C554 Spider-Man (Patreon)
Content
After stepping through the portal, Peter, MJ, and the others found themselves in a vast entrance hall of what appeared to be a grand but dilapidated mansion. Dust danced in the air, and cobwebs clung to the corners, showing the neglect that’s taken place over time.
Once everyone had gathered inside behind Peter and MJ, the portal snapped shut, leaving them in the eerie silence of the forgotten mansion.
And after a long night, It was finally time for James and Lily to get some answers. Sirius, Hagrid, and Albus, although not present since the beginning, were just as curious as James and Lily about these mysterious people. Especially Albus, who began ti realize that Peter and MJ possessed superhuman abilities, which seemed to transcend that of normal magic.
“Who are-” As James turned to Peter and MJ, finally able to ask one of the many burning questions he had, suddenly, Harry began to cry.
Swiftly, Lily cradled him in her arms, attempting to soothe him and figure out what might be causing his distress. The sudden interruption delayed their quest for answers.
Turning to Albus, James inquired about a place to lay Harry down for some much-needed rest. Albus sighed, realizing the exhaustion that had befallen the child after the day's tumultuous events. Reluctantly, he led them to a room, leaving Peter, MJ, Hagrid, Sirius, and the unconscious prisoners behind.
While James, Lily, and Albus dealt with the immediate needs of the baby protagonist, Peter turned to MJ with a mischievous smile. "Want to check if this place has a library?" he asked. MJ's eyes lit up with excitement at the prospect of exploring a new universe's magical literature.
With a nod, the two set off to find the library, Voldemort still floating behind them, bound by the golden chains. Hagrid, sensing the urgency of their departure, attempted to intervene. Stepping into their path, he cautioned, "Yeh shouldn't wander off without Dumbledore's permission. This ain’t your house, after all."
Peter and MJ exchanged glances before turning back to Hagrid, their mere looks enough to instill a sense of fear in the soft-hearted giant. Instantly, Hagrid scurried to the side, stepping out of their way.
Feeling a pang of guilt for intimidating Hagrid, a character she liked from books and movies, MJ offered a reassuring smile. "We'll be in the library. You can find us there once they’re done putting Harry to sleep."
Reluctantly, Hagrid nodded as they walked off, disappearing down a dark hallway. Sirius, who had been standing beside him, couldn't help but comment on the intimidating aura the two strangers carried. "Blimey, that’s one scary couple..."
————
After searching the mansion for a while, Peter and MJ, with the unconscious and bound Voldemort in tow, finally stumbled upon the library. The entrance seemed to be secured with various protective wards, but Peter effortlessly bypassed all of it, allowing them to slip inside without a problem.
In the heart of the library, they found a vast, dusty room. Countless bookshelves lined the space, each filled to the brim with both new and ancient books, each one a treasure trove of magical knowledge.
MJ's eyes widened with delight as she beheld the impressive collection, and her joy brought a smile to Peter's face. While he was already a Master of the mystic arts, making this library rather normal and unimpressive, seeing the happiness it brought his wife was what truly brought him joy.
Though that didn’t mean the library wasn’t valuable to him. After all, magic from another universe was still worth looking into.
Before MJ could eagerly dart off to explore the shelves, Peter turned to her with a mischievous grin. "Let's do some looting before they come looking for us," he suggested.
As he spoke, Peter waved his hand, conjuring a golden spell circle in the air. MJ observed with curiosity, realizing this was a spell he hadn't taught her yet.
Once the spell circle was complete, MJ watched in awe as every book in the library floated out of its place on the shelves, drawn into the golden spell circle one by one. The circle pulsed with energy, and after each book was absorbed, it was spat back out, returning to its original spot on the shelves.
This process continued for a few minutes until every book in the library had been scanned by the spell. The golden circle then condensed into a tiny book, falling into Peter's outstretched hand.
Intrigued, MJ couldn't help but ask, “What did you do? I’ve never seen fact spell before…” When Peter mentioned looting, she assumed they would simply be taking all the books, but the spell seemed to return them all to their original places.
Peter grinned and explained, "It's a pretty easy spell. It copies the contents of each book it scans and compiles them into one book, which we can access anytime." He tossed her the small book as he elaborated.
Catching the book, MJ examined it with curiosity. "So, everything in this library is inside this tiny book? Why is it so small?" she inquired.
Peter nonchalantly shrugged. "Magic." he replied simply.
With a satisfied smile, MJ acknowledged the brilliance of the spell. “Cool, I’ll stash it away for now and look it over later…” she says as she puts the small book in her pocket before rushing off to explore the library.
Smiling as he follows behind his enthusiastic wife, Peter couldn’t help but think. ‘This is a lot better than the zombie universe. At least in this universe, they have loot that’s actually worth taking home with us.’
————
When Albus, Hagrid, James, Sirius, and Lily finally arrived at the library, searching for Peter and MJ, they were met with a surprising sight. The mysterious couple sat at one of the tables, quietly immersed in reading some old-looking books, while the unconscious Voldemort lay on the adjacent table.
Albus, having to unlock the library himself to grant access, was astounded to find them there. The wards he meticulously set up seemed effortlessly bypassed by these strangers.
As the group approached, Peter and MJ looked up from their books and greeted them with calm expressions. Taking seats at the same table, the group finally began to voice their questions, with James and Lily taking the lead. James asked straightforwardly, "Who are you two?"
Peter grinned, introducing himself, "I'm Peter, and this is MJ."
Lily's question followed, "How did you appear in our house in that blue phone box?"
“Magic,” Peter nonchalantly replied with a shrug. After all, he probably shouldn’t mention anything about their multiverse travel. At least not until they can build some trust between one another.
The simplicity of his answer left them with more questions, but before they could press further, Albus joined in, inquiring, "Where are you from?"
"America." MJ replied with a casual tone.
This revelation didn’t surprised the group, as they could already tell by their ascents.
Albus continued probing, asking why Peter and MJ were here. MJ responded honestly, "We're on our honeymoon."
With the preliminary questions out of the way, everyone joined in, firing inquiries at the couple. Sirius asked boldly, "Who defeated Voldemort?"
Peter answered confidently, "That would be me."
Lily, intrigued, questioned, "How do you know about Voldemort having Horcruxes?"
As soon as the word "Horcruxes" left Lily's lips, Albus's eyes widened in alarm. He stood abruptly, “Are you telling the truth?! Did he actually make multiple Horcruxes?”
Peter nodded, confirming, "It's true. Voldemort has six Horcruxes. That's why we haven't killed him yet. Because he’ll just turn into a wraith and fly off."
Albus, disapproving, reprimanded Peter, “Killing should only be used as a last resort!” He asserted. “With Tom in custody already, we can turn him into the government and allow the courts to handle his punishment. I have no doubt that he’ll be spending multiple life sentences in Azkaban for all that he’s done, I assure you.”
In response to hearing Albus call Voldemort by his real name, Tom, the group, besides Peter and MJ, who already knew Voldemort’s origins, began to question Albus about that. After all, he never mentioned this before.
The atmosphere in the library shifted as the group exchanged puzzled glances. James, Sirius, Lily, and Hagrid, all wearing expressions of disbelief, directed their attention towards Albus. Especially Hagrid, who remembered Tom Riddle from his time in Hogwarts, before he was expelled.
Peter and MJ observed quietly, knowing the significance of the revelation about Voldemort's true identity. ‘You shouldn’t have kept all these secrets, you scheming old man…’ MJ shook her head.
Albus sighed, realizing the weight of the questions that now hung in the air. He gestured for them to take a seat, preparing to share a piece of Voldemort's dark history that he had kept hidden.
"Tom Riddle was once a student at Hogwarts. In fact, I was the one who delivered his acceptance letter," Albus began, his voice carrying the weight of years of memories. "An exceptionally talented young wizard, but with a thirst for power that far surpassed anyone I’ve ever met."
As he spoke, the group listened intently, absorbing the details of Voldemort's origin story. Albus delved into the dark path that Tom Riddle took, from his suspicions of the young boy as he joined Hogwarts, to his realization of just who the newest Dark Lord was when he began his mad quest for power.
They were all especially shocked to hear that the Dark Lord, the man who preaches blood purity and slaughters entire villages of muggles and muggle borns alike, was in fact a halfblood. His father was normal man and his mother a squib, a witch born without the ability to use magic.
Upon hearing the revelations about Voldemort's origins, James, Sirius, and Lily exchanged glances of shock, while Sirius' eyes narrowed in suspicion. Hagrid, who had known Tom Riddle, displayed a mixture of frustration and sadness.
Albus met their gaze solemnly. "I made a grave mistake in my youth. Tom Riddle was a brilliant student, and when he began to show signs of dark magic, I believed I could guide him away from that path. I thought I could save him and I was wrong."
Lily, her voice tinged with frustration, countered, "You shouldn’t have kept this from us! You had no right! Especially after Harry became a target!”
Sirius couldn’t help but ask. "Why didn't you tell us about this before? Knowing who he was could have been crucial in our efforts to stop him." He said, eyeing Albus suspiciously. “Do you have any idea bow huge the impact would be if it was revealed that the Dark Lord is a halfblood? His followers would start killing themselves out of shame alone.”
Albus, acknowledging the weight of his choices, sighed deeply. "I can only offer my sincerest apologies. I was wrong and I’m sorry for keeping this from you. My mistakes have consequences, and I bear the weight of them."
As the group absorbed Albus's admission, James questioned, "What do we do now?"
Looking up from his book for a moment, Peter spoke, “I don’t know about you guys, but MJ and I plan on collecting snd destroying Tom’s Horcruxes before finally killing him. If you guys want, you can tag along. If not-” he says as he turns to stare Albus straight in the eyes. “-then stay out of our way.”
A/N: 1904 words :) 4/4 done ✅