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[---]
123 AC, The Haunted Forest, Beyond the Wall
Harry raised his hand, and the illusion dissipated. He turned towards Cregan with a smug smile on his face, "Well, we've heard what a White Walker had to say, and we thought it best to do the same with their sworn enemy, the Children of the Forest. That should be an interesting meeting, don't you think?"
The Children of the Forest were mysterious creatures that had been tightly connected to many of Cregan's House's legends. From the moment that the First Men first set foot in Westeros, the Children of the Forest had been there, and the wars that followed shaped the continent in ways that remained to this day, including the infamous shattering of the arm of Dorne and the attempt to do the same to the Neck.
Many had claimed that these were only stories, and in many ways, Cregan hadn't thought of the matter much. This was thousands of years prior, before even the Wall had been built, before even House Stark. Whether it was an act of magic or a natural disaster mattered very little to his people's well-being. After all, the Children were gone, or all but gone, but that didn't seem the case anymore.
Cregan was about to meet one of these legends in the flesh and couldn't help but feel the idea to be daunting. As they approached the Heart Tree, the oppressive cold disappeared, but it was replaced by something else. It wasn't quite warmth, and it was surely intimidating. It reminded him strangely of his grandfather, even if he could barely even recall the man's features.
As they came closer, suddenly loud caws spread out everywhere around them, echoing through the trees. A swarm of ravens burst from the canopy, as if they had spawned from the very trees surrounding them. They circled them in a tightening spiral, shrieking louder with every pass.
Cregan instinctively raised his arm to shield his face, but then Harry seemed completely unconcerned and turned sharply to the distance. Suddenly, the ravens stopped mid-flight, released an angry screech and flew back into the Haunted Forest.
The young Stark stared at the retreating birds warily, "What was that?"
"Someone who doesn't want us to enter," the sorcerer answered.
"Was it the Children of the Forest?"
"No, just a very annoying little crow, one with far too many eyes for his own good."
He had grown to know the Potters slightly more during his time with them. They seem to enjoy seeing new things, almost to a reckless degree. Then again, Cregan didn't think that much could threaten them in any meaningful way. Daphne was more thoughtful with her words, but there was often a degree of apathy in her voice whenever she spoke. Harry, on the other hand, was very enthusiastic, to almost a ridiculous degree, but loved to explain things, even very mundane ones, and he also enjoyed having an air of mystery when it came to certain topics for some reason, which made him slightly frustrating to speak with. Unfortunately, that did not detract from how terrifying the man was; if anything, it made him even more unnerving. He had seen glimpses of it from when they confronted the Corpse Queen, and a part of him didn't want that gaze directed at him.
Still, knowing that the man would not elaborate without Cregan asking him to, the young Stark opened his mouth, only to stop as he saw Harry move in front of him and grab a black spear that was flying towards his chest.
Cregan stared at the weapon, specifically recognising the material of the blade. After all, he had seen in the small cache of weapons he found at the Fist of the First Men just the previous day. Dragonglass.
His Direwolf growled at the perceived attack, ready to pounce, only for Harry to raise his hand. The wolf seemingly understood the gesture and stayed near Cregan, even if he was ready to attack at any moment.
The sorcerer raised an eyebrow, "That wasn't very nice, was it?"
Instead of a reply, a few noises echoed around them. It was unlike anything he had ever heard before. If he focused, it sounded like a mix of voices, and yet it could easily be confused by sounds that he would hear in nature rather than any actual language.
Harry smirked and opened his mouth, releasing similar sounds, which somehow brought pure silence into the forest around them. And then slowly, three small creatures exited from the Heart Tree's cave with their eyes wide.
They were small, and without focusing, Cregan would have confused them for children, but they looked much older when he took in their features. Their skin seemed brown, with a small spot. They looked almost like the bark of a tree, and their eyes were golden, similar to those of a cat, and two had brown hair, while the remaining one, the younger one, if he had to guess, had hair made up of tangles of red and gold, almost like leaves in Autumn.
Cregan knew, without a doubt, that these were the Children of the Forest.
"You speak?" one of them, the younger one with the reddish mane, asked, this time in a language that Cregan could understand.
The sorcerer nodded, "It's a remarkable language, and I must say that it's just as beautiful as the day I first heard it."
"You met another? Where?"
"Her name was," Harry opened his mouth and released another sound in that strange language, "Or Root, in this tongue. We found her in Skagos. She perished, having succumbed to the White Walker's touch, after thousands of years keeping it safe."
All three Children of the Forest released mournful croons, the sound making Cregan's heart ache in a sorrow that was not his own. The younger Child of the Forest spoke up, "There are not many of us left in this world."
Harry nodded and spoke up, "Why did you come here, North of the Wall, if you don't mind me asking? It seems silly to stay in a place where your enemy is at their strongest."
"As magic withered away and the men with their seven gods burned our forests, we were weakened. Fewer of our kind were born with every moment, as our old became wearier and chose to join the Great Forest. Better to stay in our enemy's land than to wither away and die."
Cregan couldn't help but retort at that, "You would rather remain so close to the White Walkers than to treat with us."
"We have learned to hide from the Cold Ones' sight many centuries ago. Then again, your kind and the Cold Ones have much in common in the devastation that you bring to everything around you."
She then turned towards Harry, her eyes narrowing slightly, "What are you?"
"Just an ordinary man," the sorcerer replied cheekily.
"You are no man," the creature claimed without hesitation, "You are not of this land, and you will not join our forest when you perish. Past and future twist around you, like a beast ready to be unleashed. You have seen things that would render most mad. Your song is not our own, for it is strange and foreign. You are no mere man."
"Meh, you don't have to be so dramatic," Harry answered with a snort, "I might be a little special, but still human, in the end."
She then stiffened for a few moments as more ravens gathered around the trees. "We should continue this talk inside."
Harry nodded, and they followed the Children of the Forest to the cave beneath the Heart Tree. The cave was narrow at first, just wide enough for Cregan and his direwolf, but it expanded as they went deeper. The walls were rough stone, shaped by age rather than tools. Faint marks showed that others had passed through before, many times, though they seemed younger, so it was likely other Children of the Forest.
The young Stark couldn't help but comment, "How many of you are here?"
"More than you think and yet, less than what we would have liked," came the almost neutral reply.
"What is your name?"
"Men know me as Leaf. You may call me that if you wish," the Child of the Forest answered with disinterest in his voice.
Daphne then spoke up for the first time since they found the Heart Tree, "You are deeply connected to the Heart Trees, are you?"
Leaf then perked up in pride, "It is said that on the day that the first Weirwood grew, so did our kind to protect it. Its strength was our strength. Its purpose was our purpose. And over thousands of years, our ancestors have grown our forest across the land, and yet now, it is but a shadow of what it once was."
"That is quite correct," an elderly voice spoke up in front of them, "And it does explain why births have been rare since the Andals came to these shores."
Cregan jumped at the voice, but the Potters seemed to have known of its source. He could feel the amusement that the source of the voice felt at his reaction. He focused ahead and saw the aged figure of a man. He looked quite old, with long white hair and grey eyes, whose depth felt far older than they possibly could have.
Harry raised an eyebrow at the man, "That's rather rude of you."
The unnamed figure spoke up with humour in his voice, "Perhaps, but I would have come myself if I could. I greet you, O' Stranger. I am the humble protector of this grove and its residents. I can't help but wonder why you've come to this place, Harry Potter."
"Curiosity, I suppose. The White Walkers have been moving quite enthusiastically recently. I thought that I would check it out."
"And what have you discovered?" The old man asked.
"Something strange. We happened to come up with some information that I thought could be confirmed here."
"Before the Long Night, before the Age of Heroes, before the First Men came to Westeros, this continent was only populated by the Earthsingers and the giants, am I correct?"
"You are," the old man agreed easily.
Harry then continued with their question, "My question is if that was always the case. Did the Children of the Forest come into being in an empty realm, or were there other sentient beings?"
The man froze completely at the question, "I admit to having never delved this far back. I never found the utility, and the Long Night remains dangerous, even to one such as myself, let alone what came before."
Daphne shook her head, "That would be troubling, if it weren't for the fact that we happen to have witnesses to this time, don't we?"
The witch turned to Leaf, who seemed oddly uncomfortable at the attention she was getting, "I know not. I am the youngest of my kin, but we share our songs and stories. I do not know of any that describe what you have claimed."
"Couldn't you ask them?" Cregan questioned.
The Child of the Forest and the old man looked quite uncomfortable with his question. Cregan looked around and noticed that the two other Children of the Forest were also gone, though they had not spoken much.
After a few seconds of silence, with them walking even deeper in the cave, the man spoke up, "We cannot."
The Potters both raised an unimpressed eyebrow in unison, which was almost impressive, and the old man raised his hands in surrender, "I presume you have met our guest outside the cave."
"He wasn't exactly subtle," Harry simply answered, "He made quite a nuisance of himself, which is quite impressive given the fact that he hasn't even been born yet."
The old man chuckled at that reply, "You would know best, wouldn't you? O' Lord of Space and Time. Then again, as you likely realised, we live in a broken world. Very few have ever realised this, and often, it led to nothing more than misery."
Cregan did not know what the man meant by claiming that the world was broken, but Harry obviously did: "Yeah, I noticed that the fundamental forces of the Materium do not hold the power that they should have."
"Quite aptly said," the old man replied, "And your presence unbalances the world even further. I can feel Fate weeping with every breath you take, as Time and Space become nought but illusion with every breath you take. The Gods fear you just as they despise you, for you are a veritable threat to everything that they represent."
The young Stark did not wish to believe what the old man claimed. He wished to defend the Potters, but found himself speechless as Harry nodded in agreement, "Oh, are you going to try to kill me?"
The sheer amusement in the sorcerer's voice made both Leaf and the old man shiver, "If I thought that I might have had a chance, I would have done so without hesitation. Alas, the Old Gods have existed for thousands of years. They can wait for a few more years."
Harry chuckled, "Well, that's new. People always try to kill me when they think that I'm a threat. This is the first time someone has just waited until I left. Quite boring, in my humble opinion."
"Perhaps," the man replied dryly, "But it is nonetheless effective. The Gods have observed you since the day you made yourself known and found this to be the wisest course of action. Nevertheless, I brought in the threat that you pose because your presence alone also creates opportunities, ones that can be used unwisely."
The sorcerer stared at the old man with a focused expression before groaning, "What did he do?"
The man looked slightly sheepish at that, "He bound himself to the Weirwoods in this time."
Harry's eyes widened, "Of course, the idiot created a paradox. But how is he sustaining it? That kind of thing needs power, even given the state of the world."
"He is young and is also afraid. He craves control over the coming of the Night, over his own fate, and your presence has agitated him. We do not know how he uses his power, but my sight is clouded. I… I cannot overpower him. His blood is strong, far stronger than it should be."
"Quite the successor that you chose," Daphne commented in a dry tone.
"With magic waning since the Doom of Valyria, not many had the capability to become Greenseers powerful enough to take up my burden as the Last Greenseer, let alone the strength of will necessary, at least not before I am lost in the Heart Tree's embrace. There was one who was promising once, one with the blood of the Kings of Winter. He rejected his role, abandoned his duty, for his love of his family, having glimpsed their future. He spent his last years attempting to change what he had seen, to no avail. The Forsaken One, I named him, though most knew him as Brandon Snow."
Brandon Snow?
The name was familiar, and it took a few moments for Cregan to remember it. It belonged to Torrhen Stark's bastard brother, the man who offered his Lord a chance of killing the Dragons during the Conquest, though Torrhen refused.
Brandon's nature as a Greenseer would have explained his confidence in the possible assassination, but the fact that this man obviously disliked that decision irked Cregan, "What did he see?"
The old man looked Cregan in the eyes, "Love is the death of duty, even one as critical as the one tasked to him."
Daphne spoke up before the young Stark could ask the man to elaborate, "Still, I can understand that you can't delve into the past, but I don't see how that means that the Children of the Forest can't answer our questions."
Leaf visibly bristled at that and answered, "In times of sorrow, my kin dream of moments past through the Old Gods' grace. On this day, only three of us are awake, and we are too young to answer these questions."
Cregan motioned to explain his confusion, only to freeze completely as he noticed that they had entered an extremely large room, and instead of stone, it seemed entirely surrounded by white roots, which were so tightly intertwined that he could not see the stone or earth they burrowed through.
When he focused more on the roots and his breath caught as he saw features in them. He turned around and, to his complete shock, he saw dozens of faces in the trees, "These are your kin?"
"Yes," Leaf confirmed, "We have trusted our Greenseers to protect us, alongside a few of us that remain awake as guards. And in exchange, we teach them our magic. We need the tree to awaken them, and we cannot do so without the risk that the raven would be prowling."
Cregan then turned and saw a larger body than the rest, this one looking almost rotten, like a skeleton. The body was completely covered by the roots, which seemed to impale him from the inside, even through the eye and also through the mouth. The young man closed his mouth to suppress a gag, and the old man commented behind him, "I'm getting on with my years, aren't I?"
"That's you?" the young man exclaimed in response.
He was answered with a nod, "That, I am. My current form is but an illusion, for I have lost the ability to speak many years ago."
Harry released a deep breath, "Fine, I take back what I said about it being rude. However, let's go back to the issue at hand."
"I cannot give you the answers you seek with Brynden Rivers remaining free and in this time."
"And what do you know that could help? What are his plans? What's the power source that's maintaining the paradox that he created?"
"The old man shrugged, "I do not know. As I said, my sight is clouded, and we found it too risky for the Earthsingers to leave this place with the Others' movement towards the Wall."
Harry seemed irritated at that, but took a deep breath and answered, "Fine. I suppose I feel guilty for not just killing the prick back in Skagos."
He turned towards his wife, who rolled her eyes, "Prepare the scanning spell while I connect to the Weirwood network. Do you think you can whip up a spell for that?"
The man snorted in amusement, "Of course I am. A temporal anomaly, that's probably maintained by a small nuke's worth of energy, won't exactly be subtle."
Cregan found himself completely out of place as the Potters worked with one another. It was a sentiment that he found quite common during the journey here. Yet, for the first time, he was not alone in sharing that sentiment. Leaf and the old man, who still hadn't revealed his name, watched as the Potters spoke with one another, Daphne's hands releasing a faint glow as they touched the Weirwood roots.
Harry, on the other hand, seemed to create a layered ball with hundreds of strange symbols spinning around them. Finally, the married couple looked at one another before the sorcerer's ball of magic flew into the tree, being absorbed by it immediately.
Daphne closed her eyes and, after a few seconds, nodded, "I got it! It's a fair bit East from here, near the sea."
"Can you show it to us?" her husband asked.
The golden-haired woman nodded and raised her hand, and the world around them shifted. Instead of the Weirwood roots, there was a bay of frozen water, with mountains in the distance. He had never seen this place before, but the Last Greenseer recognised it, "Hardhome..."
Harry chuckled in amusement, "Well, at least it's at a place that we've been meaning to visit anyway. I always wanted to serve that particular mystery."
Leaf then suddenly spoke up, "I will come with you."
The Last Greenseer looked like he wished to argue, but the Child of the Forest glared at him, and he stopped, "You have kept much from me, Greenseer, even now when we pay the price of your failure. We will speak when I return."
The old man nodded and answered in a neutral tone, "As you will."
Cregan felt slightly intimidated as Leaf walked out of the cave, while expectantly waiting for them to follow. The Potters chuckled but walked behind her, with Cregan eventually doing the same.
Well, it looked like they would be going to Hardhome, didn't they?
[---]
AN: I had planned on getting on with the arc, but I got an idea that involved Bloodraven that I really liked, which I thought would also be a good opportunity to show a few ideas I had about Hardhome. As usual, please let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions.
[---]
If you want to support me, check out my patréon at https://www.patréon.com/athassprkr
I tend to upload drafts of early chapters on there to get people's opinions on them, so you can read up to 20 chapters ahead as a bonus.
Thank you guys for your support in these hard times.