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[razzberry2]

Dec. 21, 2006 Edit: The title of the seventh Harry Potter book is Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Read more about it at our home page!


Disclaimer; I am not Jk Rowling, nor do I own any of her Harry Potter characters or places etc, this is a fanfic, written out of a love for her works, not to make money.


A very special thank you to my beta *After the Burial* who is doing an amazing job of making this story readable!! Thanks Darron *waves*


1. The Escape



Harry slunk warily along the footpath, his head slightly bowed. His eyes darted up and down the street, glancing every now and then left and right. His right hand hovered over the pocket in his patched and faded jeans where his wand lay hidden, but within easy grasp. His fist was unconsciously clenching and unclenching. Most people would have found the misty cool night air soothing, pleasant, but Harry was on edge.

As he rounded the corner of Privet Drive, he stopped. His head turned to survey the street before him. There was nothing out of the ordinary, but he knew someone was there, somewhere, lurking in the darkest corners, or hidden by magic. Harry could feel their presence as sure as he knew he was standing there himself. He waited for someone to show. He never knew who it would be, but he could predict their appearance down to the last second. He stood for a moment, almost overwhelmed by his impatience. It had been the same every night since he had returned to his Aunt and Uncle's home. And tonight, as before, a figure gradually emerged from the nothingness.

Harry was able to make out the features as it made its way toward him. Harry stared at the tall figure emerging before him. It was Kingsley Shacklebolt. After scanning the area as soon as he had seen Harry, Kingsley had removed his invisibility cloak and given Harry a quick nod in greeting. When they were within a few feet of each other, Harry spoke.

"What's happening? Who's here with you?" His voice was calm, but his look was determined.

"Goldstein is at the other end of the street," Kingsley answered in his deep, resonant voice. "But he'll be replaced by Tonks at midnight. I'm on until dawn." Even as he spoke, he never stopped surveying the area. "Nothing to report?"

This is how the quick exchanges between Harry and his guard had gone every night.

"No. Nothing." Harry's eyes barely met Kingsley's as he looked down at his shuffling feet. "So, when am I getting out of here?"

"Not yet I'm afraid." Kingsley was used to Harry's impatience. He had stood guard five out of the eight nights since Harry had returned to No. 4 Privet Drive. "Give it a bit of time," he said. "Things are not as … easy … as they were. It's going to take a fair bit of organizing. As it is Podmore has to leave early," Kingsley said as he brushed his hand over his bald head. "So I'm going to be here alone for about half an hour."

Harry looked up suddenly and looked back at the ground just as quickly. His eyes seemed to be searching for something. This is it! He thought. This was what he'd been waiting for. It was only a short amount of time and Harry would have to cut it close, but he knew he could do it. With one guard gone, he could slip through.

"Is there any other news?" Harry always dreaded asking this, but he had to know. If he was going to go through with his plan, he needed to know everything The Order of the Phoenix knew. There was silence as Harry waited, his glance still lingering on the ground. He was sure if Kingsley caught his eye, he would see the guilt Harry tried so hard to conceal.

Kingsley cleared his throat. "Some of the usual stuff," he said, though he seemed hesitant. "A few more missing people … they found Fudge's body late last night."

Harry looked away in disgust. Fudge had not been his favourite person in the world. When Harry returned from the graveyard, clutching Cedric Diggory's dead body during the Triwizard Tournament over two years ago, Fudge had refused to believe that Voldemort had taken form again. In the year following, he had gone to great lengths to discredit Harry in every way possible, quashing most of Dumbledore's efforts to get people to believe in Harry and to prepare for Lord Voldemort's return. But for all Fudge's faults, he did not deserve the hand that fate had dealt him.

Harry took a deep breath and turned back to Kingsley. Somehow this news had given him the push he needed. He now held such resolve that he was right in his plans, that he could look Shacklebolt directly in the eyes.

"What are Voldemort and his Death Eaters up to? They must have a plan. You must know something from following the trail of blood they leave behind." Harry said this with such loathing that Kingsley barely grimaced at the mention of the name Voldemort, but pulled back slightly from Harry, seemingly more uncomfortable with his tone.

"We don't know … exactly," Kingsley said evasively. This was the final straw for Harry. He could tell Kingsley was reluctant to say too much. The pressure of the past eight days, sitting uselessly in his room at the Dursleys waiting for news, biding his time unable to rest as he waited for his chance, suddenly burst to the surface.

"If you think," he said gravely, "that Dumbledore didn't know I was ready for this," as his eyes blazed threateningly, "then Voldemort has already won!"

Kingsley seemed exceedingly uncomfortable, but Harry didn't care. If he was going to leave Privet Drive tonight and take on the task Dumbledore had left him to do, then he needed information, and he needed it now. Harry had no intention of going after Voldemort yet. He had to find and destroy all the Horcruxes, the artifacts that contained pieces of Voldemort's shattered soul and kept him from dying. No, he needed information so he could avoid detection. If he was going to do this, he was going to have to do it alone. The last thing he needed was Voldemort to find out what he was up to. With the exception of Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, no one would know where he was, not the Order, not Mr. and Mrs. Weasley … not even Ginny.

"Look," Kingsley said, he was fidgeting with the invisibility cloak hanging fluidly in his left hand. "I don't know what good it will do you to know too much right now anyway. You-you can't leave until you turn seventeen in a few weeks. It's safer that way. You will be better protected here than anywhere else until then, now that Dumble…" he trailed off with an awkward hand gesture. "Well … you know what I mean." He gave Harry a steady look, "It's what he would have wanted."

Harry let out a heavy sigh and his body slackened slightly. He knew he could not tell Kingsley why Dumbledore would have understood. He could not tell him about the Horcruxes or about Dumbledore's dying wish, so he resigned himself to returning to No. 4, where he would sit and wait. His chance had finally come. Harry turned to leave, hunched over and defeated. He had only walked a few paces when Kingsley called after him.

"See you same time tomorrow night, then."

Harry turned slowly and looked at Kingsley. "Yeah," he said quietly, "I'll be here." A sinking feeling crept over Harry as he turned his back on Kingsley. Would he ever see him again? Would he ever see any of them again? He straightened himself to his full height and resumed his state of readiness as he moved quietly back up Privet Drive.

He knew what he had to do, the path lay before him, and he would walk that path alone, as he had done many times before.

~*~*~*~*~

Harry could see the dim glow of light seeping through the small gaps in the curtains as he reached No. 4. Someone was still awake. Harry crept up to the house and with great care. He turned the handle and pushed the door open as quietly as possible, unwilling to give his Uncle yet another opportunity to start ranting at him, a favourite past time of his.

It seems the Dursleys had decided the best way to repay Harry for inflicting Dumbledore on them last summer was to make his life with them even harder for him than before. He suspected that it had a lot to do with Dumbledore's comment about their beloved and hopelessly spoiled dope of a son Dudley, who in their eyes was a perfect angel who could do no wrong.

He stepped over the threshold then eased the door back into place and released the handle. No sooner had he turned to mount the stairs when he saw his Uncle's stocky figure standing in the doorway to the kitchen, arms crossed over his rounded stomach. His eyes glittered dangerously, as he glared at Harry, a smug satisfaction etched on his face. He had obviously known Harry had snuck out, and had been waiting there for him. Harry felt like a deer caught in the headlights of a car.

"I knew you were up to something!" his uncle said in quiet triumph. "I said to Petunia you had been sneaking around, and now," his eyes narrowed, "now I've got you!" His barely suppressed glee at springing Harry was turning his face purple. "Where have you been, boy?" he demanded. "Out terrorizing the neighbours? Prowling around the streets and causing trouble no doubt!"

Harry thought this was a bit rich.

His cousin Dudley was the biggest thug in the neighbourhood, yet somehow his Aunt and Uncle had always managed to explain away his behaviour as 'boisterous youth' or 'having a bit of roguish fun'. But Harry knew the truth; Dudley was a prat.

Uncle Vernon's eyebrow arched high on his forehead as he approached him, his arm raised and his finger jutting accusingly at Harry. "OUT WITH IT!" he yelled sharply "Where have you been going every night?"

Harry was mildly astonished that his Uncle was even interested enough in his activities to realize he had been disappearing on a regular basis. As he looked at his uncle, a trickle of playful wickedness ran through him.

"I've been reporting to my guard, actually." Harry said casually, watching for his uncle's reaction. A deep sense of satisfaction filled Harry as he saw his uncle falter immediately, his face slackening.

Uncle Vernon choked out the word, "G-Guard?"

"Yes," said Harry "that's right." He paused for a dramatic effect before continuing. His Uncle's eyes were growing wider by the second. "Guard," Harry finally confirmed. "They're posted just down the street. They've been there ever since I got back from school. You've met some of them before. At the station."

Uncle Vernon looked like he had been hit with a Silencio charm. His lips were trying to form words but no sound was coming out. Harry was enjoying himself immensely. He knew his uncle would not have forgotten his encounter with the formidable figure of Mad-eye Moody a year ago. Harry added with a measured tinge of exasperation, "They insist I keep them updated with how things are while I'm here." He sighed dramatically. "They're quite overprotective really."

His Uncle's lips suddenly fused together, Harry could tell he had not been able to find a single retort. He was looking everywhere else but at Harry, his arms dangling by his sides as he shifted his weight uncomfortably. He finally cleared his throat.

"You'd best get to bed." He mumbled without looking at Harry and then he turned and disappeared into the kitchen without a word, Harry smirking after him.

Strictly speaking, everything Harry said was perfectly true. He felt no guilt whatsoever that he had unhinged his uncle. After all, it was only the fact that the Dursley's were so unkind to him that gave them cause to worry about his 'guard' in the first place.

Harry headed to his room and sat on the end of his bed. His snowy owl Hedwig hooted softly at him from her perch atop the cupboard. He looked up at her and smiled. She was the one thing that made being at the Dursley's bearable.

~*~*~*~*~

Harry had been planning this night since he had arrived back at the Dursley's. Now that his chance had come, he felt a surge of adrenaline pulse through him. He had some last minute tasks to do before midnight came, but almost everything he would need already lay in a state of readiness.

Mad-Eye Moody had been his main obstacle, his magical eye saw right through almost everything, including invisibility cloaks. Harry felt sure Moody could see through the walls into his very room at times. On the nights Mad-Eye took guard duty, Harry was certain he would not have been able to slip by him.

Tonight however, Moody was not going to be a problem. With only Kingsley guarding him for maybe thirty minutes, he had a chance. Harry knew the guard changed at midnight and he glanced at the digital clock by his bed. 10:35 p.m. That would give him about an hour before he was to leave Privet Drive, forever.

Harry drew in a deep breath as he leapt to his feet. Taking out some parchment and ink from his desk drawer, he sat down and started to write. As the quill scrawled across the page, Hedwig twittered in anticipation, keen to be put to use again. She had gone out only once in the past eight days, and that was to deliver a short, hastily written note to Ron that contained nothing of interest as it was not safe to pass information by owl.

At least Ron would be back at The Burrow, trying to learn anything he could by stealthily listening in on his father and Bill as they discussed things that did matter.

On the train back from Hogwarts, Harry, Ron and Hermione had sat in a compartment they kept to themselves, conceiving various tactical ways of gathering information while Ron and Hermione were at The Burrow. Hermione had arranged to stay after spending only a week with her family. They occasionally looked up when interrupted by Order members who were patrolling the train or when fellow students like Neville Longbottom wandered in. But they were, for the most part, left alone. The loss of Professor Dumbledore had imparted a sombre mood upon the Hogwarts Express.

Every time the compartment door had slid open, Harry expected, no, hoped to see Ginny's face. He sat through the train journey back to London feeling like part of him was missing. It was the beginning of the end of what had been for Harry the most wonderfully comforting thing he had ever known. His heart would have liked nothing more than to have Ginny sit beside him; the smell of her hair drifting lazily in the air and the comforting warmth of her body leaned against his. But he knew she could not be with him. He had made that choice. She understood he had to leave her behind. She understood he must face this challenge without her. She understood.

Harry looked at the message he had just finished writing, it was as bland as the one he had sent Ron, but its purpose was far more important. He was rolling it up and sealing it when Hedwig fluttered down from her perch and landed on the desk in front of him. She held out her leg expectantly. Harry smiled at her affectionately and scratched her neck. "I'm not sending it just yet."

She nibbled at his finger a little too vigorously and Harry pulled it away. "Ow!" he breathed while laughing softly, rubbing the red marks that she had left. She flapped her wings huffily and retreated to her cage for a drink. "You'll just have to be patient. It won't be long." He laid the scroll on his bed and reached for a knapsack. He had discovered it while searching one of the closets in his room days before; it had been bought for Dudley to take on a camping trip the Dursleys embarked on many summers ago. It had lain discarded and forgotten ever since.

Harry bent down and lifted the loose floorboard under his bed. There lay a reasonable store of provisions that he had managed to collect. He had been sneaking around the house in the gloom of night using his invisibility cloak. His Aunt Petunia put the missing food down to Dudley's inability to stick to his diet. His cousin had frequently left traces of midnight binging strewn from one end of the kitchen to the other.

One night, because of Dudley's veracious appetite, Harry had almost been sprung.

While heading up to his room after having just raided the pantry for supplies, Harry met Dudley coming in the opposite direction. Dudley had snuck out of his own room and was descending the stairs, heading straight for Harry who was concealed under his cloak. The sheer size of Dudley meant there wasn't enough room for them to pass one another without Harry making significant contact with him. Harry was holding some packets of instant porridge, dried peas and some tinned fruit in his arms and in his scramble to back down the stairs, he dropped a tin of apricot halves. It fell with a loud clunk, and then, to his dismay, continued to roll down the stairs. Harry's feet dodged it as he backed down the steps in an effort to get out of the way of Dudley.

Thunk … thunk … thunk was the only thing his startled cousin heard on the stairway below him. Dudley could see neither Harry, nor the tin of apricot halves still hidden at his feet under the cloak.

When Harry and the tin came to a halt at the bottom of the stairs, he looked up and saw in the gloomy light from the street lamp outside, the look of sheer terror on his cousin's bloodless, white face. Dudley's lower lip wobbled uncontrollably as he turned, stumbling over himself in his rush to get back to his room, inaudible squeaks escaping him as he heaved his weight against the door once inside and slammed it shut.

He did not venture out in the small hours of the morning again, which turned out to be very convenient for Harry indeed.

Harry shoved some clothing and a bottle of water on top of the food he retrieved from the cavity and then packed several other items carefully in the outside pockets of the pack. It was now bulging as it lay on Harry's bed. He reached in the closet for his broom, and placed it beside the scroll. He took out the invisibility cloak from his trunk and placed it over the back of the chair, and then lastly he packed his trunk with everything else he owned. It took him some time to check and double check that he had packed everything; he could not afford to leave anything behind this time as he had no intention of ever returning.

Hedwig had been watching him from her cage, her head swivelling this way and that as she followed him round the room. She let out a small screech as Harry sat down at the desk to write one last note.

Aunt Petunia,

I want to thank you, for you have done more than you know.

Because of you, my mother did not die in vain.

Harry

He placed the parchment squarely in the centre of the desk, stood back and looked to Hedwig. "Okay," he said quietly while raising his arm, "come here." She fluttered down and settled onto Harry's outstretched arm. "I need you to go to the park and wait for me there, Hedwig. Do you understand?" She hooted softly and launched herself out of the window into the night.

Harry locked his trunk, disappointed that he had to leave it and its contents behind. He flung the pack on his back, grasped his broom and swung his invisibility cloak over him.


~*~*~*~


Harry entered the park, tense and alert. He hadn't needed to pass Kingsley because he was posted at the opposite end of the street, but he was half-expecting Tonks to come materializing out of thin air on top of him so he quickened his pace as soon as he left the path to No. 4. The bulk of his pack and the awkwardness of his broom made it difficult to stay completely concealed under his cloak, but his need for urgency was overtaking his need for care as he scuffled along under his cloak.

Harry eyes were constantly on the move, searching for anything out of the ordinary, though he suspected he was safe for the time being. The Order of the Phoenix would not be looking for someone leaving the Dursley's; they were primarily there to stop anything getting in.

The street lamps glowing dully in the mist cast eerie sprawling shadows across the manicured grass of the unwelcoming nighttime park. Hedwig was perched on top of the swings, her large eyes looking straight at Harry. She had extremely good eyesight at night, and had no doubt seen a part of Harry's foot or broom poking carelessly from under his invisibility cloak. He stopped in the shadow of the large, dense oak tree and removed the cloak, stuffing it into his jacket. Hedwig plopped down in front of him silently and he bent down to tie the scroll to her leg.

"Take this to Hagrid," he said breathlessly. "Don't stop for anything, okay?" She hooted lightly and took off in a silent feathery swoop. Harry mounted his Firebolt and sped off after her, into the night.

With any luck, The Order wouldn't discover his absence until the following night when he failed to make his nightly report. There was the possibility that Moody would take a shift before then and discover he was gone, but Harry had at least twelve hours under his belt in that event. It was the best he could hope for. A pang of guilt stabbed him as he tilted his head into the wind. He knew The Order would be thrown into a state of uproar when they found out. Harry could picture Lupin's reaction when the news got back to Headquarters.

Over the past few weeks, Lupin had reluctantly tried to fill Dumbledore's shoes and Harry had noticed the strain in his face when his former teacher had pulled him aside on the Hogwarts Express to give him instructions for the summer. Lupin would be racked with guilt and worry when he heard, but Harry could think of no other way to do what he knew he must.

The wind bit through his jacket as he soared over the hills below. Hedwig was an incredible flyer, and although Harry had no trouble keeping up with her on his Firebolt, he couldn't help but marvel at her skill and determination as he tailed her.

Things would have been much easier if he was seventeen and confident with his apparating, he could have apparated near his destination and been there in an instant. But using magic while he was sixteen at the Dursley's would have brought the Ministry down on him immediately, which also would have alerted The Order, and Harry needed time if this was to work.

Harry was chilled to the bone by the time he started the descent. He had been successfully led to Hogwarts by Hedwig who was heading straight for the newly restored Hagrid's hut, but Harry could not risk flying over the castle walls, unsure of the enchantments they held, so he landed near the edge of the Dark Forest and pulled his cloak back on.

The absence of the brightly lit castle torches which normally sent light streaming out of the windows, made Hogwarts appear far less welcoming than Harry remembered, and it seemed to him that the castle itself was lamenting Dumbledore's passing.

When he finally rapped on Hagrid's door, Harry heard Fang launch into a zealous round of barking, followed by the muffled sound of something breaking within. Hagrid opened the door only inches, his beetle like eyes staring suspiciously through the gap.

"Who's there?" he grunted

Harry lifted the front of his cloak so only Hagrid would see him, he had not seen anyone else around, but it was best to be cautious.

"It's me," he said in a half whisper, "Can I come in?"

"Oh, it's you." Hagrid relaxed for a moment, but as he opened the door to let Harry pass he suddenly tensed again. "Wait a minute! Wha' the 'ell are you doin' here?"

"Ssh!" said Harry impatiently as he removed his cloak, placed his broom against the inside wall and proceeded to close all the curtains in the cabin. Hagrid had locked the door and was standing with his arms on his hips, a look of annoyance plastered across his face.

"Yer not s'pose to be here!" he exclaimed, more quietly this time but his anger still evident. "Yer s'pose to be home where yer safe!"

Harry's message lay opened on the table near Hedwig who was pecking at a dish of food. He gave her head an affectionate rub then pulled off his pack and threw it in a corner, planting himself on one of the huge wooden chairs by the table.

"I need your help," Harry said, as he looked Hagrid squarely in the eyes. "There's something I've got to do. Something that I can't do alone. But it's very important, and I need your help."

"What are yeh talkin' 'bout? Yeh can' jus walz in here with plans to do something that'll more'n likely put yeh in danger again. Yeh can't jus go sneakin' off like that!" Hagrid waved his arms pointedly at Harry. He was intensely irritated and if Harry hadn't known him as well as he did, he might have feared him right now.

"I had no choice," Harry's eyes dropped to the ground. "There was no other way."

"I'm a member of The Order, I am!" said Hagrid indignantly. "Wha' are they gonna think when they discover yer gone, eh?" Harry felt awful, but he needed to make Hagrid understand, so he looked up again.

"Hagrid, please listen to me. This is really important. You know I wouldn't have come unless there was no other way." Because he didn't know what else to say Harry added, "Please Hagrid. Trust me."

Hagrid heard the plea behind Harry's voice and his look of anger had gradually turned to one of concern. He seemed to be going through some sort of internal struggle as he moved over to the sink and scooped up the broken pieces of a cup.

"Don't know what good it'll do yeh." He dumped them in a bin and looked over at Harry "I've half a mind to send a message 'n let 'em, know where yeh are right now!" He turned his full attention on Harry who sat slumped in the oversized chair. Hagrid puffed out his chest, "Not promisin' nuthin mind," he said "but if yeh got somethin to say, I'll hear yeh out."

~*~*~*~

"I need you to take me to Godric's Hollow. I want you to show me where my parents were murdered."

Harry watched Hagrid where he stood, and for a moment he wavered. The thought struck him that Hagrid would never agree to this. Hagrid's eyes closed for a fraction of a moment as he sighed heavily, then he pulled out a chair and sat down opposite Harry, he was looking intently at the tabletop as if searching for the right words.


"I knew yeh'd wan teh go there one day. Bin expectin' it for a while," Harry had imagined all sorts of reactions from Hagrid, but not this. Hagrid finally met Harry's eyes, "Ever since yeh returned from the graveyard, in fact. But it's not somethin' yeh should be thinkin 'bout doin right now." Hagrid's eyes swelled with tears and he looked away again "Not now tha' Dumbledore's gone. It's not safe Harry, it's the sorta place they'd be waitin' fer yeh teh turn up."

"I have to go Hagrid. I have to know what happened." Harry was trying to catch Hagrid's eye. "I need to see where it all started." Hagrid was listening to Harry as though he knew exactly what he was going to say before he said it. "I need to see what's left behind." Harry added quietly. Hagrid frowned as he looked back at him.

"What d'yeh mean, left behind?"

Harry was trying to read the look on Hagrid's face in an effort to decide what he should say next. "What's left of my parents house?"

"It's jus as it was the night it happened. The place was pretty much destroyed after Sirius returned and tha' Pettigrew blew up the street. There wern't much left, but nobody was allowed teh go near it after that, tell yer the truth, nobody much wanted to either."

"So, no one has been through it since Voldemort was there? No one at all?" Harry asked. Harry could not believe that no one had gone to his parents' house in over fifteen years.

"Dumbledore wen' there an' put a block on it. Magic teh stop curious folk from wanderin' in there. Guess he thought it might be dangerous still, or maybe he thought it was a fittin' memorial. I don't know, but like I says Harry, it's not the sorta place yeh wanna be rushin' off to now."

Harry sighed and looked away. "I have to go. It's something I've got to do." He was talking more to himself as he studied Hedwig, but then he looked back to Hagrid "And I'll go with or without your help, if I have to."

Hagrid was slowly shaking his head, his eyes on the table again "Yer goin' to stay here until The Order come and get yeh, I can't let yeh do it Harry, I'm sorry. I understand why yeh wanna go, but it's not safe, I'll send 'em a message 'n let 'em know yer here." Hagrid started to rise from his chair, but Harry leapt to his feet and had his wand out so fast that Hagrid stopped, one arm still resting on the table, eyeing the slightly shaking wand now aimed at him.

"I'm going Hagrid, one way or another." Harry's voice was shaking but he was determined to see this through. Hagrid drew himself to his full height as Harry gulped before adding, "You can either help me, or step aside."

Hagrid did not seem perturbed by Harry's wand. On the contrary, he was looking at Harry with what looked like pity. They stood across the table from one another for a time, neither speaking, but a change was gradually overcoming Hagrid.

"Firs'ly, I know yeh wont use that thing on me so yeh migh' as well put it away, and secondly," Hagrid reached into a cupboard and pulled out a plate of rock cakes, "Better have somethin' to eat, it's a ways teh the Hollow and we don't know how long we'll be gone."

~*~*~*~

A short time later the two of them were hurrying across the grounds, the sun was almost up and Harry, hidden under his cloak, was having a job to keep up with Hagrid's gigantic strides. When they arrived at a battered old wooden shed near the greenhouses, Hagrid pulled out a key ring that jangled loudly with what must have been over a hundred keys, all of different shapes and sizes. He fumbled through them for a moment then seemed to find the one he was looking for. As the old door swung open they entered complete darkness, Harry took out his wand and lifted the cloak.

"Lumos."

There were no windows and the atmosphere in the shed was thick and dusty—as if it hadn't been opened in years. There was an assortment of odd wooden carvings scattered across the workbench and unusual leather straps dangled here and there from the ceiling. There were several rusty old cages of different sizes and strengths stacked against the walls, and in the very back corner stood a large dark motorcycle.

Hagrid grabbed a scrap of cloth and brushed the seat. A cloud of dust and grit filled the air and Harry spluttered, waving his hand around trying to disperse it.

"The last trip this bike did was teh take you from yer parents house to your Aunt and Uncle's." Hagrid looked down at Harry. "And now sixteen years on, it's goin to take yeh back to the beginning again," Hagrid raised his eyebrows dubiously and said, "If we can get it goin o'course!"

"This is Sirius's bike?" Harry looked at it as a pang shot through him.

"Yup! Kept it here all these years. Don't have much use for it me self, don't go anywhere I might be needin' it. Still, 'ere it is!" Hagrid patted it fondly. "You know, come teh think of it, it'd be your bike now." He leaned over it and winked at Harry, "You want teh drive it?"

"No!" Harry said quickly, "I mean, I don't have a license."

'Well, yer in good company then,' Hagrid smiled. 'Nor do I!'

Minutes later the bike was rumbling loudly and Harry scooted onto its back behind Hagrid.

"Nox." Harry replaced his wand, careful to tuck his cloak around himself, keeping his feet well hidden. The biked jerked suddenly, and then rolled out into the early dawn rays, Harry grasping the pillion bar tightly.

"Yeh alrigh' Harry?" Hagrid asked over his shoulder.

"Yeah."

Hagrid weaved between the greenhouses and headed towards the gate. Once through, he turned the bike South and accelerated. Harry felt the front wheel lift and a moment later the rear left the ground as well and they were ascending rapidly as Hagrid steered them over the forest.

They sailed along at a great height for what seemed like hours to Harry. It was almost impossible to talk to Hagrid over the sound of the wind and the grumbling engine, so his thoughts strayed to other people and places.

He had told Ron and Hermione of his plans to return to Godric's Hollow so he knew they would be expecting this. Harry had sworn them to secrecy, so when they were questioned by Mr. Weasley, (as he knew they would be) they would put on a plausible act of innocence while denying any knowledge of his whereabouts.

Ginny, on the other hand had no idea, though because she was always quick on the uptake, Harry suspected she would know he was up to something by Ron and Hermione's reactions. It made him feel better knowing that she was smart enough to figure out when something was really wrong, and he was reassured by the thoughts of seeing her again when the wedding came. He knew he would not be able to touch her or seek the solace he had found in her arms, but he would look upon her again and that would be enough.

The sun was high in the sky when they started their descent, and it wasn't long before Hagrid had found a suitable place to land; a clearing near the edge of a pine forest. They walked some miles to the edge of town, Harry looking about him from under his invisibility cloak. As the houses became more frequent and shops started to spring up, Harry began to notice things about the town that were remarkably familiar.

~*~*~*~*~

This post has been edited by razzberry2: Aug 25 2007, 07:23 AM

[razzberry2]

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A special thank you to *After the Burial* my wonderful beta!!



2. Back To The Biginning



The streets began to fill with people the closer they were to the centre of town, and Hagrid was attracting a variety of looks from the passers-by, not the least being a sort of stunned gaze that followed him, people unable to stop themselves from turning their heads as they gaped after his enormous bulk. But Hagrid lumbered along the footpath, bending very low every now and then to avoid hitting his head on a shop awning, Harry alongside him under his cloak.

Some pedestrians automatically gave Hagrid a wide berth, even taking the trouble to cross the street before continuing on their way, however there were one or two very old people who merely looked slightly surprised when they noticed him, and went back to chatting to who ever they were with, or scanning the shop windows with great interest.

Godric's Hollow was the greenest and prettiest place Harry had ever seen. He had noticed on the walk in that the grassy fields had seemed particularly lush and the trees almost too tall, as if every living thing was thriving. Closer to town every nook and cranny was filled with the richest lush foliage or peppered with an array of dazzling colourful flowers. Even the people looked unusually healthy and bright.

You couldn't have asked for a cleaner looking hub, and although many of the buildings were obviously very old, they were lovingly looked after. There was no flaking paintwork or cracked bricks that you might ordinarily expect. It was almost as if the buildings were in some sort of time warp while everything else carried on around them. But it wasn't just the beauty of this town that caught Harry's eye.

The 'Welcome to Godric's Hollow' sign was the first hint of what lay in wait. It was in the form of a shield, painted richly in red and gold with the formidable Gryffindor Lion rearing up on hind legs; its mouth open and teeth bared in mid roar with its claws out stretched. 'Population – 2297' it said in gold lettering across the bottom. Over some of the oldest buildings, moulded into the keystone brick that was common in the archways was the distinctive mark of the lion once more, some had abandoned the red and gold colour scheme, but many were very much still icons of Gryffindor. Small bronze lions were mounted atop railing ends and the shield was repeated several times throughout the streets signs.

In the very centre of town was a marble statue, it would have been close to 15 feet in height and was surrounded by a garden bed of vibrant red and golden-yellow flowers. The bearded man stood proud and tall, wearing what could have been a travelling cloak and a hat with a wide brim, which tapered up to a point that sagged gently to one side. His left arm was held aloft, his hand cupped loosely as if holding something of great importance, his right hand rested on the hilt of a sword, the tip of the blade on the ground. Harry did not need to look at the plaque at the base of the statue to know that this was Godric Gryffindor.

As they neared it Hagrid spoke, "Guess yeh know who tha' is." Nodding at the impressive stone figure.

"Yeah," answered Harry, looking about him to make sure no one was close. "This was a wizard town once, wasn't it?"

"Yep! Long time ago though, bin muggles here for centuries now, but there are still wizards here n'all." Hagrid said. "It's them that looks after the town mostly. They keeps it true."

"True?"

"Don't know if yeh noticed, but things don't exactly age here like they do elsewhere." Hagrid looked at the statue of Godric and added. "He was a very powerful wizard by all accounts. He set up all sorts of enchantments on the area teh keep it from gettin' spoiled. He wanted to make sure it would remain true to Gryffindor here long after he'd gone. His family lived here fer generations, buildin' it up, keepin' the enchantments goin. Mostly older wizards here now though. They stay in memory of 'im." Hagrid put a hand up to his eyes and looked into the sun hovering in the sky. "Its goin' ter be dark in a couple of hours so we'd better get a move on."

Harry turned away from the marble man and followed Hagrid down the road, winding further and further through the quaint older style houses. As the sun dipped lower the buildings glowed and shadows crept across the road. The landscape took on an almost surreal appearance, but the beauty of it was all but wasted on Harry. He was aware of only one thing. He was almost at the place where Voldemort had destroyed his family.

When they rounded Achilles Lane, the change in their surroundings was instant. Instead of the delicate garden beds and cosy cottages they had just passed, the houses lay abandoned, distinctly grey in appearance and lacking any trace of warmth or homeliness. The occasional For Sale sign was stuck in overgrown gardens and there was neither light nor sound coming from any of the windows.

Then suddenly, there it was.

Harry looked out on the devastation before him and he knew he had arrived. Hagrid stopped in front of the ruin and cleared his throat. He looked to where he thought Harry ought to be, but said nothing.

Harry removed his cloak and stared out at the scene with a stony look on his face. There was a corner section of a room with part of the ceiling still attached, jutting out of a pile of rubble; the only trace that a house once stood there. He gazed at it for a moment, unaware of his cloak sliding from his slackening grip to the ground.

He started to move slowly towards the ruin, not thinking about the block Dumbledore had placed on it, not remembering that at any moment he would likely be repelled backwards. One foot in front of the other as if in a trance, Harry made his way to where it had all begun. He could vaguely hear Hagrid's voice behind him but he could not focus on it. Harry stepped beyond the tiny white gate and amongst the broken bricks.

He made his way to the partially standing room, scanning the wreckage as he went, unsure of what he was looking for. Every now and then something caught his eye, but when he bent to investigate it turned out to be pieces of broken glass glittering in the light or fragments of plaster and wallpaper. He stopped before the wall and looked up at the sagging ceiling, then beyond to the sky. He didn't have much time before sunset, so he closed himself to everything but the task at hand.

"Harry!" He looked over to where Hagrid was yelling to him from outside the gate. "Harry, I think yeh should come back. I can' get past the block!" Hagrid looked as if he were pressed against a pain of glass. His cheek and lips were distorted as he pushed himself into the invisible barrier, straining to get through.

As Harry watched, it struck him that Dumbledore had protected this site from everyone entering, except him. Either Dumbledore knew Harry would want to come back or he was intending to bring him here himself.

"Its okay, Hagrid." He said loudly. "Don't worry. I think Dumbledore wanted me to come back here." He looked around him. "It'll be dark soon anyway. Just wait for me. I won't be long."

Hagrid stopped struggling and sat on the low rock wall on the street, "Jus' hurry up," he said. "I don't wanna be here longer than we have ter be. What yeh looking fer anyway?"

"I don't know," answered Harry, feeling his way along the wall. "I don't know," he added quietly under his breath as he bent down to sift through the rubble.


~*~*~*~


The sun had disappeared behind the trees at the end of the street long ago and the moon shed only the dullest light. Harry's hands were scratched and bleeding. His clothes were covered in powder from the bricks and plaster, but the only things he found were useless broken pieces of metal and other building materials.

After a long while he sat himself down on a chunk of wood, looking over at Hagrid who was still sitting on the wall, although he was slumped now and looked as if he might be asleep. Harry put his elbows on his knees; defeated. Lowering his head, he raked his hands through his even messier than usual hair, breathing heavily.

Nothing. Not a single thing left.

Harry felt frustrated and disappointed. He was sure there would have been something of them here, a small trinket, a picture, clothes, something – anything. He rubbed his face trying to quash the emptiness that was growing inside him, shuddering as the unseasonably cold night air penetrated him. How could he have been so stupid, dragging Hagrid all this way for nothing? He was feeling worse by the second and emptiness seemed to consume him as he pulled his jacket around him. It was as if a cold, dead claw had wrapped itself around Harry's heart - squeezing the hope and light from it. A soft, white mist was gently emerging from his mouth.

The whole thing had been pointless.

All hope left him.

His darkness felt complete.

With a sudden realization, Harry jerked his head up. He leapt from his squatting position and pulled out his wand. With lightening speed, he scrambled towards Hagrid, desperately searching the dark skies above him as his heartbeat raced.

"Hagrid!" he yelled. "HAGRID!" Harry heard Hagrid snort as he stirred. "HAGRID!"
But before Harry could reach him he saw a mass of floating black cloaks closing in on his giant friend from all sides.

Knowing what to do, Harry reached inside and pulled a day spent with Ginny down by the lake to his thoughts. "Expecto Patronum" He yelled as the memory flooded him, his arm outstretched and his wand gripped tightly. An elegant silver stag leapt from the end of his wand and rushed at the dementors. It raced towards them with its head down, antlers forward, but as it hit the magical block that Hagrid had been unable to get through it dissolved into nothing.

Harry was struggling over the debris trying desperately to reach Hagrid who was flailing his umbrella around hopelessly.

"Expecto Patronum!" Once again the stag erupted from Harry's wand and rushed at the dementors, and again it dissipated when it hit the block. Hagrid let out an awful moan as he dropped to the ground.


~*~*~*~


Harry flung himself over the gate.

"Expecto Patronum!" The great silver stag burst forth once more and charged. This time making contact and ploughing through Dementors with ease.

"TO HAGRID!" Harry yelled, pointing urgently at the enormous motionless figure sprawled on the ground. "Get them away from him!" Harry was rushing up behind his patronus as it cleared the way and now that he was out of the magical block, he could hear the dreadful hollow sucking breaths the bony, cloaked figures emitted. Dementors seemed to keep coming, closing ranks behind Harry and the stag as they reached Hagrid.

"Keep them back!" Harry ordered over his shoulder to the leaping patronus and crouched down over Hagrid gripping the front of his coat, shaking the hulky figure as best he could. "Hagrid! Hagrid!"

Hagrid moaned and strained to open his eyes.

"Get back … behind … the block … Harry!" he breathed, barely conscious. Harry looked up and saw the stag running in a circle around them, only just managing to keep the shadowy figures at bay. Dementors were pressing in on them relentlessly and Harry knew they would not be held off forever by his patronus. There were too many of them.

Hagrid was trying to raise his head but he lacked the strength. His eyes were barely open as he looked out at the flowing black cloaks and his body trembled from the icy coldness the dementors inflicted.

"Get … back" he struggled to warn Harry, "behind … the block."

"It's alright … its okay …" Harry reassured. "They can't get to us." But he looked back out at the hooded figures swarming all around them. It was only a matter of time before his patronus would fade then they'd be sitting ducks; he would not have enough time to conjure another one before they swooped in.

He looked down at Hagrid.

"Harry … get … back …"

"I'm not leaving you Hagrid!" Harry cut in abruptly. "Stop trying to talk." His mind raced, he had no idea how he was going to do it, but he was not going to let Hagrid have his soul sucked out by a Dementor. He was going to get them both out of there.

CRACK!

All of a sudden, several loud popping noises sounded beyond the black swirling dome that enclosed them. Harry's stomach lurched as a feeling of dread flooded him. Death Eaters!

He heard loud voices but couldn't make out what they were saying. He closed his eyes as he chided himself. I should never have come. I should never have persuaded Hagrid to come. He trusted me! He opened his eyes again and stood up. With a new strength taking hold and old fears abandoning him, he set himself to defend his friend with his last breath.

It appeared the dementors were being called off so the Death Eaters could take over. The ones on the outer edge were falling away rapidly and it wouldn't be long before Harry would be face to face with Voldemort's servants, or maybe even Lord Voldemort himself.

For a moment it seemed the dementors had been caught by surprise, they jerked suddenly, like swarming fish avoiding circling sharks, turning their backs on Harry, and then a change came over them. They scattered, some darting away up into the sky while others appeared to be dropping away, as if knocked down. A gap opened up before him and Harry realized what was happening.

A large silver animal, a goat patronus, was charging down Dementors with ease, and to Harry's left and right he caught sight of more silver patronuses. One looked like a large wild cat and the other an enormous vulture, all of them clearing the way as three very old wizards in white robes, two with long silvery beards and the other almost completely hairless, rushed up to where Harry stood over Hagrid.

"Are you, alright?" The skinny bearded one panted breathlessly, bent over clutching his knees.

"I'm fine, but they attacked Hagrid before I could get to him." Harry watched the other two wizards recall their patronuses now that the last of the Dementors had gone, Harry's stag turned and approached him but faded into the darkness before reaching his outstretched hand, finally at the end of its power.

The biting cold eased to a mild calm night once more.

He turned back to Hagrid and crouched over him. "It's alright Hagrid, they're gone now." Hagrid was beginning to recover, his giant blood providing far more resilience to the dementors than ordinary people. Harry looked over his shoulder "Don't suppose you have some chocolate handy?"

"What was … all that … about?" wheezed the dumpy bearded wizard in a grainy voice as he made his way over to Harry. Slowly comprehension dawned on his face as he neared. He probably recognized Harry from his photo in the paper. Harry doubted his scar was visible in the dim light.

"You!" he breathed. "Wha' … What are you doin' here?" His eyes were wide, but even before Harry had a chance to answer the little bald wizard cut in.

"Now why would ya be needin' to ask a question like that for, Fudd?" he had a look of exasperation on his face as he threw his arm in the direction of Harry's parents' house.

"Eh?" Fudd said screwing his face up and cupping his hand behind one ear. "Whad'ya say?"

"Look where we bleedin' well are, for goodness sake!" the other wizard answered loudly. "Whad'ya think he's doin' here? On 'oliday doin' a bit a sightseein'?" he said gruffly and rolled his eyes. "Doddery old bludger." He added not too quietly.

"I 'eard that," Fudd said instantly.

"Oh, so ya heard that alright!" said the second man giving Fudd a sideways glance.

"Eh … what?" the plump man was making it obvious he was having trouble hearing again. "What was that?"

"Never mind!" the bald man said loudly in frustration.

"I do not think it is wise to stand here bickering amongst ourselves," interrupted the thin bearded wizard. His voice was old and cracked but firm. "We had best leave here as soon as possible." He gave the other two wizards a silencing look. "They may very well return and in even greater numbers. Mr. Potter, you and your friend will come with us for now," he said while motioning to the others to help get Hagrid to his feet. "You can go no further tonight, I think."

Harry helped rouse Hagrid who stumbled to his feet, listing to the side. He was grey behind his bushy beard and looked very weak so Harry did his best to help support him. It was backbreaking work as they walked back down the street, but Hagrid was slowly regaining his composure and easing Harry's burden as they went.

"Who are you?" Harry asked.

"We must make haste." The old wizard glanced at Harry. "There will be time for introductions later."

Harry could see the wizards face in the street lamp as they passed. He couldn't remember ever seeing someone who looked so old. His face was full of lines and his hair was ghostly white. The old man was glancing about him as he moved down the street and, like the others, was still brandishing a wand.

They hurried along a tree lined avenue where the dwellings were made from large grey stone bricks and were spaced well apart. They passed homes that had sweeping lawns that surrounded regal looking buildings and as they neared a large gold iron gate, they drew to a halt.

There was no house here that Harry could see. It looked more like a park of some sort, though it was definitely private judging by the enormous walls on either side of the entrance that blocked it from view. The ghostly wizard motioned to Harry and Hagrid so they leant in.

"Gryffindor's Seventh on Hollow," he whispered.

From out of nowhere an enormous stone mansion began to expand before their eyes, nudging aside giant old, knarley trees and small flowering shrubs. Harry had experienced this once before when he had been taken to Grimmauld Place, Sirius's family home. It, like this place, was a protected site, unknown by any who were not given the address by the Secret-Keeper.

Hagrid stared at the sight before him and the old man smiled faintly. "Dandelion," he said. The gates parted and as they approached the large stone manor, Harry noticed an ornate Gryffindor emblem upon the enormous oaken doors. The building itself was rather plain and unassuming, something the other houses along this road were not.

"You get the door, Waldo," said Fudd loudly as he and Harry struggled to keep Hagrid from swaying on his unsteady feet. The little bald wizard muttered something under his breath and ran the tip of his wand lightly along the crack where the double doors joined in the middle of the two massive cast iron handles shaped like lions. There were several loud clunks and the doors swung slowly inwards, creaking loudly as Harry guided Hagrid through the entrance.

"This way," said the thin bearded man, motioning his hand as he entered a small room just off the entry. Hagrid dropped onto a bench seat that lay beneath the main window and Harry perched himself on the arm of a leather chair nearby, surveying the scene.

The room had a distinctly cozy feel to it. Harry gave an involuntary shudder, his brush with the dementors sat in stark contrast to the welcoming surroundings he now found himself in. A crackling fire blazed in an old, blackened stone fireplace on the far wall, casting warm flecks of orange light around the room. The circular iron chandelier that hung from the high ceiling was laden with burning candles, illuminating the furnishings that appeared as old as the wizards who now sat in them.

"Oi, Sooty!" Waldo called suddenly, his eyes searching the air around him. A second later a small figure appeared in middle of the room, it was immediately recognizable as a house elf, but it appeared to be much younger than the house elves Harry had seen. Its skin was uncharacteristically wrinkle-free.

It had large grey eyes and a small nose that looked like an unripe strawberry, it was wearing a red and gold kilt that hung from its chest and was fidgeting where it stood.

It realized after an exasperated look from Waldo that it had materialized on top of the coffee table and it let out a hasty apology before jumping down onto the rug.

"Yes, sir?" it squeaked anxiously.

"Right," said Waldo shifting in his chair. "Bring some tea and chocolate for our guests. And don't forget the sugar pot this time." As an afterthought, he added, "Or the milk or the tea for that matter."

"No, sir. I mean yes, sir." It said sheepishly then it turned and trotted out of the room.

"It'll be a miracle if she brings cups." Fudd grumbled from the corner near the fire, rolling his eyes exaggeratingly as he put his feet up on the stool before him.

"So Emerick, what do we do now?" asked Waldo, sitting back in his chair and tapping a pipe on a small round dish he had picked up from the side table.

The thin bearded wizard who had remained standing walked over to the fireplace, bent down and began prodding the fire with a metal poker, sending sparks soaring up the chimney. He turned and looked at Hagrid and Harry.

"Sooty will make you a room each for the night. You will be safe here until morning at least. However," he looked directly at Harry from under his brow, "You-Know-Who will be aware of your presence here by now and there will almost certainly be Death Eaters in the Hollow seeking you. I advise you not to attempt to return to Achilles Lane under any circumstances."

Harry dropped his eyes to the worn rug at his feet. Disappointment washed over him again at the thought that his search had turned up nothing. Harry felt extremely guilty for bringing Hagrid with him. He was beginning to see it as a rather selfish endeavour after all.

Emerick turned and stared into the flames, the glowing flickers danced across his face. "We were fortunate tonight. You must have caught them off guard. They were not monitoring the site as closely as I would have expected. Next time," he said as he turned back to Harry, "you will not be so lucky."

"Lucky?" asked Hagrid incredulously. Harry's stomach churned as he thought of the swarm of dementors that had enclosed Hagrid and himself. He couldn't imagine how much worse it could get; yet he felt inclined to listen to Emerick. He reminded Harry a little of the wise and gentle Dumbledore whom he had always trusted.

A tinkle of silver announced Sooty's return.

She was clutching a tray that for some reason Harry found himself checking the contents of. It held a large silver pot with steam rising from it, five cups, a tub of sugar, a milk jug and a slab of chocolate. He felt some relief that she appeared to have remembered everything and was turning back to Emerick when her rather large foot caught the leg of the cloak stand. Sooty went flying and with an almighty crash, landed face down on the floor, the stand tumbling over behind her and burying her in cloaks. The contents of the tray were spewed out over the rug.

Harry automatically jumped to his feet to help her. He yanked the clothing off her, pulling her up by the arm. She was tittering nervously and Harry could hear Fudd mumbling, "Useless … couldn't dry a dish in a desert." Emerick had pulled out his wand and with a double wave the tray right sided itself and the tea set jumped back into place, the mess of tea, sugar, milk and chocolate disappeared from the carpet and the tray finally settled onto the small table.

"Not to worry, Sooty. Why don't you see if you can get two rooms ready for Mr. Potter and his friend, mm?"

She nodded brushing herself off and started to leave but then she stopped suddenly in her tracks.

Sooty looked around at Harry who was watching her with a bemused grimace on his face. It was a bit like waiting for an accident to happen. Sooty's eyes suddenly became wide with wonder.

"M-M-Mr. Potter?" she stammered. "H-Harry Potter?" She went on, "The H-Harry P-Potter?" She seemed unable to grasp the enormity of it and although Harry had gotten used to people's reactions to him, he was feeling slightly uncomfortable at Sooty's awe. It felt akin to having a female Dobby staring at him.

"Yes," smiled Emerick looking rather amused at the both of them.

"Harry Potter!" she breathed.

Harry was looking at the fire to hide his embarrassment though at least she could say his name without stammering now.

"James and Lily's son!" she gasped.
Harry's head spun round. "What?"

"Y-You're James and Lily's son!" She turned, her mouth gaping as she breathed heavily looking at Emerick but pointing to Harry. "Harry Potter ... James and Lily's son!"

Emerick chuckled faintly, "Yes, Sooty," he said as if he were speaking to a child. "This is Harry Potter, James and Lily's son." She gave another gasp as though hearing the idea from Emerick for the first time.

Harry's heartbeat raced at the mention of his mother and father. It was the very reason he had come to Godric's Hollow in the first place. He looked from Sooty to Emerick, to Waldo and Fudd trying to read their faces. Sooty looked flummoxed, Emerick was smiling faintly and Waldo and Fudd were regarding him with interest, but neither had moved. Waldo was puffing out a billowy cloud of smoke and Fudd had his finger in his ear jiggling it to and fro; apparently trying to clear out some obstruction so he could hear better.

A loud snort came from behind Harry and he realized before he had even turned that Hagrid had fallen asleep, the drain of the dementors finally catching up with him.

Harry turned back to Emerick.

"You knew my parents?" There was a tinge of desperation in his voice. He could hardly bring himself to hope that coming to Godric's Hollow had not been in vain.

"Yes, Harry," said Emerick, " we did. Myself in particular knew your mother and father rather well."

~*~*~*~

Harry undressed carelessly in the silvery moonlight and slipped under the cool, white cotton bed covers. He lay with his hands behind his head gazing up at the flickering shadows on the ceiling as an ancient willow outside the open window swayed gently in the breeze. The heavy, yellowed lace curtains flapped gently as a wisp of air wafted through the window and played over Harry's untidy hair. Somewhere in the distance, a chorus of frogs was trying to outdo their cricket counterparts, croaking and gurgling fervently.

Harry breathed deeply as his thoughts went back to the conversation downstairs. He had expected to be overcome with emotion at what Emerick and the others had told him. He thought he should feel elated or sorrowful at what they'd had to say, but instead the time spent listening about his parents had left him numb.

Harry turned his head to the small black chest that crouched on the bedside cabinet. When Emerick had handed it to him at the foot of the stairs, Harry had assumed it contained nightclothes and wash things for the morning. Instead, Emerick revealed it contained all that was salvaged of his mother and father's things after Voldemort had murdered them.

He stared at it for a moment, studying its outline in the gloomy din, wondering why he couldn't bring himself to open it. Turning back to the ceiling he closed his eyes. Nothing had gone at all like he'd imagined.

Hagrid had put up far less resistance than he had expected. Harry alone had been able to walk straight through the magical block to gain entrance to the ruin. They had both been attacked by countless dementors in the middle of the street and then rescued by three ancient wizards who, as it turned out, knew his mother and father personally. Finally, just when he'd given up hope of ever finding anything of his parents' possessions, out of the blue he had been handed the very thing he had struggled so desperately through all this for.

What confused Harry the most was how he could lie there feeling so detached from everything.

Emerick had spent some time recalling his visits with Lily and James. Waldo and Fudd chimed in with little details every now and then. The three wizards were apparently his parents' only regular visitors during their time in hiding at Godric's Hollow. They had in turn spent many an afternoon keeping Lily and her baby company when James was absent.

Emerick had remarked several times on what an extraordinarily talented witch his mother was and Fudd had said she was 'the sweetest lass' he had ever had the fortune to meet. He said Lily had an excellent sense of humour that made visiting with her one of the things he most looked forward to. Waldo had told how she doted on her baby boy who was always smiling incessantly up at her. Emerick said she was often to be found in the sunroom, sitting in a large armchair with her sleeping baby curled into her chest, staring out the window waiting for James to return.

It seemed they also highly regarded James.

Waldo described him as a very intelligent and extremely likable young wizard who had a nose for trouble but a heart the size of Hogwarts when it came to his beautiful wife and son. Fudd described how James always went to great lengths to make sure Lily and their son were well cared for when he could not be with them.

Although James never complained, Fudd commented that he could tell James hated leaving them and would not go until he had checked over everything at least three or four times. Emerick had added sombrely that James had a great courage and strength in him that few could lay claim to, but the tension of hiding from Voldemort had started to show in him near the end. Fudd said James had looked tired and strained the last time he had seen him.

Emerick suspected James carried the great burden of knowing far more than he was letting on. He thought it quite possible that some disturbing information had surfaced in the days before Voldemort attacked. Emerick had held Harry's look when he added quietly that James had done everything he could to protect Lily and his child that night, and that his skill and sheer nerve had managed to hold Voldemort off for some time. Harry had wanted to ask how he knew that, but Sooty had interrupted them by materializing inside the wood-store cabinet by accident, Emerick hurried to let her out when she started screeching in panic and pounding on the doors with her bony fists; apparently claustrophobic.

Now that he was in bed, Harry did not feel like sleeping at all.

His mind ran over every last detail he had been told about James and Lily. He did not want to forget any of it. As he lay in the night quiet, Harry heard the latch on his door click. He turned onto his elbow as a small shadow emerged though the slight gap in the open doorway.

"Sooty?" he asked.

"Yes, Mr. Potter," came a small squeaky voice. Harry frowned at the sight of her when she stepped into the moonlight.

"What's wrong?"

She was looking decidedly nervous and was wringing her long bony fingers together.

"Sooty is sorry to disturb you sir, but Sooty is thinking you would still be awake." She looked at Harry through her wide grey eyes, which looked rather watery.

"Yeah," Harry confirmed as he shuffled into an upright position, securing the sheets around him as he went. "What's up?"

"Sooty is not knowing how to tell Mr. Potter … so, Sooty is thinking to just say it." She looked extremely tense.

Harry waited a moment. When nothing was forthcoming he prompted, "Say what, Sooty?"

"Sooty is not a very good house elf Mr. Potter. Sooty is very clumsy and always gets it wrong." Her eyes were on her feet. "But Sooty is very good with the little peeps as with the old ones because they is so much alike." Harry wasn't sure he understood.

"What are little peeps?"

Her eyes grew wider still. Sooty leant into him and whispered conspiratorially, "Sooty is helping Lily sometimes with her little peep."

Harry's felt his stomach flip. "You stayed with my mother? But you're too young, aren't you?"

"Sooty is young for a house elf sir, yes, but that is still many of your years. Sooty's masters says to go to Lily and keep her company sometimes. So Sooty is doing it." After a pause she continued, "Lily is good mistress, Sir. She is good to Sooty, so Sooty is doing everything she asks. She asks me to sneak things for her; so Sooty is doing it." She lifted her hand to her mouth and gave a nervous giggle.

Harry frowned. "Sneak stuff? What sort of stuff?" He felt an ache growing in the pit of his stomach.

"Stuff for doing big magic, Mr. Potter," she answered with awe.

Harry narrowed his eyes. "But why would she need to sneak stuff to do magic? She was a qualified witch; it doesn't make sense."

"She is not wanting James to find out, sir."

"Why would she be hiding it from him?" He asked, then shot her a look. "They were happy together, weren't they?" Harry would never have dreamed of asking this of anyone else, but for some reason he did not feel uncomfortable asking Sooty.

"Oh yes, Mr. Potter!" she nodded. "They is very happy together! Sooty is seeing them many times together," she blushed and added with a whimper, "Lily is loving James more than anything! And he is loving her back so much he is crying once."

Harry swallowed hard. "Crying?"

"He is crying once when he is alone, Sir. He is scared for Lily and little peep." Her own eyes filled with tears. "He is good man, Sir. He is not knowing Sooty is there at first. Then he is telling me not to say anything to Lily, so Sooty says nothing." waving her hands despairingly.

Harry's insides felt like they were slowly dissolving. He felt guilty that he had intruded on his father's grief but couldn't help wanting to learn more. He turned his eyes to the bed sheet and searched for something to say so he did not have to think of his father crying.

"What was she hiding from him?"

"She is making big magic. She tells Sooty it will protect her little peep." Sooty wailed softly. Harry instinctively withdrew, leaning back onto the pillows. He did not know if he wanted to hear the rest. "She is very clever witch, Mr. Potter and she is telling James she can make magic from her own death if," she lowered her voice, tears trickling down her face, "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named finds her peep." An awful dread came over Harry as he listened, stony faced.

"She is pleading with him to get her what she needs and he is forbidding her to do it. He is telling her she is not to do it, no matter what. She is not to put herself in harm's way and she is not to mention it again." Sooty looked frightened and it struck Harry how desperate his father had sounded. "Then he goes to another room where Sooty is and locks the door." Harry's eyes stung as he swallowed hard. "This is when Sooty sees him crying alone. He is good man." Fresh tears swelled in her eyes.

"So you got the things she needed?" Harry said in a heavy voice. "You got the things for my mum?"

"Yes, Mr. Potter." She lifted the back of her hand to wipe her wet face. "She is doing it anyway because she loves her little peep so much."

Harry turned to look out the window as a warm tear trickled down his cheek. He had never known such sadness as overcame him hearing of his mother and father's desperation. Harry wished he felt numb again now.

~*~*~*~*~

This post has been edited by razzberry2: Aug 25 2007, 07:14 AM

[razzberry2]

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Once again, thank you to my beta Darron - or After the Burial as he's also known *waves furiously at Darron*



3. The Last Day Of Peace?



Harry lay with an arm flung over his face. Sooty had left him feeling like he might burst. It was almost dawn and Harry felt completely drained. He had spent the earlier part of the evening wishing he felt more of an emotional connection to his parents, now all he wanted was for it to stop. The feelings that had flooded him had quietly poured out as he lay in the moonlight. He had found the connection he was looking for to his mother and father, and he finally understood them.

The James Harry had seen in the pensieve had unnerved him. He had not been what Harry would have liked. That James seemed too human in his failings to Harry then, but now Harry finally understood. He accepted that his dad was very human and he had loved his family so much that he died trying to save them. Voldemort would have left his mother Lily alive, but she too had stood between him and her son.

As the predawn grey of the morning filled his room, Harry got out of bed and pulled on his clothes. He went over to the small basin and scooped some water over his face, looking at his reflection in the mirror as he picked up the small hand towel and rubbed his face with it.

He studied himself for a moment, expressionless. He looked tired and drawn. A lifetime of anguish and sorrow had flowed out overnight and now he was an empty shell. He moved over to the window and looked out at the dawn's rays as they splayed out across the lawn; it was a new beginning. Dumbledore's words came back to him.

The prophecy does not mean you have to do anything! …you, yourself, will never rest until you've tried! …. He will continue to hunt you.

Harry breathed deeply. A new acceptance had risen within him along with the day's sun. Harry no longer feared his own weakness. He knew what he had to do. He would face Voldemort when the time came and Harry would end his reign of terror, or he would die trying. He owed his mum and dad that much.

Harry picked up the chest from beside the bed and went downstairs. The sitting room where he had left Waldo and Fudd was empty, the fire long since faded. Across the entrance hall was an open door from which he could hear faint shuffling. As he entered the passageway, voices began to reach his ears — voices that sounded very familiar. When he appeared at the door he saw a figure with its back to him hunched over a large wooden table. Harry slipped the chest onto a bench top beside him.

"Harry!"

He was suddenly swamped by an anxious looking Hermione. She threw her arms around him, breathing heavily. Harry had grown used to her displays of affection. He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her warmly. It felt good to hold her; he had spent last night feeling very alone and having Hermione here made him feel less empty. He smiled down at her as she pulled away.

"When we heard what happened…" Her face was searching his, her mouth struggling breathlessly to form words. "Are you alright?" she asked, her face full of concern.

"I'm fine Hermione. Really." It appeared Hermione did not believe him because she was still holding onto his arms. "Really! I'm fine," he nodded in reassurance.

"And Hagrid? Is he okay?" she asked urgently.

"He's fine too. Don't worry," he replied as he plucked her hands off him.



"I'm glad to hear it."

Harry looked over Hermione's shoulder to see who had spoken. Lupin had turned around and was looking at him from the table. He looked grey and sickly.

"Professor," Harry said guiltily. "I-I'm sorry," he began but Lupin held his hand up and shook his head softly.

"Don't," he said gravely. "I know why you came here Harry."

Hermione took Harry by the arm and led him to the table opposite Lupin. Harry looked around with a wry smile. His ever-present guard had caught up with him again.

Sturgis Podmore and Hestia Jones were standing by the window, deep in a whispered conversation and frequently sending glances in Harry's direction. Elphias Doge was standing at the old fashioned stove giving Sooty instructions on how best to cook scrambled eggs. "Fold!" he wheezed. "See? Don't stir!"

"What are you doing here? How did you know?" Harry asked as he sat down.

"Emerick sent us a message and told us you were here," Lupin said while studying Harry. "He knew we'd be looking for you once word of the Dementors got out." His voice changed. "What he didn't know is that we had already been looking for you since mid-day yesterday." His face was very stern. Harry sighed and closed his eyes briefly as Lupin continued. "If it wasn't for Moody dropping in to deliver Tonks a message, we probably wouldn't have discovered you gone until it was time for you to check in." He was frowning and looked like he was daring Harry to retort. "But I'm sure you already know that. In fact, you were counting on it, if I'm not mistaken."

"I knew you wouldn't let me come here." Harry ground out, suppressing his rising anger. He was fed up with being treated like a child. He was tired of having everyone else around him thinking they knew what was best for him.

"Have some breakfast, Harry." Hermione butted in pushing a plate of eggs under his nose, doing her best to avoid a confrontation between them.

"Well you are right about that at least." Lupin carried on, ignoring the interruption. "I would most definitely have not allowed you to come!" His frown deepened "Look what almost happened! What you did…" Before he could finish his sentence Harry let loose.

"I would have thought out of everyone, you'd understand!" Harry said furiously. "You were one of my mum and dad's best friends! You would have done the same thing if you were me ... and don't tell me my mum and dad would have expected any different either because I'm too much like them to think they wouldn't have understood!"

Lupin had a strange expression on his face, like he was looking at Harry for the first time. "You are like them Harry, very much indeed, which is one of the reasons I'm here now." His frown had faded and his voice was tinged with sadness.

Harry sighed heavily and looked down at the table. "I know."

"Harry, we all have to look out for each other ... for you especially. But you must understand," Lupin paused as a tense Hermione put a plate down in front of him. "You are Voldemort's number one target. He will stop at nothing to get to you." He met Harry's eyes "I am not Dumbledore. I can not protect you like he could." He shook his head dejectedly. "None of us can."

Harry looked directly at Lupin. "I'm not afraid." Something in the way he said it made Lupin smile slightly.

"I've never doubted your courage, Harry."

Elphias let out a frustrated grunt as Sooty 'folded' the scrambled eggs all the way over the edge of the pan and onto the hot metal surface.

"I said fold, not shovel!"

Hermione immediately went into a flutter to rescue Sooty, reassuring her repeatedly that it was okay and that they had plenty more eggs to go around. Harry noticed Sooty was regarding Hermione with great caution, as you might an escaped patient from the psychiatric ward, but Hermione seemed not to notice being too busy shooting scowls at Elphias.

Emerick entered the room not long after and gave Harry a smile and a nod as he settled next to Lupin and chatted in between mouthfuls. Hagrid came down a little while later and was back to his usual self, although he seemed very reluctant to catch Lupin's attention. He even went so far as to sit himself at the farthest end of the table away from Harry and Lupin. Everyone had emerged by early morning and there was much chatter around the table. It seemed Waldo and Fudd rarely left the Hollow much anymore and they were using a kitchen full of wizards to catch up on the latest happenings.

Harry caught snippets of conversation here and there. He strained particularly hard to hear what Lupin and Emerick were discussing, but they were difficult to hear over Hermione's repeated attempts to quiz him. At one point he snapped at her a little impatiently when he thought he had heard Lupin say Tom Riddle's name but she had looked so offended that he gave up trying to eavesdrop and turned his attention to her.

He gently put his hand on hers. "Sorry," he said, "I didn't sleep much last night."

She smiled dully at him "No, I don't suppose you did."

~*~*~*~

When Harry saw The Burrow his heart lifted; it was like slipping on a pair of comfortable old shoes. Mrs. Weasley, all in a dither, launched herself at him before he had even got in the door. Apparently they had all been up most of the night waiting for news.

Looking around at their tired faces he started to feel very guilty. Fleur was her usual radiant self; she was the only one who seemed to suffer no consequences at all from lack of sleep.

"Arry, it eez so good to see you." She drawled as she kissed his cheeks. Harry's felt the usual burn that accompanied Fleur's kisses. "We 'ave been worried seek about you! I waz beginning to theenk you would not make it to zee wedding. You are very naughty to do zat to us," Fleur pouted, waving a finger at him as she sat back down at the kitchen table.

"Eh, mate!" Ron slapped him on the shoulder, a large grin plastered across his face. "It's good to have you back."

Harry revelled in the welcome he received; it felt good to be back in Ron's company again, although he found his eyes flitting around the room searchingly.

"Have you had breakfast Harry? Are you hungry?" asked Mrs. Weasley who was already at the stove, fry pans and plates flying everywhere.

"No, thanks," he replied, "I had something earlier."

"Gotta hand it to you," Ron said, "You really know how to get up The Order's nose!" He was wearing a wry smile as he directed Harry to the foot of the stairs. "What's that?" he asked, motioning to the small black chest Harry was carrying.

"Breakfast will be on the table in a minute, Ron," called Mrs. Weasley, "So whatever you've got to talk about, it can wait!" Hermione smiled sheepishly and the three of them turned to head back to the table. "Not you!" said Mrs. Weasley. She gave Harry an authoritative look. "You can go on up to Fred and George's room and get into bed!" Harry started to argue. He wanted to be near Ron and Hermione and he doubted he would be able to sleep anyway. "Uh-uh," she said sternly, "Up you go!"

"Well I've had breakfast too, so I'll…"

"Oh no, you won't," Mrs. Weasley cut Hermione off. "You can stay here with the rest of us. Harry needs his sleep!"

]"But none of us have slept!" said Ron indignantly. She glared at him. "That's not the point. Harry, bed! You two, sit!"

Harry left Ron and Hermione's bewildered looks behind him as he wound his way up the stairs to Fred and George's room, placing the chest on a large wooden tallboy near the door. Harry noticed his trunk was sitting at the end of the bed, so he walked over to it and stashed his father's old cloak away.

Just before Harry, along with Lupin and Hermione, apparated back to The Burrow, Hagrid had handed Harry his silvery invisibility cloak, having picked it up after Harry had dropped it. Harry had forgotten all about it until that moment and was glad Hagrid had thought to retrieve it. He knew he was going to need it again, especially if faced with a situation like at the Dursley's where he needed to slip away.

It seemed as soon as Lupin had found out that Harry was missing from Privet Drive, he had pounded on the Dursley's door with Moody in his wake to find out how long he'd been gone. This was pointless, of course, as the Dursleys didn't even know that he was missing and were in such a state over being harassed by two rather scary looking magical madmen that Lupin had not been able to get even two coherent words out of them. In the end he had given up trying. He and Moody had left, leaving three very stunned and frightened people behind.

Lupin pulled Harry aside at Emerick's and told him he was to stay at The Burrow, where he had sent his trunk before leaving Privet Drive. Lupin said they had spent a great deal of time trying to ensure it was safe for him there and would be bitterly disappointed if Harry chose to disregard that fact and scarper off again leaving no clue as to where he was.

Harry was all too aware he had no place to go anyway. At this point, he had no idea where to start looking for the remaining Horcruxes, so it hadn't been too difficult to set Lupin's mind at rest. Hagrid was to take Sirius's motorcycle back to Hogwarts while Lupin and the others escorted Harry to the Burrow. They had seemed in a great hurry to leave once they had seen Harry safely to the garden path, stopping only to give the briefest of waves to Mrs. Weasley as she flung the front door open.

Harry sat on the side of his bed unbuttoning his shirt, staring thoughtfully at the floor, wondering why they had been in such a hurry. He was getting rather impatient with the fact that The Order still felt it fitting not to tell him what was going on. He would be seventeen in a few weeks and then he would tell Lupin he wanted in on it all, or else! Surely he couldn't deny Harry once he came of age and for Harry, it couldn't happen soon enough.

Harry suddenly became aware of someone watching him. He looked up sharply and there, leaning against the doorway, arms crossed over her chest and eyes full of doubt, was Ginny.

He stopped unbuttoning abruptly.

He felt a surge in the pit of his stomach as he looked at her. It had been her that he was looking for when his eyes had strayed around the room downstairs. Seeing her now he wondered how he had ever found the strength to leave her.

"Hi," her voice sounded like nectar.

"Hi," he answered. Emotions flared uncontrollably within him. Stop it! He thought as he tried to reign them in.

"Just wanted to see if you still…I mean, I wanted to see that you were okay." She frowned slightly. Harry thought this was not the question Ginny wanted to ask.

"I'm fine," his answer was stunted, not wanting his voice to betray him. Ginny nodded slightly then without another word, turned and left. Harry pulled his glasses off and collapsed back on the bed rubbing his face with his hands, his eyes closed. "What are you doing? Get a grip!" He groaned to himself, "It's not that hard, just deal with it!"

He breathed heavily, pulled himself back up, walked to the door and closed it.


Out of the blackness came an eerie apparition; Dumbledore was holding his arm out before him in offering and Sirius was struggling behind him, his face contorted with effort, his hands gripping the mouth of a doorway, his body stretched out behind him as he was being sucked in. Harry reached out desperately but was slowed by an unseen force. He was fighting against the air as if he were embedded in sand. Then Snape stood before them, wearing the same ugly expression on his face as when he had struck down Dumbledore. He had both arms raised above his head grasping a shining object, and then suddenly, Sirius roared his name.

"Harry!"

Harry jumped up onto his elbow, his breathing ragged and his heartbeat racing, dripping in sweat. Snape's face still burned in his mind, a lingering residue of the dream he'd been having.

Harry looked over at the window of the empty room in an effort to get some idea of the time. The sun was streaming through the gaps in the curtains. He pulled himself up and swung his feet on the floor.

He sat there with his head hung low and running his hands through his unkempt hair. Then he shook his head and stood up. Grabbing his clothes, he headed for the bathroom.

~*~*~*~

Harry, Ron and Hermione had spent the following days leading up to the wedding exchanging what little information they had. Harry had told them about Sooty and her revelations about his mother. They had both eyed Harry with a mixture of shock and pity and though she tried to hide it, Harry was sure he caught a glimmer of excitement in Hermione's eyes.

Ginny interrupted just then on Mrs. Weasley's orders to call them in for dinner. Since their first encounter, Harry had not seen very much of Ginny. She was somehow never in the room with him unless the whole family was present, spending a lot of her time with Fleur and helping with last minute wedding arrangements. To Harry's surprise, Bill had asked him if he would be a groomsman, saying that the twins were going to busy doing other things and Charlie wouldn't be able to make it. Percy's name was never raised.

While Harry was at the Dursley's, Ron had spent many long hours hovering in gloomy hallways outside open doors trying to catch snippets of conversation between his father and Bill, sometimes even resorting to using a pair of Fred and George's extendable ears.

It had become apparent the Dementors were now a formidable force. Harry had been told last year they were breeding and judging by how many had turned up in Godric's Hollow, there were a frightening number at large. Their random attacks had become organized ambushes where people from all over the wizarding community were targeted.

Death Eaters had even lay siege to a number of older, well respected family homes and it was said that none were ever left behind. All were either killed or missing.

St. Mungo's hospital had called in all able healers in the community they could find as their wards swelled with casualties. Mrs. Weasley, who had some skill with minor ailments, had taken to volunteering there several times a week; though she had said she wasn't able to do much except reassure people. Ron had heard her sobbing one night to his father because she was finding it difficult to cope with the grief of relatives.

There was a report someone from the Ministry claimed to have sighted Ollivander, the wand maker previously thought missing, hovering in the shadows of the abandoned shops in Hogsmeade one evening. Although when they had done a double-take, Ollivander was gone.

The information went on and on, all of it was pretty much as Harry had expected, but what he really wanted to know was Voldemort's plan of attack and what The Order were doing to counter it.

He was feeling incredibly frustrated as he sat in the Weasleys' back yard, turning the small golden locket from the cave over and over in his hand. Hermione was leaning against Ron's shoulder stifling a yawn as he unconsciously put an arm round to support her. All three of them were exhausted, having spent the last few nights meeting in Harry's room once the house fell quiet, trying desperately to work out where to start with the Horcruxes.

As yet Hermione's attempts at trying to figure out who or what R.A.B. stood for had been unsuccessful and she complained bitterly at not having access the Hogwarts library for information. They debated long and hard as to their first course of action. In the end, Ron and Hermione agreed to return to Hogwarts without Harry if their letters came. It was as good a base as any; Hermione would finally have access to the extensive library, and both of them could also keep on studying and maybe pick up some new hexes and spells that may come in handy.

As Harry was unable to do so last time, he decided he would return to Godric's Hollow to visit his mother and father's graves. Hermione had been particularly disturbed by this, but Harry had agreed to talk to Lupin about going with him. After all, he would be seventeen and free to do as he saw fit. Lupin would have to agree if he wanted to keep Harry under guard.

"What's for dinner?" Ron suddenly piped up.

"I don't know. Your mum is too busy with Fleur at the moment. She's going off for the night soon and won't be back until the ceremony tomorrow," answered Hermione. "Your dad is taking her to the Diggorys'. They were really keen to help apparently. I think they're glad to have something to look forward to for a change.' Ron brushed Hermione's hair back as she said, "Ginny and I are going first thing in the morning when Fleur's family arrive."

"I think we should all get a good night's sleep tonight," said Harry grimly.

"I agree," sighed Hermione. "Tomorrow is going to be our last carefree day for a long time, so we might as well make the most of it."



Harry woke the next morning to a house in uproar. Fred and George came charging into the room and yanked the curtains open.

"Hiya Harry!" Fred had plunked himself on the edge of the bed and slapped Harry on the shoulder before he had had a chance to pull on his glasses. George was busy rummaging in one of the many boxes piled around the room.

"C'mon Sleeping Beauty!" he said over his shoulder. "Not everyday you get to see a full blown wizard wedding!"

"We're in charge of the decorations … knew mum'd come round in the end," Fred winked at Harry. "Don't know what she's so worried about."

"It's going to be the usual thing … with our own special touch of course." George tossed a box to the door and opened another.

"You're in for a real treat, even if we do say so ourselves," Fred grinned.

"What's a 'Wizard Wedding'?" Harry was still trying to shake off sleep.

"Wouldn't want to spoil the surprise," said Fred.

"What's goin' on?" Ron appeared at the doorway in his pajamas, his hair sticking out in all directions.

"Ahh… our dear brother!" said George with obvious fake excitement. He suddenly stopped what he was doing and looked from Ron to Harry and back to Ron. "Are you two having some sort of worst bed-hair contest or something?"

"W-Wha?" Ron asked around a yawn, scratching his head lazily and apparently oblivious to his brother's taunting.

"Well Ron is our clear winner this morning! Congratulations!" quipped Fred jokingly as he threw him a small golden wrapped sweet from his pocket. "And you did it without even trying!"

"That's our Ron! A natural at all the important things," George said as he dragged another box to the door.

Mrs. Weasley, Hermione and Ginny had left the house to prepare for the wedding.

Once Harry and Ron had rushed through breakfast they joined the twins outside, where Mr. Weasley, Dedalus Diggle, Lupin and Tonks were standing. They were surveying the area in front of them.

"We'll put it there. It's got some shade," said Mr. Weasley about where to best place the wedding ceremony. "It's going to be hot today and there's quite a few older and younger people coming."

"Oh yes!" agreed Dedalus, bouncing excitedly on the balls of his feet. "Lovely spot, right there. I'll get the others!" He darted off with amazing speed (or so Harry thought) for a wizard of his age.

"Wotcher Harry, Ron." Tonks's hair was a long curly mauve colour and she looked much happier than she had the last time Harry had seen her. Harry noticed Lupin had his hand in the small of her back.

"Good morning!" he said with a smile. Harry was surprised to see how well Lupin looked. A pang of guilt hit him as he remembered why he had looked ill last time.

"Hello, boys!" Mr. Weasley quipped. "Got a job for you two." He directed at Harry and Ron."

"Right! We'll be off then." George said gleefully as Fred floated the boxes across the lawn.

"Now … Fred ... George, I don't want anything too over the top, alright?" Mr. Weasley was eyeing them warily.

"Who? Us?" said Fred innocently.

"Father … really!" chimed in George. "The height of sophistication and understatement. That's us!"

"Absolutely!" exclaimed Fred confidently. "Don't worry about a thing. Just leave it in our capable hands."

Mr. Weasley watched them go out of the corner of his eye, doubt written all over his face. Harry and Ron exchanged grins as Mr. Weasley led them back inside.

Mr. Weasley had set them to the most monotonous task of all: tying little bundles of assorted Honeydukes sweets together. Harry and Ron naturally rewarded themselves regularly for their punishing job with exploding bonbons and Fizzing Whizzbees. They had almost finished when Mr. Weasley appeared at the foot of the stairs looking very smart in his dress robes.

"Alright?"

"Yeah, almost done," answered Harry.

"Cud ff guv'n uz u berrer yob!" said Ron, frowning through a mouthful of fudge.

"You'd better go on up and get ready as soon as you're done. People will be arriving soon. Don't want the groomsmen to be late!" He grinned, clapped his hands together and stalked out the back door.




When Harry and Ron finally emerged in their dress robes, people had already started arriving, Harry spotted Order members spread throughout the grounds. They were all dressed up, but still looked very much on duty.

As he wandered around the grounds, Harry looked about him, amazed at the transformation. White flowers had been magically placed on every plant, bush and tree to form a spectacular curtain backdrop. A golden silk carpet had been laid out to form a path through the middle of the white chairs that circled around a golden mesh dome raised off the ground on six thin golden pillars.

The dome was also dotted with white flowers and beneath it laid a small white platform where Harry presumed they would be standing.

The shaded area outside the circle was packed with large white circular tables. On the centre of each stood a magnificent statue of a golden bird, wings partly open and head held high as if about to launch into flight. The area was semi-enclosed by burning torches on golden stilts.

As Harry moved through the crowd he could feel curious eyes on him. He could hear quiet whispers as he passed, but today he did not care. Today, he would enjoy the celebrations and not worry about tomorrow.

There were many people he didn't know and some he did. To his pleasant surprise he noticed Luna waving at them. He and Ron drifted over to her.

"Hi Harry, Ron." She had a broad dreamy smile on her face. "Nice day for it, don't you think?"

"Lovely!" said Ron, "I didn't know you were coming."

"Oh, yes. We live not far from here, just over yonder." She motioned her head to the hills near where Harry had met Cedric and his father on their way to the Quidditch World Cup three years earlier. It seemed such a long time ago now. Harry's reverie was broken by Luna when she said, "I must say, I have been wondering how Bill is doing. Have there been any side effects?"

This was typical of Luna Lovegood. She had an incredible bluntness about her, often to the slight embarrassment of others. Harry smiled at her latest inquiry on Bill, who had been bitten by Fenrir Greyback, a werewolf who was not transformed at the time.

"Not yet Luna."

"My father says he would have a good sense of smell now at least."

Ron and Harry both laughed through their noses. "Maybe. I haven't noticed it though," said Ron, composing himself.

"Probably has acute hearing too, don't you know." added Luna, very matter-of-factly. Ron's hand went up to his mouth to stifle his snort.

"Could be," said Harry with a big grin on his face. "So are you going back to Hogwarts if you get a letter?"

"Oh yes, absolutely. I can't imagine what else I would do otherwise."

Neville came up behind her. "Hi, Harry!"

"Hey, Neville," Harry replied. "What about you? Are you going back to Hogwarts?"

"Yeah … Gran wants me to go … but I'd go anyway." He looked at them nervously. "You're going, aren't you, Harry?"

"I am," Ron said quickly, diverting Neville. "And Hermione. Luna says she'll be going back too. I imagine Ginny will be as well."

"Oh, good!" Neville said with some relief. "What about you Harry?"

The diversion was obviously not enough to satisfy the other boy's curiosity.

"No. I don't think so." Harry looked at his feet, Neville was bound to start asking questions and Harry couldn't explain and didn't want to lie to him.

He was saved by Kingsley Shacklebolt's deep resonant voice as held his wand to his throat.

"Welcome on behalf of the Delacours and the Weasleys! If you would please take a seat, we can begin."

Ron tapped Harry on the shoulder. "We'd better get into place."

They headed for the dome where Bill was already standing. Whether it was the light, or the fact that Bill had never looked so happy, it was impossible to tell, but his scarring seemed almost non-existent as he stood smiling nervously.

After everyone was settled and all was quiet, a small melodic song started to drift through the air. It was hauntingly beautiful and Harry found himself looking for the source of it. He couldn't see anything, but everyone else was looking towards the platform. He looked up … the song was radiating from the golden mesh dome as it glinted in the afternoon sun. It was a phoenix song.

Then Harry understood.

This whole wedding was a dedication to Dumbledore. The golden mesh dome was like that which had sung to him in the graveyard years before. The golden statues were phoenixes. Bill and Fleur must have changed the arrangements shortly after Dumbledore's death. Harry felt a dull ache in his stomach.

People started turning their heads, looking up the golden carpet expectantly. Soft 'oohs' and 'ahhs' crept through the crowd as Harry's mouth gaped slightly. The ache in his stomach contorted and his heartbeat quickened.

Fleur was coming down the carpet adorned in layers of white chiffon with gold silken overlays hanging in gentle peaks, her hair was up in an elaborate knot and the tiara Mrs. Weasley had offered her in the hospital ward at Hogwarts sparkled in the light. Everyone was staring at her entranced. Everyone, that is, except Harry.

A little way behind Hermione walked Ginny. She was also adorned in white chiffon that flowed so softly around her; it gave the appearance she was floating. Her hair was up in a knot and soft flame-coloured strands escaped and wisped around her face.

Harry had never seen Ginny like this before. Only once had he seen her dressed up and that was three years ago when they had both seemed so much younger.

A heat in him rose as his eyes followed her all the way down the carpet, and it wasn’t until Ron gave him a nudge that he came to and thought to close his mouth. He stared at Ginny’s slender neck, straying to the gentle lines that formed her lips. As she came to a halt, Harry found himself willing her to look up at him, longing for her to acknowledge him, but her eyes stared directly ahead or at her feet.

It seemed only minutes later to Harry when a shower of bright white sparks fell from around the edge of the dome to indicate the end of the ceremony. People applauded loudly and Bill and Fleur kissed before leaving the dome. Harry fell in behind them, Ginny at his side.

He was acutely aware of her presence and he thought he might go mad if he had to stand with her much longer. She was so close, yet Harry was unable to touch or acknowledge her. Thankfully, the crowd followed and the bridal party dispersed to the lawn area.

Fred and George put on a display like nothing he had ever seen before. There were fireworks in the shape of white doves that flew into the air and showers of white flower petals burst from gold balls they sent into the sky. Everywhere people were laughing and clapping, but the ache in Harry’s stomach did not abate.

The chairs flew to the tables as a couple of wizards flicked their wands and everyone sat down to eat. To Harry’s dismay, he was seated next to Ginny on the bridal table. She engaged herself in conversation at once with a young wizard who was a family friend of the Delacours. Harry spoke to Hermione and Ron who were seated next to him. Hermione looked almost as beautiful as Fleur. It was apparent that Ron thought so too as he held Hermione’s hand in his under the table, stroking it gently. Harry’s chest pounded as he thought of all that he was giving up.

After the sumptuous meal which Harry barely touched, people started moving off to dance and chat with others. Ginny had left as soon as she finished eating. Harry noted with disappointment that she had cleaned her plate. She obviously wasn’t having as hard a time as he was.

As the afternoon turned to dusk, Fred and George put on another brilliant display of multi-coloured fireworks that culminated in an enormous golden cylinder exploding over their heads that spelled out a rather mischievous comment about the impending wedding night, before showering the giggling crowd with golden glitter.

Harry felt completely drained and decided to try and slip away unnoticed. He entered the house and crept up the stairs quietly, not wanting to get trapped by someone. As he passed the bathroom, something caught his attention and he paused. It sounded like someone was crying beyond the closed door.

He put his head to the wood and rapped lightly with his knuckles. “Hello?”

The crying went immediately silent.

“Are you alright?”

Still nothing.

Harry rapped once more. “Hello?”

Getting no reply, Harry moved away from the door and climbed a little higher on the steps. He stopped on the shadowed landing. A moment or two passed, and then, the door creaked open. Light streamed out onto the landing and a figure emerged, closing the door behind and heading down the stairs.

“Ginny!” Harry ran as fast as he could to catch her. Grabbing her elbow he spun her around on the step. Her eyes were red and swollen and her cheeks flushed. He brought himself level with her. “Ginny,” he said softly, taking in her pained expression. Before he could think about what he was doing he kissed her. She melted into him helplessly and he could feel her pain as her arms circled his neck and she kissed him back.

Harry didn’t know how long they stayed there like that, but something made him pull away. Drifting up the stairwell from outside were faint cries growing in the darkness. Suddenly, a series of loud bangs and crashes rang out in the distance followed by yelling from desperate voices.

“Stay here!” Harry breathed as he bolted down the stairs three at a time towards the terrified screams.




This post has been edited by razzberry2: Aug 25 2007, 07:04 AM

[razzberry2]

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4. Harry's Curse and Lupin's Promise



Harry’s heartbeat raced as he whipped out his wand and pushed through the backdoor. A wizard was stumbling towards him as he leapt down the stone steps.

Harry grabbed the front of his robes and yanked him to his feet. ‘What’s happening?’ he asked urgently, but the wizard looked too terrified to speak. Harry released him angrily, running on as flashes of light in the night sky ahead of him were going in every direction. People were rushing passed him away from the noise, screaming women pulling their weeping children behind them. There was a tremendous crash as Harry dived out into the open, taking in the scene before him.

Tables were upturned and broken and chairs littered the lawn. Several bushes that had been hit by stray curses were ablaze and the wreckage of the dome that had just collapsed smouldered in a heap on the ground. Order members were joined by other witches and wizards scattered around the grounds, wands drawn, darting around as they struggled against the many black hooded figures encircling them.

Death Eaters!

Harry bolted towards Neville who was back to back with Luna. Both of them had their wands drawn, pointing them at the four cloaked figures that were closing in around them.

‘Expelliarmus!’ cried Harry and a wand flew through the air. Two of the Death Eaters turned in surprise while the other dove after his wand.
‘Impedimenta!’ Neville caught the back of one of the Death Eaters facing Harry. Their body stiffened.
Harry leapt sideways to avoid a curse ‘Stupefy!’ A red flash from Harry’s wand hit the other Death Eater, knocking them off their feet.
Luna was going toe to toe with her assailant and had hit him with a Tarantallegra curse as Neville turned to the Death Eater who was now brandishing his wand again.

‘George!’ Harry spun round just in time to see Fred throw black powder into the air, then suddenly disappear in darkness along with three Death Eaters. George raced in after him.

Harry searched the area in front of him, everywhere there were mini battles being fought. He spotted Hermione dodging back and forth behind a tree, staving off curses as they flew at her; Ron was rushing towards her firing as he went. He jumped over a fallen Death Eater he had downed and was yelling ‘Over Here!’ at the two holding Hermione at bay.

Bill had taken on three Death Eaters at once, he had a wild look in his eyes and was dodging their curses with incredible speed, jumping around even leaping into the air in a back flip to escape jets of light as they soared at him. Harry looked away just as Bill's foot connected powerfully with one of them, launching them backwards.

There was an enormous struggle going on in the ruin of the tables so Harry raced into the fray. His curses flew thick and fast as he weaved in and out the wreckage, hitting two Death Eaters almost immediately before they became aware he was behind them. ‘Harry, look out!’ the instant he heard Mr. Weasleys voice he dove behind an upturned table. A white light flashed over his head, barely missing him. He scurried out from behind the table ‘Stupefy!’ another Death Eater crumbled as the jet of red light from Harry’s wand made contact. All around him Death Eaters were dropping, so he headed back over to Neville and Luna.

They were dodging curses being thrown wildly about by a Death Eater who was laughing maniacally. He quickened his pace as his blood boiled, and when he neared, he raised his wand, but before he could fire off a curse his target suddenly dropped to the ground for no apparent reason.

Harry ran up to the body, lifting it slightly with his foot, it rolled limply. He looked about him and saw two more Death Eaters drop one after the other in mid duel without any obvious cause, but a few others were fighting on, now highly out numbered. His eyes fell on Ginny, her hair was strewn across her face and her dress was covered in grass stains, she fought alongside Ron and Hermione as they downed another Death Eater. He smiled inwardly; he had known she would come, she had probably been right behind him.

With the last Death Eater on the ground, people were starting to file back onto the lawn slowly, looking for family and friends they had been separated from. By some sort of miracle it seemed all of the fallen were Death Eaters, though many of their side displayed signs of the tussle. Lupin and the others were going around the unconscious and cursed, disarming them and placing binds around their bodies.

Then suddenly, Harry was yanked backwards.

‘What?’ he looked around but stood his ground. A young witch he didn’t know had him by the arm and was trying to drag him towards the house.

‘Please! … Please help!’ Her eyes were wide with fear and swollen with tears. ‘Please… you have to come … she needs you!’

Harry frowned ‘who? ... where?’ he hurried off with the young girl; once again going in the opposite direction to everyone else ‘Where are we going?’ They didn’t go into the house as Harry had expected, instead she led him round to the front. The young witch then let go of Harry’s arm as they entered the yard and stood wide-eyed, looking terrified.

Harry's eyes wandered around the deserted yard, wondering what he was looking for ‘Where are you?’ he yelled.

The old wooden gate at the end of the long pathway squeaked as it hung loosely off its hinges, it was gaping open to reveal a young girl with silky blonde hair illuminated by the torchlight. Gabrielle? Fleur’s younger sister, who idolized Harry, was staring at him, motionless, eyes full of horror and tears streaming down her pale face.

‘What is it? … What’s wrong?’ He walked slowly towards her, his wand hanging at his side. As he made his way up the path a feeling of dread took hold of him. He broke into a run but pulled up suddenly, stunned. A figure was coming into view behind her as it pulled off a silvery cloak.

Bellatrix was standing with a malicious smile twisted across her face and her wand tip at Gabrielle’s temple.

The young witch behind Harry whimpered and he felt his stomach drop as panic began to rise in him. The world seemed to stop. Nothing existed outside the three of them. He raised his wand, pointing it at Bellatrix’s head.

‘Don’t’ he said quietly.

Laughter trickled out of her cruel mouth, her eyes gleaming in the light. ‘You are so predictable, Potter.’ She looked amused, shaking her head slightly ‘Always the hero. But you never stop to think!’ He looked down into Gabrielle’s frightened eyes. A wave of nausea surged through him painfully. She was staring at him through watery wide-eyes as tears spilled down her cheek, too terrified to move or speak. Silently pleading. His wand arm began to tremble.

‘Don’t do it.’ His voice came out low and unsteady. Bellatrix glanced down at the girl in front of her.

‘You’re really not doing them any favours.' she taunted. 'Its because she loved you, you know ... that's why she's going to die.’

Harry felt like his chest was caving in on him. Sounding more like a plea as his eyes stung with hot tears, he urged ‘don’t … don't do it!’ hardly able to breathe.

‘Aw, poor little puppy!' she mocked in a babyish voice. 'You knew this would happen. You've got nobody to blame but yourself.' She said it as if he were child. 'You knew you would get somebody killed!’ Her wand hand tilted slightly.

‘NO!’ Two loud cracks rang out. Gabrielle went limp as a red flash soared over her into the darkness. Bellatrix was gone, and Gabrielle crumpled to the ground.

It was as if Harry had sunk into a dream ... a nightmare he could not wake from. Nothing felt real as the world faded around him. He went to Gabrielle, slowing as he neared her, dreading what he would find. ‘No’ escaped his lips as he struggled to breathe. She was lying at an awkward angle on her back, her head lolled to one side. He knelt down hesitantly, and cupped her small face in his hand. As he turned her gently to him he saw the scorched area on her temple where the wand had touched it. ‘No’ He was sinking rapidly ... sinking into the very earth with the weight of it.

There were muffled sounds coming from behind him but they seemed to him to be a great distance away as he stared at the lifeless face in his hands. ‘… Harry… Harry!’ Lupins voice was swimming around his head and he was vaguely aware of another figure on the ground opposite him. ‘Gabrielle!’ It peeled his hand off the expressionless face. Then there were more shapes and more voices. ‘Harry … Harry!' He felt himself being drawn up by the arm, still staring at the sleeping face, unable to look away '... take him ... Get him out of here!' A faraway voice spoke. Harry dragged his eyes from her as he was pulled away. He felt sick and wanted to throw up ... ‘Get him up to his room!’ It sounded like Mrs. Weasley but she was only faint, there was a loud wailing somewhere far off ... ‘Open the door!’ Hermiones voice came from the distance ... ‘This way, mate’ Harry felt Ron’s hand on his shoulder as he mounted the stairs. When they reached the bathroom he broke away and flung himself over the toilet. He could hear Hermione’s sobs behind him as he spluttered and vomited and retched until his whole body ached.

Then somehow he was in his room, sitting on the bed flanked by Hermione and Ron. He was weakened and shaking uncontrollably. ‘I killed her...’ He said in a voice that didn’t seem to belong to him. Hermione whimpered softly as he stared at the floor, Gabrielle’s lifeless face burned into his mind. ‘It was my fault…’

‘No ... no Harry… don’t say that!’ Hermiones voice was raw with emotion.
‘It wasn’t your fault mate …’ Ron’s calming voice echoed in his ear ‘it was a trap …’ his hand was on the back of Harry’s shoulder

'It was because of me...' that strange voice again 'she's dead ... because of me...'
‘Harry … you couldn’t have done anything … it wasn't you...’ Hermione put her arm on his back

‘I knew this would happen … I knew …’
‘It was a trap … they weren’t Death Eaters we were fighting in the backyard Harry … it wasn’t your fault … they set you up’ Ron’s voice was quiet.

Harry lifted his head slowly and looked at Ron ‘what are you ... talking ...?’

‘Those people out there are not Death Eaters. They were just witches and wizards … must have been under the imperious curse.’

‘What?’ Harry felt lost, alone ... and angry, so very angry.

‘That’s why we were able to defeat them so easily.’ Hermione said as he turned to her ‘they weren’t Death Eaters Harry. It was a trap … they were setting you up.’ Her eyes were red and swollen.

Harry felt the hatred swell in him ‘Why? ... So I could watch them murder an innocent young girl?’ his voice was laced with loathing as his eyes prickled with angry tears.

‘I-I don’t know wh-why…’ fresh tears spilled down her cheeks. Harry hung his head unable to think straight. Staring at the floor he rubbed his hand over his messy hair, he was shaking as the anger coursed through his body.

A figure emerged through the doorway and Harry knew who it was without looking up. ‘Get out.’ He said quietly not raising his head. There was a sharp intake of breath and he knew he had struck her deeply. He closed his eyes painfully ‘GO!’

In a flurry of chiffon she was gone. Hermione leapt off the bed sobbing and chased after Ginny.

‘C’mon mate,' Ron said hoarsely. 'I think you should lay down for a bit.’

Harry stayed where he was. He did not move. He would not sleep. His body ached and his mind was numb and he had never felt as angry or as sad, or as guilty in his entire life.


~*~*~*~


Harry stared out of the bedroom window. The morning’s rays shone harshly down on the scene before him. Everyone had long gone, the fake Death Eaters had been taken to St Mungos under guard and all that was left of the nights events were a few burn patches and some shrapnel strewn across the lawn. Several Order members and aurors from the ministry were planted around the grounds.

The ministry’s aurors had been conspicuously absent until now, probably because Harry had not agreed to Scrimgeour’s request to be the "face" of the ministry. As Harry unconsciously counted them he saw Moody emerge from the side of the house, looking up at his window. He should’ve known Lupin would put Moody on him. Harry felt a stab of anger; Lupin would know what he was thinking.

Realizing it was pointless trying to leave, he turned away from the window and sat on the bed. Gabrielle’s lifeless face haunted him. He pulled off his glasses and rubbed his eyes in an effort to push the image from his mind. He was in no doubt what he had to do. One thought had overtaken him from the moment Ron had left the room. He had to leave. He endangered everyone around him; everyone he cared about. Voldemort would kill all of them, one by one, to get to him.

Harry could hear movement somewhere down stairs; Mrs. Weasley would be fixing breakfast for the guard. She had come to him during the night with a potion for sleep, though she had not tried to soothe him or hug him, for which Harry was thankful. She had looked at him pityingly and told him he should sleep, placing the potion by the bed before she left. And there the potion still sat, untouched. It would not have been right to sleep peacefully, to spend the night as if nothing had happened. He had seen Gabrielle’s torment and knew she deserved better than that.

There was a small knock at the door. Harry sat silently, not wanting to see anyone, his body was weary and he felt the lowest he had ever felt. The door creaked open and Harry looked up into Lupins tired face. He looked away quickly as the anger in him rose. Lupin closed the door behind him and walked across the room, pulling up a chair. Harry avoided looking at him; he did not want to hear what Lupin would say. He would tell Harry it wasn’t his fault. He would try to convince Harry that staying here was best. But Lupin did not know what Harry knew, he did not know about the Horcruxes, he had not been privy to the memories Dumbledore had shown Harry. He did not know that Dumbledore had expected Harry to go on alone.

He would not understand.

Lupin sat for a moment in silence, and then finally he spoke. ‘I wont pretend to know what you must be feeling, Harry.’ Lupin said quietly ‘And I don’t suppose anything I can say, will make you feel any better.’ He sighed deeply ‘No one should have to go through what you did last night…’

‘It was nothing to what Gabrielle went through.’ Harry said bitterly.
Lupin bowed his head. ‘I know this is the last thing you want to hear right now, but-'
‘Then don’t say it!’ Harry said sharply, looking at the top of Lupins head, his anger brewing inside him.

Lupin got up and walked over to the window, he stood looking out at the wreckage below. ‘I don’t know what to do anymore, Harry.’ Looking at him, Harry thought his face appeared pasty in the early grey light.
‘If anyone is to blame it’s me.’ Lupin did not turn to look at Harry as he spoke sombrely. ‘I was responsible for the safety of everyone here last night Harry, not you. I should have seen it was a trap as soon as they attacked. It made no sense for them to wait until there were so many people around. If Voldemort wanted to kill you he would have tried when there were fewer of us to fight.

‘Instead he sent unwilling servants in under the imperious curse to fight a battle they could not win. Voldemort would not lose any of his valuable Death Eaters in the process of drawing you out. An extraordinarily elaborate scheme which must have involved a lot of man power and heavy planning.’ Harry searched the floor in front of him, taking in everything Lupin said ‘I spoke to the young girl who led you to the front garden. She told how a woman at the wedding had approached her and Gabrielle, asking whom they were … whether they knew you. She was another one under the imperious curse of course, except that she was a guest at the wedding. Gabrielle was only too eager to talk about you.

‘She told the woman how you saved her from the merpeople more than two years ago, and how she had been very much looking forward to seeing you again at the wedding.’ Harry closed his eyes and sucked in his pain. ‘I found out later the woman had approached others, but after speaking with Gabrielle, she had found what she was looking for. When we were attacked, she lured the two young girls to the front of the house, and then all she had to do was wait until people returned to the back yard. She told Gabrielle that Harry Potter was hurt, that he was lying on the road in need of help. Gabrielle rushed out of the gate to find you and that is when a real Death Eater grabbed her-'

‘It was Bellatrix LeStrange.’ Harry said hatefully.

Lupin lowered his head, and after a moment he continued ‘She sent the other young girl to find you, she was told to go only to Harry Potter or she would kill Gabrielle.’ Lupin turned to look at Harry now. He looked sicklier than Harry had ever seen him ‘I made a mistake Harry … a mistake that cost a young girl her life.’

‘Bellatrix did it. Not you …' Harry swallowed ‘and not me.’ It felt strange to say it, but Harry was beginning to understand as Lupin recounted the nights events, that there was no way either of them could have known what would unfold. It didn’t dull his pain, but it helped to clear his head. ‘She did it … she’s the murderer … and she’s the one who’ll pay for it!’ Harry was seething inside as he looked up at Lupin ‘I’m going after her.' he said flatly 'She sent Sirius to his death, she put Neville’s parents in St Mungos and now …’ he looked at his feet ‘now this. She has to be stopped,’ he looked back at Lupin ‘before she gets the opportunity to destroy someone else’s life.’ Harry was ready for an argument; his barely suppressed rage would be unleashed upon Lupin any minute.

‘She wont be easy to get to,’ Lupin said as he crossed the floor and sat himself down ‘we’ve being trying for months. I’ve got a personal score to settle with her myself.’ Harry had not expected this. ‘Harry, I realize that you come of age next week, and I’m fully aware that you have no intentions of staying here after that.' Lupin held up a hand 'I understand why,’ he rushed on before Harry could speak ‘and I wont try to stop you, but you should be aware that everything that happened last night was to push you to make this choice.’ Harry frowned at Lupin as he continued ‘Voldemort knows what sort of person you are. He has seen the lengths you will go to, to protect others. The trap was laid with the express purpose of convincing you to go it alone. Why? I can only guess that he feels it will make it easier for him to get to you. But Harry,’ Lupin held Harry’s gaze ‘you do not need to do this alone. I will be there every step of the way to help you with this. And if you must face Voldemort … then I will have your back. That I promise you.’

Harry felt a surge of gratitude to the weary figure before him, though he would have no more willingly put Lupin in danger than he would have Sirius. But knowing that Lupin felt this way lightened Harry’s heart a little, and he managed to let go of the anger that was threatening to consume him. Mrs. Weasley came in and left a tray of toast and pumpkin juice on the cabinet next to the old black chest. She looked as worn out as Lupin.

‘How’s Fleur’s family?’ Harry asked her quietly. She looked at him as if she were pondering whether to answer or not. He could see her eyes were unusually watery and he thought that she might burst into tears; he immediately regretted asking.

‘I don’t think you need worry about anyone else for the moment.’ There was that look of pity again. ‘People get through these things … they always do.’ Her voice was the softest he had ever heard it. ‘I want you to stay in here for today … you need your rest.' Her eye's flickered over the cup that sat on his cabinet 'And I see you haven’t taken your potion, so you wont have slept.’ A tear spilled down her cheek and she brushed it away hastily, embarrassed. ‘You can’t go on punishing yourself for something you had no control over.’ Her voice was decidedly shaky so Harry, fearing she would start crying, looked down at his feet. Lupin got up and put his hand on Harry’s shoulder ‘Get some rest,’ then he turned and left with Mrs. Weasley.

Harry looked at the breakfast tray and felt sick all over again, so he threw a t-shirt over the food. He lay back on the bed, his hands behind his head and thought about what Lupin had said. Voldemort may have wanted Harry to leave everyone behind, but he was unaware Harry knew his secret. He didn’t know that Harry’s best chance of destroying him was to be out there alone. Pain washed through him as he thought of Gabrielle. It sickened him as he thought of Fleur, it had been her wedding day and he couldn’t have imagined a worse ending.

There was a soft knock and Harry saw Ron’s face peer round the door. ‘You want some company?’ Harry nodded slightly, anything to stave off those terrified eyes that crept into his thoughts. Ron walked over and sat on the chair Lupin had vacated.

‘Mum said you looked terrible’ he said in agreement ‘I suppose Lupin told you what happened last night.’ Ron was frowning as if not sure he should be asking about it.
‘Yeah’

Ron nodded and sighed ‘He was wasting his time going to all that effort when you were leaving anyway.’ Ron spoke quietly as he stared off into space. Harry knew Ron meant well, but he was beginning to wish he hadn’t told him to come in. ‘Have some toast, mate’ he said as he pulled the t-shirt off and lifted the tray down. Harry sat up and looked at the dry bread again. If it meant he didn’t have to talk about last night and still have Ron’s company then he would eat. He couldn’t bare the thought of putting anything on the toast so he nibbled at the small cardboard like pieces uninterestedly.

Hermione came in while he was chewing a particularly stubborn piece of toast. It didn’t seem to want to go down at all so Harry gave up trying to eat anymore. Hermione regarded Harry closely and went to say something, but then seemed to think the better of it and sat gingerly on his bed instead. ‘You should try to eat more Harry.’ She was looking at the pathetically nibbled edges of his toast.

‘I’ve had enough’ he said and put the tray down. ‘So how’s Fleur?’
Hermione’s frown deepened.
‘Mrs. Weasley spent all night with her. Mrs. Delacour was taken to St Mungos, Fleur's dad went with her, she was in pretty bad shape … she kept saying over and over that her baby was dead, and no matter what Ron’s mum said, she couldn’t calm her…’ her voice trailed off as she saw the effect of her answer in Harry’s face.

He could feel the nausea building as he jumped off the bed and flew down to the bathroom, only just making it in time. There wasn’t much to purge so he spent most of his time dry retching. Ron was waiting outside the bathroom when he emerged ‘S’okay mate,’ he said sombrely. Harry was feeling slightly embarrassed and avoided looking Ron in the face, but Ron put his hand on Harry’s back and followed him up to the room.

Hermione had her face in her hands, she looked up when they came in ‘I’m sorry … that was so stupid of me,’ Her eyes were leaking fresh tears.
'Don’t worry about it,’ Harry ached from the convulsions so he sat back down on the bed, he was feeling so weak his body shook.

‘I wish there was something I could do for you, mate, but I don’t think it’s gonna be that easy.’ Ron looked extremely sober.
‘There is something you can do,’ said Hermione in an unsteady tone ‘get him to drink that.’ She gestured to the potion on the bedside cabinet.
Ron looked over at the cup and then at Harry ‘How ‘bout it?’ he said quietly

Harry looked at the cup and thought about what it held. Sleep … Peace. He took the cup and placed it to his lips, looking down at the purple contents. Peace, he thought as he tipped it back and swallowed it down. He pulled off his glasses and placed them on the cabinet as he lay back on the pillow and closed his eyes, within seconds he felt the drowsiness of sleep envelope him.

Nothingness.

[razzberry2]

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5. Leaving the Burrow Behind



Harry had not wanted to celebrate his birthday. He had waited impatiently for it to come for only one reason. He would be of age, he would be considered an adult in the wizarding world, which would entitle him to do magic where and when he saw fit.

He woke on the morning of his seventeenth birthday, drenched in sweat from another fitful sleep. He showered and dressed and headed down the stairs. Mrs. Weasley hugged him tightly as soon as he appeared, she did not wish him a happy birthday but handed him a plate of fried eggs and toast instead. Every meal she dished Harry up a full plate of food in the hopes that he would eat more than a couple of mouthfuls.

‘Lupin will be here soon to take you for your apparation test’ she said as he plonked himself down at the table.
‘Where’re Ron and Hermione?’ he had checked their rooms before coming down, and finding them empty, had expected to see them at the kitchen table, tucking into breakfast.

‘They’ve already eaten’ she said ‘they’re outside somewhere’ When Harry immediately got up to leave she pushed him back down in his seat. ‘Oh no you don’t!’ she said ‘you’ll eat first! And a decent amount too this time.’ her voice was stern but her eyes were full of concern ‘You’re getting thinner every day…’

Harry pushed the oozing eggs to the side of his plate and managed to down two pieces of toast and butter. He waited until Mrs. Weasley had her back turned then left the table quietly and went outside in search of his two best friends.

He found them huddled together under the enormous willow tree, in hushed conversation. Several aurors were wandering the perimeter, eyeing Harry as he made his way over to Ron and Hermione. As he neared them, they stopped whispering and looked up guiltily.

‘What’s up?’ Harry frowned down at them.
‘Nothing’ they said in unison. Harry looked from one to the other; his eyes narrowed ‘Right’
‘Lupin not here yet then?’ Ron said quickly
‘No … not yet … what were you just-’

‘I know you’ll be fine Harry’ Hermione interrupted ‘you’ve apparated a few times now … even conducted a side-along … you’ll pass no problems.’ She said with a wave of her hand.
‘Maybe … but what were you-’
‘And if I can pass’ Ron said ‘you definitely can!’ Harry shrugged and opened his mouth to speak.

‘Did he say what time you’d be back?’ asked Hermione ‘Lupin I mean’
‘No, he didn’t … What-’
‘So how does it feel, knowing you can do magic whenever you want?’ Ron grinned at him
‘No different really’ Harry was beginning to lose his temper ‘what were you two-‘

‘Harry!’ Harry looked over his shoulder at Lupin, who was coming down the stone steps with Tonks in his wake. He was carrying an empty milk bottle in one hand and his wand in the other. ‘Ready to go?’
Harry turned towards him and nodded.

‘Good. Alright!’ Lupin motioned to two of the aurors nearby. ‘Ministry orders’ said Lupin in answer to Harry’s frown ‘you’ve got to have at least two of them wherever you go.’ Harry recognized Dawlish as he jogged over and nodded at Lupin, he did not know the other man. Lupin tapped the bottle with his wand. ‘Portus’ the bottle glowed for a moment as it shook in Lupins hand, then returned to normal.

Harry went to place his finger on the portkey but paused and looked back at Ron and Hermione and said accusingly. ‘I’m not finished with you two yet!’ They raised their eyebrows as Harry turned his attention back on the bottle. He placed his finger on it, looking around at the four faces opposite him. He just had time register how over the top it seemed to have four escorts to the Ministry of Magic for his apparation test, before he felt the familiar pull behind his navel and the world began to swirl around him.

They were in the Atrium in the Ministry of Magic. It was much less bustling than it had been last time Harry was here during opening hours. He noticed several wizards standing at the entrance to the golden gates, all dressed in the same emerald robes that bore a Ministry badge on the right hand side above the chest.

‘Ministry Guards’ whispered Tonks in Harry’s ear. The golden statues of the wizard, witch, centaur and house elf that had been destroyed in the fight against Voldemort just over a year ago had not been replaced. Instead only the platform remained, still surrounded by the pond Harry had thrown numerous Galleons into when he had been on trial two years ago.

‘What’s that?’ Harry leant to one side to avoid a small, silent black orb, no bigger than a golden snitch that glided passed him, circled back and then proceeded to weave through them.

‘It’s a Stalker’ Tonks continued ‘It’s sort of a floating eye that can think for itself’ Harry raised his eyebrows ‘it’s extraordinarily useful. It will follow anyone it is suspicious of or has been told to watch out for, relaying the images back to the receiver.’ Tonks was smiling as she watched it zoom over to some new arrivals that had just entered through the floo network. ‘They are extremely rare, the ministry has one of only three known in existence.’ She glanced sideways at Harry ‘The Order could use one of those on you permanently.’ Harry was silently grateful they did not have one.

Once through security at the large golden gates, they headed to the elevators and disembarked at Level Six where the Apparation Test Centre was located. They passed more of the Ministry guards as Lupin guided Harry along the corridor. Suddenly a familiar voice sounded from behind them.

‘Harry!’

Harry sighed as he turned, preparing himself. ‘Can I have a word with you?’ Scrimgeour said as he caught up to them ‘… in private’ he added looking at Lupin.
Harry shrugged ‘I still don’t have anything to tell you.’

Scrimgeour frowned and said ‘Maybe I have something to tell you.’
Harry eyed him for a moment before following him back down the corridor towards the lifts.
‘What?’ he said flatly.

‘There is a fair bit of speculation going on Harry, as to what you will do now you’ve come of age.’ Scrimgeour spoke in a low voice. ‘And after what happened the other night, the death of that young girl … well,’ Harry could just make out the tell tail glistening of sweat on Scrimgeour face ‘quite frankly, most people believe you will leave … disappear from public view.’

Harry could feel the anger creeping inside him but he kept his voice even ‘I don't see how that concerns you. Seems to me that's my business now I'm an adult’
‘Unfortunately, that is not quite true, young man. You're somewhat of a special case, as you well know. People would feel ... more secure if they knew you were around. After all, it is my job to make sure people feel safe-'

‘I’m sure if you put the Death Eaters behind bars, find a way to stop the Dementors, and destroy Voldemort, you’d be well on the way to making people feel secure.’
‘You’re being foolish.’ Scrimgeour's eyes narrowed, his voice suddenly growing cold ‘You need my help … the Ministry’s protection.’

Harry looked back at Dawlish and the other auror ‘Take them back. I don’t want them. They’d be better put to use elsewhere.’
‘You wont survive a month on your own out there.’ Scrimgeour said unpleasantly.
‘Stan Shuntpike is still locked up I take it?' Scrimgeour's scowl was enough of an answer. 'As I've said before Minister, you should concentrate on the people who do need you.’ Harry said it with deliberate pleasantness, then turned and left leaving an angry Scrimgeour at the lifts. He then followed Lupin and Tonks through a door marked Apparation Test Centre.

It was as easy as Hermione had said it would be, although Harry still disliked the sensation. He returned to the Atrium with the test instructor after Lupin spoke to him at length, and they took the floo to Hogsmeade. Harry had to apparate himself in front of "The Hog's Head" and then do one more jump to the boarded up Zonko’s before they returned. Once he had his license, he made his way back to the Atrium with Lupin and Tonks, the two ministry aurors trailing behind, the Stalker hovering over them quietly. Harry could almost see Scrimgeour sitting in his office watching them.

‘All right Harry; we’ll apparate to the gate at The Burrow. Ready?’ Lupin smiled faintly. Harry nodded and closed his eyes tightly.

Once at The Burrow, he went to head inside but Tonks grabbed his arm lightly, ‘This way Harry’ she said as she led him round to the back of the house. When they reached the backyard Harry stood for a moment looking about him, wondering what was going on.

There were more than a dozen people milling around on the grass.

‘Hiya Harry!’ It was Angelina Johnson who noticed them first; she was standing with Alicia, Katie and Ginny, waving at Harry with a big grin on her face. As they came forward to greet him, Harry spotted Fred and George standing with Ron and Hermione, and next to them he almost couldn’t believe it, was Hagrid.

‘What’s going on?’ Harry said, bewildered.
‘We thought you might like a round of Quidditch to celebrate getting your license.’ Ron was grinning from ear to ear
‘But … how …’

‘Took a fair bit of organizing, but everyone was really keen to come.’
‘Course we were!’ said Fred ‘Not everyday you get your Apparation License, is it?’ chimed in George with a wink.
‘I don’t … understand …’ Harry looked at Neville and Luna who were smiling broadly at him

‘Go and get your gear on!’ said Angelina, turning him back to the house. It was then that Harry realized she was in full Quidditch garb, along with all the other old team members.

He left them behind feeling somewhat dazed as he climbed the stairs to change. It struck him that this had been what Ron and Hermione were whispering about earlier, they must have organized it over the past few days ... come to think of it, Pigwideon had seemed awfully excited lately, though it had been hard to tell the difference considering his normal state of elation.

Harry was not fooled that it was to celebrate his Apparation license, and even though the thought of celebrating his birthday had repulsed him only this morning, he felt deeply touched that Ron and Hermione had gone to so much trouble.

When he emerged fully attired, Hagrid grinned at him ‘Thought you might be needin this.’ He handed Harry the Firebolt he had left in his hut before leaving for Godric’s Hollow. The aurors and Order members split up so some could station themselves around the field, and the original Gryffindor Quidditch team (minus Wood who was overseas playing pro according to Angelina) headed to the old paddock the Weasleys used for practice, talking amongst themselves.

Lupin and Tonks chatted to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and Hagrid as they walked along and Dean and Seamus were stifling smiles as Luna launched into an exaggerated explanation of how a Snorkelled Mudlug Slug breathed through it’s snorkel part to a very interested looking Neville.

When Harry hit the field and launched himself into the air it felt like the weight of the world had lifted off his shoulders. He let go of everything that had happened over the past few months and flew around the paddock feeling freer than he had felt in a long time. George had brought a set of real Quidditch balls with him, including the snitch, which Harry and Ginny raced after. She did not show any sign of her last meeting with him, for which Harry was glad. He was still appreciative of Ginny’s skill on a broom, even though he caught the snitch before her. She had incredible grace and yet an aggressive drive that meant they almost collided a couple of times, though laughing it off as they flew into another round.

Cheers were regularly heard from Seamus and Dean, and even Lupin could be heard saying a triumphant Yes! Every now and then, much to Hagrid’s apparent surprise. Ron appeared to have no problem with nerves in front of so few people, and made some spectacular saves to the roaring delight of Mrs. Weasley.

‘I’m tempted to let them go through just so she doesn’t do that!’ Ron said to Harry about her whooping.

Ron’s mum was a particularly enthusiastic supporter. At one point when Angelina scored an extremely difficult goal in the makeshift hoops Mr. Weasley had set up, Mrs. Weasley threw her hands up in the air and did a little victory dance with Neville looking on nervously like he thought she might explode.

‘That is why we never bring mum to a match.’ Said Fred when he stopped near Harry.

It was the best day Harry could remember having in a long time, and when they finally retired to the backyard for dinner, the mood at The Burrow was lighter than it had been yet. They all sat and laughed and talked like there were no other cares to worry them. Harry ate so much he had to slouch in the chair to make himself comfortable, and as the evening wore on he reluctantly waved goodbye to his fellow Gryffindor students, and Luna and Hagrid. Not long after Mrs. Weasley went off to bed followed by Mr. Weasley, and Lupin and Tonks left with Fred and George leaving just Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny sitting by the fireside in the lounge.

Harry watched the flames dancing glow on Ginny’s red hair for a while as they sat in silence. ‘Thanks guys.’ Harry said quietly ‘It was a good day.’ Hermione’s eyes twinkled as she smiled at him, her head leaning lazily on Ron’s chest. No one said anything; nothing needed to be said. The four of them sat for the longest time, savouring their last peaceful moments together before Harry finally rose and went to bed, the others trailing after him.


He lay in the silvery moonlight, thinking that this had been by far the best birthday he had ever had. A smile crept across his face; he felt very lucky to have friends like Ron and Hermione. His thoughts were interrupted suddenly and he turned his head as the bedroom door clicked open and a small figure swept through and closed it quietly behind them. It padded over to the bed as Harry lifted himself on his elbow.

That wonderful faint flowery smell filled his senses as Ginny scooted into bed alongside him with her back to him, afraid he would turn her away. He closed his arm over her and pulled her to him. He knew why she had come, he too had felt the need for her and though his head told him to make her leave, his heart ached for her to stay.

Harry had longed to feel her warm body beside him and now that he held her close he could no longer stop himself. He brushed her hair back with his hand and she turned her face to him. Bending his head, he brought his lips to hers, a fire burning inside him. She gave herself to him as hot tears trickled down her face.

It was the tenderest thing Harry had ever known, her lips were soft and warm and her taste was sweet. His kisses grew more urgent as her hands on his bare skin sent shivers through him. He could feel her unsteady breathing, her body weighted down by his. He kissed away the dampness on her cheeks and buried his head in her neck as she entwined her fingers in his hair. The need in him flared dangerously so he took some deep, ragged breaths before lifting his head and looking at her. Though her green eyes smouldered with passion, Harry could see fear behind them as they stared up at him. A dull ache pulsed through him ‘I cant’ he said breathing heavily.

Her eyes filled with tears ‘Harry’ she said throatily ‘please’ pulling his face to hers and kissing him invitingly. He lost himself in her want as he kissed her deeply, welcoming the sensation of her tongue on his. And when he finally looked down at her again he was searching her face. He could see the doubt she tried to conceal. He swallowed hard, his body shaking with desire. ‘I cant’ he pulled his weight off her; afraid he would give in if she kissed him like that again.

She threw the covers off and went to leave but Harry grabbed her by the wrist. ‘Don’t go’ He whispered. She paused for a moment then allowed him to pull her back down, moulding herself to his body, and as he lay there listening to her breathing, waiting for sleep to take them, his chest pained with the thought that this could be their last time alone together.


~*~*~*~


Ginny’s lips brushed Harry’s cheek lightly as she slipped out of bed just before dawn. Harry opened his eyes when he heard the door click shut and threw an arm over his forehead angrily. She had offered him comfort he could not have sort for himself, but he was regretting his decision to lay with her. Every step closer to her he took made it that much more dangerous for her. He rolled on his side cursing himself for his weakness, hating himself for needing her.

As he looked at the gloomy shadows around the room his eyes fell on the small black chest Emerick had given him. It had crouched there since he had first arrived at The Burrow, unopened and unheeded. He flung his feet on the floor and pulled his wand from under the pillow and pointed it at the thick white candle on his bedside cabinet. He narrowed his eyes … Incendio he thought. The room remained in darkness. Harry redoubled his efforts and narrowed his eyes further still, casting a piercing gaze at the deadened candle. Incendio! It ignited immediately, throwing off a gentle light that filled the room by which Harry dressed.

He snatched up the chest and sat it down on the bed, examining the lock. It looked simple enough so Harry pointed his wand at it. Alohomora he thought. Nothing happened. Determined to practice his non-verbal spells he tired again Alohomora! Still nothing. Frustrated with himself he said aloud ‘Alohomora!’ fully expecting the rusted old lock to spring open; but it remained firmly shut. Harry sighed and lifted the chest to the candlelight. He peered into the lock and could just make out something jammed deep inside it.

He pointed his wand at the lock and stared hard at it Waddiwasi! Something shot out of the lock, collided with Harry’s head then rebounded onto the floor. ‘Owe…’ he rubbed his hand at the smarting patch of forehead while searching for what had hit him. He picked up what looked like an old bit of chewed paper. He tossed it onto the bed with a scowl and turned his attention back on the chest. Alohomora! He thought determinedly, the tip of his wand hovering next to the lock. It opened with a small flock. Harry rested the chest on his knees so that it was close to the light and lifted the lid.

On top there was a small scroll, stained and tattered, and frayed round the edges. Harry picked it out and unrolled it carefully, studying the faded patchy writing that remained. The words near the edge of the parchment were gone but he could make out most of it…

…rest Lily,

…e home as soon as…
…merick to deliver this t...
…received news of his pla…
…will be all hands on d…
…w is my little guy do…
…bout you both, day and…
…in with Sooty to make su…
…member to use the m…
…will come as soon as…
…ss you my darling Lily…
…unior a hug from his da…
…y love, James

It was almost as though his father had spoken to him from the grave as it must have been written during the time they were in hiding. A knot formed in the pit of his stomach as he finally rolled it back up and placed it carefully on the bed, turning back to the chest again.

Harry pulled out a couple of small badly tarnished, silver figurines. It took him a while staring at them intently, to work out what they were. Both were of people, however one was of a bearded man, tall and straight with a long pointed hat and a staff grasped in one hand, the other was of a woman, dressed in flowing robes, her head adorned with an elaborate tiara. Harry turned them over in his fingers, wondering why they looked familiar to him. He placed them on the bed next to the scroll and dipped into the chest once again.

There was a pendant attached to a gold chain and an assortment of loose trinkets, all were tarnished almost beyond recognition, though he could still make out a couple of them, one of which appeared to be a miniature gold broom; if it had any magical properties, they had long since been destroyed. The other was a stubby brass candle that was burnt and stained and also appeared to hold no magical powers. The pendant looked like a wheel and it too was blackened round the edges.

After putting them aside, Harry reached in to find a blotchy white card resting on a mound of blue cloth that had yellowed stains and scorch marks around the edges. He brought the card up to the light and turned it over, and there, with smiles on their faces and a baby cradled in their arms, sat James and Lily Potter. But unlike other photo’s Harry had seen of his mother and father, this James and Lily’s smile did not reach their eyes. They were sitting in a brightly lit room on a long floral couch, and Harry knew it was the sunroom Emerick had spoken of. The room where his mother would sit and wait for James.

He placed it face up on the bed, alongside the other bits and pieces, and then peered into the chest to remove the last item. When Harry lifted it out of the chest he was surprised by it’s spongy feel and as he brought it closer to him he realized what he had mistaken for a wad of blue material was actually a small teddy bear. One of its ears was burnt off and its shaggy blue fur was scorched and patchy in places. It only had one eye and where a little red tongue should’ve been poking out, there were only traces of thin red threads dangling aimlessly. Harry pulled at the loose threads with a bittersweet smile on his face. It was grubby and tatty and worthy of the rubbish bin but it was a small link in the chain that connected him to his past so he placed it back inside the chest carefully before replacing the other items and closing the lid.

The pendant dangled from Harry’s hand as he stored the chest inside his trunk. He had unconsciously decided not to pack it away with everything else and as he looked at it again he thought of his mother and father and wondered if either of them had worn it very often. He placed the pendant around his neck, tucking it into his clothes just as there was a knock at the door. Harry grunted, wondering who it could be as the dawns light was only just beginning to creep across the floor.

‘Hey’ Ron poked his head around the door, and seeing Harry dressed he entered and closed the door behind him. ‘Thought you’d be up early. So today’s the day then.’
Harry nodded and smiled faintly.

‘Your not planning to go yet though … I mean, this early? Mum and dad’ll want to talk to you first.’
‘I’ve been thinking about where I should go.’ Harry looked out the window ‘I want to visit my parents graves, but I don't think it would be a smart thing to do right now.’ He could see the ministries aurors slouched around the yard.

‘Yeah’ Ron joined him at the window ‘There’s always The Headquarters’ he shrugged ‘I mean, it’s yours now anyhow.’ Harry didn’t relish the thought of returning there. Sirius had regarded it as a prison before he died, and it was one of the least homely places you could imagine.

‘I think I’ll go back there … at least for now.’ He looked at Ron ‘Maybe they’ve finally managed to remove Sirius’s mums portrait.’ he said with a wry smile.
‘I wouldn’t count on it mate’ Ron smiled as he led Harry out of the room ‘Something tells me she’s one stubborn old witch!’

‘Alright, Harry?’ Tonks greeted him as they entered the kitchen, dangling a bit of egg-white from her fork.

‘You two, sit!’ Mrs. Weasley said sharply, she was bustling about with the pots and pans looking highly agitated. Harry tried to catch Ron’s eye but he seemed extremely concerned with where his feet were going as he moved to the table and sat without a word. Mrs. Weasley unceremoniously plonked a large bowl full of scrambled eggs between them before she sent two plates flying their way. Harry had to duck and use his lightening reflexes to grasp his plate as it came close to taking his head off, and Ron’s flew right passed him and shattered against the wall behind. Harry pulled out his wand Reparo! He handed Ron the newly repaired plate.

‘Oh!’ A dish piled high with bacon that Mrs. Weasley had been sending their way turned on its head as she blustered out of frustration. She waved her wand heatedly and the spilled bacon flew to the bin. Then she turned her back to them and started frying a new batch, mumbling grumpily under her breath.

‘What’s wrong with her?’ mouthed Harry at Tonks, giving up on Ron who seemed to be avoiding him. Tonks gave a non-committal shrug as she took another mouthful. Hermione appeared not long after, looking around at their faces sheepishly. She seemed to be aware of the tension as she sat at the table and watched Mrs. Weasley float the newly cooked bacon over to them while the pan in the sink cleaned itself.

Before the bacon dish could land safely on the table however, it began to spin wildly in mid air. Pieces of bacon flew off in all directions as Harry, Ron and Hermione ducked for cover, and Tonks was on her feet and with a wave of her wand the now empty plate came to a rest in the middle of the table.

Mrs. Weasley was beside herself. ‘Oh not another one!’
‘Maybe I’d better cook the bacon, Molly’ Tonks said as she flicked her wrist, bits of bacon lifting into the air and flinging themselves in the bin.
‘NO!’ Mrs. Weasley started ‘Oh … er … I mean, that’s quite alright dear, I can manage.’ She obviously thought the damage she was doing was still preferable to unleashing Tonks in the kitchen.

‘Morning all!’ Harry looked up and saw Mr. Weasley come through the door, Ginny trailing behind.
As he watched her remove her coat their eyes met briefly, but she looked away quickly before moving to the table and sitting opposite him. There were no more accidents with the bacon after that as they sat and ate, verbally replaying some of the previous days Quidditch.

Ginny ate in silence, pushing the food around her plate impatiently, seemingly annoyed about something. Harry had never felt sorry for a mushroom before, but watching Ginny stabbing at hers repeatedly with her fork gave him the rather uncomfortable feeling that she was not seeing a mushroom at all. Once she had reduced it to tatters she shoved it to one side of the plate and started in on an unsuspecting piece of tomato.

‘Harry, I’d like to have a chat with you, if I may?’ As the breakfast was being cleared Mr. Weasley lifted himself from the table and headed for the lounge. Harry followed, feeling all eyes on them. ‘Sit down, Harry’ Mr. Weasley said as Harry entered the room. He stood with his arm resting on the mantelpiece above the cold fireplace. ‘Lupins informed me that you will be leaving us today?’

‘Yes’ Harry said quietly.

Mr. Weasley raised one eye brow ‘I cant say I’m surprised. In fact, every morning I come down I’ve been half expecting you to be gone.’ He spoke sombrely now ‘Without Moody here I’m almost certain that would have been the case a week ago. Have you thought about where you’re going?’

Harry nodded ‘To Head Quarters.’ Mr. Weasley moved over to the armchair next to Harry and perched himself on the edge of it.

‘Harry ... you're like a son to Molly and I,’
Harry felt a dull ache in the pit of his stomach as Mr. Weasley went on quietly ‘our home is your home, and it always will be. If you want to come back … if you ever need a place to go, remember that.’ Harry didn’t speak; fearing his voice would be unsteady. Mr. Weasley sighed deeply ‘Now that you’ve come of age there’s one or two things you need to know.’ Mr. Weasley was eyeing him with a mixture of curiosity and sadness ‘I think its time you became a member of The Order of The Phoenix ... if you still want to-'

‘Of course I do.’ Harry said quickly.
Mr. Weasley nodded ‘I’ll arrange to have you inducted tomorrow. How are you getting to Head Quarters? Have you arranged to meet Lupin here?’
Harry shook his head and swallowed ‘I’m going alone.’

‘No you’re not.’ Ron and Hermione were standing in the doorway watching them. ‘I told you once before mate, Hermione and I are staying with you.’ Ron was looking at Harry seriously as he walked forward ‘Hogwarts doesn’t start for a month, until then we go where you go.’

‘No, I don’t-‘
‘Don’t argue with them!’ Mrs. Weasley appeared with Tonks at her side. Her eyes were watering as she looked sternly at Harry. ‘The three of you have been best friends for six years, and if ever there was a time you needed each other it’s now.’

‘Molly’s right,’ Mr. Weasley put his arm on Harry’s shoulder as he peered from Ron to Mrs. Weasley ‘you might as well accept it, I don’t suppose you have any choice in the matter anyway.’

Harry could see Ginny in the kitchen behind Mrs. Weasley. She was sitting with her elbows on the table and her face in her hands.

'Well...' Harry began.
‘Good! Glad that’s settled.’ Ron said, then turning his eyes on Harry he asked briskly ‘When are we leaving?’
‘As soon as we can.’ Harry said slowly, never taking his eyes off her.

[razzberry2]

.

6. R.A.B. and Snape



Harry, Ron and Hermione stood outside number 13 Gimmauld Place. Ron was holding pig's cage in one hand, the tiny owl flapping around excitedly within while Crookshanks, who was curled around Hermiones feet, eyed him impatiently. Sturgis Podmore and Hestia Jones were arguing behind them.

‘Don’t be ridiculous, Sturgis! How on earth am I going to carry that?’ said Hestia, pointing at Ron’s trunk.
‘Well you can’t float it in the middle of the street in broad daylight, can you?’ Sturgis said as he struggled with Hermiones book laden luggage.

‘We’ll come back out for it,’ said Harry over his shoulder. He and Ron were each holding an end of Harry’s trunk. Hermione was loaded down with parcels Mrs. Weasley had piled on top of her before they left. She had apparently completely emptied her kitchen cupboards in an effort to ensure they didn’t "fade away to nothing" while they were out of her care.

They walked through the small gate and up the path; Harry stopped and concentrated Number twelve Gimmauld Place The Black Family home expanded before their eyes, looking as dull and dingy as Harry remembered it. He pulled his wand out when they reached the front door, and tapped it near the twisted serpent-handle.

'Alohomora!' There was no familiar clicking of locks.
‘No, no … you cant do it like that.’ Hestia pushed her way passed Harry, she raised her wand and tapped the door ‘Open Sesame!’

Harry and Hermione exchanged looks as the locks clanked open behind the door. Ron, however was oblivious to the meaning of the password, he was tapping on Pig's cage in an effort to subdue her.
‘Who set the password?’ but before Harry had even finished asking he knew.
‘Dumbledore. Seemed to think it was rather amusing … cant think why.’ Hestia was obviously from an all-magic family, like Ron.

'Shut up Pig!' Ron said in a hushed voice. No one spoke as Harry and Ron placed their load carefully in the hall and then went out to collect the other trunk. Hestia and Sturgis relieved Hermione of some of her teetering packages and once they had retrieved the other trunk Harry and Ron stopped to look around. To his dismay Harry noticed the curtains that covered Sirius’ mums portrait were still there, though the other paintings had gone. The shrunken house-elf heads had also been removed. (Harry was thankful but silently wondered what Kreacher would have to say if he knew)

‘You take these,’ Sturgis whispered as he emptied his parcels onto Ron ‘we’ll be outside on duty.’ Hestia unloaded hers onto Harry and smiled wryly at him ‘Welcome home!’ She and Sturgis closed the door behind them leaving the three of them standing in the gloomy hall in silence.

‘Let’s take these to the kitchen.’ Hermione whispered, and they headed through the cramped doorway and down the stairs, Ron still clutching Pig's cage and Crookshanks following. The kitchen was cold, damp and gloomy and even less friendly now that Sirius was gone. They tipped their packages onto the table.

‘I’ll get a fire going.’ Ron said and he placed Pig on the sideboard and strode off towards the sitting room.
‘Might as well get this stuff put away.’ Hermione sighed and began opening the parcels. Harry picked up a piece of parchment that was lying on the bench top.

Harry,

I hope this note finds you as I feel here is the safest place for you now.

There’s a few supplies in the cupboard even though I am sure Molly did not let you leave empty handed.

Try not to disturb Mrs. Black’s portrait, I have found her most disagreeable of late.

I’ve organized for Hagrid to send Hedwig on to you, I should be back in a couple of days.

There will be Order guards on duty round the clock in the meantime,

Lupin

Harry smiled. The moon had been bright last night, so he guessed there must be a full moon due. Harry knew Lupin was no longer able to go undercover to infiltrate the werewolf underworld, of which he was secretly glad. Greyback would have seen him fighting against the Death Eaters at Hogwarts that night and Snape was bound to have given his master the names of all The Order members by now. As Harry's thoughts turned to Snape he felt his blood boil.

‘Once we’ve got this lot sorted, we’ll go up and unpack.’ Hermione was stuffing the shelves, glancing at Harry every now and then. Harry did not speak for some time, his mind was whirling with the thought of how much Snape knew. He had known that whilst Dumbledore was The Orders secretkeeper, no one except him could say the location of Headquarters. Now however with Dumbledore gone, he began to wonder if Snape was able to reveal the location of twelve Gimmauld Place.

He looked at Ron who was stoking a roaring fire and opened his mouth to speak. Twelve Grimmauld Place! His lips would not form the words and no sound came out. ‘Harry?’ he realized Ron was looking at him with a curious expression on his face.

‘We’re finished here, let’s go.’ Harry said as Hermione put the last loaf of bread away.

Harry took Sirius’s room up the top of the stairs while Ron took Pig to the room he and Harry had shared. Hermione retreated to where she and Ginny had slept last time. They made up their beds with clean linen left over from when Mrs. Weasley had been there and met back down in the kitchen around lunchtime. Crookshanks purred as he sat curled by the fire. Ron started to pull food from the cupboards and Hermione busied herself laying the table.

‘I think we should take another look at that locket and note after lunch.’ Harry was standing by the fire, staring at the flames as they licked high into the air. ‘It’s all we’ve got to go on.’
‘I’ve been thinking about that.’ Said Hermione, placing three cups beside the plates ‘What if R.A.B. isn’t a person?’ Harry looked her.

‘Whadya mean?’ Ron said doubtfully ‘What else could it be?’
Hermione shrugged ‘I don’t know, it’s just that I’ve already looked up the well known powerful witches and wizards, remember? And none of them seemed the least bit likely to have written it.’
‘Maybe they’re not well known … whoever they are.’ Ron said
‘That will make our job next to impossible then,’ said Harry, looking into the fire again.

Harry remained quietly by the fire as Ron and Hermione launched into an argument over sandwich fillings. The enormity of the task ahead of him seemed insurmountable, and yet Dumbledore had trusted him to go on. He had believed Harry capable of overcoming the odds. But then Dumbledore had also trusted Snape. He felt sick to the stomach every time he thought about it. But he had no choice but to go on and do the best he could. Over the past week Harry had developed a renewed sense of urgency. He was running out of time, he could feel it. Voldemort had wanted Harry to alienate himself for only one reason. He was coming for him.

‘Harry,’ Hermione dished up a large plate of sandwiches and sat down next to Ron. Harry turned from the fire slowly, not feeling a bit like eating anymore.
‘C’mon,’ said Ron ‘you’ll be hungry later and we’re not going to stop until dinner.’
‘That’s right,’ said Hermione gravely reading Harry’s face ‘we’ll get somewhere with it today … I know we will.’ They sat and ate in silence.


~*~*~*~


‘Arrrgh!’ Hermione let out a frustrated groan ‘I’m going to need more parchment but this is all I’ve got until we pick up some school supplies. Have either of you two got any?’ She had been working through complicated permutations of the R.A.B. letters, trying to figure out if they had hidden meanings. This was her last desperate resort to find something that would unlock what happened to the original locket, and now she had finally run out of space on her lone roll of parchment. They had worked through without dinner because none of them had felt like eating. Ron’s efforts scanning through books he had found in the study upstairs had not yielded any results either. All their time spent troubling over the problem had come to nothing and it was past eight o’clock.

Harry and Ron shook their heads in answer ‘Might find some upstairs in one of the desks.’ Harry said as he stared into the fire again, feeling frustrated and useless. He hadn’t been of any help at all, from the moment he sat down it was as if a huge mental block went up around him. Hermione lifted herself off the rug by the fire and jogged up the stairs.

‘Don’t suppose you’ve had any brainwaves?’ Ron was looking exactly how Harry felt as he turned another book over in his hands.
‘No … nothing’
‘You know, for all our efforts I get the horrible feeling the answer is staring us in the face’ Ron said.
‘Yeah … like we’re missing something.’
‘Or reading too much into it!’ Ron tilted his head to the ink covered parchment on the floor.

Harry didn’t want to admit it, but he was beginning to think Ron was right. The lack of sleep over the past couple of months had dulled Harry’s brain, and he suspected the sleepless nights spent in his room at The Burrow had had a similar effect on his two best friends. He made up his mind to try from now on to get a better nights sleep.

‘Harry!’ Hermiones voice from behind them sounded so strange that both Harry and Ron turned in their chairs to look at her. Her face was ghostly white as she stood with a fresh piece of parchment clutched in her hand. They jump up immediately.

‘What’s wrong?’ Harry said urgently.
‘Hermione! … What’s happened? … Did you get bitten by a doxy or something?’ Ron grabbed her hands and started pulling her sleeves up, inspecting her arms.
‘No!’ she breathed then looked at Harry ‘I know who R.A.B. is.’

‘Who?’

‘I’ll show you,’ Harry and Ron exchanged looks and followed her as she led them up the stairs 'I was hunting around for some parchment and for some reason I stopped to look at it' she was saying 'and there it was' She had reached the first floor and was heading into the drawing room. She finally stopped in front of the sprawling Black family tree tapestry, pointing at the very bottom of it. Harry and Ron leaned in squinting at the writing. There, in tiny black letters was the name Regulus Black.

‘Sirius’ brother?’ Ron said incredulously, but Harry knew from the moment he had seen the name that she was right.
‘Why didn’t I see it earlier' he said darkly.
'He was a Death Eater, he must have been close to Voldemort!’ said Hermione.

‘Sirius said that his brother had wanted out before the end,' Harry spoke quietly 'when he found out the lengths Voldemort was going to, to gain power.’
Ron looked stunned ‘Maybe it wasn’t the usual Death Eater activities that made him turn on V-Voldemort, maybe he found out about the Horcruxes?’

‘It could explain why he suddenly did a turn around.’ Hermione agreed
‘Regulus was a purist,’ Harry said with distaste ‘that’s why he joined the Death Eaters, but if he found out about the Horcruxes he would have realized Voldemorts true agenda, total domination and immortality.’
‘Not just elitism’ Hermione added.
‘It all fits’ Harry said gravely.

‘But Voldemort killed Regulus didn’t he?’ Ron asked
‘Yeah … or at least his Death Eaters did. But he must have had time to retrieve the locket before they found him. R.A.B. was pretty sure his own death was immanent.’

‘Well that’s it then!’ said Ron confidently ‘He found the locket and destroyed it before the Death Eaters got to him!’
‘But he didn’t know how to destroy the locket!’ Hermione put her hand out to Harry ‘Give me the note.’ Harry pulled it out of his pocket and handed it to her, she unfolded it ‘See … he wrote that he was going to destroy the locket as soon as he could.’

‘So did he destroy it before they caught up with him?’ Ron looked to Harry who was deep in thought.
'We wont know until we find it.' Hermione frowned

‘But how did he get it?’ Harry said aloud, then he looked between the two of them ‘I mean, it was protected by very powerful magic,’ his voice went flat ‘even Dumbledore had trouble, and it took the two of us. Dumbledore said it couldn’t be done alone.’

‘Maybe he took a fellow Death Eater along who wanted out too?’ Ron suggested.
‘No … Voldemort made it so that only one wizard could get to it,' Harry said darkly 'and then he enchanted it so that only two people could actually remove it.’ He hated thinking about what he had done to Dumbledore in the cave. It had all been for nothing. The locket was a fake.

Their state of excitement was slowly being replaced by disappointment. The answer they found had raised even more questions. They left the room and headed back to the warmth of the sitting room, discussing the possibilities. Hermione made some tea and they slouched in their chairs sipping it dejectedly, Crookshanks curling into her lap. Their conversations seemed to take them in circles, always the same questions popped up. It was late by the time Harry decided they were going to get no further with it tonight, so they cleaned up and headed off to their separate rooms.

Harry was feeling worn out. The excitement of finding out R.A.B.’s identity, and the consequent questions it had produced had left Harry wondering yet again about the seeming impossibility of the task ahead of him. He threw off his clothes, leaving only a t-shirt and pants on for warmth, and slid under the blankets. Before long he sank into the darkness of sleep.


~*~*~*~


There was a dull thud.

Then a slithery snake like feel intruding on Harry's skin. He squirmed slightly as he half-woke from sleep. He opened his eyes partially and tried to shift his position. But he seemed unable to move. He tried to rouse himself; his eyes opening and closing in the darkness, then suddenly, something wrapped itself around his face, sliding across his mouth and parting his lips with force. Harry let out a strangled gasp as he went to sit up, the panic rising in him, but he fought against something that bit painfully into his skin. He tried to yell but only a muffled groan escaped the dry wad in his mouth.

All traces of sleep had left him, his arms were pinned at his sides and his eyes were wide open as he thrashed about trying to break loose of the restraints that held him down. There was a sudden burst of light and his heartbeat raced. His eyes narrowed at the glare as they searched the area in front of him. A dark figure was coming into focus. Harry felt a droplet of sweat roll down his forehead as the figure moved to stand over him.

His stomach lurched painfully as he looked into the cold dark eyes of Severus Snape.


~*~*~*~


Snape’s greasy hair hung over the bed as his hand came down towards Harry’s face. Harry groaned and pulled his head away. He did not want to die like this, bound and gagged, useless and at Snape’s mercy! His eyes followed Snape’s hand as it slipped under his pillow and pulled out the wand that lay hidden beneath. Harry fought against his bonds as a wave of nausea flooded through him. Snape was going to kill him with his own wand!

‘I’d stay still if I were you.’ Snape said indifferently. Harry closed his eyes and let his head drop back on the pillow. Snape was going to kill him in the same cowardly way he had murdered Dumbledore. Harry began to shake as anger seeped through every nerve and fibre of his body.

He would not die like this! He would not lay here helplessly waiting! And with the strength of a madman, Harry suddenly thrust himself against the coarse ropes that ensnared him and for a moment it seemed that they loosened. But just as quickly they pressed in on him again, even tighter than before, cutting into his flesh. Snape watched him with a raised eyebrow.

‘You never know when to give up, do you’ seemingly bored by Harry’s useless determination. Harry squirmed; he struggled to draw breath into his lungs as the binds around him squeezed in on his body. ‘Once again you’re making things harder for yourself … you should learn to do as your told.’ Harry could feel the dampness of blood on his skin around the white-hot gouges the ropes inflicted. His eyes stung from the pain as he glared at Snape.

‘What? No witty come back?’ Sarcasm dripped from Snape’s voice. Harry seethed as he let out a muffled roar of angry frustration. ‘Unfortunately, although this conversation would be far more productive one way, it is necessary that you speak. I shall remove the gag in your mouth … however,’ Snape leaned in menacingly ‘if you should decide to yell for help, you will be sealing the fate of whomever comes to your aide. Do you understand?’ Harry felt sick as he remembered Ron and Hermione were only a floor below. He gave a slight nod; he would not call them to their deaths.

Snape straightened and pointed his wand at Harry’s face. The gag slid from his lips and retreated to the pillow. Harry ploughed his tongue around his dry mouth ‘What do you want?’ making no attempt to hide his hatred.

Snape sneered ‘As unlikely as it seems, you and I have a common problem.’
‘Yeah, you!’
‘Ah… that delightful wit of yours again.’ Snape mocked smoothly.
‘I wasn’t being funny’ Harry said through gritted teeth. ‘Get me out of these ropes!’
‘I’m afraid I cant do that, you see, I know you would attack me’ Snape’s silky voice taunted ‘and then I would have to hurt you...’ he looked down at the blood that seeped through Harry's sheets ‘again.’ he mocked distatefully.

Harry’s hatred was complete. There was no longer any trace of fear in his voice when he spoke. ‘You’re a pathetic coward who only attacks people who cant fight back!’ All traces of amusement dropped away from Snape's face as he lifted his wand and renewed its aim. ‘You’re not going to disobey your master are you?’ Harry goaded him recklessly ‘doesn’t he want me for himself. He wont be pleased with you if you do the job for him, will he now?’

Snape’s wand began to tremble slightly as his lip curled in fury. Harry thought that any minute Snape would lose the battle that obviously raged within. But it appeared his fear of Voldemort was greater than his loathing for Harry. He lowered his wand slowly.

‘You are so sure of yourself, Potter.' His distaste evident. Then he added smoothly 'One of these days, your wanton behaviour will get you into more trouble than even you can squirm out of.'

‘What do you want’ Harry’s jaw was clenched in rage. Snape’s face darkened.
‘I am here to offer you Bellatrix LeStrange.’
Harry’s jaw slackened as his eyes narrowed ‘What?’
‘You want her for what she did to that young girl,’ he said and raised an eyebrow ‘Not to mention that fool of a Godfather of yours.’

‘Don’t you dare talk about Sirius like that!’ Harry tried to sit up again, but winced painfully as the ropes tore at his raw wounds ‘He was a hundred times the man you’ll ever be.’ His anger dulled the pain as he struggled once more.

‘Really?’ Snape said with amused contempt. ‘Yes ... well, he did spend twelve highly productive years in prison, not to mention two memorable years in hiding on the run.' he mocked 'Clearly he is worthy of such high regard.’

‘You better hope these ropes hold because if I get free I’m going to tear you to pieces with my bare hands!’ Harry roared, he was using every ounce of strength he had left in him to fight his bonds, but once again they tightened so severely that Harry thought he might pass out unable to breathe.

‘You’re still as stupid and as arrogant as your father was! The more you struggle, the tighter they get.’ Snape sneered down at him ‘Lay still for a minute and you will be able to breathe, struggle…’ Snape raised his brow ‘and you will faint. I know you better than you know yourself, Potter. You want LeStrange ... and I can give her to you.’ Harry’s blood was boiling but his head swam dangerously from lack of oxygen. Sweat dripped into his eyes as he forced himself to relax and after a moment his lungs could expand more easily.

‘Some sense at last.’ Snape said lightly. Harry could tell Snape was enjoying the control he had over him.
‘Why Bellatrix?’ Harry panted, his anger had not abated; it coursed through him suppressed only by his want to hear Snape out.
‘My reasons are my own.’ Snape said coldly ‘I will tell you where and when, and all you need to do is not-mess-it-up,’ he scowled ‘if that is at all possible.’

‘Your even madder than I thought if you think I would trust you after what you did!’
Snape scoffed ‘I do not expect you to trust me.’ He said contemptuously ‘But you will do as I say. It’s the only way you will get LeStrange … and you want her, I know you do.’ he added darkly.

Harry looked up at the ceiling. He did want her; he wanted her so badly he could taste it. What if Snape was telling the truth? What if he could deliver her to Harry so he could make her pay. The thought of it consumed him. ‘What do I have to do?’

‘I will let you know when the time is right. In the meantime’ Snape turned Harry's face to him with the tip of his wand, and leaning in he said darkly ‘you must not tell anyone of our meeting. No one, do you understand? If you do, then not only will you not get Bellatrix, but you will find I will not be as pleasant the next time we meet.’

‘There wont be a next time, Snape!’ Harry hissed.

Snape momentarily faulted at the way Harry had addressed him but he recovered quickly to a look of distain ‘I will release your bonds and then I will leave. Remember what I said, Potter. You tell no one!’ Snape waved Harry’s wand at him and Harry’s body stiffened as the bonds slunk away and disappeared. Harry watched out of the corner of his eyes as Snape put the wand back under his pillow and then flick his own wand once, extinguishing the only source of light. The room fell into blackness and the sound of the bedroom door closed, signalling Snape's departure.

Harry lay motionless, furious at having been so easily overcome by Snape. His need to avenge Gabrielle meant he would bide his time. He would do as they had agreed. But one day soon he would have his chance with Snape.

As he lay there wondering how long the curse Snape had thrown at him would last, he became aware of the burning pain from his open wounds. Warm blood trickled down his skin uncomfortably.

After a time, Harry felt his body relax.

He lifted himself painfully off the bed and bathed, washing off the excess blood carefully. The warm water stung at the gashes across his chest and legs that turned out to be deeper than he had expected. Harry threw his torn and bloodied t-shirt in a drawer and pulled out his wand. He pointed it at the small splatters of blood that covered the sheets Tergeo! Hermione had used the spell to clean blood from his face last year, but the sheets remained stained.

Harry concentrated harder. This time the blood siphoned off leaving starkly white sheets again. Seeing that his wounds had started bleeding again Harry wiped them off impatiently and summoned some dressings, (though basic as he was not well versed in healing) to quell any further bleeding. Ron and Hermione must not find out he was hurt. Harry knew what their reactions would be; they would be horrified and try to convince Harry to report it. Then his chance to bring Bellatrix in would be gone.

Harry was looking around inspecting the room for traces of blood he might have missed when there was a sharp tapping at the window. He automatically spun round, clutching his chest as it protested painfully. He breathed heavily, wincing as he looked to the source of the noise.

There was a flurry of snowy white feathers hovering outside the window in the morning gloom. Harry walked over to the window somewhat gingerly and opened it. Hedwig fluttered in with a gentle hoot, carrying the backpack Harry had left at Hagrids, though Harry was glad to notice it looked much less full than he had left it. She let the bag drop on the floor and landed on the dressing table, looking somewhat pleased with herself as she lifted her leg for Harry to remove the small scroll that was tied there.

He gave Hedwig an affectionate scratch that she seemed to enjoy even more than usual. ‘I missed you too girl’ Harry smiled warmly ‘I’m glad your with me again. I’ll get you something to eat.’ He dug out some owl treats and placed them on the top of the cupboard, letting out a small gasp of pain as he stretched. Hedwig stayed where she was, eyeing Harry reproachfully. ‘It’s alright Hedwig, it’s nothing.’ She still did not move ‘Go on, go!’ he laughed softly at her concern. She fluttered up to her perch atop the cupboard and trilled gently. Harry gave her a bowl of water then sat down carefully, mindful of the pain as he read the message.

Hullo Harry,

Hedwigg has been diein to get back to you

Been pesterin me ever sins I got back from the Hollow

GRAWP says hullo too.

Hope yer sumwher safe,

don’t go doin aneethin dangerus

Say hullo to Ron and Hermione fer me

Hope to see you soon

Hagrid

It warmed Harry’s heart to hear from Hagrid, and for a short time he managed to forget about the nights events, turning his attention to GRAWP. He wondered how Hagrid was getting along with his Giant brother, from what he had seen at the funeral it appeared Hagrid had managed to get GRAWP under control, although he had not mentioned anything about the giants and whether they were yet teamed with Voldemort.

When he heard shuffling coming from downstairs he threw on his clothes and went down to the kitchen.

Hermione was busy making porridge in a large pot on the stove. She had already lit the fire so Harry went over to warm himself after greeting her. Crookshanks was lurking around her feet but as soon as Harry sat down he jumped into his lap, purring as he rubbed his head along Harry’s chest. ‘Owe’ Harry pulled Crookshanks away from his wounds and held him aloft, ‘Not today Crookshanks, sorry’ he said quietly. He plonked the cat on the floor and went over to help Hermione. Ron joined them as the breakfast was laid.

‘Had the strangest dream last night.’ he said scratching his head ‘I was watching the Weird Sisters play a concert but their music was really off, it sounded really flat, like the same note right through. Everyone was booing and throwing stuff on the stage. In the end they broke all their instruments and stalked off the stage.’ Harry frowned.

‘Now you mention it,’ Hermione sat down next to him ‘I remember dreaming I was on the Hogwarts express. Cant remember any of the details though, just the awful monotonous drone of the engines.’ Harry looked between the two of them. Snape had used the Muffliato charm on Ron and Hermione to ensure they would not be heard.

‘What?’ Ron was watching Harry.
‘Nothing,’ he took a spoon and filled his bowl ‘Hedwig arrived this morning.’
‘Any news?’
‘No. Just a note from Hagrid; he said to say hello.’

As the morning drew on, Hermione turned their conversation back to R.A.B. ‘We need to find out what he did with the locket. Harry I think you’re right; the first thing we need to figure out is how he managed to get it.’

‘Yeah, I mean he wasn’t anything special, was he?’ Ron frowned.
‘What do we know about the defences that guarded it?’ She asked Harry.

‘Like I said, only one wizard could cross to the island in the boat, and once there’ Harry’s voice lowered at the memory ‘it would take two people to remove it from the potion.’
‘But you went across in the boat with Dumbledore, didn’t you?’ Ron puzzled.

‘Yes, but he said that didn’t count because I wasn’t considered a proper wizard until I was of age.’
‘What else happened?’ Hermione prodded delicately.

‘Dumbledore made me promise to make him drink all of the potion protecting the locket’ he said grimly ‘no matter what he said once he started drinking it.’
‘Why?’ Ron asked.
‘Because he knew it was going to be impossible for him to do it himself. He knew that whatever it was ... it would cripple him.’ Harry was unable to look either of them in the face. Dumbledore's desperate pleas swamped him painfully. ‘I fed him that poison … glass after glass … until he was almost dead.’

‘You did what you had to, mate.’ Ron said quietly watching him.
‘Ron’s right … he made you promise for a reason, Harry.’

‘Once the potion was gone, the inferi attacked because I had to use the water from the lake to give Dumbledore a drink.’ Harry looked up into their horrified faces. ‘They came up out of the water and grabbed me. They would have pulled me in if Dumbledore hadn’t used fire to scare them off.’
‘Oh Harry! That’s horrible…’ Hermiones eyes watered.

They were silent for a moment until Harry spoke again ‘Point is you’d have to have some powerful magic behind you, not only to get through Voldemorts defences, but to detect magic as well.’ Harry explained how Dumbledore had felt traces of magic.

‘Regulus would have to have had someone along who was powerful enough to detect traces of magic and defend them against the inferi. He wouldn’t have been in any state to do it himself after drinking the potion.’ Harry said gravely
‘Regulus couldn’t have been anywhere near as powerful as Dumbledore.’ Ron added.

‘So …’ Hermione recounted ‘Regulus took someone along who wasn’t a wizard so they could get across the lake … but who had great power of their own to detect magic and defeat the inferi … and who would also do exactly what they were told to do even under incredible circumstances.’

The three of them looked into the fire for a moment then one by one they looked at each other ‘Kreacher!’ Ron spoke what they had all been thinking.

[razzberry2]

.

7. Ginny’s Other and Harry's Excuse



They were interrupted by a loud crash followed by a shrill screeching coming from above. They pulled out their wands and ran across the room, edging quietly up the stairs.

‘… POND SCUM! INTRUDERS IN MY NOBLE HOUSE! TRAITORS TO YOUR BLOOD! …’

Something had obviously disturbed the portrait of Mrs. Black. She was screaming at the top of her lungs. ‘MUDBLOODS AND TRAITORS! GET OUT! WHERE IS KREACHER AND THAT UNGRATEFUL BRAT CHILD OF MINE? GET OUT OF MY HOUSE! ARGGGGH! STAY AWAY FROM ME! … GET AWAY!’ Mrs. Black’s screams suddenly became more hysterical as Harry peered out from the stairwell.

‘Shut-up-or-I-will-curse-you-until-you-are-nothing-but-a-blob-of-paint’ Ginny said threateningly ‘And don’t think I don’t know how’ Harry and the others emerged from the doorway to find Tonks battling her way out from under a heap of bags, apologizing profusely, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley looking on dumbfounded as Ginny stood in duelling stance, wand pointing at Mrs. Blacks portrait. Mrs. Black was hunched in the corner of her painting with her elbow in front of her face. ‘Nooo…’ she wailed pitifully.

Harry and Ron rushed over and to their surprise the curtains pulled shut with no resistance. They turned to look at Ginny; her eyes were glittering dangerously.

‘Where did that come from?’ Ron was looking at his sister with a mixture of shock and awe.
‘She’s a horrible old bat who deserves a bit of her own back.’ Ginny said angrily, pulling herself up straight again.

‘Yes … well’ Mrs. Weasley was eyeing Ginny uncertainly ‘I think it best if we get this stuff upstairs before she starts up again.’
‘Somehow I don’t think that will be a problem.’ Harry said eyeing Ginny appreciatively. Ginny gave him a piercing look as she picked up the small cage containing Albert, her pink pigmy puff.

‘I’ll put some tea on then, shall I?’ Tonks appeared unabashed by Ginny’s display as she turned and started down the stairs towards the kitchen, Hermione and Ginny in tow. Harry felt a stab of pain in the pit of his stomach as he watched her go. She had never looked so … cold.

‘What are you doing here?’ Ron took Mr. Weasleys bags and Harry picked up the ones Tonks had dropped, then they made their way upstairs.
‘Induction day, remember?’ he said as they piled into an empty room on the first floor.
‘Take those into Hermiones room will you dear?’ Mrs. Weasley nodded at the bags Harry was carrying ‘Ginny can bunk in with her again.'

Harry turned and headed to Hermiones room. He plonked the bags down at the foot of the spare bed and one of them, a shopping bag stuffed with clothes, toppled over spilling some of its contents onto the faded rug. Harry bent down and grabbed a handful of clothes, stuffing them back into the overly full bag.

As he reached for the last piece of clothing; a soft pink fleecy jumper of Ginny’s he was particularly fond of, he noticed a white card lying just under the bed. He picked it up and turned it over and what he saw made his stomach drop. Staring back out at him, smiling lazily was Ginny. She looked content and happy as she leaned against Dean Thomas’s chest. He was grinning at Ginny with his arm comfortably around her. It had been taken the day they had played Quidditch at The Burrow.

Seeing her so intimate with another man clawed at his heart. So this is why she had seemed so cold. He brought his hand up under his glasses, and rubbed his eyes, the ache in him swelling painfully. He hadn’t noticed them together that day. How long had she been in contact with him again? He chided himself for being stupid. It was what he wanted, wasn’t it? He’d told her they could not be together so of course she would move on. And yet he felt ... betrayed.

The hurt in him made him angry and his fists clenched. Just two nights ago on the same day the photo had been taken she had come to his bed. Is this why she had gone to leave him when he had denied her? Had she come to him because she could not go to Dean? The thought made him sick. He had been struggling to let her go but now he had been jolted back to reality. He couldn’t bring himself to look at the photo again; instead he stuffed it into the bag, covering it with the pink jumper.

He went back down to the kitchen where Hermione and Ginny were huddled in conversation. Tonks handed him a cup of tea. When Hermione finally looked up she gave Harry a questioning frown. Harry was staring at Ginny, watching her stroke Crookshanks who was curled in her lap purring loudly. Albert was nuzzling into her neck on her shoulder. Barely controlled anger rippled through him, daring her to look at him. But Ginny did not look up. She went on petting Crookshanks, smiling at him and talking softly in his ear. Hermione glanced at Ginny then back at Harry again. ‘Is everything alright, Harry?’

‘Everything’s just fine’ he said, irritated at his own pain. He turned his back on them and added a spoon a sugar to his cup.

‘Well … that’s all done!’ said Mr. Weasley briskly as he entered the room. ‘Fred and George will be here later this afternoon. Lupin not back yet?’

‘No’ Harry said leaning back against the bench stirring his tea, he was glad he would have a distraction when the twins arrived.
‘If he’s not back I think we should postpone it. He will want to be here I’m sure.’
‘Is that really necessary?’ Harry said impatiently.

Mr. Weasley was looking at him with the same inquiring frown as Hermione. ‘Yes, actually. I think it is.’ He said seriously ‘He is the head of The Order now and should be present at the induction of three new members.’

Harry looked up ‘Three?’ he said abruptly, looking around at Ron, who had just come in and sat down at the table 'You don’t mean…’ but he couldn’t finish what he was about to say, he knew how it would have sounded to Ron and Hermione who were already eyeing him challengingly.

‘No.’ Mr. Weasley answered, following Harry's thoughts. ‘Fred and George are becoming official members too.’
‘Oh … right’ Harry exhaled with relief.
‘You don’t have to sound so relieved … it wasn’t from lack of trying, believe me!’ said Ron, shooting a glance at Mr. Weasley.

‘The Order does not accept people who are still at school, Ron.’ Mr. Weasley said sternly ‘Harry will be our youngest member ever and I doubt there will ever be one as young as him again. His case is unique, as I’ve explained to you before.’ Ron rolled his eyes.

‘We haven’t got our letters yet’ Hermione chimed in ‘maybe we wont be going to school this year either.’
‘In that event, you still wont be joining The Order. I am sure there are other things for which you could be put to use’
‘Like what?’ Ron said defensively

‘We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it!’ Mrs. Weasley had been standing in the doorway listening. ‘Ginny, has that cat of yours turned up yet?’

‘What cat?’ Ron asked what Harry had been thinking.
‘No, not yet’ Ginny said without looking up, her attention on Albert.

‘What cat?’

‘There’s been a cat hanging around at The Burrow the past few days,’ Mrs. Weasley reached into the cupboard and pulled out some potatoes ‘We’ve seen it on occasion before but it’s been around a lot lately,’ She fussed about getting knives out of the draws ‘comes and goes as it pleases, seems to spend most of it’s time looking for Ginny, at least it’s always in her room. Why she’d want with another pet, I don’t know.’

‘Why don’t you just boot it out?’ Ron asked
‘Because I’ve adopted it!’ Ginny said angrily ‘and if you harm it in any way I’ll-'
‘Steady on … I wouldn’t do anything to it … I just thought if you wanted rid of it-'
‘Well I don’t! And if it turns up you leave it alone!’ Ginny said, her eyes blazing.
‘Fair enough.’ Ron shrugged ‘What does it look like so I know not to kick it out the door.’ Ginny scowled at him

‘It’s got rusty coloured long fur’ said Mr. Weasley who had been following the conversation behind his copy of the Daily Prophet ‘with white patches on it’s face and feet. Quite a young cat I think, rather smart too.’ He smiled appreciatively ‘It frightened a gnome out of my boot that would have given me a nasty bite had I of managed to put my foot in it.’

‘Hermione and Ginny, you can give me a hand with lunch.’ Mrs. Weasley had knives chopping speedily as she poured a sauce into a pan on the stove.
‘I’ll be outside then.’ Tonks appeared to have given up offering her help in the kitchen and she left to relieve for guard duty.

Harry gulped down his tea and went up to his room, the last thing he wanted to do was eat. He stood by the window and looked out at the overgrown grass in the front yard. He felt petty and selfish at his own jealousy. He should’ve been glad for Ginny, she was moving on and doing exactly as he had asked. But the ache within him would not abate. He was embarrassed to think part of him had held some hope that she would wait for him ... even pine longingly for him.

He walked over to Hedwig and wincing, reached an arm up for her to sit on. She fluttered down and blinked at him expectantly. ‘Looks like it’ll always be you and me girl’ he said softly, stroking the feathers above her beak. He opened the drawer and pushed aside his bloodied t-shirt to get at the owl treats. Grabbing a handful he sat on the bed and let Hedwig perch on his knee. As he sat feeding them to her, he heard footsteps coming up the stairs.

Expecting Ron or Hermione coming to get him for lunch he said ‘It’s okay, I’m not hungry!’ The shadowy figure did not speak as it came to a stop in the doorway. ‘I’ll eat later…’ His voice trailed off as he saw Ginny standing there watching him. His face immediately changed and he turned back to Hedwig. ‘I’ll be down later.’ He said gravely, his heart was pounding in his chest as she stepped into the room.

‘You didn’t even say goodbye’ Her voice was little more than a whisper. ‘At The Burrow … I thought at least you would say goodbye-'
‘What was the point’ Harry said callously, concentrating on Hedwig ‘you’re here now aren’t you?’ he wanted to hurt her. He wanted Ginny to know how he felt.

She hesitated for a moment then slowly and uncertainly walked further into the room, running her hand along the dressing table. As she spoke she sounded reluctant to talk, and Harry found he did not feel for her.

‘Harry, I need to tell you something…’ She said slowly. He watched her as she paused, her expression darkening as she looked down at the dresser. With a sudden intake of breath Harry realized why she had stopped talking. He jumped up, sending Hedwig screeching in a flurry of feathers back to the top of the wardrobe. Before he could reach the drawer he had sloppily left open, Ginny had yanked out his t-shirt, her eyes scanning the torn and bloodied marks in horror.

‘What is this?’ she breathed, her brow frowning deeply.
He snatched the top and threw it in the cupboard, slamming it closed angrily. ‘Nothing … it’s nothing!’
‘Harry, what happened?’ she tried to catch his eye, her voice full of concern. Harry was furious with himself for being so careless, and he directed his anger onto Ginny.

‘Nothing that concerns you Ginny, so just butt out! This is none of your business!’ his anger had finally reached boiling point. ‘You’ve got no right to come in here and start asking questions! And you’d better not repeat what you just saw!’ He flung his arms up and clasped them behind his head in frustration, ignoring the burning pain from his wounds.

‘Arrrrgh! Why isn’t anything ever easy!’ He closed his eyes for a moment before looking at Ginny, who was staring wide-eyed at him. He knew this was the perfect moment so he seized it. ‘I’ve already told you to stay away from me but you keep coming back! Listen to me! Stay out of my business and out of my life!’ As he said it his body shuddered. Not from rage; he felt like he was being torn in two.

He breathed heavily, his eyes on the floor waiting to hear her footsteps running from the room. He had said what he had not been able to bring himself to say until now. He despised himself for his outburst, so much so that he was not able to look at her. There was a long silence in which she stood motionless, and then she walked up to him and touched her hand to his face. In spite of himself he pressed his cheek to her palm, his eyes heavy with the tenderness of her touch.

‘I know what you’re doing’ her green eyes swelled with tears ‘and it only makes me want to be with you even more.’ and she closed her eyes and kissed him as bittersweet tears spilled onto her cheeks. He felt sure she had been ready to tell him about Dean, but he did not want to hear it from her mouth. A mouth that was both so sweet and yet so cruel at the same time. He kissed her fiercely, punishing her for her betrayal of him. When they pulled apart her lips were red and swollen.

‘You can’t drive me away, Harry,’ her face was full of sadness, her voice unsteady ‘no matter what you say. The way I feel ... no one can take that away … not even you.’
Harry scooped her to him again ‘You make me nuts, you know that?' he breathed and this time he kissed her with all the tenderness of her words. A sad smile crept across her lips as she pulled away from him.

‘Harry! Ginny! Lunch is on the table!’ Mrs. Weasley yelled up the stairwell to them.

‘We’ll be down in a few minutes!’ Ginny yelled out of the doorway and then went to the draws and pulled out a fresh t-shirt. Harry frowned, still breathing heavily with passion. He followed her gaze down at his chest and for the first time he realized his wounds had been bleeding again, the dark patches of blood had seeped through his bandages and were creeping across his maroon t-shirt.

‘Here’ she said quietly ‘let me help you’ She lifted his t-shirt over his head and redressed his wounds with bandages she summoned, far better than those Harry had managed to call upon. He was surprised she knew such magic but she waved it off, attributing it to watching her mother. She did not ask him any more questions and Harry did not offer her any answers. There was an understanding between them, one that he could not have trusted to anyone else.


~*~*~*~


Fred and George arrived in the late afternoon carrying a box of test items eventually due for their store. They settled in for the evening, sharing Ron’s room after a sumptuous roast served up by Mrs. Weasley.

That night as Harry laid waiting for sleep to take him with his door slightly ajar, he felt something leap onto the covers by his feet. Crookshanks! He thought, but when he lifted his head to greet him as it padded up alongside his body, he realized in the moonlight that this cat was much smaller than Crookshanks, it was also darker in colour though it had delicate white paws that gave the impression it was wearing socks, and it’s face was also patched with white fur that gave it a definite feminine appearance.

It looked like Ginny’s cat had turned up after all and as he reached out to pet it, he noticed how soft and silky it’s fur was. It nuzzled affectionately into his hand making it’s way up to his face, and purring loudly it settled, laying its head on his pillow with it’s body stretched out below it. Harry laughed softly.

‘Shouldn’t you be with your mistress? Or has she sent you to keep an eye on me?’ he mused. He continued playing with its fur and stroking its head as he laid his head back down and before long he drifted off into a peaceful sleep.


~*~*~*~


The next morning Lupin turned up, and by lunchtime a crowd of Order members had gathered around the large kitchen table. Mrs. Black had been set off three times as they had arrived banging on the door or ringing the bell. She had launched into her usual rant, though the moment Ginny had appeared with her wand drawn she had retreated back into the corner of her painting wailing at the injustice of it all. Everyone appeared most impressed by her ability to quell Mrs. Black and it was mentioned in passing jest more than once that she should be added to the list inductees to The Order.

Once everyone had arrived, Lupin asked all non-members to leave the table and then he called on Fred, George and Harry to stand.

‘Before we get down to the latest Order business’ Lupin said as he looked around ‘we will swear in our three new members.’ Lupin looked down to the opposite end of the table where Harry and the twins stood. He spoke ominously.

‘You should not undertake membership into The Order of The Phoenix lightly.’ He said, looking from one to the other. ‘If it is adventure and glory you seek then you will not find it here. Being an Order member is an extremely dangerous and rather thankless job,’ he said seriously ‘if you have any doubts about joining, you should speak now before we go any further. There is no shame in admitting that The Order is not for you.’ Harry and the twins stood silently firm.

Lupin sighed gravely ‘Right then, there is a short swearing in first and then we will get on with business.’ Lupin shuffled through some papers on the table in front of him. Harry looked down at his feet as he felt something nudge his leg. Ginny’s cat had curled itself around his legs; it’s tail high in the air. He watched as it sat down partially on his foot and looked up at him with its green eyes. He smiled at it faintly amused. It had gone by the time he woke in the morning and yet he’d had the feeling that it had stayed with him all night. He turned his attention back to Lupin.

He was holding a piece of parchment in his hand from which he started reading aloud in the monotonous tone of someone going through the motions.

‘You will now be asked to swear an oath of allegiance to The Order of The Phoenix. In doing so you will become privy to all knowledge The Order has already accumulated and you will also be able to partake in any sharing of new information as it comes to hand. As a member of the secret society you will be expected as individuals to uphold to the same truths and ideals as The Order itself.’

Harry swallowed; he had a rather uneasy feeling of where this was going.

‘The Order of The Phoenix relies heavily on all of us acting as one,’ Lupin read on, unaware of Harry’s increasing discomfort ‘and as such, no member is to act alone in matters directly relating to the business of The Order. As a member you will be required to share any or all information that may be relevant to our cause of which you either presently or in the future have knowledge of.’

Lupin had said it, exactly that which Harry had feared. Lupin looked over the top of the parchment at the three of them. ‘Do you understand the terms thus far before we continue?’

‘Yes’ Fred and George said in unison.

Harry stood with a frown on his face; an internal struggle raging within him. He had wanted to join The Order ever since he knew of its existence, but how could he under the circumstances? As the long silence stretched out The Order members who had been staring at the table or looking out the small, high window disinterestedly started to turn their heads to look at him. Harry was eyeing them all uncomfortably; aware he was backing himself into a corner with his silence.

‘Harry?’ Lupin's tone was one of doubt as he leant his hands on the table in front of him. ‘Do you have something to say?’ Harry’s mind was racing. Why hadn’t he thought of this? He was unwittingly full of secrets that he had absolutely no intention of revealing to any of them. Dumbledore had told him to tell no one other than Ron and Hermione about Voldemort's means of immortality, and to get to Bellatrix he knew he was going to have to keep Snapes little visit to himself as well. Harry could not, in good conscience, join them on a lie.

‘I-I’ve changed my mind.’ Harry could think of no other way out of it. ‘I don’t think I’m ready to join yet.’ He could feel the colour rising in his cheeks. ‘I’d like to think about it, maybe join later like you said.’ Harry thought the guilt he was feeling was written all over his face. ‘I-I’m sorry … I don’t mean to waste your time.’ And without looking at them he moved quickly out of the room and climbed the stairs, leaving a stunned silence behind him.

He went straight on up to his room, not wanting to face anyone. He knew Ron and Hermione would understand once he explained the situation, after all they too shared the Horcrux secret. But Ginny, she would think he was a coward and he would not be able to explain.

As he went to close the door behind him, the small red and white cat darted into the closing gap and ran passed him, jumping onto his bed. Hedwig watched the cat from her perch with interest as Harry walked over to it, picked it up, and holding it aloft in front of him, sat down.

‘Back again … what’s your name anyway?’ He pulled the cat to his chest and rubbed it affectionately on the neck. ‘I guess I’m going to have a lot of explaining to do when the meeting is over. I’d better come up with something good too.’ he said under his breath.

‘What do you think Socks?’ the cat clawed gently up his chest and rubbed it’s head under Harry’s chin. ‘Lupins never going to understand … and neither is Ginny.’ He said thoughtfully, but then he was distracted by the fervent purring of Socks as she rubbed herself around Harry’s neck. He lay back on his arm with her curled into his chest and he spent a long while just stroking her. She rolled on her back playfully and batted Harry’s hand softly with her front paws as he smiled affectionately at her. Then there was a knock at the door.

‘Come in.’ Harry sat up and Socks jumped off the bed. Lupin swung the door open and entered, a grave look on his face, and as he closed the door Socks darted through it and down the stairs.

‘Harry,’ he sounded very serious though Harry could detect no anger in his voice. ‘I want to talk to you about what happened down stairs.’ Harry waited for it, wondering how he was going to get out of this convincingly. Lupin sat on the bed next to him ‘I’m sorry we put you in such an awkward position.’ Harry was thrown by this statement and could think of nothing to say.

‘Arthur and I should have realized that you were too young still. We were carried away with your past performance and assumed too much.’ Harry sat bewildered ‘Of course you’re not ready to join The Order, you’ve had enough to deal with without taking on the added responsibility that comes with belonging to such a society,’ Lupin put his hand on Harry’s shoulder ‘and there was no need to be embarrassed. Not a single person present in that room thinks any less of you, they are all very much aware of what you have done in the past.’

Harry finally understood what he was talking about. Lupin and the others had thought his red-faced silence had been from embarrassment. They actually thought he feared becoming a member of The Order. Relief wash over him. He wouldn’t have to come up with some half-baked excuse and they remained clueless as to the real reason why he had backed out.

He gave Lupin the most sheepish look he could muster ‘Yeah … I just didn’t feel ready after all.’
‘That’s quite understandable, Harry.’ Lupin said sincerely.
‘Suppose Fred and George are in?’ he must have overplayed his disappointment because Lupin put his arm around the back of Harry’s shoulders and joggled him reassuringly.

‘You’ll make it one day Harry, when you’re ready. And I’m willing to bet you’ll be the most outstanding member The Order has ever seen,’ then Lupin added with a smile ‘besides Dumbledore.’ Then Lupin lifted himself from the bed and headed for the door. ‘Would you like me to send Ron and Hermione up?’ Lupin was being rather tactful about Harry’s supposed embarrassment and although Harry had been glad it had worked out this way, he couldn’t help but feel miffed that Lupin had believed Harry afraid of joining The Order. But he swallowed his pride.

‘Yeah. Thanks.’

When Ron and Hermione entered the room Harry could see by the look on their faces that Lupin had told them his version of events. Hermione approached him as she would a sick pigmy puff and Ron looked just plain uncomfortable. It irritated Harry even more to think his own two best friends would believe it of him.

‘Are you okay, Harry?’ Hermione sat down next to him and touched his arm reassuringly. Harry tilted his head at her and gave her a sarcastic look.

‘Before you both start’ he sighed ‘the reason I didn’t join The Order is because you are bound to reveal all information pertaining to Voldemort that you know, which means that I would have had to tell them about the Horcruxes, alright? Lupin and the others just assumed I was scared and I didn’t correct them because it would have led to all sorts of questions that I couldn’t answer!’

‘Oh’ Hermione removed her hand as her cheeks went pink.
‘I knew it had to be something like that!’ Ron sat down on Harry’s other side and grinned at him ‘didn’t believe a word of what Lupin said.’
‘Oh really?’ said Hermione as she raised an eyebrow ‘That’s why you wanted me to come up here on my own to talk to him first, was it?’

It was Rons turn to turn pink.

‘Look, it doesn’t matter now.’ Harry said ‘We’ve bought some time, so lets spend it going over what we’ve learned so far about the locket.’
‘Good idea!’ said Hermione shooting Ron a disapproving look ‘Well we’re all in agreement that it could have been Kreacher who helped Regulus obtain the locket right?’ Ron nodded as Harry picked up Socks who had wandered into the room again tailing Ron and Hermione. He stood up and carried her over to the door, pushing it closed, then sat down on the rug and placed Socks in the crook of his crossed legs.

‘It’s the best theory we’ve got to go on’ he said ‘so I guess the next step is to question Kreacher’
‘That’ll be a delightful treat.’ Said Ron flatly.

‘If he was with Regulus when he obtained the Horcrux he may be able to tell us what happened to it.’ Hermione was looking curiously at Socks. ‘Is that Ginny’s cat?’
‘Yeah’ said Harry ‘so … I suppose I’d better call him then.’ He said reluctantly.
‘What’s its name?’
‘What? Oh … I don’t know, I’ve been calling her Socks, she seems to like it.’ She was purring loudly and had her eyes squished together enjoying Harry’s attention.

‘Do you think he’ll come?’ Ron asked obviously hopeful the answer would be no.
Harry shrugged ‘He’s come when I’ve called before.’
‘He has to come. Give him a call!' Hermione said.

All three of them were silent for a moment, Ron had raised his eyebrow in anticipation while Hermione grimaced and Harry was looking at them both with a wry smile. He rose off the floor and looked up at the air in front of him and called ‘Kreacher!’


CRACK!


At first Harry couldn’t quite work out what he was looking at, it appeared to be a house elf but it had too many arms and legs.

‘He calls me!’ it croaked ‘the mudblood lover calls me to him, in my Mistresses home no less. Kreacher will go and speak with his Mistress, yes-’
‘Harry Potter is your master and Dobby is loyal, even if nasty Kreacher is not!’ another voice squeaked.

‘Dobby? … What’s going on? What are you doing here?’ Harry was standing with Socks perched on his foot looking down in puzzlement.
It appeared that Kreacher and Dobby were stuck together, though how Harry couldn’t tell.

[razzberry2]

.

8. Kreacher’s Mischief and Ministry Woes



It was a most peculiar sight.

Kreacher and Dobby were standing back to back and did not seem able to put any distance between each other, rather like they had been glued together.

‘Harry Potter! Dobby is most pleased to see you.’ Dobby squeaked enthusiastically and immediately went into a low bow. Kreacher, on the other hand, was somewhat less than awed at the site of Harry and looked extremely disgruntled as he resigned himself to being dragged off his feet onto Dobby’s back with his legs dangling in the air in front of him.

‘What happened?’ Hermione seemed more than a little distressed at their predicament. ‘How long have you been like this?’
‘The mudblood speaks to Kreacher!’ Wide-eyed and faking shock, Kreacher placed his long bony fingers in his ears. ‘The Mistress will see, oh yes, she will see her Kreacher does not listen to it.’ his crooked legs still splayed in the air.

‘How did you two get stuck together then?’ Ron asked as if he were talking to a couple of misbehaving children.

‘Dobby, what’s going on?’ Harry said getting a little frustrated.
‘Dobby is trying to protect Harry Potter’ Dobby straightened defiantly, letting Kreacher’s feet touch the floor once more. ‘Dobby is seeing Kreacher sneaking, so Dobby is binding us to make Dobby go where Kreacher goes.’

‘Stupid elf with funny hats knows not what he is doing!' Kreacher said loudly to himself ‘Kreacher will find a way to break stupid elf’s bond.’

‘What do you mean, sneaking?’ Harry frowned, eyeing Kreacher.

‘Dobby knows Kreacher is up to mischief!’ Dobby turned his head awkwardly to look at Kreacher through narrowed eyes ‘Kreacher is going to betray his master, Dobby knows HE IS A BAD ELF!’ his voice getting angrier with every word.

‘What are you talking about?’
‘Master knows Kreacher cannot disobey him.’ Kreacher interrupted slyly, still facing in the opposite direction. ‘Kreacher is doing as Master ordered.’

‘Dobby, you can’t stay stuck together like this!’ Hermione sounded exasperated. ‘You’ll have to undo the spell!’ she said as she crossed her arms.

Harry was trying to walk around Dobby to get to Kreacher but the little elf kept shuffling around enthusiastically so he remained facing Harry, eventually Harry grabbed his bony little arm to make him stay put and crouched down in front of Kreacher. Harry looked into his bloodshot grey eyes.

‘What have you been up to?’ he said suspiciously.
Kreacher seemed rather pleased with Harry’s reaction. ‘Kreacher is only following his Masters orders.’ His continual emphasis on the word Master glowed with contempt.
Harry narrowed his eyes ‘What did I tell you to do?’ he asked slowly.
‘Master cannot remember his own orders? Kreacher is indeed unfortunate to serve under such a lowly wizard!’

Harry clenched his jaw as Ron and Hermione looked on in anxious silence. ‘What-did-I-tell-you-to-do, Kreacher?’
Kreacher bowed dramatically, leaving Dobby flailing as his legs left the floor. ‘You had Kreacher follow the brave and daring Master Malfoy.’ he said treacherously.

There was a sudden knock at the door and Harry, Ron and Hermione looked up sharply. ‘Just a minute’ Harry threw at the door urgently as he stood up. Socks scattered and jumped onto the bed. ‘You’re both going to have to leave,’ Harry said quietly, but before he could finish the door flung open and Fred and George stepped into the room.

‘Told you!’ Fred said triumphantly, pointing at the two elves now struggling with each other to get the best view of the doorway. ‘Knew he wouldn’t disappoint us.’

‘What are you doing?’ Harry was angry at having been caught.

‘Didn’t honestly expect us to believe that tripe you told Lupin, did you?’ George raised his eyebrows ‘Not ready to join The Order! Pull the other one!’
‘This, coming from the kid who swiped an egg from a brooding Horntail.’ Fred chimed in.
‘And destroyed a Basilisk to rescue our little sister.’
‘Not to mention the Death Eaters-'

‘Alright!’ Harry said impatiently ‘so you caught me. Suppose now you’re bound tell the rest of them.’

‘Don’t be daft!’
‘What ever you’ve got going on, if it’s important enough to stop you from joining The Order, then we’re not going to tell them.’ George said.
‘Right! However we do want in on it.’ Fred said unabashedly.
‘Absolutely. Anyway they made it quite clear in the meeting that we were not going to be allowed out in the field as Order members…’
‘So basically we now hold the unofficial title of Order mascots.’
‘Which is not what we signed up for, is it?’ George swept into the room and crouched in front of the elves, studying them curiously. ‘What happened to these two?’

‘They’re stuck together’ said Ron flatly.

‘Leave it to you to state the bleedin obvious’ Fred walked over to Kreacher and pointed his wand at the elf. There was a flash of white light and a whooshing sound, and then Dobby and Kreacher broke apart scowling at one another.

‘Well that’s that! So what’s going on then?’ George said as he stood and faced Harry.

The trio exchanged looks before Harry slowly spoke ‘Kreacher has been following Malfoy.’
‘What?’ Fred looked flummoxed as he looked back at Kreacher.
‘Well … where is the little toe rag?’ asked George.
‘I don’t know, I was just about to ask before you came in.’
‘Don’t let us stop you.’ Fred ushered Kreacher over to Harry. Harry felt it was a reasonable trade-off involving Fred and George in the news about Malfoy rather than giving them the real reason he had called Kreacher.

‘Well Kreacher?’ Harry said expectantly ‘Where is he?’
‘Kreacher cannot say.’ the wrinkly little elf bowed extravagantly once more. ‘Kreacher has been unable to follow the noble and handsome Draco all the way to his location.’

‘The what?’ George said dubiously.
‘Never mind,’ said Harry with a sigh, and then turning back to Kreacher he asked ‘why?’
Kreacher lifted his head smugly ‘because the stupid elf with clothes will not let me.’

Fred caught Dobby’s arm as he tried to throw himself at Kreacher. ‘Dobby is not stupid!’ he squawked angrily, arms flailing madly. ‘Kreacher cannot be trusted! Kreacher is a bad house elf!’

‘Hang on, so have been following him or not?’ Ron was looking extremely confused.
‘Kreacher humbly follows in Draco's aristocratic wake when he is at Hogwarts.’

‘Hogwarts?’ Fred, George and Ron said in unison.

‘Are you telling me that Draco is wandering around the school undetected … whenever he feels like it?’ Harry said doubtfully
‘Kreacher did not say that.’ he smiled slyly.
‘Then tell me what he is doing there!’ Harry said losing his patience with Kreacher. ‘And I want you to be specific! How often … and which rooms he goes to!’

‘Master is cunning.’ Kreacher’s smug expression dissolved as he realized his game of verbal cat and mouse was over. ‘Kreacher has been privileged to watch the dashing young Malfoy twice as he has made his way into the Headmasters office’

‘He’s been inside Dumbledore’s office?’ Hermione said as she stepped forward. Kreacher covered his ears to block her out but before he could say anything insulting Hermione leant down and yanked his arms away from the side of his head in frustration, her enormous patience with Kreacher had finally worn thin. ‘What was he doing in there?’ she demanded.

‘The mudblood touched Kreacher-'
‘What was he doing in there?’ Hermiones eyes blazed. Kreacher still did not acknowledge her.
‘ANSWER HER!’ Harry commanded furiously.

‘He spoke with one of the portraits.’ Kreacher bit back defeated and then with a CRACK he was gone.

‘Dobby! Will you keep an eye on him for me? Don’t try to stop him but watch him okay?’
‘Dobby would be proud to do as you ask, Harry Potter!’ Dobby answered, lifting his head to its full height, and with a CRACK he was gone too.

‘What’s all that noise up there?’ Mrs. Weasleys voice echoed through the door.
‘Just showing Harry one of our new Lung Buster Bubblegums!’ Fred opened it a crack and yelled back as Socks darted through and down the stairs, apparently scared off by all the noise.
‘For goodness sake! I’ve told you about chewing those in the house!’ she yelled back ‘All of you can come on down anyway. I’m serving up an early dinner now everyone’s gone.’

They didn’t get a chance to discuss any further the bombshell that Draco had been back to Hogwarts over the holidays. Lupin had left and Mr. Weasley was leaving on an assignment for the ministry the next morning and Mrs. Weasley insisted they spend the remaining time together as a family. She ignored the twin’s obvious annoyance, mistakenly putting it down to their disappointment at not being asked to play an active roll in The Order.

Harry was distracted by the fact that he hadn’t gotten around to asking Kreacher about the locket, and spent most of the evening in deep thought, offering a grunt in answer here and there when it was expected of him. Ron and Hermione valiantly tried several times to excuse themselves early in the hopes they could congregate in private somewhere else in the house, but Mrs. Weasley was having none of it. She was unusually determined to keep them all together.

When it was finally late enough to get away with it, Ginny announced her intentions to retire and brushed past Harry on her way up to bed. It seemed to him she had come unnecessarily close and it jolted him out of his state of self-imposed isolation, awakening in him that familiar need that only she could arouse, and only she could fill.

Yet instead of finding it a pleasant sensation Harry found it frustrating; he could not seek the fulfilment he so desperately craved and so when he finally retired to his own room he lay awake for what seemed like hours, his body tense and his mind a mess of images and emotions. Eventually he was wound up so tightly, he gave up on sleep and threw on his jeans. He sat on the bed and leaned himself on the window ledge, looking out at the frosted bluish light illuminating the street.


~*~*~*~


Harry was gently roused by the smooth touch of warm hands on his bare shoulders.

The cool evening breeze drifted through the open space in the window as he lifted his head slowly from the crook of his arm on the windowsill. He closed his eyes again as he felt Ginny’s soft lips on his neck. He wanted to lose himself in her, he wanted to bury his frustration and unleash the passion that ebbed through him. She let her hands find their way to his and he clasped them tightly, holding onto the feel of her body as she pressed it against his back.

‘Don’t turn me away again.’ she whispered in his ear. An incredible ache racked through his body at her words, awakening a desire he could not control. He turned as he pulled her to him. Their lips met in a flare of passion, her breathing as ragged as his, her desire as complete. He eased her back on the bed as she bit at his bottom lip playfully, her hushed throaty laugh clearing his mind of everything except her.

Every nerve in him felt alive with her touch, and as he brought his body down on hers, she shuddered slightly, wrapping her hands around the back of his neck and kissing him longingly. Their lips were locked together as Harry swam in her caresses but a thought was growing in the back of his mind. He tried to shut it out, increasing the pressure of his lips on hers, pressing his eyes tightly shut, but it refused to be denied.

Harry let out a low rumble in the back of his throat as he pulled his head up. He could see Ginny’s glistening eyes in the moonlight as she tilted her head and frowned slightly, but Harry knew she was expecting him to pull away. He looked painfully into her eyes, wondering if she could understand. He could not voice the thought that had brought him to a grinding halt. He could not speak the words that lingered in his mind. But he would act on them because they could not be ignored.

Slowly Ginny sat up as Harry moved his body off her and made way for her to leave him, as he knew she would. She looked down at the bed covers unable to meet his gaze.

‘I want to stay with you anyway,’ her voice broke as the tears spilled down her cheeks. ‘I don’t care anymore’ Harry lifted her chin gently ‘I don’t want to leave you.’

Harry wrapped his protective arms around her and held her to him as she wept silently, and finally when she was ready to return to her own bed, he kissed her tenderly, memorizing every curve of her lips.


~*~*~*~


Their letters arrived a few days later and Harry felt some relief that Hogwarts would be reopening again this year. Now he knew Malfoy had been back to the castle he felt the overwhelming need to return there as well.

In the final weeks before school Ginny did not appear in Harry’s room in the middle of the night. It was not as if there was no longer anything between them, but finally she seemed to accept Harry’s choice to let her go, though he had to remind himself nightly why he had chosen to do so. Instead, Socks had kept him company most nights. She seemed to have adopted him, and Harry was becoming very attached to her, in fact some nights he found himself waiting to feel her familiar spring onto the bed and warm body curled against his before he would drift into a peaceful sleep. She was rarely about during the day though, and when he asked, Ginny had waved it off saying Socks was usually to be found in some nook of the house sleeping. Harry wondered vaguely at how much a cat could sleep.

Crookshanks appeared to pay no mind to Socks one way or the other, seemingly thoroughly uninterested when she padded into the room. On occasion Harry would discover her skulking around when he was alone with Ron and Hermione, and he would pick her up and play with her while thinking on what they would do next. Though for some reason Hermione seemed to be growing increasingly uncomfortable as she studied Harry toying with his playmate, eventually taking to searching the room and upon finding Socks, she would unceremoniously dump her outside the door before they were allowed to discuss anything, much to Harry’s, and Socks’s annoyance.

During their talks they had agreed that it was too risky to summon Kreacher back to Grimmauld Place. The disturbance that inevitably followed when he and Dobby were in a room together was much harder to explain away now that Fred and George had gone, so it was decided that Harry would wait until he was at Hogwarts to question him about the locket.

The day finally came for the trip to Diagon Alley for the years school supplies. With the growing threat from Voldemort's minions, and the fact that many students were not expected to return to school after the summer, McGonagall had arranged a day for the students and family’s to visit Diagon Alley in relative safety to pick up their supplies while under the protection of the ministry aurors.

Mr. Weasley mused that the ministry was very keen to catch up with Harry after he had slipped through their grasp at The Burrow, returning to Grimmauld Place. Apparently Scrimgeour had launched into a red-faced rant when he had found out they had lost Harry, with Mr. Weasley himself coming under fire being accused of aiding and abetting Harry’s "escape", but Mr. Weasley was able to confidently state that he was in no way able to tell the ministry where Harry was. This was of course absolutely true as he was not the Orders secretkeeper.

For the first time, they were going to apparate into Diagon Alley as it seemed the quickest and safest way to travel now that they all had their licenses, except of course Ginny, who was extremely put out that she was going to be left behind.

‘You don’t need new robes Ginny, you’ve barely grown in size over the past year!’ was all Mrs. Weasley would offer in way of comfort. Harry had immediately asked who was staying behind to guard her and Lupin had looked at him curiously, clear he hadn’t thought it necessary. But the last thing Harry wanted was for Snape to pay a little visit while they were gone and find Ginny alone. Without voicing his real reasons why, Harry managed to convince Lupin that just because he wasn’t there, didn’t mean she wasn’t in any danger, and under the helpful growingly indignant gaze of Mrs. Weasley, Lupin assigned Hestia to stay behind.

Sturgis and Tonks were gathered in the kitchen having already been enlisted for added protection, but they were not travelling with the Weasleys, rather they would go ahead first with Lupin, one at a time and position themselves so they could watch from a distance. Lupin seemed to think that an obvious presence of so many Order members gathered around the Weasleys would be akin to holding up a rather large neon sign saying HARRY POTTER IS HERE with a giant finger pointed at him. So it was that Lupin and the others left the kitchen with a series of loud cracks, followed a while later by Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Ron, Harry and Hermione.

Harry was disappointed to note that Diagon Alley had become decidedly unfriendly over the past year. More shops than ever were closed and boarded up, and the little stalls that had sprung up were increasingly poorly erected and manned.

‘Alright, we’ll get you three fitted out for new uniforms, you don’t need to buy robes; the ones you have should last you.’ Mrs. Weasley said as her eyes darted around her ‘Harry, where are you dear?’ she added quietly.

‘Here’ said as he moved to stand near her elbow. Lupin had taken Harry aside before they left and insisted he wear his invisibility cloak the whole time they were out, also advising him not to make contact with any friends he might come across in case someone was watching. Harry thought it strange but it seemed he was almost as worried about the aurors discovering Harry’s presence as he was of Voldemorts cronies.

‘Good. Stay right by us … don’t go wandering off or we’ll lose you!’

As they moved along the street, the occasional huddle of people emerged from one of the few open stores. Harry noted that few of the students would have been below fourth year and he guessed that most of the young ones were being kept at home. Scowling at the enormity of impact Voldemort had on the wizarding community Harry had embraced so enthusiastically when he had been introduced to it, he made his way down the cobbled Alley.

What was once a warm and welcoming place had been reduced to a foreboding ghost town where the once happy and lively throng of people had become a trickle of frightened witches and wizards who constantly glanced over their shoulders. Harry couldn’t stop the anger in him as it rose with every passing step. One maniac had been responsible for all of this. A madman who had become less than human in his effort to avoid death was bringing the world that Harry loved to it’s knees.

They shuffled in the door of Madame Malkin’s and were loaded up with new jumpers and shirts in no time. Once Mrs. Weasley had parted with several Galleons they headed to Flourish and Blotts, which must have closed since their previous visit but appeared to have been opened specially for the occasion. The windows were still boarded up making the interior very dank indeed, and dust that had been kicked up by billowing cloaks drifted in the suns rays that had pierced the cracks between the planks of wood.

Harry stood near the stairwell trying to avoid bumping into anyone, and as he scrambled back to make way for two of the youngest students he had yet seen, he brushed a stack of disused books and dust swirled up under the confines of his cloak and attacked his mouth and nose.

He sneezed loudly three times in rapid succession and as he looked up, eyes watering madly, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Hermione and Ron all stood gawping at the space where Harry was standing, and they were not the only ones. Nearby witches and wizards had stopped in mid act of rifling through books, automatically grabbing their children and staring wide-eyed at the non-apparent source of noise.

‘Hehe… well now …’ Mr. Weasley recovered first. ‘Ron, I told you not to bring your rat in here,’ Mr. Weasley was a terrible liar. Nervously he turned to the increasing hub of people watching ‘gets terribly allergic … very old you see … Mmm…’ he added lamely.

‘Right’ said Ron unconvincingly, then gaining confidence in the excuse he looked over his shoulder ‘Sorry …’ and bent down in mock search ‘I’ll just get him.’ and proceeded to lift up books and peer round shelves as people started looking away again.

‘That was too close!’ Harry said under his breath as Ron reached him, though he noted that one or two wizards looked thoroughly unconvinced.
‘Yeah, I think you might be better to wait outside.’ Ron said as he continued to half-heartedly look for his non-existent rat.
‘I think you’re right’ and Harry headed past him, making his way to the door. He dodged around it before it closed shut and stood in the street waiting for the others.

He watched as people approached and hurried on down the street, wondering why he hadn’t spotted any aurors yet. Maybe they were all hidden under cloaks like he was, but he doubted it as he was pretty sure they didn’t have that many invisibility cloaks at their disposal. He started searching more earnestly for some sign of them, looking in the tiny darkened alleys between shops and even scanning the rooftops as he walked slowly around in a circle. Suddenly he was knocked off his feet and he hit the ground with a thud, his cloak underneath him and something lying on top of him.

‘Neville!’ he croaked as he tried to heave his friend off him.

Neville looked startled as he scrambled to pick himself up, eyeing Harry apologetically ‘Sorry Harry! Didn’t see you there…’
‘Yes, well that was the whole point’ said Harry exasperated, pulling himself off the ground looking at Neville’s anguished face.
‘I’m really sorry, Harry!’

‘It wasn’t your fault, I wasn’t watching where I was going’ he added, swinging his cloak over his head. But before he could cover himself with it, it was ripped from his hands and he was being thrust face first to the ground. ‘GET OFF!’ he yelled as he struggled to get his hands free. He could hear Neville’s urgently high voice.

‘Let Go!’

Harry, his heart pounding, squirmed under the body that was pressing down on him. He managed to twist onto his back and finally pulled his hands free. Automatically his left fist made contact with his assailants face and his right had found his wand. ‘Levicorpus!’ With lightening speed he had raised the man off him and dangled him in the air by his ankle.

‘Give me that…’ An angry voice said and Harry spun onto his knees.

‘Stupefy!’ he shot at a wizard who was struggling with Neville’s wand hand, trying to disarm him. The flash of light hit the man’s chest and his eyes curled backwards into his head as he was thrown off his feet by the force of the curse.

Then several things happened all at once.

A woman who was coming out of Flourish and Blotts started screaming, battling her way back against people who pushed forward out the doors to see what was happening; the man who dangled in the air was spluttering threateningly at Harry as blood dripped from his nose; and many loud CRACKS resounded in the street around Harry and Neville signifying the arrival of a number of apparators.

Harry, who was spinning around on his feet, wand directed straight out in front of him looking for someone to target, suddenly threw himself at Neville, and pushed him to the ground as several jets of red light soared past them. He aimed a curse at one of the wizards that now surrounded him as he scrambled to his feet, but he felt a white hot jolt in his back that threw him forward. His body skidded along the ground but he still had his wand arm free. Impedimenta!

Without speaking as he struggled to catch his breath after being winded, he sent a curse that caught the man approaching him off guard, his body stiffening. Harry groggily picked himself up, his eyes watering from the pain, trying desperately to locate Neville and see if he was all right, but before he could straighten his body two blasts pelted excruciatingly into his side, hurling him off his feet, his head hitting the cobbled stones with a sickening crunch.

Harry heard Lupins voice roaring furiously ... he felt the breath leave his lungs and then everything went black…


~*~*~*~


Harry’s body felt stiff and sore when he finally opened his eyes. His head swam as he tried to sit up, everything blurred and the pain shot through his skull so he let his head drop back down onto the thin pillow. He kept his eyes closed as nausea threatened to overcome him. What happened?

He tried but he couldn’t remember what had brought him to this point. As he clutched his head he felt a lumpy wet patch above his left eye, he pulled his hand away and squinted at it, the blurry image of his fingers was smeared with blood. That explained why his head was spinning at least. But why wasn’t it bandaged? Why hadn’t someone fixed it already?

A sense of urgency grew in him. Something was terribly wrong. With his eyes only half open and his head feeling like it was splitting in two, Harry slowly eased himself off the bed onto his feet. Nausea swept through him again as the blood left his head, and the darkness that had barely retreated closed in on him. He staggered briefly, unable to focus on the anything to stop the spinning, his head feeling like it would explode, but even as he fought the urge to throw up, he dropped to the floor and sank into oblivion.


~*~*~*~


Something was lifting him up; strong hands were dragging him as he tried to open his eyes but his head pounded so much that he felt sick. He could hear voices but they seemed very distant and he could not make out what they were saying. He was hoisted into a sitting position on a soft platform; his head feeling like his skull was crushing in on him as someone tapped his face.

‘Harry! Harry wakeup! Wakeup Harry!’ it echoed in his head painfully and suddenly he convulsed, throwing his chest forward he lost the contents of his stomach. There were angry voices as Harry’s body went limp again; being held up only by arms clutching at his shoulders. He felt so incredibly tired and the pain in his head was so severe that he wished these people would just let him sleep.

There was an argument raging somewhere in the room as Harry hung his head and waited to blackout again. ‘Harry! Wakeup!’ that annoying voice said again as he felt a hand tapping his cheek ‘Harry! Don’t fall asleep!’ but even as the voice spoke, Harry willed the approaching darkness to take him away.

Then someone put a hand under his chin and held his head up, something was thrust against his lips and hot liquid dripped out of the sides of his mouth and down the back of his throat as he spluttered and choked on it..

The drowsiness that had lurked comfortably near was ebbing away rapidly and the pounding in his head grew more and more real until he felt like he could bear it no longer. He swiped out at the cup and heard it crash to the ground.

‘It’s alright Harry … it will help you to stay awake’
‘I don’t want to stay awake’ he croaked still unable to open his eyes for the pain.
‘I know,’ the voice softened ‘Someone’s coming to fix you Harry … but you need to stay awake until they get here’ Harry groaned in protest. ‘It wont be long … I promise…’

Harry realized who was talking to him ‘Lupin?’ he still could not open his eyes or hold his head up to see.
‘Yes’
Harry wanted to talk to him, he wanted to ask what had happened and how he came to be here, but the pounding in his head was becoming all consuming. ‘I need to lay down’

‘It should be alright, he’s had the potion so he wont lose consciousness.’ Tonks’s voice sounded strained. He felt himself being lowered and once his head was on the pillow some of the thunderous pain eased. Harry tried to open his eyes but immediately felt sick again as the light swirled above him, so he closed them and lay there listening.

‘They should have Scrimgeour’s head on a stick for this!’ Tonks sounded extremely angry. ‘I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it for myself.’
‘He shouldn’t have attacked us’ a male voice Harry vaguely recognized replied
‘What did you expect?’ Tonks’s said so loudly that Harry closed his arms over his face to try to quell the noise ‘I mean honestly … what did you think he would do … creeping up behind him and wrestling him to the ground … your lucky all he did was hang you upside down!’

‘Tonks!’ Lupin butted in. Harry’s memory of the incident was starting to come back to him.
‘Neville’ he groaned ‘Is he-'
‘fine, he’s just fine’ Lupin said soothingly.

A short time later a woman arrived and after a brisk greeting Harry felt her slender hands on his face. ‘Why wasn’t this seen to straight away?’ she said gravely.
‘These idiots wouldn't let us in to see him!’ Tonks said ‘He was lying on the floor when we came in.’ she said darkly
‘Totally unacceptable! I will be lodging a formal complaint with the Ministry the minute I get back to St Mungos!’ the woman said business like as she took her hands from Harry. He felt a gentle warmth on his forehead that gradually grew into an uncomfortable prickly heat, but the pounding in his head was slowly receding until it was no more than a dull ache.

Eventually the sensation stopped and the woman told Harry to open his eyes. He opened them cautiously and was pleasantly surprised to note that everything had finally stopped spinning, though he still couldn’t focus on anything.

‘How’s that … better?’ she asked him. He lifted himself onto his elbow and turned to look at her as something was thrust into his hand. That’s why he still couldn’t focus, he thought as he slid his glasses over his nose. The room and the people in it swayed gently, but it was not enough to make him feel sick.
‘Yeah, much better. Thanks.’ She nodded at him satisfied and instructed him to stay in bed until morning.

Lupin followed her and spoke to her quietly outside the room as she left, before coming back and sitting down on the edge of Harry’s bed. The man Harry now recognized as the one he had punched on the nose and hung upside down in Diagon Alley, was standing just inside the doorway, studying the three of them nervously. Over his shoulder hovered a small black orb. Harry looked away in disgust. Scrimgeour had sent the Stalker to keep an eye on them, was he so afraid of what they might do? The cold room was bare except for the bed he now sat on and a small table that was propped against a pale green wall.

‘You’re in one of the ministry’s holding cells’ Lupin said watching him.
Harry gave Lupin a stony look ‘Are they going to let me out?’

‘They can’t keep you here, Harry.’ Lupin said ‘If people find out the ministry’s holding the "Chosen One" in their jail cells there will be a massive outcry, Scrimgeour can be sure of that.’ He said as he looked over at the Stalker ‘But as you are not well enough to be moved, you’ll stay here for the night anyway-'

‘No’ Harry cut him off ‘I feel fine and I want out of here!’
Lupin looked down at the floor gravely ‘Harry, I don’t think you realize how close you came to-'
‘I’m fine now.’ Harry abruptly.

‘I can understand why he doesn’t want to stay’ Tonks said with a raised eyebrow. Lupin gave him an appraising look.

‘You’d have to walk all the way to the Atrium before we can leave Harry.’
‘Not a problem.’ Harry felt weak but his need to leave here was greater.
‘We’re in the furthest part of the ministry’ Lupin added.
‘Doesn’t matter.’

‘Molly will be relieved to see him’ Tonks added.

‘You’d have to go straight to your own bed when we got back’ Lupin said.
‘Happily.’ Harry sounded anything but happy.

‘See, we just need to decide how are we going to take him’ Tonks said confidently.

‘I suppose we could go via the floo, I don’t think you’re up to
apparating.’
‘Fine’ said Harry.
‘All right’ Lupin said resignedly, standing up ‘I’ll go and speak to Scrimgeour. I’ll be back soon.’ and he turned and left, Tonks smiling after him.

‘I’ll head back to let them know you’re coming, Harry’ she said and followed him out the door.

Harry had found the walk to the Atrium much more tiresome than he had expected. By the time he stepped into the kitchen at Grimmauld place after the whirling trip through the floo network, his head was hurting so much he was wincing with the pain again. But he was glad to be back.

Hermione and Mrs. Weasley were looking at him in shock but they both gave him overly tight hugs before Mrs. Weasley sent him straight upstairs with watery eyes. Ron looked extraordinarily pale as he accompanied Harry up to his room. Harry sat on the bed with his head in his hands. It was feeling like it might burst at any minute so Ron closed the curtains and then left, closing the door behind him.

‘You’ve got an interesting relationship with the ministry, haven’t you?’
Harry looked up in surprise. Ginny was walking towards him with a crooked smile on her face.

‘Where’d you come from?’
‘I was waiting for you’ she said as she sat beside him and lifted her hand to his forehead to inspect the damage. Harry hadn’t seen her when he came in. He was about to mention the fact when Ginny spoke again.

‘It doesn’t look too bad now,’ she dropped her eyes to his ‘though from what Hermione said, you were in pretty bad shape for a while.’
‘How would she know?’
‘Tonks told her they found you on the floor, lying unconscious in a pool of blood.’ Ginny was frowning slightly as she stood up looking at his shirt. For the first time Harry noticed the dark patch of dried blood on the shoulder. So that explained why Mrs. Weasley and Hermione had looked so shocked and the blood had drained from Ron's face.

‘Here’ Ginny handed Harry the basin which normally sat below the mirror. He rested it on his knees as she dipped the small towel in and wiped the dried blood from his face and neck. As he sat there enjoying the sensation of Ginny’s touch he thought how he could have used the Tergeo charm to remove the blood, but he found this way much more pleasant so he allowed Ginny to clean him up and strip him of his old shirt, replacing it with a black t-shirt she had once told him suited him very much. Then she told him to lye down and promptly left him before Mrs. Weasley brought in a tray of dinner.

She showed some surprise at Harry’s cleaned up appearance but said nothing before telling him she would bring him up a light sleeping draught later. Even though Harry’s head still ached, he was rather hungry so he finished off the steak and kidney pie before placing the tray on the floor, and then leaned back on his stack of pillows feeling very thankful he wasn’t in the cell at the ministry.

It may have been paranoia about Death Eaters that had triggered off the events that led him to the ministry cells, but what other reaction did they expect? You don't grab someone from behind and throw them on the ground unless you're expecting a fight! What were they playing at? There was a knock at the door and Lupin entered.

‘You’re looking better.’
‘What happened? Why did they jump me in the first place?’ was out of Harry’s mouth before he had even sat up properly.
‘Because they’re idiots.’ said Tonks as she appeared from behind Lupin.
Lupin couldn’t help but smile ‘Yes, well … that does certainly seem to play a part in all this.’ then he pulled up a chair as Tonks plonked herself down on Harry’s bed.
‘Starring role if you ask me.’ she looked sideways at Harry.

‘They were under orders to detain you if they found you, Kingsley warned me yesterday.’ Lupin sighed.
‘What? Why?’ Harry said, feeling his temper rise.
‘Since the ministry lost contact with you they have been under a barrage of public pressure to … produce you.’ Harry looked at Lupin in angry bewilderment ‘It didn’t take long for the rumours to start that you were not missing … but dead.’
‘Stupid gits almost killed you trying to prove you were alive!’ Tonks rolled her eyes.

‘So they watched for you at Diagon Alley and when Neville knocked you over and your cloak came off, the two closest aurors moved in. They tried to stop you from putting your cloak back on, and the scuffle that ensued brought the rest of them down on top of you.’ Lupin said gravely.

‘So they thought that the best thing to do would be to leave me to rot in one of their cells?’ Harry said through his teeth.
‘Prats!’ said Tonks.
‘They’re afraid of you Harry,’ Lupin said quietly. Harry scoffed as Lupin went on to explain ‘they never expected you to be so … hard to detain. They had no idea how skilled you are, so when they realized they had nearly killed you trying to defend themselves, they panicked. They got you back to the ministry and in the holding cell before I could see how much damage they had done.’

‘Arrrgh! I am so sick of it!’ Harry didn’t try to hide his fury ‘If Scrimgeour gets in my way one more time I’m gonna-'
‘I don’t think that will be a problem anymore.’ Lupin interrupted.
‘Why should he stop now? He doesn’t strike me as the type to give up that easily.’ Harry said resentfully.
‘Because you have him over a barrel, Harry. If you were to tell people what happened he wouldn’t last ten more minutes in his office.’ Lupin stood up ‘Imagine the Minister of Magic almost doing Voldemort's job for him.’ a sad smile played across his lips.

After they left Harry thought about what was said. He hoped Lupin had been right and that it would be the end of the Ministries interference. He would be heading back to Hogwarts the day after tomorrow and he had no idea what was in store for him after that. The last thing he needed was the Ministry trying to track him down wherever he went.

His head still ached and there was a dull ringing in his ears from the pain when Mrs. Weasley came in briefly to give Harry a sleeping draft, not leaving until he had drank it all down. He really didn’t mind having some help to shut out the pain, and it wasn’t long before he was feeling very light headed indeed.

Eventually the draft seeped through him and he could feel no pain at all, so he closed his eyes and enjoyed drifting lightly between states of consciousness. He felt something hop on his bed and he immediately grinned, thinking that Socks had come to keep him company yet again. But when he opened his eyes Ginny was sat on the side of his bed looking down at him, smiling.

‘What are you grinning at?’ she laughed playfully.
‘You’ he said with an even broader smile.
‘Really!’ her eyes sparkled.
‘I’d take you over Socks any day.’ he felt blissfully intoxicated as he reached his hand up and brushed her hair back off her face.
‘Is that so?’ she chuckled.
‘Yeah, but don’t tell her I said that.’ he said softly.
‘Oh, somehow I don’t think she’d mind.’

Harry gazed up at the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. ‘I’m going to marry you one day, Ginny Weasley.’
‘You fool,’ she laughed softly ‘it’s the potion mum gave you, your completely out of your head.’
‘And what a wonderful place it is,’ he said dreamily.

Ginny’s smile saddened slightly as she looked down at his mouth ‘It’ll be over one day Harry,’ her finger brushed across his lips as he opened them to kiss it gently ‘one day you’ll be free.’
He leant up on his elbow and kissed her softly on the lips ‘I’ll never be free’ he whispered, then he bent his head and grazed his lips on her neck ‘not from you.’
‘I wish you would say that to me some other time.’ she barely spoke but Harry was close enough to hear it.

He breathed her in, feeling even more intoxicated by her scent. He kissed Ginny's neck lightly again before looking at her drowsily through heavy eyelids, expecting to meet the same desire in her eyes, but she was looking at him with a smile on her face, highly amused at something.

‘C’mon lover boy, I think it’s time you went to sleep!’ and she pushed him back down on the pillow, curling into his body beside him. Harry hung his arm over her and nuzzled into her slender neck. She chuckled lightly to herself as he brushed his lips over her skin, thoroughly enjoying himself, though he had no idea what she found so amusing. Before long he had trouble keeping his head off the pillow, so he relaxed back and as Ginny turned in the crook of his arm to face him, he opened his eyes for just long enough to see a tear drop to the gentle smile on her lips. Before he had time to register it, he was gone.

[razzberry2]

.

9. An End To Division and a New Position for Harry



Harry spent the next day rather uncomfortably.

For the first time he was glad to have the distraction of getting all of his gear washed and packed into his trunk ready for the following day. He was acutely aware of how he had behaved towards Ginny under the influence of Mrs. Weasleys so-called "light sleeping draft". What was worse, he remembered everything he had said to her. A couple of times he caught her looking at him with a slight smile playing across her lips, but she tactfully said nothing.

The next morning they all piled into Ministry cars and headed to Kings Cross Station. Although Harry was loathed to have anything to do with the Ministry, Mr. Weasley had made it clear before he had left for work that they were under instruction from Kingsley, and should prove quite manageable. Harry was sat in a car separate from the others, squished uncomfortably in the backseat between two of the biggest aurors he had ever seen, Kingsley Shacklebolt was in the passenger seat.

Harry sat, shoulders scrunched into his body and his legs uncomfortably pushed together; his escorts knees splayed out because their incredibly huge thighs made it impossible for them to close their legs any further. Kingsley had seemed quite amused by their size and cast Harry an exaggerated look that suggested he thought they were quite as ridiculous as Harry did.

He noted the main foyer of the station was as busy as usual as they wheeled all their trunks behind them. Glancing at the surrounding stalls, Harry stopped suddenly, causing the auror trailing behind him to fall over his trolley. Harry heard the auror swearing over the clatter of his luggage as it spilled onto the tiled floor but he paid no attention; he walked slowly up to the stand where a newspaper headline had caught his eye and picked up a copy of the paper. On the front page was a picture of what might have been a town once with the headline

TORNADO TEARS THROUGH TROWBRIDGE

Residents of the close-nit community of Trowbridge, just outside of Bath, are this morning at a loss to explain the overnight devastation of their town. Emergency services were called out around 3 am after an anonymous call was placed that a tornado had struck the tiny town and flattened almost everything in its path. Casualties are as yet unknown. Meteorologists who were responsible for monitoring the weather bands at the time say that their instruments showed no sign of any weather disturbance and are adamant that no such thing could have occurred.

‘I challenge the twits to come down here and say that!’ angry local, Guthrey Pudderwell told us this morning. Mr. Pudderwell had fortunately spent the night unconscious in a barn outside the town limits after having difficulty finding his way home the previous evening. He was unable to give us any further details of the storm, however Mr. Pudderwell assured us that it must have been a windy night because on his stagger back from The Pig and Whistle, (a local drinking establishment), he had somehow misplaced his hat.

Unfortunately our efforts to interview other locals have been hampered by Emergency Officials who have kept everyone out of the site until it is deemed safe to enter…

Harry lowered the paper. Hermione, who had been reading the article over his shoulder, voiced what he had been thinking ‘Giants!’
Ron, who had just joined them, grabbed the paper from Harry’s hands and read it.

‘They’ve started already.’ Harry said gravely as he looked at Hermione ‘How do you fight things that are twenty feet high and have a natural resistance to magic?’
‘I don’t know’ Hermione said frowning with concern ‘but I think we need to pay Hagrid a visit as soon as we can. Maybe he’ll know something?’

‘I don’t think fighting them is going to be an option.’ Ron said darkly returning the newspaper to the stand as a grumpy assistant looked on.
‘What d'ya mean?’ Harry frowned.
Ron shrugged slightly and shook his head ‘I don’t know, just a thought.’ he said dismissively.

‘Come on!’ Mrs. Weasley had doubled back when she realized they were no longer following her ‘You’ve got seven minutes before the train leaves, now move it!’ she waved them on hurriedly.

After a very strained and teary farewell from Mrs. Weasley, they boarded the train with the two enormous aurors carrying Pig and Hedwig in tow, followed by Kingsley. They made their way slowly along the narrow passageway, and as they passed, Harry peered into the cabins, and though Ministry guards who stood just inside the doorways blocked some compartments; others Harry could see into, appeared full.

‘Right you lot!’ a gruff voiced man who was tall and hairy and outfitted in ministry guard robes, was standing down the opposite end of the corridor waving his arms about like he was on a tarmac attempting to land a plane, ‘in ‘ere’ A few doubtful looking fourth year Ravenclaws shuffled into a compartment, as the door was closed behind them. ‘Rest of you … this way.’ he headed through the connect doors into the next carriage.

As they dragged their trunks behind them everyone in the corridor lurched forward when the train finally left the platform. Harry watched as people were sorted. He picked out Neville and Luna entering a compartment with some sixth year Hufflepuffs, and also spotted Colin and Dennis Creevey joining some other students he didn’t know. They were all compartmentalized gradually until just the four of them and two very small first years, were left.

‘You lot can take this one!’ the gruff voiced man barred their way and opened the compartment door.

As Harry waited for Ron, Hermione and Ginny to pile in before him, Kingsley called to him from behind the two massive aurors. ‘I’ll be up the other end. I’ll leave these two here with you.’ he raised an eyebrow comically, peering over one of their shoulders at Harry, then disappeared behind the hulk as he walked away. Once inside Harry stowed his gear, relieving the guards of their cages and slouching down in between Ron and one of the small boys sitting by the window. His brown curls gave his already pink-cheeked freckly face an even younger appearance.

The other boy who sat opposite had black hair and very low set eyebrows and looked thoroughly uninterested as he sat staring out the window. The train rattled along and Harry watched as the curly haired boys eyes roamed around the cabin, stopping on Hermione and Ginny, the colour in his cheeks rising when Ginny looked up and smiled at him. Harry smiled to himself as the boy looked away nervously, continuing on to Ron who had his attention on Pig, and then finally Harry. The boy’s lips curled in a brief smile as he met Harry’s gaze, then his eyes did the flick up to his scar.

Predictably his face changed immediately, draining of all colour; even his freckles seemed to pale as he gaped open-mouthed, seemingly unable to look away. The dark haired boy noticed the change in his companion and turned his head to look at Harry. His eyebrows lowered even more and his beady eyes glittered as his mouth curled downwards into a furious pout. He stood up abruptly and with all eyes on him, he crossed to the door and flung it open.

’You there!’ he said rudely as he peered round the enormous guard. ‘I’m not staying in here with him!’ he said as he pointed at Harry ‘You’re going to have to move me!’

‘What’s all this about?’ the gruff man strode into view
‘Him!’ he looked accusingly at Harry ‘I’m not staying in here with him!’
‘And why not?’
The boy scowled in wonderment ‘because he’s the "Chosen One", he’s the one The Dark Lord’s after. I don’t want to be caught in the crossfire when he gets attacked!’ he said indignantly. Harry and Ron exchanged glances as Ginny scoffed and shook her head.

The man looked at Harry briefly and sighed ‘You’re not movin, everyone stays where they are. Now get back to your seat before I set one of these two on you.’ He waved a finger at Harry’s escort and turned away, the conversation clearly over.

The boy turned around red faced and paced back to his seat. He plonked himself back down next to Hermione with an angry sigh and folded his arms across the front of him as he went back to staring out of the window. This time however, he looked anything but disinterested. As the houses and landscape flew by, he appeared to be looking very intently for any sign of an impending affront on the compartment containing Harry Potter.

‘Well, isn’t this nice’ Hermione said looking around as their eyes flitted from one person to another.
‘Yeah, right cosy little group’ Ginny said eyeing the dark haired boy.
‘There’s one upside … no prefect duties!’ Ron smiled at Hermiones disapproving look.

The train journey was proving monotonous beyond compare and because no one was allowed to leave their compartments to mix with friends it meant that Harry, Ron and Hermione were unable to talk in private. Harry resigned himself to flipping through Quidditch Quips and Clueless Commentary! An amusing little handbook Ron had bought in Flourish and Blotts. It was bound in leather and gold leaf and was filled with quotable quotes from some of the most famous people in the league, as well as some other less memorable folk who had made it in because of their game steeling commentary. Harry turned each page half expecting to come across something of Luna’s efforts from last year.

After they had donned their robes, the train grumbled to an uneventful halt, and they all piled out heading down to the awaiting carriages. Hagrid was not there to greet the first years for only the second time since Harry had been at Hogwarts. It wasn’t surprising though considering there were so few of them, so Hermione appointed herself to shuffle them along the platform to the awaiting transport.

It was then that Harry really noticed the difference in the number of students to previous years. In the full moonlight, it was easy to see that the usual mass of heads bobbing up and down as they descended the stairs had been reduced to around a hundred and fifty, and few, as Harry had suspected, were below fourth year.

Harry went up to an awaiting Thestral and gave it a pat on the nose. It stared out at him through its ghostly white eyes as it nudged his palm. ‘My last ride with you,’ He said quietly. He then joined Neville, Luna, Ron and Hermione as they sat waiting to leave. As his guard positioned themselves, one up front on the would-be drivers platform, and one standing on the stoop at the back, Harry looked around the carriage. ‘Where’s Ginny?’

‘Oh, she went to sit with Seamus and Lavender.’ Luna said ‘I see Dean’s back as well. He wasn’t too sure if he would be returning, you know.’ Harry tensed as she looked at Ron ‘I overheard him at your place telling Ginny that he didn’t really see the point in coming back. Of course, she was quite adamant that he should return.’ Harry felt his stomach drop painfully as the carriages started along the road. ‘Looks like she managed to talk him round. He certainly looked pleased with himself about something.’ She added dreamily.

As Luna spoke, a painful heaviness grew in Harry’s chest, making it hard for him to breathe. He stared out the window to avoid the looks he knew Hermione would be throwing him. So Ginny had wanted Dean to come back. She had convinced him it would be worth it. The thought made him sick. Along with the hurt, Harry’s temper started to rise.

Is that what she had found so amusing when she was in his bed? Had she been thinking about Dean then? Harry brought his elbow up to rest on the window ledge and rubbed his fingers on his forehead. He thought about what he had said to her and swallowed hard, trying to ease the rising heat in him. Luna spoke almost non-stop on their way into the Hogwarts grounds with Ron, Hermione and Neville, who seemed to be aware of the tension, offering only stunted answers.

Hogwarts looked much more welcoming than it had when Harry had come at the beginning of summer, but he passed it by and moved into the Great Hall without registering it.

‘Harry!’ Seamus came up from behind and as Harry turned automatically, his eyes fell on Ginny who had strode in with Dean, both of them smiling as they came up behind Seamus.
‘Yeah?’ Harry said still watching Ginny and Dean.
‘It’s good to see you. I didn’t expect you’d be here this year after the rumours.’ Seamus patted Harry’s shoulder.
‘I bet your not the only one.’ Harry was glaring at Dean who was laughing at something Ginny had said.
‘Is everything alright?’ Seamus asked.

Harry tore his eyes away, annoyed at himself ‘Fine Seamus … how was your holiday?’ Harry forced himself to concentrate on what Seamus was saying as they crossed the large gap between the entrance door and the tables which were much shorter than usual, with only enough seating for a quarter of the usual Hogwarts intake. As he sat himself right at the farthest end, Seamus sat next to him and Ron plonked himself opposite. Hermione was looking up at the staff table as she sat herself next to Ron.

‘Hagrids not here.’ Hermione said frowning. They all turned to look at the long staff table up at the head of the Hall. Harry’s eyes dropped to Ginny who had sat down next to Lavender and Dean.

‘I wonder where he is then?’ Ron said ‘Did he say anything to you?’
‘No,’ Harry looked back at Hagrids empty chair. ‘Who have they got for Defence Against the Dark Arts?’ Harry could see Professor Sprout and Flitwick. Slughorn was also there chatting to Professor McGonagall and Madame Pomphrey.

Just then Professor McGonagall rose from her chair and silenced the chatter. She looked around at the students for a moment, before beginning.

‘Welcome back to Hogwarts, such as it is. For those few of you who are here for the first time, I extend a welcoming hand from all of our staff and older students, I am sure they will help you to settle in under the rather unusual circumstances we find ourselves in.’ Harry looked around, the first years were sitting together at the foot of the Hufflepuff table. Harry frowned and began searching for the sorting hat. He caught Slughorn's eye and received a knowing wink before McGonagall continued.

‘For the first time in Hogwarts history, there will be no sorting of the first years to begin the feast.’ A loud murmur erupted throughout the Hall as Harry exchanged looks with Ron and Hermione. Professor McGonagall raised a hand and waited for quiet. ‘Amongst other changes being made for this year at least, our staff has been reduced, and your lessons will combine all students within your year who are taking the same subject. You will be made aware of the full changes tomorrow morning after breakfast when you receive your new timetables. Also’ McGonagall seemed to hesitate for the longest time before continuing ‘there will be new sleeping arrangements explained to you after dinner.’

Everyone abandoned any pretence of hush and they all started talking rapidly amongst themselves. McGonagall looked out at the din over her spectacles, but she did not try to quell the noise. The other teachers were exchanging knowing glances as Harry looked back at Hermione and Ron who were talking along with everyone else.

‘You mean they’re going to mix the houses?’ Ron asked, seemingly horrified at the thoughts of it.
‘Well it makes sense when you consider how few students and staff there are.’ She pointed out.
‘But they cant do that! That means we’ll be sharing passwords and …’ Ron was trying to find the words ‘and … everything.’ He finally said.

‘So long as we don’t have to share with Slytherin, I don’t care.’ Seamus said darkly. Hermione frowned slightly at him.
‘I don’t think it would be such a bad thing.’
‘What?’ Ron accidentally knocked over his empty goblet. ‘You’re joking aren’t you?'
‘No,’ she said seriously and before Ron could say anything else she put her finger to her lips and turned back to McGonagall.

‘There are still a couple of items that need to be covered. Firstly, there will be no Quidditch this year.’ There were multiple loud groans, especially from the Gryffindor table, though Harry, Ron and Ginny, sat in silence ‘And we will not be appointing any new Prefects as I see enough have returned to adequately perform the required duties.’ There were a couple of quietly disappointed groans from the Ravenclaw table. ‘However, the time is right to inform you of your new Head Boy and Girl.

Harry noticed Hermione tense and a small smile crept across his lips. He knew how much she wanted this and figured she was a shoo-in. Ron on the other hand looked down at the table frowning to himself. Harry wondered if Ron really wanted the job after all. Even though he had basked in the glory of being a Prefect in the beginning, he wasn’t exactly keen on the duties that came with it, and this year especially, being Head Boy would probably involve even more of the sort of work Ron liked to avoid. Harry looked back at McGonagall.

‘This year, we are pleased to announce our new Head Girl, Miss Hermione Granger,’ Hermione exhaled and her shoulders relaxed almost immediately. Harry could tell she was holding back an enormous grin and he was most impressed at her composure considering what must have been going on inside ‘and Head Boy, Mr. Harry Potter.’

Harry had been watching Hermione but at the mention of his name his head swung round to look at McGonagall. He sat bewildered for a moment, then looked back to Hermione as if waiting for her to tell him it was a mistake, but she was smiling encouragingly at him, Ron grinning next to her.

What just happened?

Harry was frowning; he was trying to get his head around what McGonagall said, when someone started to clap. As Harry looked round at Ginny, who was smiling and clapping her hands gently, others started to join in. Slowly at first, but then the applause grew, and before he could speak what was on his mind the whole room, bar a few Slytherins and the dark haired first year, was clapping loudly and enthusiastically.

Harry looked back at Hermione. Her eyes looked slightly watery as she flushed, but she showed no sign of the shock he had expected. Harry felt intensely awkward. It hadn’t occurred to him that he would be in the running for Head Boy as he wasn’t a Prefect, and there was no way he could accept the position because he had no idea how long he would even be at Hogwarts. As the applause died down Professor McGonagall spoke once more.

‘We will now begin the feast.’ and as usual, huge dishes piled high with delicious looking food appeared on the tables before them.

As everyone tucked in Harry leaned over his plate. ‘What does she mean by making me Head Boy?’ he said in a half whisper to Ron and Hermione.
‘You’re the obvious choice mate.’ Ron said happily as he brandished a chicken leg ‘They couldn’t have picked a better person.’
‘That’s right, Harry’ Hermione was spooning corn onto her plate ‘you are intelligent, compassionate, and you’re a natural leader.’ She stopped and looked at him ‘I don’t know why you’re so surprised’ Harry was looking at them as if they new something he didn’t. Seamus spoke up.

‘I know I’d rather have you as Head Boy than anyone else’ he said ‘especially with things the way they are.’
‘Me too,’ Neville and Luna had been listening to the conversation ‘You are the best man for the job Harry, and I’m really glad you decided to come back.’ Neville said earnestly.

Harry didn’t know what to say. He was heartened by their faith in him but he couldn’t very well tell them that he probably wouldn’t be staying for long; that would lead to too many questions. So he lifted a couple of lamb cutlets onto his plate and resigned himself to having a private conversation with Professor McGonagall when he could.

‘Strange McGonagall didn’t mention who the new Defence Against the Dark Arts Teacher is’ Luna said, opening her protruding eyes. There was much speculation throughout the meal about who it might be. And Professor McGonagall came over briefly to give Harry the new password to the Common Room, though when he tried to engage her about his position as Head Boy, she held her hand up and told him whatever he had to say, it could wait. After all the pudding plates vanished, the students settled, whispering expectantly about the new sleeping arrangements. As McGonagall stood, a hush spread through the Hall.

‘The sleeping arrangements have been made with everybody’s best interests in mind, so no further discussions will be entered into.’ Eyes were darting this way and that at McGonagall's ominous tone. It seemed very strange that they would not be siphoning off as usual to their houses.

‘All students fifth year and below will be housed in the Ravenclaw Chambers’ there was a murmur and a turning of heads. ‘All students from the sixth and seventh years, will reside in the Gryffindor Tower.’ Harry sat quietly as all of the older students, including the Slytherins exchanged incredulous looks. It was as he had suspected.

The Ravenclaw chambers were high up in the castle, therefore better protected and harder for outsiders to get to. And with the older students in the Gryffindor tower on the fourth floor, they had a tactical advantage should the Castle be infiltrated. Although he was not looking forward to sharing his beloved home with Slytherins, he understood the decision, so he remained quiet while McGonagall waited for the angry whispers to subside.

‘All of your belongings will be waiting for you in your respective Common Rooms when you retire for the evening…’ McGonagall launched into the usual spin about the Dark Forest and Mr. Filches banned substances, then they were dismissed.

Harry led the way, with Hermione bringing up the rear to ensure that everyone knew where they were supposed to go. He reached the portrait of the fat lady and was about to give her the password, when she raised her eyebrows at the site of them and said sternly...

‘I don’t want any funny business going on behind these walls now that you are all in together. You’re going to have to learn to get along.’ She pointed her finger at them ‘Even if you realize it or not, its for your own good, and I for one, will be keeping an eye on you.’ She lowered an eyebrow and looked down her nose at the Scowling Slytherins.

‘Chizpurfle’ said Harry.

‘You took the word right out of my mouth’ she sighed as she swung open to admit them.

Everyone milled around his or her trunks that were piled around the Common Room. Hermione wove her way to Harry and said quietly ‘we’re going to have to sort them out. I’ve counted about seventy of us all together.’
Harry looked about him, trying to gage how many of each house they had. It appeared there were less Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs than Gryffindors and Slytherins, so Harry made a decision.

‘The Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff sixth years can bunk in together, everyone else can take a room for your year and house.’ he spoke over the chatter.
‘How come we have to share?’ a disgruntled voice came from the crowd.
‘Because there aren’t enough rooms to go around.’ Hermione chipped in impatiently ‘And there are fewer of you than the other houses.’

‘Well that’s hardly a reason, is it? I think we should draw straws’ came an indignant voice. Harry saw Ernie MacMillan turn on the outspoken Ravenclaw.
‘You’ll do as your told!’ he said just as indignantly. A general argument broke out, centred around Ernie and the Ravenclaw, everyone seemed to think they should not be the ones sharing. Harry stood on his trunk and took out his wand. A noisy spray of red sparks shot out of the tip as he pointed it above his head.

‘That’s enough!’ he said impatiently. Everyone fell very quiet as they turned to look at him ‘Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff sixth years will share a room. If anyone has any objections they are free to spend the night outside in the hall.’ There were no further protests so Harry went on ‘Hermione will sort the girls into their dorms … the rest of you will follow me.’

Harry stepped down off the trunk and Hermione gave him an appreciative look. ‘And you wonder why McGonagall chose you as Head Boy.’ She smiled and led the girls to their rooms. Everyone floated their trunks, and they dispersed without further ado. It wasn’t long before Harry was up at the top most room of the boys tower once more; the room that Harry had considered home more than any other. They unpacked and talked amongst themselves, though Harry avoided direct contact with Dean, still unable to control the resentment that swelled in him. When they finally retired to bed, Harry pulled the curtains shut and laid back with his hands behind his head.

He felt drained after the events of the evening, and no matter how hard he tried to turn his thoughts to other things, Ginny’s face refused to leave his mind. He tortured himself with the memory of a couple of nights ago. He had found her amusement bewildering at the time, but now he felt a complete fool. He hated to admit the things he had said to her were unguarded and honest, and it tore him that she found it so easy to move on. But a voice in the back of his mind told him it was as it should be. It urged him to let go. He rolled on his side and tried to empty his mind, but the image of Ginny and Dean would not budge.


~*~*~*~


The next morning, the Gryffindor Common Room was chaotic, to say the least.

Two Slytherins were bullying a sixth year Hufflepuff girl, and when Ernie and Justin Finch Fletchley realized what was going on, they leapt gallantly at the hulks that were Crabbe and Goyle in her defence. Unfortunately they stood no chance of winning a physical battle, and if it hadn’t been for Ron and Harry’s appearance at the foot of the stairs, there may not have been much left of either of them to rescue. Crabbe, sporting a face full of painful, pussy boils and Goyle, sprouting Cauliflower from every orifice, scrambled through the portrait hole moments later, muttering profanities under their breaths.

And twice Harry had to intervene in squabbles that had broken out between Slytherin and Gryffindor sixth years. It seemed giving out detentions first time round wasn’t enough to deter them from making easily overheard caustic complaints about one another, so Harry resorted with threatening to bunk them in together until they learned to get along. This seemed to do the trick, and they all went down to breakfast complaining about Harry instead.

‘This is hopeless!’ Harry said angrily to Hermione when she appeared.
‘I know what you mean. I found Hannah Abbott trying to throw Pansy Parkinson out of the window a minute ago.’ She rolled her eyes ‘Pansy apparently commented on what a good job the Death Eaters were doing ridding the world of Mudbloods and blood-traitors.’

‘Didn’t Hannah’s mother get killed last year?’ Ron asked frowning.
‘Exactly. That Pansy has got such a mouth on her!’ and most unlike her, Hermione added ‘If I’d just taken that bit longer to steam my robes, it would have been over before I got there.’

At breakfast, Professor McGonagall handed out new timetables to the Gryffindor students. When she got to Harry she asked him how things were going in the Gryffindor dormitories.
‘Couldn’t be worse. Thanks for asking.’ He answered

Her mouth had the tell tale signs of a suppressed smile as she raised an eyebrow. ‘You are more than capable of dealing with it, Mr. Potter.’ Harry wondered where she got her information from. ‘I want to see you in the Headmasters office after breakfast. I’ll give you your timetable then.’
‘I was just about to suggest the same thing actually.’
‘Good, then you wont be late!’ She said shrewdly. She gave him the password before turning to Lavender.

Harry was just reaching for the scrambled eggs when Nearly Headless Nick drifted up through the table towards McGonagall.
‘Where were you lot last night?’ Ron was referring to the ghosts whom Harry, along with almost everyone else, had noted were not present at the start of term feast.

Nick turned his wobbling head ‘Ah! The insatiable curiosity that is the Wonderment of Youth. We were on castle business if you must know, that of which pertained purely to the ethereal entities residing in these grand and historic walls, and does not warrant an explanation to the likes of you.’ He said, looking very self-important.

‘In other words, mind your own business?’ Ron said glumly. Nick turned his nose up and floated to where McGonagall stood. He spoke briefly to the Professor before heading down through the floor again.

‘Ah ... Mr. Potter!’ Professor Slughorn appeared at his side, he appeared slightly thinner than Harry remembered. ‘Looking forward to another year of outstanding potions from you.’ His face was crinkled into an indulgent grin that did not meet his eyes. ‘Though I feel you may not be as keen as you were last year. Your performance ... lagged somewhat towards the end.’
‘I’ll do my best.’
‘Barely need to Harry, m' boy! As I said, it’s in your blood, just like your mother. Well, must be off! I am sure I will see you soon.’ he said with a wink, but Harry had the distinct impression he was not as eager to be in Harry’s company as he tried to portray.

Harry spent the rest of breakfast steeling looks at Ginny, who was sitting with Luna at the other end of the table, his thoughts turned to the book that currently sat in the room of requirement. If he was going to have any chance of living up to Slughorns expectations he was going to have to retrieve the princes copy of Advanced Potion Making. But did he really want to use it again?

‘Harry,’ He was roused immediately from his thoughts by Ginny’s voice. ‘Have you got a minute?’ He nodded and stood as casually as he could while his insides burned, and followed her out of the hall. When she reached the marble staircase she turned, looking slightly worried.
‘Do you still have that book?’
He did not need to ask what she was talking about. ‘Maybe. Why?’
‘I think you should use it.’ Her eyes had a glassy appearance, and she spoke as if the very words leaving her mouth hurt. ‘It might help you … you know … in the future.’

Harry nodded stiffly ‘Why the sudden turn around? You weren’t so keen on my using it last year.’ he said quietly, looking at her through narrowed eyes.
She closed her eyes for a fleeting moment before looking away from him. ‘Its better to know what can be used against you Harry.’ He was silent for a moment as he watched her discomfort; she couldn’t even look him in the eye. Harry found it hurt to be this close to her again. He turned and headed for his meeting with McGonagall.

‘Fwooper!’ The large stone gargoyle slid aside and Harry mounted the stairs as they spiralled up to the office.
‘Enter’ McGonagall was sitting behind the desk where Harry had seen Dumbledore sit so many times before. She was placing a message into a tiny envelope. She glanced up at him as he walked slowly up to the desk. ‘Sit down.’

He glanced around and saw the sorting hat perched on the bookshelf, the Gryffindor sword in its glass case, gleaming not far away. He also noticed the office was still full of Dumbledores things, though they no longer whirred busily or puffed with smoke. Instead they sat quietly, uselessly; dead. The portraits appeared to be sleeping, but Harry had too much experience with them to take that for granted. His eyes fell on Dumbledore; his chin rested on his chest peacefully as he sat in a large comfortable chair. Harry felt an acute emptiness at the sight of him.

As he slouched into the chair opposite McGonagall, it struck him that he had thought Dumbledore would always be at Hogwarts. It seemed impossible to imagine the school without him, yet here Harry sat, more alone now than ever. He could never again seek the guidance of his long time mentor and friend. As Harry’s eyes dropped to the floor, McGonagall stood up and placed the message in the beak of a tawny owl that waited patiently on the stand where Fawkes once sat. The owl launched into the air and in a flurry of silent feathers, disappearing through an open window. When Harry looked up again, Professor McGonagall was watching him.

‘You have something you wish to say to me.’ She said gravely.
Harry straightened himself uncomfortably under her gaze.

‘There must be someone better for the position of Head Boy.’ He waited for her to say something, but she only nodded as she sat down and folded her hands on the desk. Harry went on ‘I’ll be leaving again soon … and I don’t even know if I’ll be back’ McGonagall’s eyes were on her hands as Harry spoke uncertainly. ‘Point is I wont be able to perform as Head Boy all the time.’

‘I see.’ She looked at him, her expression as stern as usual ‘And how do you expect to keep up with your classes under those circumstances?’ Harry felt slightly annoyed that all she seemed to be worried about was his homework.
‘I’ll manage … somehow. And if I cant, I’ll leave anyway … permanently’

McGonagall nodded and stood up. She walked slowly around the desk and spoke without looking at Harry. ‘This is how it will work, Potter. You will be free to come and go, though I will ask you to inform me when you leave so I can make other arrangements. And I think it is a good idea that you drop at least two of your subjects. You can pick them up again at a later stage if necessary.’ She frowned as she finally lifted her head. ‘You shouldn’t be taking on too much if you are to do the Defence Against the Dark Arts classes for the younger students as well.’

Harry was silent for a moment, not sure if he had understood what Professor McGonagall had said. He decided he must have misheard her ‘Sorry?’

‘You heard me correctly, Mr. Potter. The new Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor cannot take the position on full time, which leaves the younger students, fifth year and below to be exact, without a teacher. This is not an acceptable situation given the threat we currently live under, I am sure you agree. You have already proven your teaching abilities by the results your Dumbledores Army students received in their OWLS. And I think it would benefit the children greatly if you were to take the lessons.’

‘But I just finished telling you that I wont always be here’ Harry was certain he was missing something.
‘Which is why I have asked you to inform me of your leaving. You will agree that some Defence Against the Dark Arts classes is preferable to none.’

‘But I wouldn’t know where to start.’

‘Miss Granger would be an excellent candidate to assist you in planning.’ She said ‘It will not take up too much of your time. The classes will be combined and you will be given the Great Hall to conduct your lessons.’ Harry’s head was buzzing as she added ‘If they agree to it, I will organize for Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger to assist you in class. The students are all at different learning levels, so you will need the help.’ She motioned Harry to stand.

Harry stood up, completely flummoxed. He had come here with the intention of giving up his Head Boy status, and instead, had somehow wound up as the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher to boot.

‘I’ll send you a new timetable at Lunch, until then your time is free. Here is a list of all the passwords you will need as Head Boy.’ McGonagall handed him a piece of parchment as she herded him towards the door ‘If you could pass them on to Miss Granger when you are done. You can also inform Mr. Weasley he will be acting Head Boy whenever you are absent from the castle.’

‘But, I don’t-'

‘This was not a popularity contest, Mr. Potter’ she cut him off as he stood outside the large double doors ‘you are Head Boy because you are the ideal candidate. Personally I think it would be rather selfish of you to resign.’ she seemed to soften slightly as she added ‘The students will need you Harry … before the end.’


~*~*~*~


As promised, McGonagall had Harry’s new timetable delivered to him at Lunch. It was a given that he would be taking DADA classes, but he was pleased to see she had kept Charms and Transfiguration. He agreed with Ginny’s reasoning about the prince's book, and since McGonagall had seen fit to include Potions in his schedule, he decided he would head up to the Room of Requirement later when everyone had retired to the Common Room.

Hermione was extremely enthusiastic about Harry’s new appointment, and whole-heartedly agreed to help him plan and conduct the lessons. Rather annoyingly, Ron and Hermione had sided with Professor McGonagall on every point she had put forward to Harry, thereby robbing him of any chance of justification of his doubt. McGonagall had already arranged it so they would have no trouble fitting the classes in between their own subjects; seemingly she had known they would be keen to help, and so it was that they set about planning the first lesson out of three they were to conduct each week.

Hermione made rather a quick job of it. She bolted off to the library as soon as she had scoffed down lunch, and when she and Ron met up with Harry for dinner, she handed him a complete schedule for each age group for the first two weeks, including a break-up floor plan to allow for the required space needed.

‘How did you do that?’ asked Harry stunned.
‘It wasn’t that hard. All I had to do was take out some of my notes from the classes we’d done and combine it with some information from the library.’
‘We kept in anything that might come in handy in the near future.’ Ron added.

‘This is great!’ Harry felt more comfortable with the idea now that he had a plan in front of him. He gave Hermione an appreciative kiss on the cheek. ‘Its brilliant’
‘It was no trouble, I really quite enjoyed doing it.’ She said looking very pleased with herself.

The time spent in the common room that evening was a nightmare. There was so much resentful squabbling going on around the room that everyone was on edge whether they were involved in it or not. And much to Harry’s annoyance, Ginny spent a lot of time tucked away in the corner of the room with Dean.

Harry couldn’t stop glancing their way and even though they both had their books open, they spent most of their time talking animatedly. When Dean met Harry’s glance he shifted in his seat uncomfortably and bent his head to Ginny’s ear. The anger in Harry was stewing in the atmosphere of the room as he turned his head back to the crackling fireplace to avoid Ginny’s gaze.

Hermione was returning from the girl’s dorm upstairs, where she had rushed off to after a shouting match had erupted, looking agitated.
‘Its just as well we don’t have house points this year,’ she said as she sat on the floor in front of Ron ‘They’d all be so deep in the negatives that there wouldn’t be enough jewels in the hour glass to count them.’
‘What was it this time?’ Ron asked rubbing her shoulders.

‘Don’t ask!’ she said as she rolled her eyes ‘Just be thankful your sleeping in the boys dorm with the mess they’ve created up there. I told them you cant throw multiple hexes like that all at once without consequences.’ She looked up as two Ravenclaw girls appeared at the foot of the stairs. One had her arm around the other who was desperately trying to shield a collection of enormous red bulbs on the end of her nose. Hermione made a disapproving noise with her tongue as they crossed the room, heading for the hospital wing.

Harry stood up, ‘I’m going to fetch Snape's book. I’ll be back soon.’
‘Alright, I’ll wait for you before we do the nightly rounds.’ Hermione looked slightly uneasy as Harry headed out of the portrait hole.

He pulled his invisibility cloak out of his pocket and threw it over himself as he took off for the seventh floor. Harry thought it a wise precaution to keep carrying it with him everywhere because Dumbledore had told him to do it last year, and the situation could only be worse now that he was no longer around.

The empty stone passageways were already chilled with autumn’s nighttime breeze as Harry slipped through a shortcut and up some stairs, and then to the corridor where the painting of the dancing trolls resided. He looked around to make sure no one was about, chiding himself for not thinking to grab the Marauders Map before he left, then proceeded to walk up and down outside the place where the door would appear.

I need to find my Advanced Potion Making book. I need to find my Advanced Potion Making book. I need to find my Advanced Potion Making book.

Harry looked up at the wall. No door. What? So he tried again.

I need to find my copy of Advanced Potion Making that I hid here last year. I need to find my copy of Advanced Potion Making that I hid here last year. I need to find my copy of Advanced Potion Making that I hid here last year.

He looked up and frowned. Still nothing. How can that be? He couldn’t understand it. He had hidden Snapes book here and he should be able to… Then it occurred to him.

I need to retrieve Snapes book of Advanced Potion Making that I hid here last year.

After repeating it for the third time the door appeared and Harry opened it quickly, stepping into the darkness and pulling it closed behind him.

[razzberry2]

.

10. The Locket



Tall dark shadows loomed in on Harry as he pulled off the cloak. Tucking it back into his pocket, he pulled out his wand and lit it.
The vast room looked entirely different. The first time he had visited it, light had streamed through the tall windows that looked out over the grounds. Now only the waning moons light, obscured by gathering cloud, pierced the mass of paraphernalia that filled the room.

Harry made his way slowly in the direction he had run; book in hand, desperately searching for a hiding place last year. Impatient, but sure he had turned right at some point, he passed the mountains of broken furniture, books and banned substances, waiting for a sign of recognition; something that might trigger his memory and point the way.

He felt like he had been walking too long, and his anger, which had been simmering below the surface in the Common Room, threatened to boil. The distant rumble of thunder accompanying the outside cloud adding to his growing frustration. The openings in the alley he followed meant nothing to him. He was beginning to think he must have missed what he was looking for when an enormous, ugly and fierce looking stuffed troll came into his wands circle of light. This is it! With renewed confidence he turned right and continued on, the occasional flash of far away lightening illuminating the high arched ceiling as he searched for another familiar landmark.

Then his stomach lurched painfully. The vanishing cabinet Draco had spent most of last year restoring stood on the corner of the isle that Harry stumbled into months ago.

Harry walked slowly up to it; regarding it darkly as if it might suddenly spring open with Death Eaters spewing forth from it. But it lurked silently in the shadows now forgotten, having served its purpose. His mouth went dry as a nurtured and unrealised anger born of guilt swelled within him. How had he forgotten that he had seen it the first time he came through? He should have stopped to look at it more closely then, maybe he could have prevented... He stopped the thought angrily. He dragged his eyes away from its dark bulk as he turned into the alley and started searching for the marker he had left behind.

Using his wand light, he scanned the isle until its light fell upon a bust sitting atop a blistered cupboard. It was the ugly warlock bust wearing the scraggy old wig and tiara Harry had put there. He stopped in front of it as another searing flash of lighening flickered across the room. Reaching a hand up, he turned the cold brass handle. The door creaked loudly in the quiet darkness as it opened, and pointing the glowing wand tip inside, he bent down and pulled the book from its hiding place behind the cage.

Harry turned it over in his hands as another, louder rumble of thunder rolled overhead, rattling the contents of the room; it was just as he had left it. This was the first time he had looked upon the book since discovering the identity of the "prince". The thought that the prince had turned out to be Snape sickened him. If he had shown Dumbledore the book, if he had turned it over to him, would he still be alive? He would have recognized Snapes handwriting. Would it have been enough to prove his trust in Snape was horribly wrong?

Slamming the cupboard door shut, he headed back in the direction he had come. The anger and guilt that he had harboured for so long seethed restlessly in his body, heightened by the sight of Dumbledores doom as he passed the cabinet, unconsciously giving it a wide birth, and traced his way back along the alley, breathing heavily as his insides shook. The troll lit up briefly as another more severe flash of lightening illuminated the surroundings, and as he rounded it he spied a glint of silver out of the corner of his eye.

He stopped, just as a rumble of thunder vibrated the windows, and looked down at a large, heavy steel instrument. He paused for only a moment before picking it up and turning back into the alley he had just come from.

He strode with purpose; his mind now set on one all consuming course of action, unable and unwilling to stop himself. When he came upon his target, he stowed the book and his wand mindlessly onto the nearest surface, and in the gloom, eyeing the vanishing cabinet vengefully, Harry lifted the huge silver axe back behind him. He drew breath angrily through his teeth before he swung the bloodied blade with all the strength that his gathering hatred could muster.

The booming crash of the blow echoed in the high ceiling as the cabinet’s side buckled with the force. Harry put his foot against the treacherous wood and levered the axe out. A brilliant flicker of lightening forked across the sky outside as he leaned back, pulling it behind him again. His eyes stung and his face contorted with pain as a thunderous clap shook the windows.

He brought the axe forward with incredible force, sinking it into the cabinet again. The wood folded in on itself as it shattered, sending stabbing splinters in all directions, one scoring him across the face, but Harry barely felt it. Again, he pushed his foot against the broken wood; his arm muscles straining and beads of sweat dripping down his forehead as he pulled the axe head free.

All of the anger, all of the hatred, and all of the guilt he had clung to and silently nurtured since Dumbledores death, coursed through his veins as he stepped away and brought the axe back behind him again. He threw his weight forward and let the silver blade fly crushingly into the now bent cabinet, again … and again, with a strength he hadn’t known he possessed.

The harsh sounds of shattering wood were mixed with the deafening cracks of thunder until finally the cabinet hung broken and defeated. The axe came easily free of the limp wreckage as Harry pulled it to him one last time. Hot, bitter tears were running down his face as he lifted the axe above his head, and with both hands he delivered the final devastating blow as the last clap of thunder rang out.

Finally, Harry was spent. The storm was passing, leaving behind a gloomy stillness. Panting in fury and pain he dropped to his knees still clutching the axe. His body was racked with weariness, and his mind was dark and torturous. And his heart was desolate. He hung his head low and his shoulders slumped forward as his grief overwhelmed him.

He thought of all those he had lost … the people he had loved and who had loved him back.

Of the struggle that awaited him … the impossible task he was left to do.

And of the fears he had for those he loved … the thought of losing them too much to bear. His pain poured out silently in the dim quiet.

He might have knelt there for an hour or more, alone with his pain, but when he finally lifted his head in the darkness, it was with the resolve that he could wait no longer. He would find out what Kreacher knew about the locket and he would hunt down the first of the four Horcruxes. He would not stray from his path again; he would not give in to the temptation of ignorance. He had been selfish to think he could stay. More people would die the longer he hesitated.

He stood up, feeling utterly drained, and steeling one last look at the shrapnel he had vented himself on, he collected his wand and book, and headed for the Common Room.


Blaise Zabini was slouched with Pansy Parkinson under the unicorn tapestry deep in conversation when Harry appeared through the portrait hole. They both stopped immediately and stared at the sight of him. Colin Creevey was finishing a game of exploding snap with Neville at one of the study tables; they too eyed Harry with uncertain, even frightened looks as he moved passed them.

‘Harry!’ Hermione had been pacing by the fire, a worried expression on her face. ‘What happened?’ she rushed over to him in alarm and grabbed his arms to study him. ‘Oh Harry,’ she breathed on the verge of tears ‘are you alright?’

‘I’m leaving … tonight. But I need everyone out of here so I can speak to Kreacher before I go.’
She looked at him curiously for a moment, but his demeanour moved her into action unquestioningly. She nodded, frowning and turned on the others. ‘Alright, bed!’ she said, her voice slightly squeaky.

‘What?’ scoffed Blaise ‘You can’t tell us when to go to-' But he stopped suddenly as Hermione drew her wand out and pointed at him.
‘Now!’ she commanded, her voice suddenly stern.

He threw his book down angrily and Pansy scowled as they both stood and headed to their dormitories. Colin had mounted the stairs hastily the moment he had seen Hermione reach for her wand, but Neville stood staring at Harry.

‘I can help Harry.’ he said as he swallowed nervously ‘Whatever it is, I-I want to help.’ Harry had a growing respect for Neville over the past two years, but he didn’t want to involve him if he didn’t have to.
‘Thanks Neville … but not this time.’ He said gravely. Neville nodded and walked to the stairwell. He put a foot on the first step then turned back to Harry.
‘If you change your mind, I’ve still got my DA coin’ he flashed a crooked smile and disappeared up the stairs.

‘Where’s Ron?’ Harry just realized he wasn’t in the room.
‘He started rounds and told me to wait here in case you returned. I’ll go and fetch him.’
‘Okay’ Harry lifted his head to call the house elf ‘Krea-‘

‘Harry!’ Hermione bumped his shoulder and motioned her head at the large, high-backed armchair facing the fire before she crossed the room and clambered through the portal to find Ron. Harry frowned and took a few steps to the side, and then bowed his head, reigning in the feelings that flared at the sight of Ginny.

Because Ron and Hermione were worried, she had waited for him. She had not let go to the extent he thought. When he finally looked up again, she was standing before him. She lifted her hand to Harry’s face and brushed it lightly across his cheek, turning the palm towards him with questioning concern.

Harry looked down at the blood on her fingers. ‘Not too subtle, am I?’
‘You’re leaving.’ She said frowning slightly.
‘Yeah’ he spoke gently.
She took a deep breath and turned her eyes to the ceiling in a bid to hold back the tears that threatened. ‘I’m with Neville.’ She said quietly, bringing her eyes back to his. ‘Dumbledore knew you could not do this completely alone. You’ll need help, Harry.’ Then she added ‘If you need someone, call … your friends will be there for you.’

Harry brought his eyebrows together. She spoke almost as if she knew what he was leaving to do. She continued ‘Whatever you’re up to, he asked you to involve Hermione and Ron didn’t he?’
‘Yes … but how did you know-'

‘they’re your best friends Harry. The three of you are regularly off talking about things you don’t want anyone else to hear.’ Harry relaxed a little ‘Just remember they are here, Harry. Remember they have a right to be involved even if you don’t want to involve them. Its not fair to shut out the people who care about you.’

Harry watched her as her eyes swam with tears; he knew she was no longer talking about just Ron and Hermione. He reached up and put his hand to her cheek, moving in close until their bodies touched. Her frown deepened as she looked up at him.

‘You’re strong Ginny. You’ll come through all of this and be happy in the end.’ Harry wanted to believe this more than anything else. He could forgive her betrayal of him; he could forgive her turning to Dean, if only she would be happy.

Without being aware of what he was doing, his mouth came down to meet hers as she closed her eyes, spilling her tears. Their lips met sadly and tenderly, caressing softly as they played gently across one another before Harry pulled himself back, still unable to control the need he had for her. He reached around his neck and unhooked the pendant belonging to his parents, which he had worn almost continuously since coming upon it. He lifted her hand and placed it in her palm, gently closing her fingers over it.

‘Keep this for me. I’ll be back for it … I promise’

Her eyes were full of doubt as she searched his face. She kissed him quickly before turning from him and heading up the stairs. As he watched her go, his whole body ached for her. He turned to the fire and stared at the dying flickers of light. He could not bear to see her unhappy. He would let her go completely when she was ready. He would spare her the pain of being with him.

‘Hey’ Ron and Hermione were coming towards him; both looking painfully worried. Harry nodded in acknowledgement.
‘Why the sudden change mate? I thought you’d be happy here for a bit.’ Ron said with concern.
‘I cant sit around and wait while more people are being killed.’ Harry stayed staring at the glowing embers. ‘I can’t pretend that I can go on like normal. None of this is going to go away until I do something about it.’

‘We’ll go with you, Harry. There’s a be-'
‘No!’ He cut Hermione off abruptly in his urgency, but then added ‘you’re both needed here. You’ll be able to keep an eye on things and at least I’ll always know where you are if I need help.’
‘Harry, I’ve told you before, we’re go-'

‘If I thought it was the best thing to do, I’d agree with you Ron.’ He had to convince them to stay ‘we still haven’t worked out what one of the Horcruxes is, and we have no idea where to find the Hufflepuff cup. You two have to find the answers, or we’re already lost...’ Harry’s voice faded as he looked back into the fireplace.

There was a long silence before Ron spoke ‘What are you going to do?’
Harry looked at them ‘Call Kreacher and find the real Slytherin locket.’
Ron nodded with his eyes on the floor. ‘Alright’
‘Check the stairwells first just in case.’
‘Good idea,’ At Harry’s instruction, Hermione mounted the stairs that led to the female dormitories and Ron disappeared up the boy’s entrance. They came back moments later with the all clear.

‘Kreacher!’ The house elf appeared before them with his arms flailing as if in the middle of a fight.

‘What? What’s this?’ it croaked, looking about. The trio stared down at him in silence. Kreacher was splattered with wet, slimy looking black mud and the cloth he draped over himself, which was already shabby, appeared to have fresh tears in places.

‘Have you and Dobby been fighting again?’ Ron shook his head as he raised an eyebrow. But as Kreacher gave Ron a scowl, Harry grabbed his arm and swung him round to face him, summoning all his anger as he looked into the little elf’s eyes.

‘I’m going to ask you some questions Kreacher and I want straight answers, do you understand me?’ He was stony faced as Kreacher squirmed.
‘Master knows Kreacher is-' Kreacher was about to launch into his usual routine when Harry cut him off.
‘Don’t, Kreacher. I’m warning you. I’m not in the mood!’ Harry was eyeing the elf darkly. He waited until Kreacher stopped trying to wriggle free before adding ‘Just answer my questions.’

The wrinkled old elf smirked oddly as he bowed. ‘Master is more worthy than Kreacher has guessed. Kreacher will hear what Master has to say.’

Harry let go of the elf’s bony little arm and perched on the edge of a nearby chair. He held the gaze of Kreacher’s bloodshot eyes as he asked ‘Did you accompany Regulus when he visited a cave to retrieve something very secret?’ Kreacher’s face dropped immediately. He stared at Harry for a moment then placed his hands over his ears.

‘Kreacher cannot! Kreacher is bound to keep Masters secrets.’ The little elf shook his head.
‘I am your master now, Kreacher’ Harry said aggressively ‘and you will answer me!’ then because Kreacher did not speak though his eyes widened, he snapped ‘Answer me!’

‘Yes!’ the elf hissed.
‘Did either of you manage to retrieve the locket?’ Harry was careful with his wording so Kreacher could not twist it.

The elf let out a nervous squeal before answering ‘Yes!’

The elf was extremely agitated, but it appeared as before, Kreacher was forced to answer. ‘Has the locket been destroyed?’ Harry kept his voice cold and hard. Kreacher looked like he wanted to dissolve into the floor.

‘No!’ he squawked, terrified.
Harry, Hermione and Ron all looked at each other.
Harry continued ‘Do you know what happened to the locket?’
‘Yes!’ the elf looked shocked at his own words.
Harry frowned ‘W-What happened after you obtained locket?’ he asked slowly, aware the answers he sought lay with the right questions.

‘Master Black was unable to open it before the Death Eaters tracked him down.’ Kreacher’s mouth appeared to be speaking almost independently of him. He dropped to the floor and started to wriggle on his back.

‘What happened to the locket after Regulus died?’
‘Kreacher took it!’ Wide-eyed with shock, Kreacher’s hand whipped up to cover his mouth in an effort to restrain himself as he struggled on the floor.

‘What did you do with it?’ Harry’s heartbeat quickened as he pursued him determinedly.
‘Kreacher gave it to his mistress as a present.’ Kreacher started to writhe around on the floor, smearing mud all over the ornate, faded rug. Hermione watched with a mixture of horror and pity.
‘What did Mrs. Black do with it?’
‘She counted it amongst her finest possessions. She kept it in a glass cabinet in the drawing room.’

‘Of course!’

Harry spun round to look at Hermione as she spoke ‘I remember! When we were cleaning Sirius’s place there was a locket, none of us could get it open. That must have been it! Oh…’ her face suddenly paled ‘Harry, we threw it away.’ She breathed.
Harry’s stomach dropped. Now that she mentioned it, he did vaguely remember something like that. But they threw everything from the cabinets away. He buried his head in his hands, not wanting to think about what they had done.

‘Harry,’ Ron said gravely ‘Ask Kreacher if he’s seen the locket since we chucked it.’
‘Why?’ Harry sounded defeated as he spoke ‘We disposed of it Ron, it’ll be long gone-'
‘Just do it.’

Harry looked back at Kreacher who was positively thrashing about ‘Kreacher, have you seen the locket since we threw it out?’ he asked expecting a resounding No.

‘Yes!’ Harry looked at Ron who motioned the elf. Kreacher was getting more and more urgent in his effort to stop himself from speaking.
‘How did you know?’ Harry turned to Ron.
‘Just a guess. He was trying to sneak stuff away all the time, remember? If it meant so much to the old bat, he would’ve made a bee-line for it.’ Harry smiled appreciatively at Ron then turned his attention back to the elf still struggling on the floor.

‘Do you know where the locket is, Kreacher?’
‘Yes!’
‘Where is it?’ Harry hurried on
‘In … Kreacher’s … spot.’ He panted.
‘What, its here?’ said Ron
‘Stupid blood traitor-’
‘Where is your spot Kreacher?’ Harry said through gritted teeth.

‘Kreacher’s bed at his mistresses house.’ the elf exhaled, his body going limp. It appeared he had told them all he knew for he stood up looking exhausted, having fought a losing battle, and scowled at them ‘Kreacher will go now!’ before vanishing.

Harry stuffed his backpack with everything he thought he might need and hastily wrote a note to McGonagall, leaving the Marauders Map with Ron, and then the three of them met back in the Common Room.

‘Stay out of trouble.’ Ron said ‘I know that’s asking a lot’ he smiled awkwardly.
‘Wherever possible,' he said quietly
‘How are we going to stay in touch?’
‘via these’ Hermione handed Harry one of two small emerald books.

‘What’s this?’ Harry opened it and flicked through the blank pages.
‘It’s a message log. Whatever you write on the front of a page will show up on the back of the same page in this book’ she waved the one she held in her hand ‘and vice versa’
‘That’s brilliant’ Harry shook his head ‘How did you do it?’

‘I didn’t. I took them from that box of test stuff Fred and George brought round over the holidays.’ Harry and Ron raised their eyebrows at her. Hermione flushed ‘Well, they really do have some extraordinary magic, and I thought these would come in handy.’ Harry stowed the book away and swung his cloak over him.

When he reached the large iron gates, he pointed his wand from under his cloak. McGonagall had included the gate password on the list she had given him for the Heads, with the understanding that he would need to use it on occasion. The enormous lock clunked open and the chains dropped away noisily. Harry opened the gate quickly and slipped through it, turning to lock it again.

He concentrated and found himself outside thirteen Grimmauld Place. Once he was back inside his temporary home he lit several candles and went from room to room looking for any sign of someone staying there, but there was no one about, and it looked as if Lupin hadn’t been back since his last transformation just after Diagon Alley. So Harry dumped his pack on the bed and returned to the kitchen. Getting down on his hands and knees, he lit his wand and crawled into the small space that Kreacher called home.

With a sense of urgency, he rifled through the bedding, pulling out old photos and clothing that used to belong to Sirius’s mother and father, then his hand hit on something small, smooth and cold. He closed his hand around it and backed out of the tiny space. Even before he opened his palm he knew this was it. It had an unnatural heaviness to it as the chain dangled through his fingers.

Harry turned it over and traced the outline of the "S" shaped serpent on the front. It seemed incredible to think he held a piece of Voldemort's soul in the palm of his hand. He finally stood and walked over to the kitchen table. Sitting down he pulled a candle close, tucked his wand back in his pocket, and rested his elbows on the table, turning the locket over in his fingers. His eyes narrowed and mouth curled in distaste. Harry knew Voldemort had killed to make it and the thought repulsed him. Though he knew it was pointless, he tried to open it, and as suspected, it proved impossible.

Suddenly the fireplace burst into roaring green flames. Expecting that Lupin was finally returning, Harry quickly tucked the locket away in his pocket. But as he watched the figure emerge from the flames Harry’s heart began to pound in his chest.

All in one move he leapt to his feet, whipped his wand out and aimed it at Snape ‘Petrificus Totalus!’


~*~*~*~


The spell bounced off Snape and collided with the wall; the sound of cracking stone tore through the kitchen as Snape glared at Harry.

‘Stupefy!’ Harry yelled as he backed away, trying desperately to put some distance between them. Again, the spell ricocheted off him as Snape flicked his wand, sending the iron candelabra that hung from the roof crashing down onto the table. The candle Harry had been using was thrown from the table by the force of the impact and rolled onto the chair he had been sitting on, its light flickering eerie shadows across the room. Snape snarled as he moved his wand.

‘Protego!’ Harry instantly blocked the spell as the ropes that unfurled from Snapes wand uselessly dropped to the floor. There was another flick from Snape. Harry dived into the sitting room, narrowly avoiding a beam of light.

‘I see your skills have not improved.’ Snapes voice goaded as Harry scrambled to his feet. Harry aimed at the doorway, his heartbeat racing as Snapes silhouette emerged, distorted by the flickering light.

‘Expelliarmus!’

The curse hit Snape's shield and was deflected as he immediately sent a white light streaking towards Harry, throwing him backwards into the cold dark fireplace. His hand slammed painfully into the stone arch, sending his wand flying to the floor, disappearing as it rolled under an armchair. The ash and soot flurried around him in his panic to find his feet. His mouth and nose were choked and his eyes were being inundated as he struggled to open them. He spluttered as he pulled himself forward, temporarily unable to see, his heart pounding in his chest as something was thrust into the flesh under his chin, forcing his head up.

‘I can still read you like a book.’ Snape pressed his wand tip further under Harry’s chin ‘You are no better off than you were two years ago.’ Harry was trying to keep his eyes open though they stung with ash. ‘Do you delude yourself that you can take on the Dark Lord like this?’ Snape leaned in close ‘to him you have the powers of insect. And he will crush you under his foot just as easily.’

Harry cringed in revulsion at Snapes nearness, the panic rising in him. Then the wand tip was gone, allowing him to lower his head. His eyes had sufficiently watered to get rid of most of the grit as he watched Snape put a few paces distance between them, eyeing Harry suspiciously and keeping his wand directed at Harry’s chest.

Harry glanced down out of the corner of his eyes to where his wand had disappeared ‘Don’t bother going for it,’ Snape said, looking down his hooked nose at him. ‘Unless you want to be incarcerated again.’ He raised and eyebrow ‘My last visit should put you off repeating that particular little stunt.’

‘What do you want?’ Harry said savagely, his chest heaving with anger. This was the second time Snape had got the better of him. There would not be a third.

‘I’ve come to give you the information I promised.’ Snape voice was silky as he pulled a small scroll from his robes and held it aloft. Harry eyed it for a moment, frowning dubiously. ‘It wont bite,’ Snape said sarcastically and narrowed his eyes ‘not if you do as instructed.’ Harry reached a hand up and took the scroll, all the while wondering why he was listening to this traitor.

‘What is it?’ Harry did not attempt to hide the loathing in his voice.

‘It is your key to Bellatrix LeStrange.’ Snape said. ‘However, if you try to open it before six pm on All Hallows Eve, it will ignite.’ Harry stopped fumbling with the seal on the scroll and looked back at Snape ‘After six pm on Halloween, you will have a window of five minutes with which to read it, and memorize it.’

‘Memorize it?’ Harry eyed Snape distrustfully.
‘You will find out what I mean on Halloween, not before.’ Snape said unhelpfully.
Harry narrowed his eyes and scowled ‘It’s a trap, isn’t it? If you think I’m stupid enough to-’
‘I could easily force you to come with me right now.’ Snape said threateningly.
‘I wouldn’t go without a fight!’ Harry spat. Snape sneered mockingly as he shook his head. Then suddenly, his face was stony.
‘You’d follow me like an eager little puppy if I wanted you to.’

Harry’s chest was heaving as the anger coursed through him.
‘If you want Bellatrix, you will be in the Great Hall at the Halloween feast, opening that at precisely six pm.’ Snape pointed his wand at the scroll in Harry’s hand.

‘Why do I have to be at Hogwarts?’
‘Don’t ask pointless questions, Potter’ he snapped angrily ‘you will know only when you read the note.’
‘I’m not going to endanger the school.’ Harry said with his jaw clenched.
'If you do not do as I have instructed, believe me, the school will be under threat.' A knot formed in Harry’s stomach as his mouth went dry.

‘What are talking about?’

‘Just do as your told for once in your life!’ Snape growled, then he added silkily ‘Do nothing until Halloween, as I’ve said, and remember’ Snape took a step closer to Harry ‘do not breathe a word of this to anyone in the meantime. Your revenge on Bellatrix depends on it.’
Harry struggled with his loathing and distrust for Snape, and the feeling of dread that had overcome him. He could not afford to ignore Snape's warning.

Snape was staring at Harry questioningly through narrowed eyes, and as Harry stood there, the image of him destroying the cabinet suddenly flashed across his mind, followed speedily by McGonagall’s stern figure in the Head Office. Harry was suddenly aware of what was happening and he desperately tried to close his mind. Ginny’s face appeared with tears in her eyes as Harry’s heart lurched painfully. NO! He thought savagely, NOT HER!

‘STOP IT!’ He yelled as he tried to think of something else, anything else. Gabrielle’s tear filled, horrified eyes swam in his mind, and before Harry could stop it, a sudden flash of gold streaked through his thoughts. 'NO!' Harry felt a sharp pain in his knees as they hit the floor. He lifted himself to his feet, panting from the effort of throwing Snape out of his mind, and glaring at Snape, he asked furiously ‘What the hell are you doing?’

Snape was even paler than usual and his eyes looked almost possessed as he spoke.

‘You are still hopeless at Occlumency.’ He said, his voice dripping with contempt. ‘You will fail Potter, because you are clueless and lazy.’ Then he flicked his wand, but Harry was ready for it. He threw himself behind the chair. The curse hit the back of the fireplace, sending soot billowing into the air as Harry desperately felt for his wand. Snapes snide voice rang out ‘Luck will not save you in the end.’ It sounded as though Snape had retreated back to the kitchen. ‘Only a great wizard can defeat The Dark Lord!’

Harry’s fingers pulled the stick like thing towards his palm, closing over it firmly. He darted out from behind the chair and raced towards the kitchen, arriving just in time to see Snapes twirling black robe disappear up into the chimney. Harry slowly lowered his wand and breathlessly sunk into a nearby chair, surveying the damage.

It was early morning before he collapsed into bed after cleaning up the mess. There were still some telltale marks on the walls, which Harry could not mend with magic, but that was the least of his worries. Snape had made it clear something terrible was going to happen, something that might be averted by capturing Bellatrix. But it confused Harry as to why Snape was so willing to share this information.

Why was he sabotaging his master’s servant’s errand? Was it possible that Bellatrix was acting alone and Snape had caught wind of it? No, Harry could think of no reason why Snape wouldn’t just kill her himself. So why had he come to Harry? Then a thought occurred to him. Snape wanted rid of Bellatrix because she was competition, she was as evil and as cruel as he was.

Harry had seen the Death Eaters cower before Snape on the Astronomy Tower, so he was counted as someone to be reckoned with, and Bellatrix had described herself to Harry over a year ago in the Ministry of Magic as Voldemorts "most loyal servant". It made sense; that was why Snape had tipped him off, he wanted Bellatrix out of the way.

Harry felt a certain amount of satisfaction at the thoughts that they were fighting amongst themselves, though there remained of course, the possibility that this was still an elaborate trap of some kind. But he could not take the risk and try opening the parchment now, nor could he ignore the possibility that Snape was telling the truth, not if Hogwarts was in danger.

Snapes words repeated, over and over in Harry’s head as he lay in the dawn’s light. He knew Occlumency was important for him, especially now. He was hiding such an incredible secret, that should it get back to Voldemort, all hope would be lost. If Voldemort knew someone had successfully destroyed the ring Horcruxe already, and that the locket was currently in Harry’s possession, then he would reinforce his security around the remaining ones, making them impossible to obtain, not to mention he would hunt Harry down with a renewed urgency.

It bit deeply that Snape was right about him. Harry had none of the power Voldemort had. Luck was the only reason he had escaped him in the past. He still struggled with the most basic of things, non-verbal spells. As he rolled over trying to shut out the morning’s light, he came upon a decision; after he had destroyed the locket he would return to Hogwarts and work ruthlessly to become the wizard everyone believed him to be.


~*~*~*~


Over the next few days Harry stayed in contact with Ron and Hermione via the message log. The speech was necessarily cryptic in case someone should come across one of the books, though Harry had nothing of importance to report since finding the locket. As each day passed his notes were becoming shorter and more impatient sounding, until on the fourth morning all he wrote was one sentence to say nothing new had happened. Hermiones notes on the other hand were far more detailed.

It seemed she and Ron had started the Defence Against the Dark Arts lessons at McGonagall’s instructions, but had found they were struggling to keep order amongst so many students. In fact, Hermione had sounded rather flustered upon returning from a two-hour session on his third day at Grimmauld place, saying that they were only still doing it because McGonagall wouldn’t let them quit. As for the shared Common Room, Hermione had written that things had taken a turn for the worst since he had left and Blaise Zabini in particular had become extremely antagonistic.

Harry felt a pang of sympathy for his two best friends, but he found little time to wonder at the goings on at Hogwarts. He had bent all of himself to the task of figuring out what to do next. He had tried to open the locket by force and failed miserably, even resorting to throwing it in the fire to see if it might magically spring open. But nothing prevailed, so his mood sank deeper with each passing day out of frustration and impatience.

The Order members who dropped in from time to time to check on him during their guard would not discuss why Lupin had not yet come back, though Harry began to suspect he was working undercover amongst the werewolves once more, an extraordinarily risky thing to do after he had been present at the struggle with the Death Eaters at Hogwarts; a fact Harry would bring up with him the minute he returned.

The fact that Snape had seen Ginny in his thoughts when he had invaded his mind, also weighed heavily on Harry. It was exactly the kind of thing Harry had desperately hoped to avoid and yet because of his lack of skill, and his increasing need for her, it had come to pass anyway. The more Harry thought about it the darker his thoughts became, and his growing unease and frustration meant sleeping was becoming more and more difficult.

On the fourth day Harry was sitting in the kitchen as he did everyday, staring at the locket on the table before him, feeling utterly useless, when he heard Sirius’s mothers portrait start up. He hastily snatched the locket up and placed it in his pocket before hunching himself over his cold, half empty mug of tea. He heard footsteps coming down the stairs, and as they neared Harry resentfully hoped whomever it was would drink their tea quickly and leave. He didn’t look up as they stopped at the foot of the stairs. Mrs. Black was still ranting in the distance as whoever it was made their way over to the table, and then Harry felt a slender hand on his shoulder.

He looked up expecting to see Tonks, but instead he looked straight into Fleur’s slightly watery eyes. It was a meeting Harry had been silently dreading since the morning after her and Bills wedding. Even though Harry knew he wasn’t responsible for what happened to Gabrielle, he couldn’t help think that it wouldn’t have happened if not for him. He had wondered if she would ever be able to bring herself to be in his company again, and part of him almost hoped that she wouldn’t.

She leant down and kissed him gently on the cheek. ‘Eet ‘as been too long ‘Arry’ her voice was soft though heavy with emotion. Her smile as she looked down at him did not reach her eyes ‘You 'av been avoiding me perhaps?’ Harry quickly looked down at the table ‘No’ he forced. Mrs. Black was finally silent again as Fleur continued.

‘Arry, we ‘av been friends for a long time now, and I feel I can be honest weeth you.’ She pulled out a chair next to Harry and swung it round to face him. He stared at the table intently and did not look up.

‘Theengz were very ‘ard for my family after what happened, and eet was eezy to blame you because we needed someone to blame.’ Harry’s swallowed the pain that leapt from his stomach ‘But it did not take us long to realize our mistake, and Bill ‘as been working very ‘ard to find zee culprit, zee real person oo deserves our ‘atred.’ Harry’s head swung round as he looked at Fleur ‘Dis … Bellatrix,’ she almost spat the name ‘she will feel zee consequences of ‘er actions very soon.’

Harry frowned ‘What d'ya mean?’ he asked cautiously.

‘You will zee,’ Just then Bill appeared through the doorway and smiled crookedly at Fleur through his scarred face. ‘And when ‘ee catches up with ‘er she will wish she never crossed a Delacour.’ Her eyes glittered with revenge. Harry was frowning intently as he turned his attention to Bill.

‘What’s going on? Have you found Bellatrix?’

‘Cant say, Order business.’ He said flatly. Harry dropped his eyes searchingly to the table. He knew the Orders hatred of Bellatrix was likely to place them all in a great deal of danger, and he was already sitting on a way of getting to her. But he had no way of convincing them of that without telling them about Snape, which would then render the plan useless. He stood up and looked Bill in the eye, determined to get an answer.

‘I have to know Bill’ he said slowly ‘How close are you to getting to Bellatrix?’ Bill sighed and closed his eyes for the briefest moment before answering him.
‘I know what this means to you Harry, but I cant-'

‘No you don’t! You don’t have a clue what this means to me.’ Harry said loudly. ‘I will not be pushed out of the loop on this one. Tell me how long until you move in on her?’ Bill looked taken-a-back by Harry’s aggressiveness, but it was Fleur who spoke first.

‘I theenk ee deserves to know.’ She said to Bill as she lifted her hand and touched it to Harry’s arm ‘Ee ‘as suffered as much as anyone else ‘as because of ‘er.’ Harry stared stony eyed, waiting for Bill to speak.
‘I can’t tell you Harry, you know the oath I took.’ He said gravely ‘Though I promise to bring it up with Lupin when he gets here tomorrow.’

Harry knew it was useless to push the point, so he slumped back in his chair and rubbed his face in his hands.
‘You look terrible,’ Fleur said as she took his cup away. ‘You ‘aven’t made yourself a proper meal the whole time you’ve been ‘ere, I expect.’ She stood up and walked to the cupboards ‘I’ll make us some lunch.’

‘I’m not hungry, I already ate’
She turned and eyed him shrewdly ‘I theenk dis eez not true’
‘She cooks an excellent shepherds pie’ Bill chimed in hopefully.
‘No, really,’ Harry got up and walked to the stairs ‘I’m not hungry.’ then he turned and made his way up the stairs and into the drawing room, closing the door behind him.

He removed his obsession from his pocket, holding it before him. The lack of sleep and sheer frustration he had experienced over the past few days proved a volatile mix and he squeezed the hateful Horcrux in his fist, turning his knuckles white.

Why had Dumbledore entrusted this task to me? He thought angrily. What could he do against such magic? He wasn’t a great wizard as Snape had so eagerly pointed out. His chest heaved as the heat in him rose. He didn’t have the experience or the knowledge to deal with this. He thought savagely. If it wasn’t enough that Dumbledore had made the unforgivable mistake of trusting Snape, he had also erred beyond the ridiculous entrusting the destruction of Voldemort to him.

Harry let out a heated roar, and with the strength that could only come from utter rage, he pulled his arm back and threw the locket across the room. It hit the Black Family tapestry hard and bounced off, falling to the ground as solid as ever.

Harry yanked out his wand and pointed it at the locket. How could the fate of the wizarding world be resting on his shoulders? ‘Alohomora!’ Harry said through gritted teeth, feeling utterly useless. Nothing happened. How could Dumbledore have been stupid enough to believe in him? ‘Open!’ he said angrily as he walked up to it. He eyed the serpent engraving, repulsed by its link to Voldemort. He was going to fail. Harry knew in his heart that Snape was right. He was beyond caring who heard him as he yelled with blind fury at the golden snake ‘OPEN!’

A hissing sound came out of Harry’s mouth and a rumble like thunder grew from the locket, shaking the room. It reached a deafening level as Harry backed away from it, before there was an enormous boom and the locket sprang open.

There was a blinding flash of pale pink light and an unbearable wave of heat as Harry was lifted off his feet and flung backwards. He was slammed into the wall behind him with incredible force, and then just as helplessly, he was dropped onto his stomach like a rag doll, barely conscious.

His skin was painfully blistered and burned as he struggled to get breath into his lungs. He was unable to move as his eyes looked across the floor and found the locket lying open and blackened under the burnt shell of a chair. His ears rang and his head pounded, and he spluttered as the air returned to his lungs, finally giving in to the encroaching darkness.

[razzberry2]

.

11. A Lead and A Familiar Face



Harry slowly opened his eyes. His body was drenched in sweat and his head swam dangerously as he lifted it off the pillow groggily, trying to get his bearings. In the dull night-light, Harry could see the familiar blurry sight of the Hogwarts hospital wing. He did not wonder at what had brought him here.

During his hours of unconsciousness, the opening of the locket had played out over and over in his dreams. He was burning … always burning. Sometimes the burning light that enveloped him had merely scolded him beyond recognition, leaving him scarred and disfigured like Mad-eye Moody. Other times Voldemort himself had appeared, springing forth from the opening locket, a green beam shooting from his wand as he hissed threateningly.

The room lurched sickeningly as Harry tried to sit up, the sheets clinging to his damp body uncomfortably. He fought the nausea that that swelled in him as he reached for his glasses, placing them on his nose.

Socks was sitting at his feet; she was staring at him through her rather large green eyes, her tail flicking lightly at the end. He reached down and stroked her head automatically as he looked around the room. She immediately pressed her head to Harry’s palm, purring loudly, and padding up the bed, she placed her front paws in his lap, rubbing her head against his body. He wondered how long he had been there as he scratched behind her ear affectionately and lifted her to him, glad for the company. It felt like days. He was stiff and heavy as if he’d been sleeping too long.

He wiped at his beaded forehead with the back of his arm and tried to moisten his dry, cracked lips with his tongue. A light flickered outside in the hallway and appeared to be getting closer as Socks wriggled free of Harry’s grasp and jumped off the bed, slinking away into the shadows.

‘You’re finally awake, Mr. Potter!’ Madame Pomphrey rounded the entrance, candle in hand, looking pale yet relieved. She made her way over to the bed and put her hand to Harry’s head. ‘Thank goodness!’ Harry watched her bustle over to a nearby cabinet and pull out an assortment of elixirs and potions. She poured and measured, as Harry spoke.

‘How long have I been here?’ he croaked.
‘Not long,’ she said quietly ‘considering the condition you were in.’
Harry examined his raw looking hands, not wanting to think about his face.
‘Will the burns heal?’
She stopped mixing vials for a moment and turned to look at him. Harry watched her face and prepared himself.

‘From what Bill Weasley said, the room you were standing in was completely burnt out.’ Harry looked down at the sheets wishing Socks was still there. ‘All I can say is you must have very sharp reflexes and an extraordinary shield charm.’ She eyed him with appreciation as she handed him a cup of mustard coloured potion. ‘Your burns are already greatly healed. The redness of the skin will fade completely within a week. Drink this, it’ll get rid of that dry feeling in your mouth and help you to sleep.’

Harry waved the cup away ‘I’ve slept enough; at least it feels like it. How long have I been here?’
Madame Pomphrey lifted her eyebrows ‘A little over a week.’
‘A week?’ Harry repeated
‘You were brought here last Friday.’
‘What’s today?’
‘Early hours of Sunday morning.’ She said as she rolled back his blankets.

‘Why was I brought here and not St Mungos?’
‘You were brought here under Professor McGonagall’s instructions.’ She stopped fussing and clamped her fingers together. ‘Whatever you were doing Mr. Potter, you are very lucky to be alive, and I highly recommend that you do not attempt to cast such a spell again.’
‘I didn’t cast a spell’ he said quietly.

‘Rooms don’t just blow up of their own accord.’ She said sternly as she took the pillows off the bed. ‘You’ve got some explaining to do when you see the Professor.’

Harry didn’t want to say anything else about what had happened, so he waited for Madame Pomphrey to finish stripping the bed around him before asking after Ron and Hermione.

‘They’ve been in every moment they can spare I would think, and then some. None of the other students know you are here, at the Head Mistresses orders.’ she pulled out a fresh pair of pyjamas and grabbed Harry under the arm, hoisting him off the bed. Harry was surprised at how difficult he found it to move, but Madame Pomphrey appeared prepared as she helped him to the bathroom.

Harry stood under the shower, letting the cool water wash over his raw skin. He had destroyed the locket Horcrux. He had seen it lying open and charred before he had passed out, but what was he going to tell everyone when they asked what had happened?

When he returned to his newly made bed, he drank the mustard potion and slipped between the crisp, clean sheets and before long the effort of having showered caught up with him. He slept free of dreams about the locket and when he did finally awaken, it was to the sounds of Ron and Hermione in the middle of an argument.

‘… He’s got a right to know Hermione!’
‘Yes, but its not a good idea to tell him right now … he’s got enough to deal with, Ron. Wait until he’s feeling better.’ Harry kept his eyes closed and listened.

‘He’d want to know now.’ Ron said.
‘What difference will it make, Hm? He’s not going to be able to do anything about it anyway, and it’ll just worry him sick.’ Harry's heart missed a beat as he opened his eyes.

‘What will?’ he asked heavily. Ron, who had been pacing up and down at the foot of the bed stopped suddenly and looked at Harry with a guilty expression on his face. Hermione, who was sat in a chair beside the bed, glared at Ron accusingly. Harry eased himself into a sitting position and Hermione stood up and propped his pillows so he could lean back.

‘What’s going on?’ he directed his gaze at Ron who seemed like the most likely source of information.
‘It’s probably nothing’ Ron began uncertainly ‘but the Order’s lost track of Lupin.’
‘What d'ya mean, “lost track”?’ Harry’s stomach lurched.

Ron looked hesitantly at Hermione before answering ‘He didn’t turn up last Saturday, and nobody’s seen or heard from him in over a week.’ Harry’s mouth went dry as he frowned down at the bed sheets.
‘He’s back with the werewolves.’
‘How do you know? Nobodies said anything’ Hermione asked.
‘They don’t have to.’ Harry said darkly as he looked back at Ron ‘What did Bill say?’
‘Not much … he just let it slip really … when he and Fleur were in here yesterday looking in on you.’

Harry shook his head ‘How could he go back there? If Greyback sees him …’ he couldn’t finish the sentence, and he didn’t need to. Ron sat down on the edge of the bed as Hermione settled into her chair.
‘Lupins smart, Harry.’ Hermione said, frowning ‘He knows what he’s doing.’ They sat in silence for a moment before Ron spoke.
‘So, how did you end up a crispy critter then?’

Harry told them both what happened, and watched as their faces darkened.

‘We thought it was the Horcrux’ Ron said ‘so you managed to open it then?’
‘Yeah, only by accident.’
‘You destroyed it though mate. Accident or not, you did it.’
Hermione had said nothing; she sat staring at the floor with a grave expression on her face.
‘What?’ Harry prompted; suddenly worried that maybe he hadn’t destroyed the Horcrux by opening the locket.

‘It almost killed you,’ her eyes swelled with tears as she looked up at him ‘… and there are three more of them out there you have to destroy.’ Harry had thought the very same thing when he’d been showering, but the sight of Hermiones growing horror made him down play it.
‘Yeah, well I made it though, didn’t I?’ he tried to smile, but couldn't quite manage it.

‘Only just’ Ron said gravely ‘I don’t think you should be doing this on your own mate.’
‘Ron’s right. The next time we go with you.’ Hermione said as she wiped at her face.
‘No,’ Harry shook his head slightly ‘Definitely not.’
‘We stayed behind this time because you asked us to, and it nearly got you kill-'

‘There was nothing either of you could’ve done’ Harry cut Ron off gravely ‘If you’d of been with me you’d probably be dead, and then I really wouldn’t have any help.’ There was an uncomfortable silence, which it meant they would argue the point no further, and Harry spent the rest of the morning hearing all about the goings on at Hogwarts.

After complaining about their disastrous attempts at keeping order in their Defence Against the Dark Arts classes with the younger students, Ron and Hermione launched into a detailed, and rather curious description of their own Defence lessons. It seemed the new teacher, who refused to be addressed as “Professor”, was extraordinarily grumpy, though Ron pointed out, he did know his "stuff".

Neither of them could tell Harry what his name was as he had never bothered mentioning it, although Hermione commented that she was sure she’d met him somewhere before. When she had asked Professor McGonagall about him, she had raised her eyebrows and said he was from Hogsmeade so it was likely she had seen him on occasion and that calling him “sir” would suffice, seemingly unwilling to elaborate any further.

Madame Pomphrey ploughed Harry with various potions all that day, and he spent his last night in hospital accompanied by Socks, who had snuck in and jumped onto his bed in the small hours of the morning. He felt comforted by the feel of her soft fur on his fingertips, though his thoughts constantly strayed to her mistress. Now that he was back at Hogwarts he knew he was going to have to buckle down and learn everything he could to help him in his endeavour to face Voldemort. He would have little time to be stewing over the things he could not have, which would be a welcome distraction.

The following morning Madame Pomphrey instructed Harry to go straight to the Head Mistresses office before attending any classes. He dreaded the confrontation he knew was inevitable and as he rode the stairs to the double doors outside her office he tried to imagine the look on her face when he told her he had nothing to say. Once at the top he knocked and waited. The doors opened and Harry saw McGonagall returning her wand to the desk top in front of her.

‘Come in.’ she said, pointing to the chair. Harry walked forward but did not sit; instead he stood firmly and spoke with a stony expression on his face.

‘Professor, I know what you want, but I can’t tell you what happened at Sirius’s house.’ She looked at him over her spectacles ‘Not unless you want me to lie.’

‘There is no need to waste our time with untruths, Harry.’ The use of his first name caught Harry off guard and he faltered slightly. ‘I did not ask you here to explain yourself’ She rose from her chair and walked around her desk, Harry noticed she appeared to be shaking slightly ‘I have arranged for you to start training with the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher this afternoon, that is of course, if you are staying with us?’

She did not wait for a reply as she continued ‘It also seems Miss Granger and Mr. Weasley have been…’she paused and raised an eyebrow, searching for the right word ‘struggling … with the younger students. I expect you will have the situation under control when you take the classes tomorrow.’ She stopped in front of the portrait of Dumbledore. Harry watched as she lifted a slightly trembling hand to her glasses and adjusted them.

‘I am not ignorant of the fact that you are doing as Dumbledore wanted.’ she said ‘Though I will not pretend that I approve of what is going on,’ Her eyes dropped to the floor, her usual stern façade seemed to be crumbling. ‘I find myself in a difficult position, Harry. I am expected to give you a free reign to do as you please, yet it seems likely to be your end.’ Harry could see the worry etched across her face.

‘I’m sorry Professor,’ he said, suddenly feeling a great deal of sympathy for McGonagall. ‘I don’t really have a choice in this either.’
She let out an exasperated breath and when she spoke her voice shook.
‘Oh, this is ridiculous! You are not much more than a boy and yet everyone is expecting you to be able to-’

‘Professor!’

Harry started as Dumbledores voice cut firmly across McGonagall’s. His eyes darted up to the painting and a pain shot through him as he looked at the now wide-awake figure. Dumbledore was sitting straight and tall in his chair, his hands no longer folded in his lap, but gripping the padded arms of the chair determinedly. The surrounding paintings were also startled out of their feigned sleep. McGonagall fidgeted her hands as she half turned her head over her shoulder, though she did not meet Dumbledore’s eyes. She turned back to Harry.

‘Be in the Defence classroom at three thirty, Potter. That will be all.’ she moved back to sit behind her chair as Harry retreated uncertainly towards the door. As he took hold of the handle and turned to close it, he could see Dumbledore’s grave face watching him as he pulled it to.


Harry sat through his first Potions class for the year with Ron and Hermione. Although he had Snapes potions book, he had no wish to use it in class and he informed Professor Slughorn that he had misplaced his old potions book and would need to borrow a school copy until he could purchase a replacement. Slughorn handed him the copy that contained a brand new edition inside its tatty cover; the one Harry had swapped for Snapes last year.

‘I say Harry, that’s some case of sunburn you’re sporting!’ Ernie spoke pompously. Harry saw Hermione tense. He raised his eyebrows non-commitedly as he sliced into a shrivelled up sea cucumber. ‘Been holidaying in the south? Fell asleep in the sun?’ he quipped with an amused glint in his eye. Ron rolled his eyes and Hermione visibly relaxed.

‘Something like that.’ Harry felt a certain satisfaction at his less than perfect potion results. Slughorn had approached his cauldron as if he were about to gleefully delve into a box of particularly delicious crystallized pineapple, only to withdraw hastily at the sight of the congealed kaki coloured gunge quivering dangerously as globulus bubbles oozed to the surface.

Afterwards the trio headed down for lunch in the Great Hall. While Ron piled his plate high with sausages and mashed potato, Harry spooned a small portion onto his plate and picked at it disinterestedly, ignoring the stares his still reddened appearance attracted. Neville sat down opposite him; his eye’s flicking back and forth from his plate to Harry. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat, obviously burning to ask the same thing on every ones mind.

‘Its not what you’re thinking Neville,’ Harry said. Immediately the surrounding chatter died, though people still tried to appear busy with themselves. ‘I wasn’t attacked by anyone.’ Harry explained truthfully. Neville nodded slightly and flashed an awkward smile. When nothing else was forth coming, the talk slowly started up again and Harry followed Hermione’s glance up to the staff table.

‘Have you seen Hagrid yet?’ he asked, eyeing the empty chair.
‘No’ Hermione said ‘We asked McGonagall and she said they weren’t doing Care of Magical Creatures this year.’
‘You don’t suppose its got something to do with that Giant attack at Trowbridge, do you?’ asked Ron.
‘Nobody’s seen GRAWP have they?’ Harry frowned.

‘I don’t think so’ Hermione looked as worried as Harry felt. Just then, Ginny strolled up to the table and sat down a few places from Ron. Harry caught her eye for the briefest of moments before she started ladling food onto her plate whilst talking with great verve to a fellow Gryffindor sixth year.

For all intensive purposes she appeared to be in high spirits, so much so that she was attracting the attention of those around her. Harry, Ron and Hermione watched curiously as a not-so-miniature Mt Everest began to form out of mashed potato on her plate. It grew to an impressive height before the girl she was talking to finally interrupted her, nodding at the mound. Ginny looked innocently down at her plate.

‘Oh’ she said quietly, her expression dropping slowly. She still grasped the large serving spoon in her hand and her cheeks reddened as she stared at it for the longest time, seemingly unable to look away. Harry was on the verge of getting up to go to her when a hand fell on her shoulder. Ginny looked blankly up at Dean.

‘C’mon’ he said as he motioned his head to the door. Harry breathed heavily as he watched her rise, sucking in the urge to call her. Dean put an arm around her small shoulders as they walked back out of the Hall together. Harry dropped his gaze to his own plate when they had gone from view, aware of the pained look Hermione would be shooting at him.

Harry arrived outside the DADA classroom as instructed by McGonagall, glad to note the passageway was empty of gawking students. He knocked loudly and then turned the large cast iron ring-handle, pushing his shoulder against the heavy wooden door and stepping into the room.

He was just about to push it closed after him when he felt the hair on his neck prickle. Before he could react, a beam of light sped towards him, knocking him off his feet. He hit the stone wall with a thud, and then winded, he slid down it slowly onto the floor. A course grunt sounded and Harry’s heartbeat raced, his wand already in hand.

‘You’re dead.’ the gruff voice said shortly. A hand reached down and grabbed him under the elbow, helping him to his feet. ‘It’s a wonder you’re still alive, walkin’ around so blindly.’

When Harry got to his feet, the rather hairy old man, dressed in grey flannel robes and a grumpy scowl on his face, turned and walked to the front of the room. Harry knew immediately where Hermione had seen this man before. It was the barman from the Hog’s Head.

‘I wasn’t ready…’

‘Precisely my point!’ he growled as he reached the desk and turned, perching himself on the edge of it. ‘There’s no need for me to be waistin’ my time teachin’ you, if you’re going to walk around with your head up your … well’ the man eyed Harry as he began walking forward.

Harry’s heart sank, Snapes words echoed through his mind as he swallowed ‘I know … you’re right.’ Harry said slowly ‘Luck is the only reason I’m still alive.’ Bitterness laced in his voice.

‘Luck?’ the man had an almost amused look on his face ‘Think you’re lucky do ya?’
‘That’s not what I meant,’
‘Ah, feelin’ sorry for yourself then?’
Harry was getting the distinct impression nothing he said would be right. ‘No, I just…’ he paused.
‘What? Just want to be left alone?’
‘No’
‘Just wish it would all go away?’ the man taunted.
‘No!’ Harry said, getting increasingly impatient. ‘I…’ Harry struggled.
‘Want people to realize you’re not as good as they think you are?’
‘NO!’ Harry said loudly ‘I JUST WANT TO BE READY!’ he yelled angrily before he could stop himself.

The man leaned back slightly and folded his arms; a crooked smirk was just visible underneath his wiry beard as he gave Harry an appreciative look. Harry’s chest was heaving, he was intensely irritated by this mans demeanour.

‘Right! Let’s get started, then. First thing …’ the man unfolded his arms and stood opposite Harry. ‘You need to learn to control yourself.’

Two hours later, Harry left for the Great Hall feeling utterly drained. He had been under a constant barrage of unusual comments and criticisms from the gruff man as they had practiced-duelled, and every time he had let his anger get the better of him, he had found himself on the floor. Most of the students were already sitting down to dinner, but Ron and Hermione were nowhere in sight. He sat down next to Neville, who was gulping down chicken soup, and enquired after them.

‘I don’t know, Harry. One minute they were sitting in the common room, chatting to Ernie, the next they went rushing out the portrait hole.’ He had a worried look on his face. ‘Are you alright?’

Harry let the hot soup drip off his spoon. ‘Yeah, just tired.’ He got a couple of mouthfuls down before almost falling face first in the rapidly cooling broth. He gave up trying to eat and headed back up to the Gryffindor tower, climbing into bed after discovering Ron and Hermione were still nowhere in sight.

He awoke in the dark sometime later, someone shaking him urgently.


~*~*~*~


‘Harry! Wake up!’ Ron whispered hoarsely ‘Harry!’

‘What?’ Harry had been so weary when he retired that he was having a lot of trouble rousing himself.
‘C’mon’ Ron pulled at his arm.
‘What?’ he said groggily as he yanked his arm out of reached, not at all feeling like getting up.

‘Just get your butt into gear and come downstairs,’ Ron said seriously and retreated behind Harry’s drawn curtains. Harry tossed the covers off and threw his feet on the floor. He sat there for a moment, ruffling his unkempt hair, trying to shake off his stupor.

‘C’mon!’ Ron urged from the doorway
Harry sighed impatiently and stood, slipping his feet into his sneakers and throwing on his dressing gown. The curtains were drawn around every bed except Ron's, which showed no signs of having been slept in at all. Some heavy breathing and the low rumbling of a snore sounded across the room as Harry scuffed along the floor. Treading heavily down the stairs to the Common Room, he arrived at the bottom to find Ron and Hermione sitting alone by the fire.

‘You look terrible...’ Hermione said with a frown as Harry dragged himself over to them.
‘Thanks’
‘Well go on then.’ Ron said looking at Hermione and motioning his head at Harry. Hermione continued to eye Harry with a frown, but said nothing. Harry stood there with his hands shoved in his gown pockets looking from one to the other. His gaze finally settling on Hermione.

‘What?’ his curiosity making him feel more awake the longer it took for them to spit it out.
‘I think I might know where to start looking for the cup.’ She said with uncertainty. Harry immediately felt a jolt that would normally have made all traces of sleep leave him, but he was utterly worn out.
‘Wha … How?’
‘We were talking to Ernie earlier this afternoon. He started asking about your burns,’ Ron said.

‘He was going on and on about sunburn, saying he’d never suffered from it,’ Hermione spoke rapidly ‘but that Zach had a really bad case of it years ago when he’d been on holiday in Italy. Apparently he did it two days into the trip, and Ernie said it was even worse than yours.’ Hermione winced ‘Said he spent the rest of the holiday, holed up inside his suite.’

‘Prat.’ Ron said.
‘You remember Zacharias, don’t you, from the DA?’ she asked Harry.
‘Yeah’ Harry remembered Zacharias rather well. He had been an obnoxious character, who had managed to put almost everyone in the DA offside in their very first meeting at the Hog’s Head.

‘Well, apparently his and Ernie’s parents are really quite friendly, have been for years … you know, both being from old wizarding families, both being primarily Hufflepuff students, and so on.’ She said ‘They go to each others dinner parties and birthdays, they even holiday together on occasion, like when they went to Italy.’

‘What’s this got to do with the cup?’ Harry prompted, feeling not all together happy about being woken up to hear about Zacharias' and Ernie’s holiday mishaps. Hermione’s fingers were fidgeting with the corners of a large, tan coloured book that lay in her lap.

‘Do you remember the name of the woman Tom Riddle killed, to get the cup?’ she said quietly.
‘Yes, Hepzibah. Hepzibah Smith, why?’ The memory from the pensive was still vivid in his mind.

‘Well, you remember she said she was a descendant of the original Hufflepuffs, which is why she had the cup in the first place?’
‘Yes…’
‘Zacharias' a Smith too.’ Ron injected.
‘Exactly.’ Hermione said.

‘But … there must be hundreds of Smiths in the wizarding world.’ Harry said doubtfully.
‘There are…’ Hermione said slowly.

‘Great, so how does this help?’ Harry said, getting a little frustrated that he was still none the wiser.
Ron said interestedly ‘Hermione remembered reading about the founders of Hogwarts in, Hogwarts, A-'

‘Hogwarts, A History, yeah I know, she must know that book off by heart, by now. I still don’t see what you’re getting at.’ He said impatiently. Harry then turned to Hermione. She appeared slightly hurt and wouldn’t look at him, instead she watched Ron who had tensed visibly. He frowned at Harry.

‘I think it would be a good idea if you just heard her out, mate.’ There was silence between them as Harry and Ron stared at each other. Harry knew he had been harsh, and that his friends were trying to help him, so he breathed in his irritation.
‘I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it like that.’ He said quietly. Hermione nodded ‘I’m just tired.'

She eyed him with concern as she continued. ‘Well, I thought it might be worth tracing the Smith families, there was nothing recent enough in Hogwarts, A History, so Ron and I searched for hours, and when the library closed we brought the books back here so we could keep looking and it seems that Zacharias' family is related to the Smiths that are the descendants of Hufflepuff.’ Hermione lifted the book and showed Harry the cover. ‘I found a reference to them with some more help from Ernie. And Harry, they are the only Smiths left from that line.’

Harry glanced down at the cover. THE HUFFLEPUFFERS A look at Graduates, Volume XII was inscribed in large grey lettering, above the badger symbol always associated with the name.

‘I still don’t understand. So what if he is? The cup was taken by Voldemort, the family doesn’t have it anymore.’
‘Harry, when Voldemort made the Horcruxes, he made them out of “trophies”, things that were meaningful in some way.’ Hermione explained ‘Dumbledore said so himself, didn’t he?’

‘Yes,’ Harry was feeling like they were getting nowhere and his patience was wearing thin, and his head had started to hurt. ‘But I don’t see how that will help us find it. He could have put it anywhere-’

‘Just give her a chance, mate.’ Ron cut in seriously, holding a hand out in a silencing gesture. Harry swallowed, he had no idea why, but his anger had been steadily building.
‘Think about where Dumbledore found the ring, Harry.’ Hermione said abruptly, obviously getting slightly irritated now too. Dumbledore said he had taken the ring from Marvolo’s place.

‘Riddle hid it at his grandfathers.’

‘Yes.’ Hermione said pointedly ‘He chose to hide it there because he thought it was a fitting place. The ring was a Slytherin heirloom, so he put it in the last Slytherin house.’
Harry narrowed his eyes as he started to make the connection. ‘So the cup…’ he said slowly.
‘Is probably hidden somewhere that has significance to Hufflepuff.’ finished Ron.

‘Which is where Zach comes in,’ Hermione said ‘its just possible his family are sitting on the site of one of Voldemorts Horcruxes. Not particularly likely, I’ll admit, but possible.’ She gripped the sides of the book firmly. ‘He could show us the properties his family own, and he’d be able to find out from his parents if there are other places that are important to them.’

‘How are we going to do it?’ Harry said raising his shoulders ‘He’s not exactly a good friend of ours is he? And he hasn’t returned to school this year either.’
‘And he’s a right nosy git too.’ Ron added ‘He’ll want to know why we’re poking around.’ Hermione was staring at the book in her lap.
‘I might be able to get him to show me. And without having to answer too many questions.’

‘How?’ Ron asked.
Harry thought Hermione looked decidedly uncomfortable as she spoke. ‘Its just an idea, but I could use a love potion on him.’
‘What? What for?’ Ron screwed his face up.
‘Well, if he thinks he’s in love with me, he’ll show me pretty much anything I ask him to, wont he?’ she said. Ron’s mouth started to move, but nothing came out.

‘No Hermione, that’s not a good idea.’ Harry frowned ‘You didn’t see Ron last year after he ate one of those chocolate cauldrons Romilda spiked.’
‘If you can think of another way of getting what we want, then I’d like to hear it.’ She said, raising her eyebrows.
‘We’ll just ask him,’
‘That’s not an option, Harry’ Hermione shook her head ‘You know what he’s like, there’s no way he’ll do it without asking a million questions, and even then, he’d probably refuse. No,’ she shook her head ‘there’s no other way.’

‘You’re not doing it!’ Ron finally spoke
‘I’ll make sure the potions fresh from Fred and Georges so it wont be too strong.’ She went on determinedly, not looking at Ron ‘and I’ll do it bit by bit, so it wont be suspicious.’
Harry was deep in thought, searching for another way they could approach Zach, but try as he might, Hermione’s idea seemed like the best answer. ‘I’m just not keen on you doing it Hermione, what if something went wrong?’
‘I’ll be careful Harry, don’t worry, I’ve no intention of getting myself in too deep.’

‘What if he gets … frisky?’ Ron scowled.

Hermione rolled her eyes and sighed impatiently. ‘I can handle Zacharias Smith. Anyway,’ she stood, still clutching the book ‘it’ll be dawn in a few hours and we’ve got Defence classes to teach this afternoon. I’m going to get some sleep, and I suggest you two do as well.’ She crossed the room, turning before she headed up the stairs ‘Especially you Harry. You really do look terrible.’ She paused as she studied him for a minute, and then mounted the stairs stifling a yawn.

‘I don’t like it’ Ron said flatly.
‘There’s a surprise’ Harry said dryly.
‘Really, remember what Slughorn said about obsessive love being dangerous!’
‘Yeah, but if anyone can do this, its Hermione, she’s very thorough.’ He replied as they headed back up to their beds. ‘I’m not really keen on the idea either, but I don’t think we have a choice. We have to find that cup, and this is the best lead we’ve got … the only lead we’ve got.’

The next day, when Harry wandered into the Great Hall with Ron and Hermione to take the first lesson of Defence for the younger students, he had to fight the overwhelming urge to turn around and walk out again.

The Hall itself was orderly enough, with desks placed exactly how Hermione had laid out on the piece of parchment she had thrust into his hand before entering. The students however, were in supreme disarray. There were a few frightened looking first years sat at their desks, but the rest of the hall was littered with small house groups of boisterously chattering students, milling around one another, some taking great pleasure at casting noisy jibes and scowling looks at those from houses not their own.

Harry stopped just inside the doorway.

‘I don’t think they’ve seen us yet’ Ron leaned in to Harry ‘Wanna make a run for it?’
‘Coward’ Hermione said as she shot him a slightly amused glance.

As tempting as it sounded, Harry swallowed and walked determinedly to the teacher’s table. As he made his way through the rabble, Ron and Hermione in tow, the student’s heads began to turn. It was almost as though Harry was casting a Silencio charm in his wake. The din died out behind him as he passed, and the silence stretched across the room, until he had reached the step up to the table. When he finally turned to the students, there was complete silence.

‘There’s advantages to being the "Chosen One", isn’t there?’ Ron said, hardly moving his lips as he and Hermione pulled up along side him. This was far more nerve racking than Harry had imagined it, and as he gathered his wits, he wondered how on Earth he had let McGonagall put him in charge.

He stood tall, lifted his head and took a deep breath. ‘Right’ he said out of the corner of his mouth to Hermione ‘off you go.’

Hermione looked at him dumb struck for a moment, before regaining her composure and flying into Head-Girl mode. Harry could hear Ron suppressing a laugh as she gave instructions in an abnormally high voice, the students continued to stare at Harry, slowly taking their seats.

‘There’s something to be said for awe, isn’t there?’ said Ron under his breath, obviously enjoying himself.

Hermione turned on him ‘Oh, shut up!’ then she looked at Harry ‘you cant just stand here looking impressive, this is your class remember?’ And she promptly sidestepped so that Harry was left standing before a sea of expectant faces. As he looked out at them, wondering how he had managed to get roped into this, it suddenly occurred to him why he was here.

McGonagall had chosen him not because he knew the subject, or because he was necessarily a good teacher. He was there because she knew the students would listen to him; she knew they would want to learn from him. The responsibility of it finally hit home. He looked down at the piece of parchment he held in his hand, finely detailing the tasks each year was to undertake, and scrunched it closed in his fingers.

‘Third, fourth and fifth years will be learning the shield charm.’ He announced resignedly. There was an immediate smatter of excited gasps as Harry continued, thinking of Hermiones gaze that would most likely be boring into his back. ‘Split into pairs of mixed ages and houses to practice.’ A low murmuring swept across the room as students turned to look at one another.

‘First an Second years will start learning some of the basic hexes that can be used if you find yourself in difficulty.’ This seemed to go down particularly well with the younger students who normally couldn’t hope to be learning such things before their fourth year. Harry turned, preparing himself for Hermiones disapproval, but was surprised to see her smiling at him.

‘I’ll take the first and second years until you can get round to them.’ She said and proceeded to instruct them out of their seats and herd them into a clearing at the back of the hall.
‘She took that well.’ Ron gave Harry a wry smile.

The session went well, though it was not without incident. There was some much expected squabbling over who didn’t want to be paired with whom before they started, and also not surprisingly, quite a lot of over zealous hexing going on in both groups.

The kid that had been determined not to be in Harry’s compartment on the Hogwarts Express a fortnight ago, called Hunter, seemed extremely resentful at having been forced into Harry’s company once more, making no attempt to hide his agitation. Harry ignored the boy’s backhanded attempts to convince others they were foolhardy to the extreme to be seemingly happy about the close proximity of Harry.

That is, until he overheard Hunter telling the freckled, curly-haired kid Harry quite liked named Peter Taphet, that if he were a faithful Death Eater, he thought it less likely he would come across the Dark Lord than if he was standing in the same room as Harry Potter. That was all he could take. Harry calmly leaned in to Hunter and told him in a quiet voice that he would make sure he took the time to introduce the “Dark Lord” to him the next time Voldemort dropped by to attack him.

Hunter did the rest of the lesson in silence.

When the trio finally retired back to the Common Room, Harry took out Snapes potion book and flicked through it, looking for any spells he missed last year, while Ron and Hermione collapsed into a chair together, quietly arguing over Hermiones plan to drug Zacharias with Love Potion.

At dinner, Harry shoved his beef casserole around the plate, and then left five minutes after he had sat down, heading for the owlery. He hadn’t seen Hedwig since he had arrived at Hogwarts, and started feeling rather guilty for neglecting her. He wanted to send for a new potions book from Flourish and Blotts anyway, and he knew Hedwig would be glad for something to do, and as he climbed the stairs, his thoughts turned to Lupin.

As much as he was clever, it seemed unlike him to disappear from all contact for so long, especially now he was head of the Order and they relied on him for leadership. Harry wished it were as easy as sending him an owl, but he knew he couldn’t. There was nothing he could write in a note that wouldn’t prove incredibly dangerous to Lupin if it was intercepted, so he made up his mind to go to The Burrow the following night and speak to Mr. Weasley and find out what they were doing to find him.

Hedwig ignored Harry’s first attempts at coaxing her down to him, keeping her back to him, with her beak in the air. She finally relented when Harry made to leave, fluttering down to him and perching on his arm. He stroked her smooth feathers fondly, moving over to one of the gaping windows and looking down at the grounds. Hagrids hut was still in darkness, and Harry felt a familiar knot in his stomach. He had no idea where either Lupin or Hagrid were, what they were doing, if they were okay, or even alive, though he told himself they were, convincing himself he would know if they weren’t.

He turned as he heard shuffling from the stairwell, a second later Ginny appeared carrying a bag of owl treats. Harry’s body reacted with a jolt of pain as his heartbeat quickened. Ginny, who had been watching her feet, looked up slowly, and when her eyes met Harry’s she flashed an awkward smile. Hedwig launched herself off Harry and headed straight for her, landing delicately on her arm. Pig also zoomed down from his perch and took up position on her raised hand. She shooed them off gently.

‘How are you feeling? I mean…’ she waved a hand at her face, indicating she was talking about his burns.
‘Its really good’ Harry knew as soon as he said it, it sounded ridiculous considering how he looked. ‘I mean ... its better.’

She nodded, as her eyes appeared to become excessively watery. ‘I’ve been coming to see her,’ she motioned to Hedwig who sat eyeing the owl treats ‘I though she might be lonely.’ She frowned.
‘Thanks’ Harry said ‘I don’t always have the time.’
‘I know,’ There was a long silence as Ginny stared at the floor.

‘So how’s Dean?’ it was out of Harry’s mouth before he could stop himself. Ginny looked up at him and her eyes closed briefly. She looked back at the floor, shaking her head softly.

‘I’m sorry’ Harry said stupidly ‘I-I shouldn’t have asked, it’s none of my business.’ He actually felt sick as he watched a tear drop down her face.
‘I can’t believe you’d ask me that.’ Her voice was strained.
‘Ginny … I’m sorry. It was stupid of me.’

‘He told me you’d do this, he warned me … but I didn’t believe him, I didn’t believe it of you.’ Her voice shook and Harry thought he had never seen her this upset. He felt racked with guilt and cursed himself for not having more self-control. He could think of nothing to say in his defence, so he stood there helplessly.

She turned suddenly and was gone.

Harry left the owlery and headed back to the Common Room. The passageways were clear as he stalked through them, the anger and frustration surging uncontrollably within. He climbed through the portrait hole and headed straight to the dormitory. When he arrived, he didn’t bother to put a light on; instead he sat in the dark, on his bed, and waited...

Finally, the door creaked open and Harry watched as a figure emerged, the lamp flickered on and Seamus strolled over to his bed, unaware of Harry. He dug about in his trunk, throwing clothes around with his back to him. A minute or two later Dean walked through the door.

‘Have you found-’ before any more words were out of his mouth, Harry had lunged at him and grabbed the front of his robes, throwing him up against the wall.

‘What the hell?’ Dean gasped.
‘Harry!’ Seamus’s startled voice rang out.
‘What did you say to her?’ Harry roared.
‘What?’ Dean breathed, looking terrified.
‘Ginny!’ Harry pressed him against the wall with renewed force. ‘What have you been telling her?’ Harry could feel Seamus trying to pull his arm away.

‘Harry! Cut it out!’
Harry turned his head to him ‘Butt out Seamus!’ Seamus backed off slightly.
‘What are you talking about?’ Dean asked urgently.
‘Don’t pretend you don’t know. All I did was ask her if things were okay between you two and she fell to pieces. I want to know what the hell is going on!’ Harry said furiously.

Dean dropped his head back against the wall in understanding. ‘She’s upset at you, not me’ he said more calmly.
‘Why? What have you been telling her?’
‘Harry!’ Ron had come charging through the door ‘Harry, think about what you’re doing.’ He said urgently. Both Dean and Harry were panting as Harry loosened his grip and took a step back, never taking his eyes off Dean.

‘What’s going on?’ Ron asked, looking from one to the other.
‘I knew something like this was going to happen.’ Dean said as he avoided looking at Harry. ‘Mate, you’ve got it all wrong. Ginny was upset because I told her something like this would happen and she refused to believe me.’
‘What are you saying?’ Harry said angrily.

Dean gave an exasperated sigh ‘I warned Ginny that you would think her and me were dating again. I told her you wouldn’t be able to handle it. But she said you would never think that, you would never believe she could be with …’ Dean paused as he looked at Harry ‘with someone else...’ He trailed off quietly.

[razzberry2]

.

12. Draco’s Return



Harry listened as Dean spoke.

Strangely he hadn’t wanted to believe it at first. He was flooded with guilt over his stupid jealousy, so much so, he found himself desperately searching for a lie in Dean’s words. But as Dean explained, it became obvious to him that he had made a horrible mistake.

Ginny had been helping Dean wade through the Ministry of Magic “Employee Guidelines” booklet, apparently his sights were set on filling Mr. Weasleys old shoes in The Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Department, at the Ministry of Magic after he obtained his NEWTs; a position that had yet to be filled since Mr. Weasley had been promoted. Dean had doubted his suitability because he wasn’t from a wizarding background, but Ginny had convinced him to complete his last year of Hogwarts, telling him he would be perfect for the position, and proving a fountain of information on her father’s old job.

Seamus and Ron hovered awkwardly for a while, listening, then they departed for the common room at Ron’s suggestion, leaving Harry and Dean in an uncomfortable silence. Dean plonked himself on the edge of Neville’s bed, obviously shaken by the altercation. It was a while before Harry spoke.

‘I’m sorry, Dean. I had no right to attack you like that.’ He said quietly. Dean had been nothing but a good friend to Harry over the past six years, even supporting him through Voldemorts return, when most had refused to believe it. The fact that he had dated Ginny had completely clouded Harry’s judgment, and instead of trusting in his friend, he had chosen to believe the worst. ‘I don’t know why I did it.’

‘I do,’ Dean said gravely ‘I probably would have done the same thing in your position.’ Harry could tell Dean still had genuine feelings for Ginny, but this time it didn’t stir up unwanted resentments. ‘Ginny and I are friends, Harry … good friends, and I want it to stay that way.’ Harry watched him as he spoke. ‘If you’ve got any doubts about the way she feels … just look at her reaction yesterday at lunch when she saw you at the table. Even Ron couldn’t have eaten that much potato!’ he grinned slightly.

‘She’s a strong girl, Harry, but she was a mess the whole time you were lying up in that hospital ward.’ Harry frowned, he thought no one but Ron and Hermione knew he was there. ‘Ginny forced it out of Hermione the day you arrived.’ Dean said, following his thoughts ‘She knew something had happened. Ron and Hermione couldn’t hide something like that from her, or the rest of us for that matter, we’ve been friends too long.’ He held up his hand reassuringly as Harry’s frown deepened ‘Don’t worry, only the seven of us know you were there, though what happened to put you in hospital is still a mystery.’ He gave Harry a wry smile.

‘Seven?’ Harry asked.
‘Yeah’ Dean nodded ‘Me, Ron and Hermione, Neville, Luna, Seamus, and of course Ginny’ he counted off his fingers. ‘Just the old gang.’ He smiled.
‘Luna too?’ Harry said, feeling unusually glad for her.
‘Yeah’ Dean said sheepishly. ‘Where would we be without her regular insights into the weird and wonderful?’ Then he stood up and put his arm across Harry’s shoulder, leading him to the door. ‘Its none of my business, but I reckon Ginny might be wanting an apology, mate.’

Harry stopped as Dean dropped his arm and opened the door ‘Thanks … and I’m sorry.’
‘Don’t mention it’ Dean nodded and left.

Harry knew Dean was right, he had behaved insensitively and Ginny had good reason to be mad at him. He went to his trunk and fished out the marauders map, determined to find her and try and explain his behaviour, he couldn’t leave things like they were. He opened the parchment and scanned it, looking first in the Gryffindor tower and then the girl’s bathroom, but her name was absent from both. Frowning, he checked the library and the Great Hall, but there was still no sign of her.

He registered slight alarm, as he searched the classrooms and the passageways, but Ginny was nowhere to be found. His heartbeat began to quicken as his eyes darted over the map checking the grounds, and then suddenly, he exhaled as a smile crept across his lips, finally spotting the small ink dot with her name above it, in Hagrids Hut. But, just as suddenly, the smile died as his eyes fell on a second dot in the room with her.

Harry sickened as the bile rose in his throat. The map fell from his hand as he tore out of the room, his heartbeat racing as he leapt down the stairs three and four at a time, with only one thought on his mind. Tearing across the Common Room, heads turned and watched him as he charged through anyone who got in his way. He reached the portrait hole, clambering through it desperately, Ron calling after him. There was no time to explain so he forced out Ginny’s name over his shoulder, the only thing on his mind as he ran blindly on, panic shutting out everything but his need to reach her.

Cutting through every shortcut he could, he flew down the marble stairs and out the double oak doors into the blackness of a moonless night. What if I'm too late? He pushed on furiously; the cold night air blustered around him, biting through his clothing as he bolted across the lawns. He ran towards the dull light coming from Hagrids window, then leaping up the stone steps to Hagrid’s door in one bound he flung the door open. His chest was heaving and his heartbeat pounded as he surveyed the scene before him, wand raised, searching for the target.

There was a lone candle on the table, flickering in the strong draft that wafted through the open door behind Harry. Ginny sat with her damp cheeks glowing in the soft yellow light, she had turned at the sudden intrusion, staring wide-eyed in shock at Harry.

‘Where is he?’ Harry said urgently as he walked slowly into the room.
‘What?’ Ginny breathed.
‘Malfoy!’ Harry said his eyes darting this way and that, making his way slowly over to her, his wand pointing around the room. It was obvious by her reaction, she had thought she was alone. ‘I saw him on the map. He’s here!’ Harry said, not daring to look at her for too long, he grabbed her arm helping her firmly to her feet. She pulled out her wand and turned her head to look around the room. It was bathed in shadow, the dark recesses impenetrable by the weak light.

‘Where is he?’ she said urgently. They continued hovering around the spot, back-to-back, searching every shadowy area in the room with their eyes.
‘He’s hiding himself with magic,’ Harry realized ‘stand still and don’t move.’ He said and he held his breath as he listened. There was silence for a moment, then a muffled sound, and the cane umbrella basket just inside the doorway tipped over.

‘Harry, The door!’

It was gaping wide open, just as Harry had left it. He swore as he pulled Ginny with him, heading carefully over to it. The sound of voices began to drift across the lawns as they reached the entrance, barring it, though Harry realized in angry frustration, it was probably too late. He shoved Ginny behind him and faced back into the room.

‘Ginny!’ Ron said urgently as he raced towards them. Luna, Ernie and Neville, were pulling up in front of Dean and Seamus, their wands drawn.
‘What … is it?’ Dean panted, his robes fluttering in the strong breeze.
‘Malfoy!’ Ginny said hatefully.
‘Get the map! I left it up in the room!’ Harry yelled over his shoulder. He saw Neville turn immediately, eventually disappearing into the darkness as he ran back to the castle. ‘Keep an eye on the grounds, I think he slipped passed us.’

‘Where … is he?’ Hermione panted at the bottom of the stairs, her head turning along with the others, to scan the area.
‘I don’t know, he must be wearing an invisibility cloak or something.’ Harry said ‘Ginny, get down the stairs.’
‘No!’ She said forcefully.

‘Ginny!’ Ron grabbed her arm and yanked her down the stairs, stepping up behind Harry to help him block the door. It seemed to take forever for Neville to return with the map, and Harry was impatiently aware that Malfoy was probably freely making his escape. Neville finally arrived back and handed it over Rons shoulder to Harry, panting furiously.

‘I looked … Harry … I couldn’t … see him.’

Harry had dropped the map without countering the spell and all of Hogwarts and its occupants still stretched out across the parchment. He searched the hut, then the area around it impatiently, but saw no sign of Draco, though Tonks and Kingsley Shacklebolt’s dots were moving speedily in on the group milling around the hut. Harry shoved the map in his pocket.

‘Don’t say anything!’ he said to the others.
‘What?’ Seamus questioned as they all looked at him.
‘Just let me do the talking.’ He said quickly.

‘What’s … going on?’ Tonks had appeared out of the dark. She stopped in front of the steps, panting from her effort.
‘Er … I thought I saw someone … from my window.’ Harry said as he pointed at the Gryffindor tower, his mind racing ‘A Death Eater, going into Hagrids.’
‘What’s happened? … Is everyone … okay?’ Kingsley breathed as he came into view.
Tonks frowned. ‘A Death Eater? … In Hagrids?’
‘Yeah’
‘Alone?’ she said flatly.

‘Mm’ Harry could tell she was dubious ‘… I-I don’t know … they’re not here now … I must have made a mistake.’ Harry knew his friends were giving him curious looks, but none of them corrected him.
‘Are you alright … Harry?’ she eyed him.
‘Yeah… I-I’ he said, struggling for something to say.
‘He was dreaming!’ Ron chipped in. They all turned at once to look at Ron questioningly, even Harry.

‘Heee … fell asleep.’ He continued ‘And when he woke up, he ran off, so … weee ah … we followed him’ he waved a hand at everyone’s doubtfully cringing faces. Tonks and Kingsley exchanged looks.
‘He was sleep walking.’ Ginny offered. ‘Its supposed to be dangerous to wake someone like that, so we followed him.’ She shrugged.

‘I’ve never seen anyone sleep-run before’ Luna said interestedly and received a gentle nudge from Dean for her effort.

‘Is everything okay, Harry?’ Kingsley asked.
‘Yeah, er … sorry.’ He said painfully. Tonks was eyeing him suspiciously.
‘You were sleep walking.’ she said in that way the he just knew she didn't believe him.
‘Er ... that's right ...’

‘Does it loads up in the dorm!’ Ernie chimed in ‘Woke me up when he was trying to get into Riley’s bed the other night!’ Harry raised an eyebrow as he looked at Ernie, the flash of gratitude that flared in him because he had leapt to Harry’s defence, died rapidly. ‘Scared the poor fellow half to death.’ Ernie seemed to be uncharacteristically enjoying playing his part in the conspiracy.

‘Right. Thanks,’ Harry said, shooting him an piercing glare.
‘Well … we’ll have a look round before we go, just in case.’ Tonks was still frowning at Harry.
‘Yes, can’t be too careful. I’ll take this side.’ Kingsley nodded and headed around the hut, Tonks taking the opposite side.

‘What was all that about?’ Dean whispered hoarsely as they all moved in closer to Harry.

‘I climbed into Riley’s bed?’ Harry said accusingly to Ernie.
‘Best I could come up with at short notice. Thought you could use the help.’ Ernie was still smiling. ‘What is going on, anyway?’
‘I’ll explain later.’ Harry sighed ‘But for now, keep it to yourselves, don’t tell anyone what happened!’

‘I think we’d better get back.’ Hermione said quietly ‘There’s not much we can do if he’s gone.’
‘W-What was he doing here?’ Neville asked turning his attention on Harry.
‘I don’t know,’ Harry said darkly ‘but whatever it was, we interrupted him.’
Ron stepped down to Hermione and put his arm around her shoulders, pulling her to him briefly. ‘C’mon’ he motioned to Harry.

‘I’ll be up later,’ he said, his eyes dropping to Ginny, remembering why he had been looking for her in the first place. She seemed to be expecting it and she waited until the others had set off, before climbing the steps and following Harry back into the hut out of the wind.

Harry took the map out of his pocket and placed it open on the table. He doubted Draco would turn up again tonight after nearly being sprung, but he would watch anyway.

‘Its cold’ Ginny shivered and went over to the fireplace and pointed her wand at the wood that laid there. ‘Incendio!’ Orange flames erupted and almost immediately started to cast their warmth around the room. Harry watched the golden light flicker across her intent face as she stared into the fire.

‘I was wrong about you and Dean’ he offered hesitantly.
‘Yes, you were.’ She said without looking up. He breathed heavily as he slowly stepped to her, stopping at her back. He wanted to touch her, but he didn’t dare.
‘I just … don’t think rationally when it comes to you,’ he said ‘I saw the photo of you and him at Sirius’ and I couldn’t help it, you looked so … happy together.’

‘He’s one of my best friends, Harry.’ She said, continuing to watch the flames dancing in the fireplace ‘And I was happy that day, not because of him, though.’ Harry’s pain was growing with the intimacy of the situation.
‘And you’ve been spending so much of your time with him’ Harry went on, feeling the need to justify his behaviour.
‘I’ve been helping him.’

‘I know,’ Harry said ‘I know now, and I’m sorry.’ Neither of them spoke for the longest time. They listened to the fire cracking and hissing in silence before Harry spoke gravely ‘The worst part about all of this is that I should’ve been happy for you.’ She turned and looked at him. ‘I promised myself I would let go’ he went on ‘knowing it was for the best … I’m just … finding it so hard.’ he breathed reluctantly.

‘I thought by hanging around with Dean, everyone would think we were going out.’ she flashed an awkward smile. ‘Not you though, I thought you’d know what I was up to. I guess Dean was right, I assumed too much.’ she paused ‘I was hoping it would help take some of the pressure off you, so you didn’t have to keep worrying about me.’ Harry looked into her pooling green eyes.

‘The night Gabrielle was killed … when you came to me and I snapped at you to get out of the room ... I hated myself. I hated myself because that young girl had just had her life taken away from her, and all I could think was ... what if it had been you.’ Her eyes were swelling with tears as she reached a hand up to his face.

‘You have to stop feeling responsible for me all the time. I can take care of myself.’ She brushed her thumb lightly over his cheek before letting her hand drop. ‘You’re making yourself sick Harry. You don’t eat properly, you’re looking so tired all of time’ her face was full of concern ‘you cant go on like this. You have to stop worrying about everyone else and think about yourself for a change.’ Harry dropped his eyes to the floor.

‘I’m alright, I’ve just had a lot on my mind lately.’

‘Let me help you.’ She quietly pleaded ‘I can still be here for you without you having to worry yourself stupid, especially if I keep it up with Dean. No one has to know’ He met her gaze ‘you don’t need to push me away. You don’t need to be so unhappy. You don’t need to be so alone.’ Her voice was heavy as she added ‘But you do need me, Harry.’

Finally a wet tear spilled from her eye. Harry’s breathing had become strained as she spoke, the pain twisting inside his chest. It would be so easy to abandon all his cares and pull her to him, every part of his being wanted nothing more than to take her for himself, to enjoy all that she had to offer and lose himself in her. He ached to let go of the pain and find that place of comfort only she could show him.

His body trembled as he fought the urge give in, he could not forget why he had left her. If something were to happen to her, if he was responsible for her being hurt, or worse, he could never forgive himself. He had risked everything when he had lain with her in the past, and he would not do it again. He took a half step back from her, fearing his own lack of self-control.

‘I can do this alone Gin. I have to do this alone.’

She looked at him almost pityingly as her tears ran freely down her cheeks.

‘You need to let go too, at least for now. When its all over, maybe then if you still want to…’ She cut him off as she lunged forward and embraced him. His body remained stiff with resolve, though he closed his arms about her briefly. Then he gently eased her back away from him, his expression blank. She looked up into his eyes, but Harry forced himself to keep them free of emotion, suppressing all his turmoil for one last-ditch effort at putting an end to it.

‘Its really time we grew up, there are more important things we need to be dealing with.’ He was surprised at the sound of his own voice, it came out almost cold. Ginny’s reddened eyes dropped from him as she nodded, but didn’t speak. She walked past him without looking at him and opened the door.

Harry wanted to call her name, he wanted her to give him one last reassuring look before she left, but he remained quiet as he watched her pull the door shut behind her. He walked to the table and glanced down at the map to make sure she made it safely back to the castle. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed a tiny dot moving near his own. His eyes fell on it automatically.

‘I think I’m going to be sick!’

Harry’s heart skipped a beat. He knew that sardonic drawl well even as the name registered.


~*~*~*~


Harry turned his head slowly, aware that Draco would already have his wand trained on him. Malfoy hadn’t shown up on the map a moment before, and there was no way he could have come in or out, without Harry’s knowledge.

‘How did you do it?’ Harry asked darkly.

Malfoy scoffed smugly. ‘You’d be surprised at the talents of those you despise. But then, you only ever believed in Dumbledore, didn’t you?’ Malfoy taunted ‘your ridiculous little map won’t help you anymore. I wont show up unless I want to be seen.’ The wind had picked up outside, and was howling through the thatches on the roof.

‘Still doing your Masters bidding, then?’ Harry said bitterly ‘I don’t need to ask how that’s working out for you.’ Draco had looked pale and drawn when Harry had seen him last; now however, he looked positively ill. ‘Stumbling already!’ Harry said smoothly as he shook his head gently. Malfoy’s hollow eyes hardened. ‘Hoping Snape will come and bail you out again, like last time?’ He goaded recklessly.

‘Watch your mouth!’ Draco said angrily, his body shaking slightly. Harry's hand unconsciously neared his wand. Malfoy glanced down at it.
‘DON’T MOVE!’ Malfoy yelled wildly. He appeared to be hovering on an invisible edge. He had a crazed look in his eyes and seemed unable to keep the end of his wand from trembling. Harry relaxed his hand away from his pocket as the wind blustered outside, rattling the windowpanes.

‘You make me sick!’ Malfoy spat ‘All that disgusting love talk between you two,’ Harry swallowed hard, Malfoy had heard, and seen, everything that went on between him and Ginny. He felt his face redden. ‘You think anyone’s interested in your tortured love life? You think your doing it hard because you cant be with your stupid girlfriend?’ Malfoy’s voice was getting higher and louder. ‘You think you know what it is to suffer? Do you? You think you know what it is to feel the pain of losing … to really lose someone y-you … you … ’ He was bordering hysterical, and his eyes were wide and watery. He seemed to be struggling to find the words. A realization dawned on Harry as he watched him.

‘He killed your family!’ Harry breathed, horror struck. Draco glared at him as the wind howled around the hut outside. ‘Didn’t he?’

Draco’s face contorted. ‘My mother...’ he said painfully. ‘He warned me. I failed him. He was right to take her.’ His voice shook ‘He could have killed my father and me as well.’ He looked almost possessed. ‘He showed us mercy.’

Harry felt a flood of sympathy for this shell of the boy he had loathed for so long, but it wasn’t enough to hide his frustration at Malfoys continued loyalty to the monster that had killed his mother.

‘Mercy?’ Harry scowled ‘He doesn’t care about you, your mother, or your father. The only reason your dad is still alive is because he's in prison!’ Outside, the rain pitted itself against the windows.

‘I have been given a chance to make things right!’ Malfoy said with nervous agitation. ‘And this time, I will not fail!'
‘You have a chance to make things right only if you turn from Voldemort, before you do anymore harm!’ Harry said angrily.

Malfoy looked at Harry for a moment, his expression unreadable, and then all of a sudden he burst out laughing, barely able to keep his wand trained on Harry. It was a strange, mad sounding laugh that slowly died off as he spoke.

‘You are too much, really! You always want to be the hero, don’t you?’ he mocked ‘Think you can turn me? Think you can make me “come over to the good side?”’ Harry watched as his expression grew serious and he renewed his aim, he was finding Dracos instability discomforting, and more than a little dangerous, ‘No, my path is set, Potter. Has been all my life, just like you, really.’

‘What are you doing at Hogwarts?’ Harry asked, abandoning his attempt at getting through to him.
‘Like I’d tell you!’ he said spitefully, though after a moment, his face dropped and he appeared to be trying to read Harry’s expression. ‘I’m not here to harm anybody.’ For the first time there was no trace of sarcasm or anger. ‘Just stay out of my way.’
‘Right,’ Harry scoffed bitterly ‘because I can trust you, cant I? I can take you at your word.’

Draco eyed Harry over his wand tip ‘It was you who destroyed the Vanishing Cabinet, wasn’t it?’ Harry tilted his head in a nod.
‘How annoyingly inconvenient of you.’ Draco sneered. ‘I had thought I could use it again’.
‘Then I’m even gladder I did it.’ Harry said. The front door was rattling along with the window pains, from the force of the wind swirling outside the hut.

‘It doesn’t matter; I have a better way of getting in and out now. Sorry to deny you a good gloat.’ Draco was sounding like his usual self again.
‘I wont let you hurt anyone, Draco.’
This appeared to upset Malfoy greatly ‘I’ve already told you, I’m not here to hurt anyone, I’m loo-’ he stopped abruptly, his breathing ragged with fury.

‘Looking?’ Harry said sharply. ‘For what?’
‘Enough!’ he snapped ‘I'm through talking. Turn around!’
‘Not a chance’ Harry said darkly, his hand drifting nearer to his wand.
‘Just do it!’ Malfoy said impatiently.
‘I’m not turning my back to you.’ They glared at each other for a long moment. Harry was watching Draco closely for any sign of movement. The wind continued to howl and the rain had turned to hail as it bit against the windows and doors. Suddenly there was a loud bang behind him and Harry’s head spun to see what was happening.

The door was swinging inwards on its hinges, revealing the inky blackness beyond. The wind had forced it free of the latch, and hail was streaming into the hut, extinguishing the candle and making the map fly off the table. He quickly lunged for it, as it rushed towards the flickering, dancing flames in the fireplace, grabbing it just in time. When he looked round to find Draco, the room was empty. Harry hastily pulled the map apart and checked it, but could see neither Draco Malfoy, nor anyone else around the area of the hut.

Shoving the map into his pocket, he went through the door, and pulled it firmly shut after him. Placing his arms up in front of his head to shield the worst of the hail, he dragged himself across the dark grounds and headed through the large oak doors.

‘Potter! What are you doing?’ Filches gruff voice sounded as he made his way across the entrance. ‘Where ‘ave you been, eh?’ He was looking at Harry through narrowed eyes.

‘Doing my nightly rounds.’ Harry had stopped at the foot of the stairs. ‘Maybe you’ve forgotten, but I’m Head Boy, which means it’s my duty to be out and about at this time of night.’

Filch looked thoroughly unimpressed. ‘You’re not supposed to leave the inside of the castle. McGonagall’s gonna hear about this!’

‘Whatever,’ Harry said resignedly and turned to mount the stairs.
‘You’re not above the rules, Potter!’ Harry could hear Filch yelling after him. ‘Your going down this year!’
Harry ignored the remarks, suddenly too tired to be angry. Once in the Common Room, he weaved his way over to Ron and Neville.

‘Hey, What kept you?’ Ron asked ‘You’re wet!’
‘Hermione gone to bed?’ Harry asked.
‘Nah, she went to sort out some problem in the girls bathroom. It’s a bit strange, isn’t it?’ he added, changing the subject ‘I didn’t expected Malfoy to show up here again.’

‘Maybe he’s here to target someone else,’ Neville said ‘maybe he’s here for you this time, Harry.’ he was looking rather worried.
Harry grunted ‘I don’t think so, he is up to something though.’ Just then, Hermione appeared, looking very bedraggled. She was soaked, head to foot, and her shoes were squelching as she walked.

‘Did you go back outside?’ Ron said incredulously.
‘No,’ Hermione said, obviously irritated. ‘I had a run-in with Moaning Myrtle.’ She frowned at Harry ‘She hasn’t been at it in the boys bathroom as well, has she?’
‘No.’ Harry motioned his head for them to lean in, and he explained what happened with Draco. Neville had seemed particularly disturbed by the news of Draco’s mother, Narcissa.

‘I bet it was LeStrange,’ he said as he stared into the fire.
‘I don’t know, maybe. Though I got the impression that it was Voldemort himself.’ Harry said, then turning to Hermione, who was enveloped in an enormous amount of steam as she tried to dry her robes with her wand, he asked ‘Do you know how he was able to be in Hagrid’s without showing up on the map?’

‘Honestly? No. The map shows a person, even if they’re invisible, and if they are an animagus, though I seriously doubt he has the talent for that anyway, and he couldn’t have apparated.’ She said. Harry could tell she was mulling it over in her head.

‘Whatever he’s doing, I don’t like it.’ Ron said darkly ‘the idea of him wandering around the castle whenever he feels like it…’ he looked at Harry.
‘I don’t either.’ Harry said, then added ‘Though I believe him when he says he’s not here to harm anyone,’ Neville and Ron looked at him dubiously ‘not directly anyway.’

‘Lets face it Harry,’ Hermione frowned ‘If he’s here for Voldemort, its hardly going to do any of us any good, is it?’
Harry sat in the armchair next to Rons and drummed his fingers on the armrests.

‘We’ve got to figure out what Voldemort has set him to do.’ Hermione matter-of-factly. ‘The fact that Voldemort has placed him, of all people here, I just don’t get it, its like before, with Dumbledore, seems to me Voldemort wants him to fail’

‘Could be another angle.’ Harry whispered ‘Draco’s fool enough to believe he is important to Voldemort still, he’s eager to please his Master to keep what’s left of his family alive, and Voldemort knows now he doesn’t have it in him to kill. Voldemort may have sent him back here on a task specifically suited to him alone. Cant imagine what though.’ Harry sighed.

‘I think we should ready as many of the old DA as we can!’ Neville spoke with surprising strength of conviction. ‘Hermione, can you make up more of those coins, for the members who left them behind, or lost them.’

‘I suppose so,’ she said with a vague shrug.
‘How many, and how long?’ Harry picked up on the idea. Hermione saw Harry’s determination and thought about it for a moment.
‘I’ll have to find out who’s left, and who still wants to be involved. After that, maybe a week to get the coins organized, charmed and distributed.

‘All right, it’s a start’ Harry said, the he paused for a moment, frowning and asked Hermione ‘Can you make us a batch of Felix’s Luck potion?’
‘I don’t know. It takes such an incredibly long time, I mean, even if we start now, it wont be ready until March.’ She said.
‘I’ll lend you Snapes book, follow his instructions and it’ll come out better than ever.’ Harry was determined to get it underway, even though it wouldn’t help them on Halloween.

‘Some of the ingredients could prove hard to get.’
‘We’ll ‘borrow’ them from Slughorns storeroom.’
‘Alright’ she sighed ‘I’ll look into it tomorrow.’
‘Good’ Harry said as he walked to the foot of the stairs ‘I’m going to bed, I’ve got another session with Sir tomorrow.’

‘Oh, and Harry, watch out up there!’ Hermione added ‘Apparently Myrtle overheard Crabbe and Goyle planning some sort of revenge on you, for hexing them after they attacked Ernie and Justin.’
Harry sighed ‘Tonight?’

‘No idea, just be careful!’ she said in her Mrs. Weasley way.

[razzberry2]

.

13. Harry's Training and Lupins Wolf



Nothing came of Crabbe and Goyle's threat, in fact, Harry rarely saw them over the next few weeks, and as the days passed, he studied every spare moment he had, practicing non-verbal casting with Ron and Hermione and learning advanced spells, some of which, he found in books Hermione had pulled from the library, others his new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher taught him.

They were finally privy to the gruff old mans name when they overheard McGonagall call him Abe in the passageway one day, though of course, the students continued to refer to him as Sir as he was not at all the type of teacher to be on a first name basis with.

He was particularly tough on Harry during his two-hour lessons, which Harry shared with him twice a week. Considering how old he appeared, he had a lot of stamina, even though he wasn’t particularly nimble on his feet. He was however, very adept at firing curses and hexes Harry’s way the minute he relaxed, or lost concentration, leaving him bruised and exhausted at the end of each session. But he was learning to live on his nerves, gaining confidence in his reaction time and his ability.

Ron had visited Mr. Weasley, instead of Harry because he was keen to check on his mother, who must have been spending a lot of time alone now that school was in full swing. He stayed overnight, and when he returned, he said Lupin still hadn’t checked in, but Hagrid was accounted for, though Mr. Weasley wouldn’t enlighten Ron any further as to his whereabouts, he had however, promised to let them know the minute Lupin re-surfaced.

Hermione had pointed out, that with Lupin unable to make contact, it might be difficult, if not impossible for Bill to continue his hunt for Bellatrix. Harry was secretly rather relieved at the thought, though he hoped daily for news of Lupins return.

Before Harry bathed, he took to standing before the mirror in the Prefects bathroom, trying his hand at full body transfiguration. It seemed impossible for him to complete the transformation, many times finding himself staring back at some grotesquely half formed part of his body, wondering if he was going to have to walk the halls to Madame Pomphrey’s domain for all to see, to return him to normal. But he persevered; often working himself so hard he would be dripping with sweat from the shear effort of it. At meal times, on the occasions when he didn’t skip it altogether, he never lingered at the table, downing something to quell the ache in his stomach, then resuming his studies.

When he slept, his dreams were full of dark and frustrating images; snakes and menacing shadows, and the people he loved, who looked completely normal one minute, laughing and chatting, suddenly dropping to the ground lifeless, the next. One dream he had when he was still back at The Burrow had begun re-occurring. It was always the same;

Sirius, his knuckles white and his body stretched out behind him, struggling to keep from being sucked into the endless black mouth of a doorway, and Dumbledore staring wordlessly at Harry, one arm held aloft from his flowing robes, as if in offering. Harry had the feeling if he could just reach him, if he could get to whatever it was Dumbledore held in his hand, he would be able to save Sirius.

But always, Harry's struggling got him nowhere, fighting uselessly and desperately against an unseen force. Then Snape would appear, standing before them, both arms above his head, grasping a shining object. He would thrust it down just as Sirius called Harry’s name in warning, and at exactly that point every time, Harry would wake, his sheets locked around him and drenched in sweat.

Day after day, he continued to push himself relentlessly. His ruthless workload took a heavy toll on him, and his clothing began to hang loosely off his lithe body. Hermione fussed over him, but Harry had little time to indulge her, and snapped at her motherly attempts to slow him down. Whenever he saw Ginny, or felt her near, a resentful anguish would rise in him, reminding him of what Draco had said, and of how unimportant his need for her was.

Harry’s Defence classes for the younger students were improving gradually; the biggest problem still lay in them learning to work with each other. Harry had thought McGonagall had very good reasons for trying to unite them this year, and as much as it was proving a difficult task going against the schools thousand year old tradition, it was not impossible. In the end Harry took a leaf out of Slughorns book and introduced an incentive.

He decided to award seven students, seven vials of Hermiones Good Luck potion at the end of the year. This tact seemed to work almost instantly. The students took up their learning with a new verve and ended their out and out squabbling, though they still appeared unable to help themselves unleashing the odd humiliating curse on unsuspecting students in opposing houses. The Gryffindor Common Room’s atmosphere however, was stifling at times, scuffles still erupting when things reached boiling point.

Early in the evening, on the night before Halloween, Harry was climbing through the portrait hole, Ron and Hermione in tow, when he suddenly felt the skin on his neck prickle. He hit the floor just in time to avoid a stray curse, and as he picked himself up, he discovered there was an all out brawl and hex-a-thon raging before him. He was already tired and feeling more than little strung-out after another session with Sir, so when Harry walked in on the mayhem, his patience with their situation evaporated.

He walked passed the scuffling students unnoticed, and up to the boy’s dormitories, where he opened every second door off the stairwell, flicked his wand, and tossed all the inhabitants belongings onto the landings. He came across the occasional straggling student, obviously hiding from the turmoil downstairs, and when they saw Harry tossing all their belongings magically out of the door, they tried to put as much distance between themselves and Harry as they could, regarding him dangerously. When he reached the room below his, he turned and clambered back down over the debris, locking the newly emptied rooms with a charm Hermione had come across in one of the books in the Restricted Section of the library. When he began climbing the girls to do the same, forgetting about the fact that the stairs would convert into a slippery-dip in his anger, a quiet voice interrupted him.

‘I’ll do it, Harry’ Hermione had stopped him with her hand on his shoulder and a worried look on her face. He waited as she climbed the stairs and repeated his actions on the girl’s belongings, barring anyone trying to enter the stairwells to see what was happening. By the time she returned, word was spreading that people had been thrown out of their rooms. There was a lot of whispering and scowling, all fighting forgotten, as many of them eyed Harry nastily in anticipation. He finally climbed a couple of steps and turned gravely.

‘You were warned if you didn’t grow up and learn to get along, then you would be thrown together, until you do.’ His chest was heaving angrily ‘those who’s belongings now lie on the stairwell, can move into another room, I don’t care which. And as this is your doing that has caused this upheaval, you will not be calling on the house elves, if there aren’t enough beds, tough!’ He said threateningly ‘I’ve locked the doors, and they will stay locked until you change your attitudes!’ Hermione and Ron were watching Harry intently as a murmuring swept through the faces, growing steadily from quietly angry protests to louder, more prominent, outrage.

‘Who do you think you are?’
‘YEAH!’
‘It was bad enough the way things were!’

‘WELL, OBVIOUSLY IT WASN’T! BECAUSE YOU STILL DON’T GET IT!’ Harry yelled furiously. All went quiet as sparks shot out from the end of his wand as it hung by his leg.

‘This school is under threat. At anytime, Death Eaters, or worse could come marching in here and start killing, just because that’s what they do!’ You could have heard a pin drop as Harry opened them up to his fears, fed up at their ignorance.

‘You’re not safe here; you’re deluding yourself if you think you are.’ He glanced at Zabini, Crabbe and Goyle, who were scowling angrily at him ‘No matter what house you are from.’ Harry was gradually calming as he went on. ‘Neither are you in any more danger than if you were at home. But your stupid, petty squabbling could actually get you killed. If we were attacked right now, almost all of us would fall.’

Harry raised his wand, pointing to the ceiling ‘and the younger students in the Ravenclaw tower … what hope do you give them if they had to stand alone? They are family too, in some cases, your brothers, your sisters … ’ Harry’s words appeared to be sinking in. ‘you cannot pretend none of this is happening, nor can you hide in ignorance. Voldemort is closer than you think. No one is safe.’

Again Harry eyed Zabini and his fellow Slytherins ‘Voldemort kills his own as easily and as cruelly as he kills innocents. And if he took Hogwarts, then our school, our families, our entire future, will be lost.’ He glared at them, waiting for some sort of backlash, but he was met with grave silence.

‘We don’t stand a chance if we can’t unite.’ The room was completely still. Harry looked at their stunned faces, then he dropped down from the step and crossed to the portrait hole, the students parting as if worried they might bring undue attention to themselves. He climbed through it and was gone, leaving silence in his wake.

He was still bitterly imagining the uproar in the common room that would have ensued after he left, when he pushed the front door of Number twelve Gimmauld Place closed behind him. Someone must be staying, he thought, as he registered the dull glow of a lamplight, drifting up the stairs from the kitchen. He tucked his invisibility cloak away and descended the stairs noiselessly, another trick he was learning from his Defence teacher, who had taken to teaching him tactics for what he called ‘keeping yourself alive before, during, and after battle’, eventually emerging at the foot of the stairs.

‘Lupin?’

A figure was hunched over the thickly wooden table. The head turned slowly, menacingly, to look at him. Harry grabbed the doorframe to steady himself at the shock of finding himself standing under the gaze of a semi-transformed werewolf. Lupins upper body was heaving slowly and heavily, and his hands were stretched out before him on the table, his long claw-like fingernails imbedded in the wood. His robes were torn and matted with dark stains, and his bloodshot eyes glittered dangerously at Harry.

Harry was frozen to the spot. He had not thought to note the moon was only just passed full, and he certainly hadn’t expected to find Lupin here suddenly, when they had no news for weeks. But he was here, and he was still partly transformed, and he was eyeing Harry in a most discomforting way.

‘Lupin...’

Lupin didn’t move, whether due to the pain of the transforming, or the slight, but very unlikely possibility he recognized Harry. Wincing, Harry realized the dark patches on his robes were blood. The stench of it had hit his nose. Harry took a half step backwards as he saw Lupin's face, it was distorted and animalistic, his mouth was bloodied and alien to Harry. He had no idea how to react, so after standing there for a while, he moved slowly and cautiously, one foot at a time, into the kitchen, keeping his eyes locked on Lupin.

Lupin did not move, just watched Harry warily with heavy eyelids. After a few uncomfortable minutes, Harry decided to make some tea in the hopes that the normalness of the action would settle his nerves, but as he reached for the cups, he stupidly knocked one crashing to the floor with a shaky arm.

A vicious howl echoed through the empty stone kitchen.

Harry froze.

That was thick! He chided. When it appeared Lupin had calmed slightly, Harry resumed his slow movements of making a pot of tea, being meticulously careful to not make any clattering noise, which might set him off again.

Finally Harry placed the teapot and cups on the table, and then hesitantly sat down opposite Lupin, alert to him, but not looking him directly in the eye. They must have sat there for close on an hour, Lupin slowly losing his wolf features, his breathing becoming more natural, Harry could even hear the sound of his bones crunching and reforming every now and then, as Lupins face contorted with the pain, the occasional gasp escaping his lips.

It was a slow and horrible process and it pained Harry to watch his friend have to endure it. A new appreciation of loathing and disgust for the beast that did this to Lupin, Fenrir Greyback, grew inside of him. At one point near the end, Lupin had looked in so much agony his eyes rolled back in his head and he let out a long strangled moan. Harry automatically reached out for his hand, whose claws had finally retreated to fingernails, and clasped it firmly. Lupin gripped his fingers, squeezing them painfully for a moment, and then releasing them.

It was over.

‘I made some tea.’ Harry pushed an empty mug across the table and heated the pot with his wand, then poured them both a drink.
‘Is it always like that?’ he asked gravely.

‘If I’m lucky, and I have someone to sit with me.’ Lupin looked up at Harry from under his eyebrows. ‘That was an incredibly dangerous thing to do, Harry. If you’d have come in only moments before, I might have ripped you to shreds, or worse.’ Harry new he meant he might have bitten him and turned him into a werewolf. ‘Its worse when I’m out with-’ Lupin stopped abruptly.

‘I know you’re back with them.’ Harry said darkly.


~*~*~*~


Lupin and Harry sipped at their tea. Lupin did not seem to want to elaborate on his time with the werewolves, so Harry drew his attention to the dark stains on his robes.

‘What’s all the blood?’ He asked hesitantly.

‘Blood?’ Lupin said blankly. He followed Harry’s gaze to his chest and pulled at his robes, trying to see what Harry was talking about. Harry watched as Lupins breathing quickened. A look of repulsion spread across his face at the still sticky smears of blood. Turning his eyes on the table in agitation, he muttered ‘I don’t understand’, and then looked up at Harry, frowning. ‘I can’t remember … I thought I got back in time.’ Lupin had a pained expression on his face. ‘I-I remember … I-I think…’

Harry swallowed his hot tea hard. ‘You wouldn’t have hurt anyone. Not you!’ Fear swept across Lupin’s face as he stared down at the blood on his chest. Harry struggled to help him remember. ‘Think! What’s the last thing you remember?’ he said, trying to hide the fear in his own voice.

‘I-I … I was …’ Lupin stumbled. Harry could tell he was in shock, already thinking the worst. ‘I-I was trying to get back here … before I transformed. I was ill, didn’t think I’d make it … had trouble seeing the path at my feet by the time I got here … yes!’ Suddenly he looked back at Harry ‘I got back here in time, I remember. I remember standing outside and saying number twelve Gimmauld Place! I came inside ... down here … and lit a fire in the sitting room…’

His face dropped as he glanced over his shoulder to the doorway behind him. Harry looked beyond into the semi dark room from where he sat, a strange sense foreboding came over him so he stood and walked slowly to the sitting room, he leaned his head in and scanned the area. The room was in darkness, but for a faint orange glow from the dying embers in the fire, illuminating odd shapes nearby. Harry pulled out his wand and pointed it at the hanging candelabra. As the room flickered into light, the shadows receded, and the shapes became distinguishable.

Harry gasped, as he stared at the horror before him.

‘What?’ He could hear Lupins chair scrape along the floor behind him, as he pushed it away from the table. He came up behind Harry and stopped for only a split second, before pushing past him and moving swiftly to the centre of the room where he kneeled beside the broken body that was strewn face down across the bloodied rug on the floor.

Harry realized this had been why the smell of blood had been so strong. The armchairs were both overturned, one had been ripped and torn to shreds with sharp teeth and claws, the other looked as if it had been sprayed with blood, smeared in an ensuing struggle. The coffee table was snapped and collapsed in the centre, and the lounge had been thrown against the wall, a large crack in wall above it covered it with brick dust.

Everything in the room had been violated, candles were broken and laying on the floor, cushions with white cotton filling bursting from ragged tears littered the area, and blood streaked across the wooden floor where it appeared the body had been dragged. Lupin was hunched over the figure with his hand on its shoulder, pulling the torn clothing back from the bite marks. As Harry walked silently over to them, he could hear Lupins heavy breathing and knew what he was thinking.

He had killed an Order member who had either been here already when Lupin arrived, or had walked in on Lupin during his change. Harry crouched down on the opposite side of the body, eyeing Lupin with a mixture of pity and fear. Lupin had his eyes closed, seemingly unable to bring himself to turn the body over and see who it was. Neither of them spoke, as Harry exhaled and put both his hands under the side of the body, heaving it up slowly, and letting it roll onto its back.

He looked hesitantly up at the face. It must have been an Order member he hadn’t met, for there was nothing familiar about the bloodied face. He looked at Lupin, unsure of what his reaction would be, and was surprised to see him staring at the face with fury. All of a sudden Lupin growled and tossed the body face down again.

‘What?’ Harry said, immediately sensing something wasn’t right.
Lupin breathed heavily in relief, looking at Harry.

‘This was one of Fenrir’s spies! A Death Eater called Rosenberg! A thoroughly nasty piece of work. He was used when it was necessary to have someone that wasn’t inflicted with the turning at every full moon.’ He shook his head ‘He must have followed me back here, it seems Fenrir is still wary of me.’ Lupin stood up and Harry followed, getting to his feet.

‘But how did he get in here?’ Harry frowned.

‘I stupidly said the location aloud when I came here to enter, the password to the door I suspect too. I was almost out of my mind by that time. As secretkeeper Harry, I’m not restricted the same way you are.’ He was shaking his head again ‘I left it too late to seek solitude before I turned, and in doing so I risked Voldemort finding out where the Head Quarters is. If Rosenberg had of reported back to Fenrir, everything would have been exposed ... eventually.’

Lupin ran a shaky hand through his hair. ‘A stupid risk that could have destroyed all the progress we’ve made so far, not to mention the lives of everyone who comes in and out of here.’ He looked pityingly down at the body again. ‘I imagine he tried to hide himself, but the smell of human flesh is rather easily picked up when you’re a werewolf in such close quarters.

'Considering he’s rejoiced in watching Fenrir hunt first hand, even set people up for him in the past, he should have known better. Unfortunately, he will be missed when he doesn’t check back, which means I’m going to have some explaining to do.’ Harry’s sympathy for Rosenberg was rapidly disappearing. ‘I’m going to get cleaned up,' Harry could tell he was disturbed by what he had done. Lupin left the room and returned a short time later, washed and in fresh robes.

Harry helped him clean up the mess, though they still had to decide what to do with the body.

‘I think we’ll put it in one of the rooms, I’ll send for Bill and Sturgis. I need to find out what they’ve been up to while I was gone anyway.’ Lupin said, and released a silvery patronus out of the high, tiny slit-like kitchen window. He levitated the body and floated it up the stairs.

Harry had removed the last of the blood from the floor when Lupin reappeared and stopped at the foot of the stairs, watching Harry as he picked the cups off the table and placed them in the sink.

‘I think we need to have a little chat, Harry.’ He said sternly. Harry looked at him blankly, and then suddenly understood the change in Lupin. He had seen the burnt out drawing room when he was looking for a place to put Rosenberg. ‘Leave that, and come and sit down.’ He commanded as he walked back to the table. He stood with one hand on the back of a chair, eyeing Harry’s guilty expression knowingly. Harry sat down with a sigh. He knew this moment was coming; he had been dreading it ever since Dumbledore had died.

‘I think we’ve both skirted the issue of what you and Dumbledore were up to, long enough.’ He leaned both hands on the back of the chair and glared down at Harry. ‘What ever it is you are doing, it is proving far more dangerous than I am sure even Dumbledore could have bargained for.’

‘No it isn’t.’ Harry said flatly ‘It is exactly what he expected.’

‘I find that very hard to believe, Harry.’ He sounded angry now. ‘I have played along with this … this thing between you two, its gone against my better judgment, but I’ve given you the room you’ve asked for. I haven’t pressured you because McGonagall told me that you made it quite clear you had no intentions of telling anyone what’s going on. She said Dumbledore had instructed you to say nothing. All of this may well be true. But look at you Harry, you look tired and drawn, and bordering on mal-nourished!’ His voice was gradually building into a quiet shout.

‘It’s clear to me, whatever it is you are doing, it is not only extraordinarily dangerous, but it’s taking too heavier a toll on you physically and mentally. You cannot expect me to stand by and watch you do this to yourself.’ He was frowning as he added ‘I assume you are responsible for what is left of the drawing room?’

‘Yes.’ Harry answered, feeling his own temper rise.
‘Am I also correct in assuming you were in the room at the time it was destroyed?’
‘You are.’

They were glaring at each other, the atmosphere between them electric. Harry could feel himself readying to do battle. It infuriated him that Lupin seemed to be insinuating he was behaving irresponsibly. He had no idea how Harry had struggled with the weight of the task Dumbledore had left him! It wasn’t like he didn’t know he was in over his head!

Lupin’s eyes scanned Harry’s face. He appeared to realize the reaction he was provoking, and closed his eyes before taking a deep breath, and exhaling it wearily.

‘Enough, is enough, Harry.’ his anger slowly dissipating. He pulled the chair out and sat down with his elbows on the table. ‘Help me to understand what’s going on.’

Harry’s anger also ebbed, aware Lupin was acting out of concern. He lifted his hand to his face and rubbed at his forehead, wondering how to answer. He could feel Lupins eyes boring into him. He would not lie to him, his relationship with Lupin had grown well beyond such action, and he was only too aware Lupin would not be fobbed off with a weak excuse this time. So he decided on the truth.

‘Dumbledore discovered something about Voldemort, something that no one else knows; not even his Death Eaters.’ He said. Lupin shifted in his chair expectantly. Harry thought carefully about what to say next.

‘If he finds out that Dumbledore knew, if he realizes what I’m doing, then I wont be able to finish what Dumbledore started.’ He watched Lupin for his reaction.

‘Why is it so important?’ Lupin frowned through narrowed eyes. It was Harry’s turn to shift in his seat uncomfortably.

‘Because ... it’s the difference between me killing him,’ his eyes dropped to the table, not wanting to see Lupins reaction ‘or him killing me.’

There was a long silence as Harry ran his finger over the scratched, uneven wooden surface unconsciously.

‘Dumbledore told you this?’ Lupins voice sounded strange, so Harry lifted his gaze to him. He nodded his head. Lupin’s expression was grave, and also unexpectedly angry. It was a while before he spoke again.

‘I fear that is all you have to say on the subject then?’ Lupin stood and walked to the kitchen bench.
‘Its important you understand,’ Harry said quietly, turning in his chair ‘I’d ask for your help if I could, if I thought it would do any good.’

‘I think I finally do understand.’ He said slowly ‘But I can’t pretend that I don’t find it more than a little frustrating.’
‘I know, but there isn’t anything else to say. The more people who know-'
‘The greater the chance Voldemort will discover what you’re up to.’ Lupin finished ‘It’s okay. Under the circumstances it seems you might be safer doing things your way.’ He said. He was focused on Harry with a look of grave concern. 'But remember, if you find yourself in trouble ... if you need to call on someone, I'll be there for you, no matter what.'

Harry would have liked to say a word of thanks to his father's once best friend, but a lump had swelled in his throat at Lupins words. Instead, he nodded before turning back to the table.

‘Why did you come anyway?’ Lupin asked as he started pulling food from the cupboard. Harry had almost forgotten since so much had happened.
‘I left something behind that I need for school tomorrow.’
‘It might be best if you stayed the night now.’ Lupin stopped and eyed Harry ‘I’m not exactly the best cook in the world, but it’ll be edible. And you look as if you could do with a decent meal.’
‘Okay,’ Harry stood and walked to the stairs ‘I’ll let Hermione know I won’t be back until morning.’
‘How?’
‘Fred and George’s handiwork, I’ll bring it down and show you.’

As soon as Harry reached his room he closed the door and went over to the wardrobe. He pulled the scroll Snape had given him from his crumpled backpack. It had lain there since the night it had come into his possession, safest well away from Ron and Hermione’s enquiring eyes. He turned it over in his hands, feeling relieved, yet slightly nauseated to be looking at it again, before replacing it and retrieving the small emerald message log. He wrote a brief note to advise Hermione of when he would be back, placed it in his pocket, and then he washed up and headed back downstairs.

Lupin was appreciative of the twins seemingly endless inventive magical abilities as Harry explained how it worked, and even though the log contained nothing anyone else could read in to, Harry was still eager to whisk it back into his pocket after Lupins initial flick through. As Lupin stirred the pot on the stove, Harry tried to steer the conversation to what Lupin had been doing the last few weeks, but he would not be drawn into the subject, no matter how determined Harry had seemed.

Eventually he asked straight out what he thought Bill might have been up to, but understandably, Lupin explained that he wasn’t able to tell him, even if it wasn’t for the oath he took, as he had had no contact with anyone from The Order the whole time he had been underground. So Harry had to content himself with waiting in the hopes that Bill turned up in answer to Lupins call.

Between reluctant mouthfuls of tinned stew, he took the opportunity to express his unease at Lupins own situation. But as Lupin had readily pointed out, everyone was taking risks these days, and it was a necessary price to pay if it could make a difference in the war against Voldemort.

It was the early hours of the morning by the time Harry crawled between the sheets, Bill still yet to show. And though his mind was buzzing with the contents of his backpack, he managed to sleep fitfully until dawn. Bill still hadn’t turned up when Harry appeared downstairs, though Tonks was there. Harry quizzed her immediately about Bill, uncaring that his interest in him all of a sudden appeared suspicious. He was bizarrely comforted by the fact that Tonks was adamant Bellatrix was still at large, but was unable to get any further information from her. She was somewhat preoccupied, and Harry noticed with dismay she seemed to tremble slightly when Lupin came into the room. Something Lupin also appeared to notice.

He told Harry that Sturgis and Kingsley had already taken Rosenberg away, all the while his eyes flickering to Tonks who had her back to them, pouring cereal into bowls. Harry hated to see the uncomfortable way they dealt with each other for the rest of the morning, but he had bigger things to worry about today.

With no further word on Bill all he could hope was that he was still a way off trying to close in on her. He left before first classes were due to start, taking his backpack with the scroll still inside, and after some awkward goodbyes, and a knowingly concerned look from Lupin, Harry reached Hogwarts, strolling up the grounds in the early morning light, making his way to the Common Room.

[razzberry2]

.

14. Neville's Return of the DA



As Harry passed the Great Hall, the clattering of plates and the chattering of students filtered though the open doors. He kept his cloak on until he reached the fat lady’s portrait, where he slipped it off again, giving her quite a start.

‘Ooh!’ she said, sweepingly clutching at her chest ‘I do wish you wouldn’t! I lose ten flakes off my paint work every time you do that.’
‘Sorry’ he said. She breathed pointedly for a moment, continuing her dramatics, and then she straightened, obviously feeling her moment was over.

‘That was quite a speech you gave last night.’ she said, eyeing him with snobby appreciation.
‘What happened after I left?’ he asked hesitantly. An amused smile played across her lips.

‘I’ve been hanging here for so long I’ve lost count of the years, and I have seen a thing or two in that time.’ She looked at him under her brow ‘One thing I’ve learned, is never underestimate the teenagers ability to ignore the truths of wisdom. What you said is exactly what they needed to hear, even if they don’t know it yet.’

Harry sighed, ‘Lobalug.’
‘That’s not the password.’
‘What? It was last night when I left.’ Harry frowned.
‘True.’ She had her hands, one over the other in front of her. Harry waited for a moment until it was clear she was not likely to say anything further.

‘Well?’ he said impatiently.
‘Well what?’ she raised an eyebrow. Harry let out his breath impatiently and turned to head down to the Great Hall.
‘Where are you going?’ the fat lady said indignantly.
‘To find someone who will give me the new password!’ exasperation laced his voice.
‘Poppycock!’

‘Pardon me?’ Harry turned.

‘The password, its “poppycock”. One of the Slytherin sixth year Prefects chose it.’
‘Poppycock?’ He repeated. The portrait door swung open.
‘Like I said, ignorance in the face of wisdom.’ she added from behind the door.

The common room was practically empty, only Neville and Colin Creevey were sitting at one of the tables under a window. They looked extremely concerned over whatever it was they were writing, so much so, they didn’t even notice when Harry crossed the floor and climbed the stairs to his room. As soon as he had placed the scroll safely at the bottom of his trunk, he shoved the backpack under his bed and pulled out some fresh clothes to change into. He welcomed the full day of classes ahead, figuring it would help to take his mind off the coming evening, which loomed over him like a dark shadow.

When he finally caught up with Ron and Hermione outside Charms class, they both looked tired and hassled. Harry was grateful they didn’t start in on him for leaving them behind to deal with aftermath of his speech, but he couldn’t help feeling guilty anyway as he tried to fill them in on his conversation with Lupin.

It proved awkward however; as Neville, Seamus and Dean kept hovering in the hopes that Harry might start sharing some of his information with them now as well. But this was not the sort of information he could share, and it made him feel doubly guilty when they finally gave up, taking the hint. He decided to not tell any of them about Lupins attack, not even Ron or Hermione. He knew how Lupin felt about it, and it seemed to Harry that even though it had been a Death Eater that had been killed, Lupin was far from proud of it, and would wish as few people to know as possible.

Charms class seemed to drag, the normalness of it grating on Harry’s nerves, making him moody and snappy. After waiting impatiently for weeks for his moment with Bellatrix, Harry was finding these last few hours unbearable. He wanted Bellatrix stopped and brought in to pay for her crimes, but the fact that it was Snape who had handed him the means to do it, left a bad taste in his mouth.

It was an understatement that something about it all didn’t sit well with him, but what choice did he have? Bellatrix was destructive to the core, she held little or no regard for human life, except possibly her own, Harry thought viciously. He had to take the only opportunity he'd been given.

Harry went to the Great Hall with the others for lunch, though when he sat down to face the piles of steaming hot, meticulously prepared food, he had absolutely no appetite. As he sat watching people load their plates, Hermione started spooning peas and corn onto his, shooting him challenging looks.

‘Don’t bother. I’m not hungry.’ He said. She looked at him through narrowed eyes.
‘What’s going on Harry?’
‘Nothing.’
‘Come off it,’ Ron interjected ‘we know when something’s up. Spill!’

‘I’m waiting for the Halloween feast tonight.’ Harry said truthfully. Hermione was still regarding him suspiciously.
‘Oh really?’ she said sarcastically ‘I expect you’ll eat loads then, of course.’
‘That’s right.’ Harry said, getting more than a little irritated.

‘Hey,’ Neville had just arrived at the table. He sat down opposite Harry and handed Hermione a bit of parchment. ‘This is the lot, so far. They’re all set, they’ll be ready when needed.’ Hermione skimmed it quickly.

‘I had hope there’d be more than this.’ she frowned.
‘I reckon there will be soon.’ Neville said, smiling at Harry.
‘What is it?’ He asked.

‘A list of people in the DA.’ She said as she handed it to him. There were twelve people on the list. Harry, Hermione and Ron came first, followed by Neville, Dean and Seamus, then Ginny, Harry’s stomach tightened at her name, then Luna and Ernie, Susan Bones, Hannah Abbott and lastly Colin.

‘No real surprises there,’ Ron said, reading over Harry’s shoulder.
‘I haven’t seen you organizing this.’ Harry said, looking at Hermione questioningly.
‘That’s because I didn’t. Neville did! All I did was enchant some more coins.’

Harry smiled at Neville who was blushing slightly. He had come to school this year with a determination that even surprised Harry. ‘Actually, I was thinking ... we need to appoint a coordinator, someone in charge of keeping everyone updated. Make sure we’re all on the ball. What do you think?’ he asked.

‘I-I thought that’s what you three did?’ Neville said tentatively.
‘Harry’s right,’ Hermione chimed in. ‘we’re swamped, what with the Defence classes and everything. You’d be perfect for the job!’
‘Well … I-I guess…’
‘Excellent!’ Ron interrupted ‘That’s settled then, lets eat!’
Hermione prodded her finger at Harry’s plate. ‘All of us!’ she said sternly.

Maybe it was Neville’s pleasure at his new assignment, but Harry was suddenly not in the mood to argue. He picked up his fork and pierced a piece of cauliflower coated in cheese sauce, and lifting it under Hermiones watchful gaze, he shoved the whole thing into his mouth defiantly. Once he started chewing, it wasn’t as difficult as he’d expected, and he finished off the cauliflower and started on some Brussels sprouts, aware that he had a long afternoon ahead of him.

Neville rushed down his food and then jumped up from the table and made a swift exit as Harry put his own fork down with still half a plate full of beefsteak and mushrooms left. He looked to the staff table.

McGonagall’s eyes were roaming over the students, and Harry automatically followed her gaze. Everyone was chatting and tucking into their food as always, and it struck Harry how vulnerable they all were. Sharing the Gryffindor tower with the whole of the sixth and seventh years, and conducting the younger students in Defence Against the Dark Arts classes, meant that unlike previous years, he recognized everyone’s faces as he looked around.

Things had changed so much, that he couldn’t help wondering if Hogwarts would ever be the same again. His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the entrance of an assortment of brown and grey owls, flying in through the high windows and circling around the enchanted ceiling. Harry didn’t bother to look for Hedwig, having pretty much given up on receiving any mail.

A magnificently sized tawny frogmouth owl landed in front of Hermione importantly. Its markings were striking; it’s grey and brown feathers looked extremely well groomed and it’s blue-black flecks lining the edge of its face and wings gave it a very regal appearance. Lifting its beak and leg in the air at the same time in a haughty and obviously well practiced manner, it waited for Hermione to untie the scroll from it’s leg before launching itself with its impressive wingspan and swooping silently and elegantly over the tables and back up and out through the windows.

‘Bloody show off.’ Ron said sullenly, clutching Pig in his fist in an effort to stop him from leaving footprints all over his mashed potato as he danced around enthusiastically on Ron’s plate. He pulled a message from Mrs. Weasley off the little owls leg, as Hermione opened the ornate blue wax seal on her scroll, unravelling it. She started reading it and then stood up, flushing brightly, and made to climb over the bench seat to leave, but Ron grabbed her arm, looking up at her guilty expression.

‘Read it here.’ He said, his face suddenly serious. Harry had guessed the same thing as Ron had, and took hold of her robes to urge her back down between them. She swung herself back down slowly and reluctantly opened the scroll once more. ‘What does it say?’

Harry had never heard Ron speak so gravely to Hermione when she was so obviously embarrassed, he normally took the opportunity to tease her into a further state of red-faced flustering. He could sense there was trouble brewing.

Harry and Ron both leaned in so no one else would be privy to the contents of the letter as she took a deep breath, and read out quietly.

‘Dearest Hermione’ she spoke in a squeaky telltale voice that she was very uncomfortable sharing this with them. After reading ahead a couple of lines to herself, she seemed to decide she could not go through with reading it aloud, and held the letter away from her so that Harry and Ron could peer over her arms.

‘I was rather surprised, and yet somewhat delighted, to hear from you. I always suspected there was a little spark between us. You were frequently attentive to me in our DA classes together. I will admit, of course, I noticed you too, though I have to say, your abrupt manner was a trifle off-putting.’

‘Prat!’ Ron said ungraciously, ‘Never figured out it was just him you were abrupt with then?’

‘You obviously tried to catch my eye on more than one occasion last year, but I always rather thought you had another target for your affections in mind. Still, it is said you should never try to second guess a woman in love.’

‘Git!’ Ron scoffed, obviously cheesed-off . Hermione was cringing in her chair.

‘Friends of the family are hosting a Champagne and Lobster dinner party next week, there will be a number of young suitors attending, both male and female, and although I am one of the most sort after bachelors that frequents these suppers, I have yet to procure myself a partner. I am prepared to take you as my date, though you must remember we move in high social circles and your conversation and dress standard would need to suit.’

‘What an insufferable snob.’ The distaste in Hermione's voice unmistakeable.

‘I await your reply; though don’t leave it too long, I am likely to be snapped up soon by some other lovely young lady otherwise.

Yours most sincerely,

Zacharias Smith’

‘Doesn’t sound like he's exactly head over heels,' Ron muffled a smirk with his hand. 'Maybe you haven't made the love potion strong enough.’

‘I haven’t used it yet!’ Hermione scowled at him ‘This is just his own delusional take on things.’ Ron suddenly didn’t seem to find it so funny anymore.

‘What? You mean he likes you anyway … without the potion?’
‘Is that so hard to believe?’ she said a little angrily.

‘Well, no. Its just … we didn’t bargain on that, did we?’ Harry watched Ron, as he gradually turned pink. ‘I mean, its going to make the potion's effects stronger isn’t it? And what happens when you’re finished with him? He might not be easy to get rid of. What are you going to do then?’

‘Ron, it’s a potion, when its worn off he’ll go back to normal, normal for him anyway.’ Hermione said, rolling her eyes.
‘Yeah, but he likes you, and by the sound of things, the only reason he hasn’t approached you because you treat him like the pretentious boob he is!’ he frowned.
‘It wont be a problem Ron, he’s far too narcissistic to swoon over me for long once the effects wear off.’ She waved her hand at him impatiently.

‘I don’t know’ Harry said.
‘Not you too?’ she sighed.
‘It could be difficult, now that he’s already shown a genuine interest you. A love potion’s usually used on people who lack those feelings isn't it. Don’t you think it will heighten the effect?’ Harry said cautiously, knowing Hermione wasn't in the best of moods now.

‘Maybe, until it wears off, but its only for a short time. Don’t worry!’ she said, looking from one to the other. Ron did not look as if she had put him at ease at all, and Harry couldn’t blame him. Zach was extraordinarily arrogant and was rather thick skinned. He wasn’t the sort who was used to taking no for an answer. Harry wondered if under the circumstances, he would have let Ginny do it in her place.

It was then that Harry realized he hadn’t seen Ginny. He looked around searchingly. Lunch was almost over, and the plates would be cleared any minute.

‘Where’s Ginny?’ he asked of no one in particular, his voice louder than before.

‘I saw her up in the common room before I came down.’ Lavender, who was sitting nearby offered ‘I asked her if she was coming, but she said her and Luna had something to do.’ Harry frowned, for some inexplicable reason he had the distinct feeling her absence meant she was up to something. Before he could think about it any longer, the plates vanished and the remaining people in the Hall straggled out.

Harry headed off to his private session with Sir, while Ron left for the Common Room to study, and Hermione drifted off to Arithmancy. Harry had learned over the past few weeks that he could expect anything when he entered the classroom, so he was already preparing himself as he walked down the corridor.

A strange feeling was growing in him, and he scoffed at his own over-sensitivity, before hearing the faintest crackling sound behind him. He reacted before he could think, and dropped to the floor, rolling on his back with his shoulders off the ground, and his wand gripped firmly in both hands, staring in the direction the hex had come from. The coat of armour behind him clanged and clattered as the beam of light hit it. Harry was panting as he scrambled to his feet, still unable to see where the attack had come from.

‘You walked straight past me.’Sir grunted ‘I could have hit you at point blank range.’ Harry was searching the area in front of him. Slowly Sir came into view, seeming to melt out of the wall, the disillusionment charm he had been hiding under reversing.

‘How am I supposed to fight something that’s invisible?’ Harry said wearily as he got to his feet and replaced his wand in his robes.
‘If you can’t figure that out, then you’re not going to last long.’ He said with out looking at him, as he opened the door to the classroom. Harry followed him in.
‘You’re asking the impossible.’ he said under his breath.

‘The impossible?’ Sir turned on him suddenly ‘What is it you think we have been doing here, Potter?’ Harry could tell this was one of those questions Sir deliberately asked, knowing Harry would not give him the answer he wanted.
‘You’re teaching me how to duel and-’

‘Wrong! You already know how to duel; you’ve proved it on quite a number of occasions. Do you think McGonagall would’ve trusted the education of the younger students to you if you couldn’t teach them how to defend themselves?’ He turned away from Harry again and walked down to the cleared area in front of his desk.

Harry stayed where he was. Sir had a way of making him feel incredibly stupid and naive at times like this. ‘What was your instinct as you were walking down that corridor?’ he asked Harry challengingly.

‘I felt like I was being watched.’ He said reluctantly.
‘And yet you chose not to act on it. Why?’
‘I though I was being paranoid.’ He said quietly, his eyes on the floor space between them. Sir jutted a finger at him pointedly.
‘Trust your instincts. They are the main reason you are standing here today.’
‘How do I know when I’m right?’ Harry asked, walking towards him slowly.
‘Feel it. I was under a disillusionment charm and that leaves a mark. Magic leaves a mark.’

That night in the cave Dumbledore had been able to sense enchantments, pinpoint them with an accuracy that had mystified Harry at the time. Now that he thought about it, Harry had also been quite certain that years ago his invisibility cloak had not fooled Dumbledore when they had stood in the same room as each other whilst he wore it. Sir was watching Harry when he finally met his gaze.

‘Can you teach me to sense magic?’ he asked, it seemed almost impossible to Harry.
‘You already can, though you still have a long way to go if it’s going to be of any real use to you. You have to learn to trust your instincts.’
Harry nodded slightly. Then another thought occurred to him.

‘Can you teach me Occlumency?’
‘Learning how to sense magic is the most useful ways of detecting when someone is trying to enter your mind. You can block it before they even get close.’ He seemed intensely focused on Harry.
‘But that’s the problem; I can’t block it, I’ve tried.’ Harry said gravely. Sir studied Harry for a moment.

‘First things first, if you’re going to stay alive long enough to worry about having your thoughts read, then you need more drilling. I think its time we moved outside.’


They spent the rest of the session hovering on the edges of the Dark Forest, Harry moving through the trees, waiting for Sir to strike. It was the most arduous session Harry had been put through yet. A couple of times Harry spent almost twenty minutes by his reckoning, waiting for some sign of Sir’s attack. It was too easy to drop his guard when he was tiring from a constant state of alertness, and Abe seemed to know exactly when to strike to get the maximum impact.

On the first lengthy wait, Harry had wielded a spectacular shield charm just in the nick of time, trusting in his instinct, though he had already cast the shield charm several times previously as a false alarm. The second time however, he was wearying, and found himself flung against a nearby tree trunk, unable to react in time to deflect the stun. When Sir had enervated him back to consciousness, he had felt extremely agitated and a embarrassed that he was still getting caught.

His body ached and he felt stretched, pushed to the point of exhaustion as he headed back up to the Common Room. When he climbed through the portrait hole, he was met by wary looks from the other students that littered the area. Harry knew it was primarily because he looked terrible, and he suspected they still feared he might launch into another rant given any sort of provocation.

Ron and Hermione, were sat with most of the other DA members, only Ginny seemed absent, yet again. They all looked up at him with varying degrees of worried or dubious expressions.

‘What is he doing to you?’ Hermione asked, a deep frown etched across her face. It appeared she spoke for all of them as they stared at him.
‘Preparing me.’ Harry said flatly ‘I’m going to get some sleep. Wake me around five will you?’ he directed at Ron.
‘Maybe you should stay in bed for the night, you look awf-’

‘NO!’ Harry directed far to sharply at Ron, his tiredness getting the better of him. ‘I don’t want to miss the feast, I mean.’ He added in a more controlled voice.
‘You wont really be missing much,’ Dean said.
‘Yeah, it’s the same thing every year, nothing special.’ Added Seamus. Harry sighed in a clearly irritated way.

‘If you wont wake me, I’ll stay up.’ He said as he threw himself on the sofa beside Luna. He noticed instantly that Ron and Hermione were glaring at him questioningly. He knew what they would be thinking. He had shown so little interest in food lately, that they were finding it hard to swallow that he was suddenly so desperate to go to the Halloween feast to gorge himself.

‘I’ll wake you.’ Luna volunteered ‘You won’t want to miss the Puffle Crubwoofats!’

‘Er ... the what?’ asked Hannah hesitantly.

‘Puffle Crubwoofats. They only come out on Halloween, and even then only every sixteenth one.’ She said. ‘And tonight is the night.’ She said, her protuberant eyes widening in anticipation.
‘And what, dare I ask, is a Puffed Snub-hoofer?’ Ernie asked.
‘Puffle Crubwoofat’ she corrected him ‘It a pumpkin headed creature that runs up to your front door, knocks, and then runs away again.’

‘What’s the point in that?’ Ron screwed his face up.

‘When the owner of the house comes out, they appear from behind the bushes in groups of five or six at a time, then they light their heads up and perform a most interesting re-enactment of the greatest love story ever to come out of their culture.’

‘Er … why?’ Susan looked completely befuddled.
‘Oh, it’s a long story-’

‘Well, I think I’ll hear about it another time, Luna’ Harry stood up again ‘don’t forget, wake me at five, okay?’
‘Have a good sleep. Anyway’ Luna turned back to her reluctant audience ‘Legend has it…’

Harry was once again aware that Hermione and Ron’s suspicious gazes were following him as he headed up the stairs. It was just after three pm, which meant he had almost two hours to catch up on some sleep. He had no idea what he would be called upon to do this evening, but in his current state, he wouldn’t stand much of a chance against Bella, so some sleep was essential. He didn’t bother changing, or getting under the covers. He collapsed onto his bed, pulling the curtains together to shut out the light, and laid back.

When he finally awoke, he remembered nothing after his head had hit the pillow. Luna came into focus, standing over him as he put his glasses on. The room was dark, lit only by a low lamp.

'Harry'
‘Thanks Luna, what time is it?’ he asked groggily.
‘Almost six,’ she said vaguely.
‘What?’ Harry suddenly threw his feet on the floor, shaking his head clear. He stood up and opened his trunk hurriedly, fumbling with the latch in his haste. ‘Why didn’t you wake me earlier?’ he said angrily.

‘The others seemed to think I should let you sleep. I had to sneak away from them in the end as they were heading to the Great Hall. I managed to lose them on the stairwell.’

Harry barely heard her as he rummaged through his gear, finally locating the scroll and slamming the lid down behind him. He took off out the door, Luna calling after him to wait, so he turned and took a few steps back towards her, grabbed her hand, and pulled her after him, going as briskly as she would allow.

‘You really are looking forward to the feast, aren’t you?’ she said dreamily.

[razzberry2]

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15. The Seige Of Bellatrix



‘You go in!’ Harry let go of Luna’s hand as he slowed outside the Great Hall. 'I’ll be there in a minute.’ He picked up his pace again as he veered off to the clock tower, wishing he had bothered to replace the watch he had drowned in the lake years before. He stopped beneath the enormous clock face and looked up as the gigantic pendulum swung before him. He backed away so he could see the hands more accurately.

He still had roughly three minutes. He took off, back inside and brought himself to a controlled walk before he stepped inside the Hall, positioning himself just inside the doorway.

The room was decorated in true Halloween tradition. Black candles and glowing pumpkins, and magical bats circling the star filled ceiling. Everyone was already enjoying the Halloween treats that lined the tables. As he stood there, adrenalin coursing through his body, waiting to hear the deep resonating chimes of the clock tower once it struck six o’clock, he noticed Ron and Hermione determinedly walking towards him. He tucked the scroll behind his leg and shifted from foot to foot, his nerves alive with impatience and foreboding.

‘What are you doing?’ Ron winced as he pulled up in front of Harry ‘You’re sweating … are you ill?’
‘Probably, but that’s not the only problem, is it?’ Hermione looked at him through narrowed eyes.

‘Not now!’ Harry would have to put them off for a couple more minutes. Whatever was about to happen, he couldn’t bring Snapes name into it. If this was going to be the downfall of Bellatrix LeStrange, then he instinctively wanted to guard where the information had come from.

Snapes motives had haunted his thoughts over the past few weeks, and nothing Harry pieced together seemed very likely. He clung to his idea that Snape and Bellatrix were competing to be Voldemorts top man, but however he had looked at it, he couldn’t figure out why Snape had chosen to eliminate his competitor using Harry. Unless of course, this was a trap, which had seemed less likely the more he had tossed it around in his head. Snape had already proved he could reach Harry easily at Grimmauld Place, so why would he go to such trouble to ensnare him? Too much could go wrong by waiting so long.

‘We’re beginning to really worry about you, mate.’ Ron said gravely ‘I thought you trusted us? You used to tell us what you were up to. I can’t figure it out,’ he shook his head ‘what’s changed? We know something’s going on, we know you’re keeping something from us.’

‘I can’t explain it to you.’ Harry said shortly, listening for the first clang of the bell.
‘That’s not good enough, not anymore.’ Hermione frowned ‘you’ve been expecting something, haven’t you? And judging by the way you’re behaving, it’s about to happen.’ taking in his fidgeting.

Harry could feel his movements were uncoordinated and nerve driven, as he avoided their questions and waited for the low echoing toll of the bell.

It should come any second now.

‘I’ll call you if I need you.’
‘Need us for what?’ Ron pried
‘I don’t know yet.’
‘Your not making any sense.’ Hermione continued to watch him.

He was so close to finding out what Snapes warning was all about. Any second he would know what to do. He looked at his friend’s worried faces; they were about to find out anyway.

‘I have to open this in here,' he said agitatedly, lifting the scroll for them to see 'and I don’t want anyone else to see it until I know what it is.’
‘What is it?’ Hermione frowned.
‘I don’t know, a warning maybe.’
‘We can see it though, right?’ Ron pushed.
‘I won’t know until I’ve read it!’

‘Harry, this is sounding ridiculously dangerous, where did you get it?’ Trust Hermione to ask the hard questions. Harry looked around the room, not at all sure what he was looking for. ‘Who gave it to you?’ she demanded.

DONNNNNG!

Harry straightened suddenly and drew a deep breath. This was it. It was finally time.

He placed the scroll between both hands and placed his fingers under the wax, trying to lift the blood red seal. It wouldn’t budge. He gripped the edges of the hard wax firmly and squeezed, snapping the seal instantly. It hissed and fizzled as a small ribbon of smoke rose from the crack.

For a split second, Harry thought it might burst into flames, fearing he had got it wrong somehow. But the whiff of smoke dissipated and Harry unrolled the parchment with shaky hands. His eyes scanned down the writing, immediately recognizing it as the same cramped hand that Snapes potions book had scrawled all through it. Ron and Hermione were watching him, their own suspenseful agitation growing as he studied the parchment.

He took a sharp intake of breath.

‘What?’ Ron asked ‘What’s it say?’ Harry began to shake his head.
‘I-I don’t believe it…’ he said quietly, baffled as he kept following the writing down the page.
‘Harry! What is it?’ Hermione’s alarmed voice intruded as he tried to take in what he was seeing.
‘I-I don’t understand…’ He swore as his breathing became rapid, his fear rising.
‘What is it?’ Hermione repeated loudly. Ron moved to look at the parchment.

‘It’s a warning, and a spell, but… ’ feeling panic rising in him, Harry continued ‘There are symbols ... I’ve got no idea what they mean. It looks like each has got a set of instructions to them.’ He swore again. All thoughts of hiding the contents of the scroll were forgotten in his need. ‘If I don’t figure out what all of this means in the next four minutes, Bellatrix will succeed at doing something a hell of a lot worse than what she did at the wedding.’ he said, a sick feeling growing in his stomach as he held out the parchment.

Hermione grabbed the piece of paper as she and Ron squinted at the tiny wording, reading down the page. He watched as a look of horror crept across their faces. Ron swore and Hermione’s eyes watered.

‘Where did you get this?’ she breathed ‘Is it right?’

Harry ran a hand through his already unkempt hair. ‘I don’t know. We can’t afford to ignore it though, can we? If we do and it is right … then we wont be able to prevent her …’ his mind raced at the thought.

‘But Harry, who gave this to you?’
‘Don’t ask me that, it doesn’t matter’ Harry snapped, annoyed at her persistence. ‘The point is we have to act on it.’
‘But this could be a mistake?’
‘Whatever it is, it is not a mistake.’ He said angrily. He felt like too much time was slipping by while they argued the point. Hermione looked back at the parchment.

‘Hang on mate, calm down. Hermione?’ Ron tried to ease Harry’s growing temper before throwing a look at Hermione. ‘Can you tell what he’s supposed to do with the symbols?’
‘I should be able to, but I’ll need time. Its some form of runes, but its complicated, they’re worked in with the spell.’ she said with a frown.

Harry glared at her. ‘We don’t have time. The parchment won’t last. We need to commit it to memory.’
‘To memory?’ Hermione’s eyes grew wide. ‘Now?’
‘Yes!’ he said impatiently.
‘If we get it wrong, even a little, the spell wont work.’ She said.
‘That’s why we need to stop wasting time!’
‘But-’

‘Harry’s normally right about this sort of thing Hermione.' Ron added quickly. 'He was right about Malfoy, wasn’t he? He was right about Snape?’
Harry swallowed; Ron had unknowingly touched on the doubts that plagued his mind.
‘What if we each memorize a symbol and its instructions; it shouldn’t be too hard between the three of us. Lets have a look at it.’ Ron waved her to hold it out for all of them to see. She held it up and Ron and Harry closed in on it.

‘I should be able to work it out, but we have to get it right. I’ll take the first one Ron, you take the second, and Harry, you memorize this last one. And remember, some of the symbols can look almost the same, but their meanings are very different. We have to get it right!’ she spoke quickly as they studied the page. They were silent for a moment, and Harry registered out of the corner of his eye Ron mouthing the words as he read over them.

‘How long do we have?’ Ron asked finally.
‘We must be almost out of time.’ Harry said and he started reading over the instructions for the fourth time.

‘What happens when the time is u-’ But as Ron spoke, the parchment began to bubble as if it were immersed in acid. Hermione dropped it, gasping as smoke began drifting off the page slowly. They watched it fizzle on the floor, curling in on itself as it blackened, until eventually there was only a delicate charcoal skeleton left. Ron crouched down, but it crumbled the moment his fingers touched it. ‘So, what do we do know?’ he asked as he stood again, rubbing his blackened fingertips together.

‘We have to warn McGonagall.’ Hermione said as she looked to the staff table. All of the teachers appeared oblivious to the trio at the other end of the room, though as he looked around, Harry noticed Neville was staring at them from the Gryffindor table. He beckoned him over to where they were standing, and Neville jumped up with surprising speed.

‘Neville can warn her, or we’ll be stuck here as soon as she finds out what’s going on.’ He explained.
‘You’re right. There’s no way she’d let us out without proof we can help.’ Ron concurred.

‘What’s happening?’ Neville already looked extremely worried as he looked between them.
‘Something’s coming to Hogsmeade Neville … something bad, and I need you to alert McGonagall.’ Harry said, holding Neville’s gaze.
‘Of course,’ Neville nodded as he swallowed.
‘She would try and stop us if she found out what we were up to, so you’re going to have to give us time to get away. And get the DA ready, but stay here, okay?' Harry said, his hand on Neville’s chest 'you're backup only, just in case our defence doesn’t work. We've only got one chance at this Neville. One go, or she'll succeed in destroying the town.’

‘Who?’ Neville asked. Harry watched for Neville’s reaction as he spoke.
‘Bellatrix LeStrange.’ He knew this would have an impact on Neville, and sure enough his face changed, hardening to a look Harry had never seen on him before.
‘Are you okay?’ he asked slowly.
‘I’ll do it, you can count me in, Harry.’ Neville said.

‘Tell McGonagall Bellatrix has found a way to control Quintapeds, and she’s going to unleash them on Hogsmeade in less than an hour.’
Neville’s face dropped ‘Quintapeds?’
‘Yes’ Hermione said pointedly.
‘We think we have a way of stopping them. We’re going to head there now.’ Harry said quickly. ‘Give us fifteen minutes before you go to McGonagall. She’ll know what to do.’
‘Alright’ Neville said ‘but how will I know if you need us?’

Harry thought about it for a moment. He hadn’t really seriously considered bringing the DA to the fight; there would be enough witches and wizards in Hogsmeade that would be forced to make a stand when it came to it.

‘I’ll send my patronus, a stag. If you see it from the tower, that’s the signal to come.’ Neville looked a little unsure, but nodded slowly.
‘Remember, give us fifteen minutes, okay?’
He nodded again and Harry, Ron and Hermione left the Hall.


~*~*~*~


‘Quintapeds!’ Ron said darkly as they closed the Hogwarts gates behind them, resetting the locks.
‘Disgusting creatures.’ Hermione said dejectedly.
‘They’re just Voldemorts style, aren’t they?’ Harry remembered vividly what he had read about them in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. They came from a small, unplottable island off the Northern most tip of Scotland, and had a mythical background due to the fact that nobody was really able to get close enough to study them owing to their liking for human flesh. What was known about them was that they were rather hairy and had the unusual claim of having five legs.

The trio disapparated, and then re-appeared outside the Three Broomsticks. The golden light that spilled out onto the street from the pub looked warm and inviting, and as they peered through the windows they could see that it was a busy night for these times when few would venture out after hours. The Halloween spirit was captured with large photos of hag-like witches scowling down from the walls, and ghostly shaped candles dotting the tables.

‘Wish we could go in for a firewhiskey or two before we get started. Now we’re actually allowed.’ Ron said glumly.
‘C’mon, we have to get this set up before they get here.’ Harry led them away from the comforting chatter into the dully lit and quietly haunting streets.

Harry pulled out his cloak and threw it over them. They huddled together and wrapped their arms around themselves in the chill as they moved swiftly, not daring to run. Snapes message had warned Death Eaters might be at large so they had to avoid being seen. Harry found himself trusting in his gut feeling more and more, reminding himself of what Abe had told him earlier that day.

Harry had known when he read the parchment that he couldn’t do it alone, and Snape knew his limitations, as much as he knew Hermione’s talent. The spell would take all three of them. This was the reason he had insisted Harry be in the Hall when he opened the scroll, it was the best way to ensure he would be around the help he needed.

The cool night air bit through their meagre clothing. The sky was cloudless and starry, and the moonlight lit up the surrounding houses and hills in its bluish glow, giving no hint as to the danger that lurked. They walked some distance past the little teashop Harry had once gone to with Cho, on their first, and last date. He pulled off the cloak.

‘It said to put the first mark somewhere here, right?’ he asked as he watched Hermione pace the ground.

‘The position of them doesn’t have to be perfect, what really matters is getting the symbols right.’ She said ‘As long as they make a triangle, it’ll work.’ She took out her wand and pointed it at the ground. Ron and Harry watched as she drew a white shape on the cobbled pavement resembling a large W, mirror reflected at the bottom peaks, drawing it out in exactly the order that had been written below the symbol on the parchment. Next to it she put what looked like an upside Y with a bar across the bottom and joined the two symbols with three parallel lines, one above, one through the centre, and one below. She stopped and breathed out loudly.

‘That’s one.’ She said.
‘Let’s go.’ Harry urged. Ron was rubbing his arms against the chill as Harry threw his cloak back over them. They walked back down the way they had come.

The streets were empty; the only people they passed along the way was a tall weathered looking man, and a mildly pretty young woman with shoulder length blonde hair.

When they reached the lane that led out to the back of the town, they stopped, emerging from under the cloak.
‘This will do.’ Hermione said ‘Ron?’

Ron took his wand out and did the same as he had seen Hermione do, this time the symbol was a square with a diamond laid over the top of it, and something that resembled the letter P, but with two extra arms attached next to it with what looked like feet. Ron was repeating it in the exact order he had read, when he suddenly stopped, unsure of where to put the joining lines.

‘Ron!’ Hermione glared at him. He frowned at the ground and then moved his wand to complete the mark, finishing his part of the spell.
‘I hope that’s right.’ She chided.
‘It is.’ He said guiltily.
‘We’d better get moving.’ Harry said before Hermione could say anything more scathing.

When Harry had completed the last of the symbols on the road that led to the Shrieking Shack, they headed back to the Three Broomsticks.
‘McGonagall would have called The Order by now.’ he said as they hurried up the street, trying to keep their feet beneath the cloak.
‘I wonder how many of them will come?’ Ron muttered. It was true that they all seemed so busy these days that it was unlikely there would be many of them able to be reached.

‘As long as this works, and its not just some elaborate plan to get Harry standing unprotected in the middle of Hogsmeade, we should be alright.’ Hermione said, glancing at Harry. ‘Rune triangles were used in the old days. Its said that power can be channelled through the corners and forced to meet in the centre, colliding and combining at the same time.’

‘If we got it right. It’s going to take one heck of a spell to banish a hundred Quintapeds!’ Harry added under his breath. Hermione didn’t answer; instead she shuddered, the thought of getting it wrong seemingly to ghastly to contemplate.

When they reached the outside of the pub, they stopped and eyed the people inside.
‘They’ve got no idea what’s coming, maybe we should warn them.’ Hermione's face creased with concern.
‘They’re safer inside.’ Harry said and removed the cloak. He motioned his head at the two figures walking towards them. McGonagall and Slughorn had apparated into the middle of the street, Harry not at all surprised to see them.

‘Potter! What’s going on? What’s all this talk about Quintapeds attacking Hogsmeade?’ she asked it angrily, but he could tell she was worried.
‘Surely you can’t be serious? Quintapeds are wild, they wont be working for the-’
‘They are.’ Harry interrupted Slughorn. ‘He’s found a way to control them, and Bellatrix is bringing them here, tonight.’ McGonagall’s lips thinned.
‘How do you know?’ she asked.
‘I just do.’
Slughorn looked thoroughly unconvinced, fearful even, but McGonagall took Harry aside and spoke to him in a hushed voice.

‘How do you know?’
‘If I told you, you wouldn’t like it.’ Harry said.
‘Try me.’ She retorted. He tried to read her expression, her mouth was set harshly, but her eyes held doubt. He took a deep breath.
‘I cant.’ He breathed out resignedly. As much as he wanted to share this particular piece of information with her, he instinctively knew he shouldn’t.
She sniffed impatiently. ‘I really think if Dumbledore trusted me, you could too.’

‘It’s not a matter of trust.’ He said, ‘If anyone else were to find out, well … next time there wouldn’t be a warning.’ He almost couldn’t believe he was saying it. Did he really think Snape would tip them off a second time?
She looked intensely irritated. ‘What is this way of stopping the attack Mr. Longbottom was talking about?’

‘It’s a spell, a complicated one, but we’ve already set it up.’
‘Set it up?’
‘Yes, Hermione says it follows the old ways, but it’s powerful. We’ve put down a rune triangle.’
She raised her eyebrows. ‘Miss Granger came up with it?’
‘No.’ There was a couple of popping noises nearby.
‘You stay put. Do you understand?’ she poked a finger at him.
‘I’m not going anywhere.’

Lupin and Tonks began sprinting as soon as their feet hit the ground, their cloaks billowing around them. Harry heard another crack behind them and turned to see Hestia standing underneath the Three Broomsticks sign.

‘What is it? We came as soon as we got your message.’ Lupin slowed and eyed Harry with a frown. ‘What are you doing here?’

Harry was impressed at the ease with which McGonagall deflected Lupins questions, while informing the three new arrivals of the Quintapeds impending attack. She explained what was about to happen expertly as if it had all come from her.

‘I have to get back to Hogwarts, in case the students come under threat. I have confined them to their dormitories, but I fear they will not all stay there.’ She glanced at Harry out of the corner of her eye. ‘I’ll leave you to deal with things here, Remus. Professor Slughorn…’ she motioned to him and he nodded, looking rather relieved to be leaving.

‘Of course.’ Lupin said. They disapparated, leaving Lupin staring at Harry.
‘We don’t have much time.’ Harry said pointedly.
‘What’s this spell McGonagall was talking about?’ Lupin asked.
‘The three of us can do it,’ Harry answered ‘but you have to let the Quintapeds into town.’ Lupin frowned ‘you’ve got to draw them in so we can banish them. It only works inside the triangle.’
‘Are you sure about this Harry? There are still a lot of people in Hogsmeade.’ Ron and Hermione were watching him. He could be wrong, but he had to make a choice.
‘I’m sure.’ feeling rather sick as he said it.

‘What’s going on?’ The appearance of so many people outside the pub had attracted some of the patrons from inside to investigate.

Harry heard a couple more cracks, and saw some more Order members joining them, as Lupin herded the wizards back inside. It was obvious he had the same thought as Harry; he wanted to avoid an all out panic. Lupin sent Kingsley into the pub to explain what was happening; knowing that some people would chose to go home to their families. By the time the Order had navigated a plan to draw the Quintapeds in, Harry, Ron and Hermione moved to make their final mark on the ground.

There was a distant sound of wands firing, growing from the main entrance to Hogsmeade, along with the intermittent cracks of wizards appearing to help in the struggle. Word must be spreading, Harry thought, watching as Lupin made sure the new arrivals were informed of the plan.

Then a few things happened in quick succession.

A wizard came running up the main street, seemingly surprised at the gathering before him, yelling and panting desperately that huge hairy monsters had entered the town through the front gate, and would be in the centre within minutes. Then an Order member that had been sent to keep watch, apparated before the pub and informed Lupin the creatures were circling the town, and would be moving in from all sides. The lookout posted at the door of the Three Broomsticks ducked back inside to pass on the news that the monsters were here, prompting them to pull down the blinds in what seemed to Harry, a futile effort to avoid detection.

He saw the tall weathered man grab hold of the young blonde woman’s arm in an effort to restrain her from leaving the building for which Harry was glad, it would be difficult to have even more people on the streets to defend. She looked extraordinarily angry as the last blind was closed and they disappeared from view, throwing the street into gloomy foreshadowing.

‘Alright, everyone get into position!’ Lupin yelled at the remaining wizards who hadn’t left to help defend innocents. They took up positions at the surrounding street entrances, effectively encircling the trio. Harry, Ron and Hermione stood in the centre of the main road, Hermione directing them nervously as each drew a long straight line across the ground in front of them, joining the ends to make the final triangle.

‘That’s it!’ she said, her voice unmistakably shaky. They moved to stand within the triangle and turned their backs on each other. The surrounding night sky was flashing with shots fired from the numerous wizards on the outer edges of the town, and the crackling of misfired curses hitting the surrounding buildings was growing louder.

Then all of a sudden, the noise dropped off and things went deathly quiet.

All Harry could hear was Ron and Hermione’s rapid breathing, as he held his own breath. The quiet stillness was worse than the fighting. The other wizards tensed, and it seemed to Harry the silence lasted hours, but it must have only been a few short seconds.

Then people were yelling again, their voices much closer than before, the flashes of light erupting once more, this time bouncing off the nearby shops and houses. Order members started appearing in the main street as they backed away from the onslaught, firing hexes pointedly. Harry knew the creatures were close as Lupin and the others joined in the struggle, wishing he were free to go to their aid. But he had his job to do. Then he caught his first glimpse of a Quintaped.

Its sturdy, hairy legs, as tall as a man, appeared first. Then its dense, low-slung body came into view from around the building in front of him. It was a monstrous sight as its wide mouth with jagged teeth became visible through its thick brown fur. The two wizards standing before it backed away from the spider-like Quintaped as they fired at it in terror.

‘I hope you know what your doing!’ Lupin yelled urgently over his shoulder, still from some distance away. Harry’s heartbeat raced. He had to be right about this. If he was wrong, if the spell didn’t do as Snape said it would… Suddenly Harry was overcome by a wave of nausea. He could hear Hermiones gasps and Ron swearing behind him, and looking around he could see the creatures were appearing on all sides. There were stunning flashes shooting through the air before him, but they seemed to have little effect, the beasts starting briefly, as if they had been struck, then renewing their slow approach with fevered anger.

‘Lets do it!’ Ron said
‘We have to wait until the last possible moment.’ Harry said determinedly, but his thoughts were not as sure. This was all wrong. This is exactly what Snape wanted. They would have no hope of defending the town when the spell failed.

‘Harry!’ Lupin was firing off curses from his wand as he pushed Tonks behind him, backing towards the trio as the monsters pressed in.

Not yet, Harry thought. He watched as the circle of wizards closed in on them, he could feel Hermione’s body trembling against his.
‘Harry…’ her voice quivered softly. It's not time, he thought, aware at Hermione’s growing doubt at his continued silence.
‘They’re getting awfully close, mate!’ Ron sounded angry. Harry watched as the defenders of the town started touching shoulder to shoulder, the horrific beasts flashing their teeth and eyeing them greedily.

Almost there.

Harry could see the tears in Tonks eyes as she frantically fired off shots. The Quintapeds were thick in the streets, pushing in on one another in their effort to get to the reluctant feast.
‘Get ready,’ he said finally, as he raised his wand in front of him. The three of them stood in the corners of the triangle, back to back, their shoulders touching, and their arms stretched out, pointing their wands directly above their heads.

‘Harry!’ Lupin was only a couple of feet away from him now. Tonks turned to look at Harry briefly, a silent plea in her eyes.

‘Do it!’ Ron’s voice urged.

‘NOW!’ Harry yelled forcefully.

Three beams of greyish white light streaked from their wands and soared into the endless sky as they recited the words that had been spelled out for them. Harry could feel his wand starting to vibrate as the beams became thicker, brighter, the spell gathering momentum. The Quintapeds were slowly becoming more aware of the glowing spectacle; many closest to them had stopped attacking, and were beginning to back up, unable to get far, trapped by the masses pushing in behind them.

Harry looked up as his wand shuddered. The beams of light coiled around one another, intertwining and strengthening, becoming one. The air around him became turbulent and suffocating. Cloaks were flying about the wizard’s bodies, being drawn into what felt like a vacuum, sucking the very air into the triangle violently. Harry could feel the power coursing through his body; it was unlike anything he had ever felt before. He was overcome with a desperate need to vent it, and yelled to his companions to release the spell. His voice carried away with the force of the rushing air but he could feel they were acting as one. Slowly they brought their arms down rigidly in front of them. The light flashed and crackled as it separated into three brilliantly white arcs that emanated from the wand tips, and remained joined above their heads.

Harry’s body jolted as the power flow reversed itself. The ground beneath them shook as the surrounding buildings vibrated threateningly, the Quintapeds desperately trying to scatter in fear as Lupin grasped Tonks and shielded her body, the others bracing themselves.

Suddenly, a dome of light exploded over the trio’s heads and expanded rapidly. Harry’s body relaxed instantly as the power left him. He watched, as it was unleashed on their unwitting targets.

The spell had a devastating effect.

High pitched, ear piercing squeals filled the air as the light passed forcefully, yet harmlessly over the people, and racked over the Quintapeds. They writhed at its touch, their legs curling underneath their bulbous bodies before shrivelling as if all of the life had been sucked out of them. Harry looked away repulsed. He had not expected it to be so vulgar and the guilt swelled in him. Hermione had her face buried in Ron’s shoulder, his hand resting on the back of her hair protectively. They were both as appalled at the resulting carnage as he was. The beasts screeched and gurgled as they collapsed in on themselves, falling like hairy dominos.

As the screams of the monsters faded, Harry became aware of another sound; a bloodcurdling shriek from a woman’s voice. It was not a yell for help, but a scream of blind fury and frustration.

Bellatrix!


~*~*~*~


Harry gripped his wand with both hands, searching for his target.

Bellatrix was standing before the laneway, black cloaked, mask in hand as she looked around at her fallen army. A dozen Death Eaters stood in her wake, all surveying the hairy bodies that littered the streets.

‘You!’ she screeched as she caught sight of Harry and lifted her wand. ‘You’ve interfered for the last time!’

‘Harry!’ Lupin called out as a red jet of light shot towards Harry, but he was ready for it. He dived and hit the ground, and as he scrambled to his feet, he saw Ron, dragging Hermione by the hand as he ran for the cover of a nearby Alley. As another jet of light screamed towards him he took cover behind the bulk of a dead Quintaped. The noise of the curses hitting solid brick could be heard as the Order members joined in the fighting, yelling instructions to one another as the Death Eaters moved in.

The door to the pub before him opened suddenly. A middle-aged wizard brandishing his wand leapt out onto the street, only to be pushed to ground by Hestia as a green beam of light soared above them.

‘Julie!’ Harry heard Madame Rosmerta yell from within as the young blonde woman from before, ran out of the doorway, crouched with her wand in hand, taking cover behind a nearby cart.

He could feel the beads of sweat forming on his brow as he peered out from behind the hairy mass to see beams of light shooting in every direction. The wizards who had stood together against the Quintapeds, now scattered as they urgently sought cover. He searched the area before him with only one target in mind.

Bellatrix was moving through the main street, eyes fixed on the spot where he had taken shelter, obviously just as determined to seek him out. Knowing he couldn’t stay where he was, he took a deep breath, and threw himself forward. Scrambling to his feet, he bolted towards the nearest cover; a small laneway that lay alongside the boarded up Zonko’s.

He felt the curse fired as it careered towards his back, and dived onto the hard cobbled pavement. The white beam soared over him by only inches and collided with the building before him, sending bricks and mortar flurrying down over Harry.

He clawed his way to his feet again and in a low crouch, moved quickly through the hairy mounds to the entrance of the laneway, panting as he reached the safety of a sidewall of the corner house. The adrenaline was pumping through his veins as he wiped the sweat away from his forehead with the back of his sleeve. He glanced out into the din and saw Bellatrix bearing down on the cart where the young woman was taking refuge.

Images of Gabrielle’s horrified face suddenly filled his mind.

‘No!’ Came from under his breath as he darted out from behind the building and fired off a stunning spell in silence, hoping to catch Bellatrix off guard. But she knew exactly where he was, and had been waiting for him to strike. She deflected the spell, though appeared surprised at the force of it as she stumbled backwards a few steps. Harry was about to strike again when the girl suddenly appeared in his line of fire as she ran towards him.

‘Get down!’ he yelled angrily. The woman dived as Bellatrix fired off another curse. Harry ducked behind the corner of the house as the beam hit, tearing a gash in the orner of the brickwork. He stepped back out and aimed his wand, but Bellatrix was nowhere insight; she must have made it to the cart. He covered the blonde woman as she scrambled to her feet and ran passed Harry into the cover of the Laneway.

‘You should have stayed in the pub!’ he said aggressively over his shoulder at her.
‘I couldn’t!’ came her angry reply, but before she could say anything else, Harry grabbed her arm and raced down the darkened Alley.
‘C’mon!’

They hurtled down the Laneway as if the Devil himself were chasing them, weaving in and out of the hairy lumps in their path. Harry kept glancing over his shoulder, expecting Bellatrix to appear, shooting a deadly beam at them.

‘You have to find cover.’ He panted, and as they neared the end of the alley. Then Harry felt it. He thrust Julie in the opposite direction to him at the T-junction, diving behind a stone wall as a green beam of light flashed passed and contacted violently with a bird bath in a front garden, exploding it on impact.

‘Run!’ Harry yelled at the girl. She turned, bolting up the street in the opposite direction. He looked out from his stone cover just in time to see Bellatrix vanish from the laneway. He swore and jumped to his feet, running for the small street entrance some ways diagonally opposite.

CRACK

He turned, running backwards. Bellatrix appeared in the middle of the road at the end of the T-junction, behind the wall Harry had been crouched, expecting to have taken him by surprise. He aimed a stun at her silently, his heartbeat racing. She turned in time to see it and deflected it, though again it knocked her back a few paces as it rebounded off her shield. She looked infuriated as Harry lost sight of her behind the houses that lined the street he had entered.

‘Harry!’

He swung round to see Neville coming in the opposite direction up the street.
‘I told you not to come unless I gave the signal!’ Harry said urgently as he raced towards him. He knew Bellatrix would be right behind him.
‘C’mon!’ he grabbed Neville’s arm and pulled him with him.
‘It’s only me.’ Neville panted as they headed for the road in front. ‘The others … are watching Hogwarts.’ He panted.

‘This way…’ They had reached another T-junction, and veered off to the left. Harry pulled Neville with him as he made for the edge of town. He needed cover to face Bellatrix, and the forest that lined the back of Hogsmeade would give him that.

They tore down the street and Harry kept glancing over his shoulder, sure he would see Bella appear out of thin air any minute. They reached the end of the road and scanned the dully lit street. The buildings here were all in darkness, no comforting lights on in the windows and no movements behind the curtains; they stood deserted, whether from the immediate threat or past troubles. Not too far off there was a struggle taking place, he could see the flashes of light in the sky above the houses down the street, he could hear the clashes of curses as they hit the buildings near the trees in the surrounding forest.

Harry looked to the Alley some way down the road.

‘There!’ he said as he guided Neville, pushing them to run towards it. The roads were now free of Quintaped carcasses so they ran flat out, pulling to a stop as they came upon the darkened Alley. Harry studied the shadows that led off into the trees beyond for a moment, and then suddenly a flash came soaring towards him. He pushed Neville with him as he dived behind the corner house and watched as the beam of light pelted into the building opposite, scattering debris onto the street.

‘Stay here!’ He threw at Neville, who was crouched in the shadows under a windowsill. If he could make it to the trees, he would have her! Jumping to his feet, he thrust himself beyond the safety of the house, lunging into the darkened alley.

He hugged the side of the buildings, trying to conceal himself in the shadows. A green beam of light shot towards him, sending him scrambling into a nearby doorway to avoid it. The curse smashed into the wooden door behind him, splintering the wood in all directions and showering Harry with debris. He waited for a moment then dodged back out, and worked his way along, darting from doorway to doorway, watching for another attack. Then another flash of light sped towards him, causing him to take cover behind a stone balustrade lining the stairs in front of him to avoid it.

He wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his slightly trembling hand as he sat with his back against the stone, panting. He had been so determined in his effort to not let Bella get away, that he had allowed himself to become trapped. He was wondering wildly how he was going to get out of there while Bellatrix was fixed on him, when he heard a gurgling sound that made his stomach lurch.

He edged his shoulders up the stonework and turned to peer over the top. His eyes widened and his heart skipped a beat.

Bellatrix was standing on the path at the end of the road as a large hairy, spider-like Quintaped came creeping into the street from around the building. He threw his back against the stone again, swearing under his breath. Of course, there would be some who were outside the triangle!

‘What’s the matter Potter? Afraid of one little Quintaped?’ Bellatrix laughed from a distance. ‘After killing so many, this one shouldn’t be any trouble for you!’ Harry slowed his panting so that his breathing made less noise. His only hope was that it would pass him. He could slip out and run for the trees before it realized he was there.

He could hear the muffled thump of its clubbed feet, and a low rumbling noise gurgling from the back of its throat as it slowly inched its way towards him. Harry leaned down carefully and glanced around the edge of the stone, pulling swiftly back in and drawing his breath at the closeness of the monster. It was headed straight for him. His heartbeat raced as Bella continued to delight in his impending doom.

‘If your interference means I must die at my Masters hand, then you will die too.’ She said viciously.
Harry’s chest heaved as a hairy leg came into view only a couple of feet from where he was sitting. His panic rose as a second and then a third leg brought the body of the beast alongside him.

‘You should not have crossed me, Potter!’ She hissed.
Harry sat as still as he could, yet he knew the beast had not needed to see him, it had smelt him. As he turned his head it barred its teeth at him, its giant yellow eyes glittering dangerously, hungrily.

‘He wants you for himself, but I will have my revenge!’ she ranted.
Harry started edging back on his hands and feet towards the doorway. He paused fleetingly as he lifted his wand and fired a stunning spell, but as before, it had little effect The monster only seemed infuriated by the sting it must have felt from it, and lunged at Harry, just missing his foot as he scrambled to his feet and backed himself against the doorway, pushing at it furiously. Bellatrix’s laughter rang out.

‘Say goodbye, Harry Potter.’

The sweat from his body was making his clothing cling to him in the chilly night air as he watched the creature bring its body towards him. He fired off two more curses that both battered into the beast, but had little effect except to anger it further. It was no more than four feet away when it’s jagged teeth bared menacingly and it opened its mouth to lunge at him again.

Instinctively, Harry produced a shield charm as its putrid breath inundated his nostrils, causing the beast to stumble backwards a few feet as it was repelled. Harry pushed out of the doorway, and leapt over the balustrade, hurtling himself at full speed towards the trees. As he ran, he registered vaguely a figure making its way towards Bellatrix along one of the shadowed paths, and as it sank through his thoughts, he stopped just short of his cover, whispering under his breath.

‘Neville!’

‘And what have we here?’ Bellatrix’s mocking laughter that had followed Harry as he ran, turned into a wicked simper at the sight of Neville. Popping noises rang out as half a dozen black-cloaked figures appeared, partially obscuring Bellatrix from Harry’s view.

‘It’s time to go!’ one of them said ‘It’s over Bellatrix! We have to get out of here.’
‘No!’ she bit out, ‘I’m not finished yet.’

‘Don't do it, Bellatrix!’ Harry said loudly, keeping his wand trained on the new arrivals. Neville stood in the middle of the pathway that lay between the houses and the forest, pointing his wand at her. The Death Eaters turned at his voice, wands drawn. A beam of light shot out, as a curse was fired from one of them, but his wand was thrust skyward by another’s angry hand, sending the curse careering harmlessly into a nearby tree.

‘It’s Potter!’

Harry wiped at his face with his shoulder, impatiently trying to remove the sweat that stung his eyes. What is wrong with me? His mind felt like it was beginning to fog over as he gripped his wand in both hands.

‘Neville, get out of here.’ He said in a low warning.
‘She’s going to pay, Harry. She’s going to pay for what she did to my mum and dad.’ He answered. Harry could see that his wand was shaking slightly as he swallowed nervously. It was obvious Bellatrix recognized him as she grinned maliciously.

‘Another one who wants to go the same way as his parents! You want to feel their pain, don’t you?’ she taunted Neville cruelly.

‘NO!’ Harry said aggressively as he started to move slowly towards Neville. ‘Its me you want!’

‘Oh, now don't hog all the attention, let the boy have his moment.’ she said as laughter trickled from her cruel mouth, her wand directed on her challenger. Harry saw the Quintaped out of the corner of his eye, in the shadows of the buildings behind Neville. It was slowly making its way towards them.

‘He’s been waiting his whole pathetic life for this,’ she glanced at Harry dangerously ‘and I would stop moving if I were you. I could just kill him right now.’ Harry stopped with Neville still a good fifteen feet away. Neville shot out a curse suddenly, but it was flicked aside by her carelessly.

‘Crucio!’

Neville’s shield proved useless. His face contorted and his body curled. And as he screamed in agony, he dropped to the ground, his wand rolling away from his hand.

‘It’s me you want Bellatrix. Leave him alone.’ Harry felt sick with Neville’s pain, wincing as the screams inundated his ears. He started firing curse after curse at Bellatrix as she walked towards Neville’s writhing body, but the Death Eaters stood between Harry and his target, taking all of their effort to keep up with him, though they did not retaliate at first. They appeared in particular to be struggling with the force of the stun he was casting at them, stumbling backwards in their attempts to block it and swearing angrily.

The screaming echoed through the forest behind Harry.

‘STOP IT!’ Harry took off towards Neville again, but the cloaked figures moved forward to block him. One of them hissed at Bellatrix.

‘We don’t have time for your games.’
She giggled evilly as Neville’s screams became hoarse from the pain. Harry knew what Neville was feeling; he too had felt it before.

‘STOP IT!’ He roared.

Finally the cries stopped. Bellatrix glanced between her cohorts at Harry with a triumphant grin on her face as Neville grasped his wand and picked himself up off the ground, groggily stumbling to his feet.

‘Don’t move!’ Harry yelled to Neville, he could see the Quintaped was lurking in the nearby shadows. But Neville stretched himself to his full height, and ignoring Harry, aimed his wand at her once more.
‘No,’ barely escaped Harry’s lips at Neville’s determination.

‘Are they breeding you utterly stupid these days, boy?’ she asked him mockingly. Neville was staring down his wand at her. She flicked aside a curse he sent her way and it rebounded into the house beside her, at the end of the street. A loud crack rang out as it sent broken bricks onto the pathway, but Neville fired again, this time missing Bella as she dodged her shoulder out of its path.

‘You are wasting time! We have to get out of here.’
‘You’re right,’ Bellatrix said darkly in answer to her robed companion. ‘I am wasting time’. Harry knew what she was going to do before she did it. He knew she was going to revel in Neville's pain.

‘Don’t do it!’ Harry’s furious command had come too late. She had deflected another curse Neville sent her way with almost no effort, and hit him with the Cruciatus curse again.

Neville hit the ground as before; writhing in agony, and screaming uncontrollably. Harry swayed as he fought back the bile in his throat, firing uselessly at her again. ‘STOP IT!’

She closed in on Neville and kicked his wand away, and then stepped back again, watching on in silent pleasure, her mouth curling into a twisted grin. The Quintaped had paused and appeared to be watching the unusual actions of its intended pray as it writhed in unimaginable pain. Harry vaguely registered another figure moving swiftly through the shadows of the street, heading towards them, but Neville’s screams were filling his head, which was already becoming increasingly woozy, making him feel sick again.

His body was shaking as the chilly night air pierced his damp clothing. He lifted his shaky shoulder in agitation, wiping the relentless sweat away from his forehead. He couldn’t think straight with the noise and his mind searched desperately for a way to put and end to this. He opened his mouth before he could think what he was saying.

‘IF YOU STOP IT, I’LL GO WITH YOU!’

‘What?’ Neville’s screams finally died, as Bellatrix turned on Harry.
‘Leave him alone.’ Harry said more quietly this time. ‘I'll go willingly to Voldemort if you let him go.’ His wand arm trembled as he stared over it at Bellatrix. His eyelids were starting to droop heavily and his felt the ground swirling beneath him.

‘You expect me to believe you’ll come to your death if I let this useless idiot go?’
‘I give you my word.’
‘No…’ Neville croaked as he staggered to his feet.
One of the Death Eaters spoke up.
‘Lets take him and get out! The others will be here soon.’ he hissed. Harry watched her as she looked at him through narrowed eyes.

‘Our little boy hero wants to lay down his own-?’ but Bellatrix was cut off by a flash of white light and was knocked to the ground. Neville threw himself on top of her as another flash of light coming from the shadows behind the Quintaped, which had started to move in on them again, pelted into one of the Death Eaters who had their backs to the street.

Harry started firing on them in their confusion, and the hit one immediately with a stun, sending the masked figure careering backwards with such force that he took two of his companions with him as he hurtled to the ground. Then from the shadows of the street, two more curses came flying into the fray. One was deflected, but the other contacted its target, flinging him to the ground.

Harry kept attacking, and so did the person in the street, keeping the remaining four cloaked figures too busy to interfere with Neville and Bellatrix, who were still struggling on the ground. But, with three of them now returning his fire, Harry was unable to keep his shield up long enough and took a hit from two of them at once. The white-hot beams thrust him off his feet and sent him crashing backwards. There was a sickening crunch in his rib cage as it collided with a tree trunk, and pain ripped through him as he slumped to the ground.

‘Watch it, you idiot!’

Harry heard the dreamlike echo of one of his assailants muffled voices as he lifted himself slowly off the ground. Pain forked out across his rib cage, and he shook his head as he staggered to his feet, trying to clear the fog that threatened to overtake him. He clutched at his side with one arm, and reached up and wiped the sweat from his eyes with his wand still clutched in his hand. He stared out on the scene before him, dazed and shaking.

Three of the six Death Eaters were down, and two were firing up the streets in search of who ever lay hidden. One was watching Harry nervously, taking in his battered condition, but did not move to attack him.

‘Neville!’ Harry tried to yell it, but it was impossible to get enough air into his lungs. The Quintaped was creeping up behind the unsuspecting Neville, who was busy struggling to keep Bellatrix from wriggling like a wildcat underneath him as she clawed for her wand, which lay just out of reach. All three Death Eaters now faced Harry as he glanced up the street, battling to keep upright. He caught site of a blonde head poking out of a doorway. Julie!

‘LOOK OUT!’ She yelled in warning, watching the Quintapeds approach on the two struggling figure. As soon as her voice rang out, the three-cloaked figures span around.

Harry took his opportunity and raised his wand with an unsteady arm firing a stun at one of them. It pelted into the masked figure, making him groan before falling to the ground. The Quintaped appeared ready to strike, its controller no longer a threat as she lay beneath Neville, and it eyed its intended meal greedily. In desperation, Harry sucked in the pain and yelled out to Neville, and turned all of his curses towards the Quintaped, as Julie fired on the masked menaces.

The curses that hit the Quintapeds hairy hide, only made it flinch, as if bitten by an annoying insect. Bellatrix had stopped struggling. She had spotted the Quintaped, and was waiting for it to strike Neville, who had Bellatrix’s wand in hand. He finally turned to see what Harry was yelling about, his eyes widening as the beasts mouth boar down on him. Neville moved quickly, rolling off Bellatrix and across the ground, looking back just in time to see the ghastly mouth close over her.

‘NOOOOO!’ her blood-curdling scream rang out as the teeth sunk into her sides and lifted her from the ground.

The two Death Eaters that were left were backing away uncertainly, firing at the creature. The monster bit down on its screeching Quarry, and the sound of bone crunching could be heard as its prey spluttered, then fell silent. Blood ran down the yellowish fangs and dripped onto its fur as it turned and headed for the trees, Bellatrix’s limp body hanging from its jaws.

With two loud cracking sounds, the Death Eaters were gone.

Some way off, Julie spoke to Neville as she approached him, but Harry could no longer see them clearly. Their voices seemed to drift into nothing as he hung his head in his hands in an effort to keep the darkness at bay. Wiping at the sweat in his eyes, he tried to keep focused on the ground at his feet when a muffled cry made him look up. Neville's still form seemed to glow an eerie green colour for a second, and then he crumpled to the ground.

Harry joined Julie, automatically firing a stun at the Death Eater who was trying to get up from the ground. As the curses hit, his head dropped back and his body skidded along the gravel from the force.

Neville! Suddenly, nothing felt real. Blackness was edging in on his world, but he knew he had to stay awake. He knew he had to see the motionless figure laying on the path for himself. Then he would see he wasn't dead.

Clutching at his side, he walked unsteadily up to the blonde girl who was crouched over Neville. Her shoulders were shaking as she wept into the palms of her hands. The vision of Neville’s body shifted before Harry’s eyes, doubling and swirling sickeningly. He turned from it, unable to look at it anymore. He knew where he had to go. He knew someone who could make sense of this, set him right. He limped off up the street, out of the darkness and into the light.

The buildings lurched ominously and Harry was having trouble keeping his feet, but he stumbled on. He was finding it increasingly difficult to walk the road, which for some reason appeared to be becoming lumpy and hairy. He fell a couple of times, and though the pain took his breath away, the dazed feeling in his head helped to numb the real pain.

As he rounded a bend he couldn’t remember ever having been down before, he saw a sign that no longer looked familiar. He couldn’t remember where he was going, or why, by the time he staggered barely conscious towards the darkened doorway.

He eased his body weight against it painfully. The heavy door opened and Harry stumbled forward, leaning himself against a wall as the door close behind him. He breathed in stabbing pain, dropping his head back and closing his eyes to the blur. Exhaustion swept over him as his legs began to give way, his body slowly sliding down the wall behind him.

He vaguely heard the door re-open, followed by urgent footsteps. Harry felt a strong hand grip his arm and heave him to a standing position.

‘Thought you’d come here.’ A gruff voice said as Harry’s left arm was thrown over someone’s shoulder. ‘C’mon, lets get you up to a room before anyone sees ya.’