus soaring overhead to scatter another group of the soul-sucking creatures. She sent a volley of stunners toward the Death Eaters advancing on them, her sharp eyes scanning for an opening.

"There's too many," she said through gritted teeth, her voice calm but strained.

"We hold!" Charlus growled, shielding her from a Blasting Curse that shattered the cobblestones at their feet.

The attack had come out of nowhere, catching them unprepared. They'd been in Diagon Alley to meet an informant about the latest Death Eater activity, but the ambush made it clear: Voldemort's forces weren't interested in just intimidation anymore. They wanted blood.

Twenty Death Eaters surrounded them, moving with practiced precision. High above, a dozen Dementors circled like vultures, their icy presence sapping the strength from everyone nearby.

Charlus raised his wand and shouted, "Fianto Duri!" A shimmering shield sprung up between them and the nearest Death Eaters, giving them a momentary reprieve.

"We can't keep this up!" Dorea shouted, sending a wave of fire at the shield's edge, forcing their attackers to fall back.

"Then we die standing!" Charlus retorted, his face set in grim determination.

But even he knew they were losing.

The shield faltered as three simultaneous curses slammed into it. Charlus staggered, his knees buckling as he threw his body in front of Dorea to shield her from a lethal curse. The spell missed her by inches, but Charlus wasn't so lucky.

A jet of dark energy struck him square in the chest, and he collapsed with a choked gasp.

"Charlus!" Dorea screamed, dropping to her knees beside him.

She raised her wand to defend them, her Patronus flaring brighter as it held back the encroaching Dementors. But it wasn't enough. The Death Eaters closed in, their cruel laughter echoing through the broken street.

Just when it seemed all hope was lost, the air around them shifted.

A crack of Apparition echoed through the chaos, and a young man appeared out of nowhere, his black cloak billowing around him. His emerald eyes burned with intensity, and his wand moved like a conductor's baton, commanding the battlefield.

The Dementors recoiled instantly as a pulse of silver light erupted from him. A massive spectral serpent, gleaming and otherworldly, coiled into existence, its open jaws scattering the dark creatures with a single strike.

The Death Eaters hesitated, confused by the newcomer's sudden arrival. They didn't hesitate for long.

"Kill him!" one of them shouted.

But the young wizard was faster. He blurred across the battlefield, Apparating from one spot to another in rapid succession. A Death Eater raised his wand to fire a curse, but the stranger transfigured the cobblestones beneath his feet into iron spikes, impaling him before he could react.

Lightning crackled from the young man's wand as he swept it in a wide arc, sending bolts of raw elemental magic crashing into the ranks of the Death Eaters. The air smelled of ozone and burnt flesh.

Dorea watched in stunned silence as their mysterious savior deflected a deadly curse with a simple twist of his wrist, redirecting it back to the caster. The Death Eater crumpled to the ground, lifeless.

The stranger's movements were fluid, almost effortless, as he dismantled the attackers with ruthless efficiency. One by one, they fell, their bodies hitting the ground with sickening thuds. Within moments, the street was silent save for the crackle of residual magic and the groans of the dying.

The young man turned and strode toward Dorea and Charlus, his expression unreadable. He knelt beside Charlus and placed a hand over the dark wound spreading across his chest.

Dorea raised her wand, her instincts screaming at her to protect her husband. "Who are you?" she demanded, her voice trembling but firm.

The young man didn't answer. Instead, he leaned closer to Charlus and began to hiss in Parseltongue. The sound was alien, unnatural, yet undeniably powerful. Charlus's breathing steadied as the dark veins creeping across his skin receded, leaving his chest unmarred.

"He's healed," the stranger said, standing and turning to face Dorea.

She stared at him, her wand lowering slightly as her gaze locked onto his face. Her breath hitched.

He looked so much like her son, James. But those eyes—those piercing, vivid green eyes—were not James's.

"Who—" she began, but before she could finish, the young man Apparated away, vanishing as suddenly as he had appeared.

Dorea knelt there, the battlefield quiet around her, the weight of unanswered questions settling like a stone in her chest.