Hi everyone! This is a rewrite of my story The Lost Elfling. I know that it's probably not what you were all hoping for but I have terrible writer's block for Harry Potter: Chosen One. So while I think about what's going to happen in the summer (as I know what I'm going to write once school starts up again) I decided to rewrite my first story as I've recieved a few reviews believing that the first one was a bit rushed. Do if you could all read this and let me know whether this is a hopeless cause or not, I'd much appreciate it. Any hints for my other story would also be appreciated.

So without further ado, I give you...

The Immortal Hero

Warnings: Mentions of violence, not too graphic but it might upset some people.

Chapter 1

The room was near silent. Fire crackled, rocks moved, water flowed through crevices made by the explosion that had only moments ago rocked the Great Hall. The windows had shattered outwards in a large display of magic, leaving nothing left. Neither a shard of glass nor a grain of sand remained in the large window frames.

The usually polished-smooth stone floor was cracked and chard. There were craters in various places across the Hall and blood flowed in puddles under the mass of dead bodies scattered across the ground. Everything appeared to be moving outwards from a central point, almost like a great force had originated in the centre of the Hall and expanded outwards, destroying and killing anything it touched.

The soft footsteps of a young man, little more than a boy echoed abnormally loudly throughout the empty Hall. His bare feet, cut and bleeding on the rubble, worked their way across the floor, determined to get to a certain place. What was left of his pants did little more than cover himself and were ripped in numerous places and ended slightly below his knees. He wore no shirt, it having become mere straps of fabric long ago. Instead he wore a cloak he had taken from a dead body, to protect himself from the unrelenting cold of winter. It dragged along the floor, easily a foot too long for him to wear comfortably.

The boy's hair was long and stuck up at odd angles. Dried blood caused some of his hair to clump together, but the dark colour disguised most of the red. His face was pale, a side effect of having spent little to almost no time in the sun for a long period of time. His lips were chapped and cracked, bleeding a little. His face was sunken. He had not eaten or drunk proper food in such a long time.

But it was his eyes that were the most haunting. The normal, vibrant green had dulled noticeably. They revealed how much pain and suffering he had been forced to endure in a short space of time, how much he had lost.

The boy sunk to the ground next to a corpse. Unlike the other dead bodies, this one appeared to be almost sleeping. Her red hair fanned out around her, its colour still vibrant amidst the destruction surrounding it. Her pale skin glowed like that of an angel, forever unchanging and eye-catching. Her lips were still a luscious red and permanently tipped and the sides in the small smile she had given seconds before her death. Only faintly could it be seen that the colour was fading to match the pale lips of others who had also met their end.

The boy reached out and ran a pale hand across the girl's face. Her brown eyes stared back at him, dulled and blank with death. He closed them reverently and gently kissed her brow. His thoughts moved to the battle that had happened moments before hand and he cringed. He never wanted to remember that ever again.

Flashback

Lord Voldemort, the most feared Dark Lord of the decade, strolled casually through the blasted open doors of the Great Hall, studying the fear and defiance of the students and teachers before him. His followers entered after him, their faces covered with an eerie white mask that hid their identities from all. They spread out around the Hall, wands at the ready, herding the students into the centre of the Hall.

"I have finally triumphed," Voldemort declared with a sinister smile. His red eyes gleamed. "One by one I have taken you down, first Dumbledore, then your saviour, the Boy-Who-Lived. Now I will take Hogwarts, and then I will rule the Wizarding World."

"Not as long as there are those who will stand and fight!" cried out a reckless student. Voldemort turned his eyes on the student and smiled.

"But why fight when I can crush you?" he asked. "What makes you think that you have a chance against me when I personally crushed your precious saviour? It took a long time, but I managed it. He has learnt his place."

"You killed him!" a student screamed. A Death Eater silenced the student with a round of crucio. Voldemort held up his hand and the curse was lifted.

"Killed him?" Voldemort murmured. "No, I didn't kill him. I broke him. Your precious saviour probably no more remembers his own name, than he does you."

"Oh Merlin," several students murmured, including one Hermione Granger whose hand flew to her mouth. Voldemort's smile widened and he gestured with his hand.

"Bring him in," he ordered.

Two Death Eaters entered the Hall, a body being dragged between them. They dropped the body before their Master and stepped backwards. Slowly, the body stood, allowing everyone to see what had become of their saviour.

"Harry!" several people cried in horror. Girls burst into tears while others became speechless. Harry looked at all of them slowly, his eyes dull with no sparkle of recognition in them. That was until he spotted a pair of hazel eyes, brimming with tears, staring back at him. Recognition flickered briefly before it was pushed back down relentlessly.

He was dressed in nothing but a pair of pants that had been ripped so many times that it was amazing they were still in one piece. His chest had numerous scars across it, some partly healed but others still bleeding. His back was in worse condition to his front and it looked like he had a number of broken and bruised ribs.

"Watch now, while your precious saviour does nothing to save you," Voldemort ordered as he raised his wand. Harry focused on the brown eyes, ignoring everything around him. She smiled at him softly and mouthed three little words that broke through what shell Harry had erected around himself.

'I love you,' she told him. Harry's blank face softened and his lips moved minutely. His expression froze as a flash of green light came between them and hit her in the chest. Her eyes dulled but the smile remained on her face as she toppled to the side and lay still.

Screaming erupted from the students closest to her as more Death Eaters joined in, killing and torturing as they saw fit.

Harry turned to Voldemort, his eyes glowing fiercely for the first time in two months. Voldemort flinched at the expression before turning his wand on Harry and sending the Cruciatus Curse at him. Harry dropped, screaming his throat raw, but the second the curse was lifted he was on his feet and charging at his tormentor.

Not expecting an attack, Voldemort was unprepared for the fist that connected with his face and sent him flying to the floor.

Harry stood panting, the wind around him stirring as his magic answered his call for need. Fire sprung up from the floor, frightening students and teachers alike. Harry made a terrifying image, with wind and fire swirling around him menacingly, his green eyes narrowed furiously at astonished red ones.

Calling his magic to him, Harry summoned a sword from the air and sprang forward. The sword burned hot to touch from the fire surrounding it and the air parted before it. Voldemort didn't stand a chance as the sword plunged into his chest in an explosion of fire and air. Magic overload caused the explosion to expand, destroying and killing everything that it touched.

When the air cleared, all that could be seen was a boy dropping a sword and staring off at the destruction he had caused…

Flashback End

A low whine drew Harry from his morbid thoughts as he raised his head to determine the cause of the sound. He gasped as he saw a familiar black and white wolf hesitating in the doorway, clearly uncomfortable with the destruction and death in front of him.

Harry's eyes filled with tears but he refused to let them fall. He held his arms open as wide as he could with his injuries and allowed the wolf to dart into them. The wolf did so willingly and started to lick the boy's face eagerly.

Harry's lips quirked upwards slightly at the greeting. He vaguely remembered how shy the wolf had been when they had first met during the summer four months previously.

He had just been removed from the Dursleys and moved to the Burrow where his best friends were waiting for him. It had been a nice, warm day and the trio had decided to spend the day outside.

Ron and Hermione soon occupied themselves with each other, still in the early stages of being a couple and doing things that couples usually did…kissing each other senseless. Harry, feeling awkward with the display, had left to go on a walk near the edge of the forest that surrounded the Burrow. He was still in sight of the house when a low pitched whine caught his attention.

His curiosity aroused, Harry recklessly followed the sound into the forest and discovered a wounded black and white wolf-cub. It shrunk in on itself when it saw Harry and fearfully tried to escape. Harry sat down near the wolf, but not too close, and started to talk to the animal.

Eventually the wolf calmed down enough to let Harry approach and inspect its wounds. The human discovered that the animal was male and that the injuries were far too serious for him to attempt to heal on his own. He picked up the animal and started to walk back to the Burrow, belatedly realising that he might be missed.

Molly Weasley had healed the animal instantly and bandaged up the deeper cuts after scolding Harry quite severely. Ron and Hermione had looked a little guilty but Harry had just laughed and noted that now he had a companion who he could spend time with and wouldn't go off on a kissing spree.

The rest of the Weasley boys had laughed and Ginny invited herself to join Harry and his new wolf.

The final month of summer had Harry spending a lot of time with his new animal companion who he eventually named Shadow because of his tendency to follow in Harry's shadow. Hedwig had approved of the land animal and often accompanied her master and the wolf during their walks.

It was in the last week of summer that Harry and Ginny decided to start dating.

For the most glorious month and a half Harry was happy. He had a girlfriend who liked him and not the Boy-Who-Lived, a devoted friend in Hedwig who was always there to listen, and a protector in Shadow, who refused to leave his side, even at school.

Yet only a month into his Seventh Year of schooling, during a Hogsmeade trip, Lord Voldemort decided to attack Hogwarts. The school had been weakened when Albus Dumbledore died in June protecting a group of students from a dozen Death Eaters. He had died a hero but there was no one strong enough to take his place and protect the school.

Harry had been shopping with his friends and playing with Shadow when the Death Eaters attacked. He managed to defend himself against half a dozen Death Eaters but he had become separated from his friends and couldn't continue. A well placed reducto curse to his arm cleared the way for the other Death Eaters to bring him down.

Moments before he had been knocked out, Harry had heard the horrified screaming of his friends and the howl of wolf in the distance. When he woke up he was in the dungeons of Voldemort's strong hold, about to be tortured by the Dark Lord himself.

Shadow whined softly, pulling Harry once again from his thoughts. The boy wrapped his arms around the animal's neck to receive comfort, and attempted to block the sight of death before him. The flapping of wings caused him to look up quickly, and for more tears to build up in his eyes as the familiar sight of his white owl descended upon him. Harry raised his arm and allowed his first familiar to land. She cooed to him and nuzzled his face tenderly.

The boy tried to speak but the words got caught in his throat. He figured that his throat had become damaged after two months of being tortured and resigned himself to being mute for the rest of his life.

Harry lay back against Shadow carefully, the cloak he was wearing irritating his wounds. He brought his knees to his chest and allowed Hedwig to move from his arm to his knee where she could watch over him the way she used to. Shadow held perfectly still, knowing that the boy leaning on him was in desperate need of comfort and security.

The trio sat in silence for a good few minutes, allowing Harry to begin to recover from his ordeal. It was only when a soft light from the doorway drew their attention did any of them move.

Harry sprung to his feet, ignoring the pain the movement caused, while Hedwig moved to his shoulder and Shadow moved in front, barring his teeth warningly.

"Do not fear little one," a soft and kind voice murmured. Harry squinted into the light and saw the outline of a woman. She came closer, her appearance becoming clearer.

"Little one, you have faced much pain," she continued. "This place is now a ruin. Families, your Ministry, reporters and friends of those who lie here will be here soon. I can offer you a new start, away from this place."

Harry cocked his head to the side, curious as to why the beautiful being before him was offering him this chance.

"I offer you a place where you will be loved," the woman continued. "This place is called Middle Earth, a world similar to this one but archaic in comparison. They have not left the Dark Ages, wizards are few and they are known as the Istari. A being known as Saruman the White has turned traitor to his kind, building the way for a darker force to rule the lands. Only one thing will prevent this from happening, and that is if the Halfling Frodo Baggins succeeds in destroying the One Ring."

Harry scrunched his nose up in distaste; he didn't want to be a part of another war.

"Do not look like that little one," the woman murmured, placing a hand on Harry's shoulder. "You need not be a part of the war if you choose not to. All you have to do is find an elvish colony and stay there; they will protect and treasure you. If you want to be a part of the war you can, you can assist the Fellowship in their quest if you wish it. But remember, you have the chance to stand aside, let someone else do all the fighting. You need never fight again if you don't want to."

Harry considered it. It was very tempting to be able to let someone else take the mantle and lead others into battle. And it was very tempting to be able to never be a part of battle if he didn't wish it. He nodded his head decisively and stepped forward, Shadow and Hedwig by his side.

"When you arrive in Middle Earth, you will be alone but not that far from the Fellowship. You will appear to be a child in their eyes, as you are. I will turn you into an elfling; you will be protected by those who recognise you. Your hood on the large cape you wear will hide your ears, a clear sign of what you are, and unless you take it off, you will simply look like a small child or a Halfling.

"If you do not wish to be a part of any battle, you must make your way to Lothlorien where there lives a society of elves. You will be seen as a treasure to them and will not let you out of their sight. You will find love and security with the elves, but it is your choice what you want to do. Do you have any questions?"

Harry lifted his hand to his throat and looked at her pleadingly.

"I can heal your throat," she answered him. "But it will still be a bit sore. That leads to another thing, you will only be able speak and understand elvish, if you want to learn something else you will have to find someone to teach you."

Harry nodded. It was a fair point and he had no intention of slacking off or cheating to get what he wanted. He thought momentarily before conjuring a naked flame in the palm of his hand.

"You won't be able to keep all of your magic," the woman answered, guessing that it was his question. "Your elemental abilities I will allow you to keep, though you may have to train them up a bit more for complete control of them."

Harry nodded and took a deep breath, as deep as he was able to with his injured ribs.

"Your other injuries though, I'm afraid that they will have to heal the natural way, I can't interfere with everything," the woman continued sadly.

Harry shrugged. He knew it was too much to hope for everything to be fixed perfectly, no matter how uncomfortable he was.

"Very well, when you wake up you, and your companions, will be in Middle Earth," the woman said, she placed her hands on either side of Harry's face. "Goodbye, Harry Potter."

Harry closed his eyes as his world exploded in a bright light. He thought that he screamed but it was over before it began. He tilted sideways, the woman holding him upright. He felt Shadow and Hedwig move around him and then he knew nothing…

Well? Give it up as a lost cause or continue editing? If the response is positive I'll have chapter 2 up in a few days and I'll try to work on HP:CO. Until another time then. :P