CHAPTER 17:

ON SQUASHING BUGS

The Yule Ball went off surprisingly well. It was a beautiful night, and while it was marred a little by Fleur's date going into a catatonia, as well as Snape and Karkaroff arguing in the gardens and Hagrid trying to get Maxime to admit she was half-Giant (Harry found it rather hilarious that she tried to deny her own heritage, though given what her attitude towards Ainz Ooal Gown had been, he also found it a bit of justice), it went well. Harry couldn't shake the feeling, though, that it was very much the calm before the storm.

And come the new year, that's what happened. A shitstorm. A major shitstorm.

For all Harry's distrust towards Hagrid for being overly loyal to Dumbledore, Harry also knew that the half-Giant was a simple and decent soul, fooled by the meddling old bastard. Hagrid's greatest sin was to be an unquestioning follower of Dumbledore, and Harry still liked him. And so, to have Hagrid's heritage splashed all over the front page of The Daily Prophet by Rita Skeeter and the poor sod forced into hiding in his own hut, well, it was all he could do not to use Grasp Heart on that smug bastard Malfoy.

It was the night of the day of that lesson, and Harry and Hermione had gathered within the Chamber of Secrets to hold court with the other key members of Ainz Ooal Gown. After explaining the situation, Harry announced, "I have decided to put paid to Rita Skeeter. How she ended up learning of Hagrid's heritage, I don't know. I did not see her around at the time when we saw Hagrid and Maxime discussing their heritage at the Yule Ball. This suggests that she had some means of eavesdropping inconspicuously, despite the fact that we've heard that Dumbledore has banned her from the grounds. We should therefore be even more cautious than before, in case she somehow overhears something about Ainz Ooal Gown."

"Stifling the freedom of the press already, boy?" Evileye said with a raised eyebrow and a wry smirk on her face, before she looked over at Demiurge. "Now, what do you think? Invisibility Cloak? Disillusionment Charm? Notice Me Not? Animagus?"

"Invisibility Cloaks, even the ones that are not one of the Deathly Hallows, are rather rare and expensive," Demiurge remarked. "A special eavesdropping rune is a possibility, but Skeeter, to my knowledge, had no real talent in the field. You see, I have been researching her for some time as a person of interest who might expose Ainz Ooal Gown. Her talents with Charms and Transfiguration were rather superlative, so we can't dismiss her being an unregistered Animagus or being good with stealth charms. Do either of you remember any animals nearby at the time?"

Harry shook his head, but Hermione frowned. "I remember a rather gaudy-looking beetle," she said. "It was on a nearby statue."

"Hmm. Still, that is not conclusive evidence," Evileye said. "I do agree that Rita Skeeter is someone of considerable danger to us. If she is that good with either stealth charms or an Animagus transformation, then we could be exposed."

"Entoma, can your talismans detect Animagi?" Albedo asked.

The insectoid maid shook her head. "They can, but the problem is range," she trilled. "They can only cover a few square metres."

"I can set up more powerful wards to detect them," Mare said, "but they still can only cover so much surface area, and if I set up too many, I risk tripping the Hogwarts wards."

"Then maybe we'll need to do a snatch and grab," Harry mused.

"That ought to be easy enough," Hermione said. "She's staying in Hogsmeade. But the disappearance of a prominent journalist would cause comment. Should we do another false flag operation, pin it on the Death Eaters?"

"Possibly," Demiurge mused. "However, that could backfire, allowing Dumbledore to strengthen his position and point to these signs as the possibility of Voldemort returning. Fudge may even believe him, and the last thing we need in our adversaries is unity. Also, making her vanish shortly after an attack on Hagrid may draw undue attention to him and his associates, and I know how sentimental you are towards him, my lord."

"There is nothing wrong with sentiment, Demiurge, as long as it does not interfere with our operations," Harry said pointedly, glancing at the demon. He didn't like the insinuation that had crept into Demiurge's voice. Still, he raised a very good point. Having Rita Skeeter vanish so soon after such a public attack on Hagrid would backfire. "Speaking of bugs that need to be squashed, Mare, how goes the ritual?"

"It's nearly ready, my lord," Mare said. "The ritual will be ready within a few days. Preparations were faster than I believed."

"Good. Once Voldemort is dealt with, we will deal with Dumbledore, as well as the remaining Death Eaters, at our leisure. Remember, our goal is not overt conquest of Magical Britain, but we eliminate the worst of the enemies of Ainz Ooal Gown, and then move to influence things from behind the scenes. If we do have to move to overt conquest, then it will be of their hearts and minds, not trampling over their bodies." He then frowned. "I have another possible idea for Skeeter, actually. It won't necessitate her death, but it might be somewhat crueller. Still, given the people she harmed over the years, turnabout is fair play…"


A short time later, with most of the others having departed back to the Tomb of Nazarick, Harry lingered when Albedo wanted to talk to him. She and Hermione exchanged knowing looks, before the latter departed back for the Gryffindor dorms. "Albedo?" Harry asked. "What's the matter?"

"…I just wanted to talk to you, Harry. Despite our time together in the time chamber, Hermione knows you far better than I do," the Succubus admitted, looking a little down at that.

Harry sat down at the foot of the throne, and indicated that Albedo do the same. She did so, careful to tuck her wings away a little to avoid sitting on them. "What troubles you, then?"

"A lot of things." Albedo's golden eyes looked up to the vaulted ceiling of the Chamber. "Our victory over Voldemort is all but assured, thanks to Mare. In truth, we are on the ascendancy. All we need to do is deal with Dumbledore, and in a way that we do not unleash a backlash against us. So why do I feel anxious while we are on the cusp of victory?"

"…I don't know. Maybe it's because we don't know what sort of problems await us in the future."

"Maybe. Humans…they are such disgusting, petty creatures, and often hypocritical. I had thought their power nothing compared to we of Ainz Ooal Gown, and yet…I know that they are a threat. But I also see, when I go about in disguise, what they can achieve. They disgust me, and yet, they delight me too. Once, the only things humans would have delighted me with would have been their agonised screams, save for those who are allies or heirs to Ainz Ooal Gown. And yet…never mind. You are correct that when we rule, it will be from the shadows, through subtlety. However, that is not all that troubles me."

"What else does, Albedo?"

"Succession. While I intend for my lord to be ruler of Ainz Ooal Gown for a very long time, I think we also need to consider heirs. Traditionally, although a ruler of Ainz Ooal Gown has to be a pure human wizard of the line, that was decreed at a time when there were so many branches of the family that finding a suitable heir would be easy. Most of Ainz Ooal Gown's lines, however, have perished over the years. Admittedly, a lot of that was due to infighting over potential heirs jockeying for the throne, even before Grindlewald's advent and purge. Some members of Ainz Ooal Gown encouraged the infighting, if only because they wanted their favoured heir on the throne."

"…But if I'm the only heir left…"

"Only suitable heir, and to tell the truth, it's unlikely the other remaining possible heirs will ever have what it takes. However, as Ainz Ooal Gown, you can rescind the necessity for a pure human heir by using various means of extending your life. It's either that, or you take on some humans as concubines to produce heirs. That has happened before. I will respect your decision either way, but…"

"You don't like the thought of sharing me?"

Albedo chuckled. "While it is the prerogative of the ruler of Ainz Ooal Gown to have a harem, I will admit the prospect of expanding it beyond what it is now doesn't appeal to me. Hermione and Shalltear, along with the Pleiades, are exceptions rather than the rule. Hermione is a very good friend, and Shalltear, for all that we fight, is also a friend. I am a rather possessive and selfish person, as you have no doubt realised by now."

"Maybe, but I think you're also a good person, Albedo. Even though you don't like humans in general, you at least acknowledge what they're capable of, good or bad. And you don't want to go out and commit genocide or even mass murder."

"I would actually kill a lot of humans, especially if they offended me…or you. I would gladly do so. But…I do acknowledge that they create many good things. I just worry about the future. I'm not sure I can live beyond your own life." She leaned into him, closing her eyes as she nuzzled into his body. "And I worry that, with everything going so well for us…that only means that something bad will happen soon. I dare not speak of such vague worries without reason in front of the others, and indeed, I find it hard to speak of them here and now, as it feels like disloyalty, a lack of confidence in your abilities."

Harry chuckled ruefully, even as he cuddled Albedo. "It's fine. You're just worried. And I understand why. So many things can go wrong, and there's little we can do about some of them. To be honest, I'm glad I have someone caring about me. Until I got my Hogwarts letter, nobody did. And even after I came here, few saw past my reputation, or else didn't care enough about me. Ainz Ooal Gown saved my life. They actually cared about me, even if it was because I needed to lead them. And since I got to know you guys, well…I don't want to disappoint you. I don't want to let you down. So the fact that you're worried only heartens me. Anyway, I'll be changing the rules of Ainz Ooal Gown. The heir will be one I choose, regardless of their heritage, and someone who is going to be best at running Ainz Ooal Gown."

"…Thank you, Harry…" she murmured.


A few nights later, they were finally ready. They were gathered in the arena in the Tomb of Nazarick, with Harry, flanked by his lovers and Aura, standing near the ritual circle, as was Mare, who was looking nervous. Harry nodded to him, giving him a reassuring smile, before using a Sonorous on himself, and then looking at the gathered denizens of Nazarick. "MY PEOPLE! HERE I STAND BEFORE YOU ONCE MORE! WHEN I STOOD BEFORE YOU ALL HERE FOR THE FIRST TIME, I SWORE THAT I WOULD BE YOUR STEWARD, YOUR PROTECTOR, YOUR SHIELD! YOU CHOSE ME TO BE YOUR RULER, AND FOR THAT, I AM ETERNALLY GRATEFUL! HOWEVER, THERE ARE STILL THREATS TO ALL OF US IN THIS WORLD! TONIGHT, WE RID OURSELVES OF ONE OF THE WORST!"

He could feel the attention on him. What a rush, what a heady rush it was. But he restrained himself from indulging himself in it. Instead, he continued. "HE WAS BORN TOM MARVOLO RIDDLE, BUT HE DISCARDED HIS BIRTHNAME FOR THE EPITHET LORD VOLDEMORT. HE MADE IT FROM A CHILDISH ANAGRAM OF HIS NAME, AND IT CAN MEAN, MORE OR LESS, 'FLIGHT OF DEATH' IN FRENCH! HE BELIEVES HE CAN MAKE DEATH FLEE BEFORE HIM IN FEAR, WHEN IN TRUTH, IT WAS THE OTHER WAY AROUND! HE FLEES FROM DEATH, BUT HE DOESN'T HESITATE IN SENDING OVERS INTO THE ABYSS! HE MURDERED MY FATHER, MY MOTHER, AND HE TRIED TO KILL ME! ONLY THROUGH MY MOTHER'S SACRIFICE DID I LIVE!"

He let silence fall for a time, before he continued. "WE HAVE LEARNED OF THE MEANS HE USES TO STAY ALIVE, AND MARE HAS DONE WELL IN FORMULATING A RITUAL TO REMOVE VOLDEMORT'S IMMORTALITY! TONIGHT, THEN, IS THE NIGHT! THE SO-CALLED LORD VOLDEMORT WILL LIVE NO LONGER! THUS I HAVE DECREED IT!"

As applause burst from the stands, Harry cancelled the Sonorous, and looked at Mare. "Okay, Mare. Do it."

The nervous Dark Elf nodded, and then began gathering energy, chanting in an ancient and eldritch tongue. The ritual circle began to glow with first a crimson light, and then a brilliant green, before settling into an uncanny purplish colour that tugged at the eyes, like it was a darkness that seemed to be not a mere absence of light, but something that absorbed light. In the middle was a stone, the receptacle for Voldemort's soul fragments. And Aura was holding another carafe of Basilisk venom, ready to do this.

Suddenly, the circle flared with eldritch light, and Mare sagged. "…It's done," he panted.

"Good," Harry said, looking at the stone. It was glowing with the same sickly purple colour as it had earlier. And partly embedded in it seemed to be a grotesque, baby-like version of Voldemort's head, bald and ophidian, parts of his skin looking like it had been flayed, the red eyes glaring at him in startled fury.

"Potter!" Voldemort rasped. "You will pay for this insolence! Release me!"

Albedo stepped forward, her habitual smile turned ever so slightly into a sadistic smirk. "And who are you, pitiful pretender, to order the Lord of Ainz Ooal Gown around as if he were but a whimpering cur?"

Voldemort's eyes widened in shock. "What?! Impossible! I…!"

"Shut up," Harry said coldly, walking over to him, Aura and his lovers following him. "You murdered my parents. You murdered so many innocent people. You claim to have pure blood, but you're just a Halfblood. That makes you a hypocrite, Tom Marvolo Riddle. There can only be one true ruler of Magical Britain, and you're in the way. I've killed Barty Crouch Junior, Bellatrix, any of your followers in Azkaban. Mare here has used this ritual to forcibly combine your soul fragments, your Horcruxes, back into one body. And you know what? If you'd ignored that prophecy uttered by that dipsomaniacal charlatan Trelawney that your little greasy-haired snake-sucker brought you, you might not be here, not in this way. The Power He Knows Not…it was friendship and camaraderie and loyalty, which I got with Ainz Ooal Gown. Know, then, that you will die, and become little more than a boogyman, something to scare little children, something they will grow out of. But I will live beyond you, and surpass you."

Voldemort seemed about to bluster at first when Harry began his diatribe, but some instinct in him seemed to tell him that he was now in danger of dying, that his end approached, especially as Harry took the carafe of Basilisk Venom and approached the stone he was embedded in. "No, Potter, wait! I can give you anything you want! I…"

"Bored now." And with that proclamation, Harry tipped the carafe over the stone. The high-pitched scream of agony from Voldemort would have been chilling and horrifying under any other circumstance, but to Harry, it was music to his ears.

Voldemort took a long time to die. His soul was too tenacious for it to be otherwise. But that made it all the more sweet, for his demise was long, a small payback of what he put Harry through, directly and indirectly. He couldn't help but emit a lengthy laugh at the sound of Voldemort's pain, laughing loud and long.

He knew he couldn't let himself succumb to hubris. Otherwise, he risked his enemies getting the drop on him. But he indulged himself, just this once, watching as Voldemort died slowly and painfully, and laughing…

CHAPTER 17 ANNOTATIONS:

Well, it's been a while. Sorry about the wait, and I'm afraid I have some bad news about this story. I am seriously considering abandoning this story (the first I have abandoned in some time, and before any of you make any remarks, any stories I haven't updated in a long time are on hiatus until I say otherwise, not abandoned), albeit in favour of a revamp using the same crossover and setting, but with a slightly different premise.

There's a few reasons why. While this isn't a particularly bad fic, I do feel it has perhaps too many contrivances shoved in. And after writing Plenipotent Player Prince, where Momonga is reincarnated as Lelouch from Code Geass, I realised that could be a simpler way to bring the Overlord characters into the Potterverse. In fact, a couple of DZ2's challenges (one of which, sadly, has since been deleted) made me realise there were better directions this story could have gone.

In addition, I think Harry is being too competent here. True, he would still be more competent than canon Harry if he was a reincarnated Momonga, but one of the draws of Overlord is Momonga's uncertainty over his new role, even as he grows into it. This is made explicit by the contrast between his two voices, the deep confident voice of his overlord self, and his nerdy, whiny inner voice. And while I like making Harry far more competent than he is, having him act more like Momonga would actually make him more interesting and endearing.

Do not misunderstand me. I haven't given up on this story yet. But I'm curious to see what you guys think. Should I do a remount, having Harry as a reincarnated Momonga, or something not dissimilar?

Now, on a different note, if you want to know how Harry laughs when he kills Voldemort, well, I've been playing too much Fate/Extella Link lately, and Archimedes gives off one hell of an evil laugh while he watches the results of his Noble Phantasm, Kataptron Katho Phlegon. So…like that. Look it up on Youtube if you want…

No numbered annotations this time.