Part 1 The Will to Live
(It starts at the beginning of Harry's sixth year. Nothing in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince has happened. No horcruxes, no Slughorn and no dead Dumbledore.
I've posted most of this story in Swedish already, and I thought it was time for me to finally start translating it. Hope you like it!)
Chapter 1 – A New Student
You could hear a pin drop in the great hall. The students were staring at Dumbledore as if he had lost his mind. When the hinges of the door creaked everyone turned to watch as Snape and McGonagall stepped inside, both with stern faces. After them followed a young man who looked like he was about 20 years old, though Dumbledore had informed them in his speech earlier that he was in fact joining the sixth years, which meant that he couldn't be older than 17. He had black, messy hair that shone in the light from the floating candles. His uniform had not yet gotten its house colours. In silence he walked across the room and stood next to Dumbledore. McGonagall and Snape sat behind the table for the teachers on their regular seats.
"Yes, as I said before. This is out new student.." Dumbledore said with a smile, ".. Nathaniel Knightblade."
"Umm.. Hermione?" Harry whispered as quietly as he could. She turned around and looked at him with a quizzical face. "Why is everyone acting so weird?" Hermione's eyes widened in surprise. She had probably been expecting Harry to know who Nathaniel was.
"I'll tell you later," she said soundlessly.
Dumbledore had now brought forth the sorting hat and was just about to put it on Nathaniels head when he was interrupted by Professor Sinistra who suddenly got up from her chair.
"Albus, I'm sorry, but this is too much," she said quickly before leaving the hall. Everyone stared at her back, until the doors slammed shut behind her.
The hat gave a big, wide yawn. "I've never seen such an odd sorting ceremony. Well, well, I guess it's time to get started." Dumbledore cleared his throat to regain the attention of his students, and then put the hat down on Nathaniels head.
"Hmm.. Usually I would, without a doubt in my mind, put you in Slytherin, but I don't think that you can reach your full potential there. You carry a lot of darkness inside of you. Maybe Gryffindor can lighten your heart? Brave Gryffindor students are used to fighting the dark." For a while the hat went silent, but then he exclaimed: "GRYFFINDOR!" If Nathaniel had any opinion about his new house he certainly didn't show it, his face was completely neutral.
"This can't be happening," Ron whispered. The panic in his voice was poorly concealed. Harry became more anxious for every second that passed. He deeply regretted that he hadn't read The Daily Prophet more thoroughly during the summer vacation.
Usually the Gryffindor students would've cheered and whistled to welcome their newest addition, but no one uploaded, in fact they didn't even look happy. This bewildered Harry, since his comrades others as friendly as they could. He had never seen Gryffindor students shun someone like they were doing now.
"Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley will stay. The rest of you may return to your common rooms." As soon as Dumbledore had finished his sentence everyone scrambled to their feet and hurried to get out of the great hall. Even the teachers seemed to be in a hurry to get out of there. Harry and his two friends, Nathaniel and Dumbledore were the only ones who stayed.
"Harry, you don't have to stay if you don't want too," the headmaster said with a smile, well aware that Harry never left his friends' sides voluntary.
"I'd rather stay." Dumbledore nodded and turned towards Ron and Hermione.
"Since you are prefects I'd like you to take care of Nathaniel. Show him around and teach him the rules."
Ron's face took a sickly pale shade that Harry had only seen a couple of times before. For example the time when he noticed that Fluffy had woken up. "What?" he said with a squeaky voice. He looked cautiously at Nathaniel.
Hermione shoved a sharp elbow in between his ribs. "Of course, it's after all, our duty as prefects." She tried to smile at Nathaniel, but it quickly disappeared when she discovered that he wasn't looking at her. In fact he was standing with his eyes closed.
"Well then. I suggest you return to your common room, it's starting to get late, and I think I heard Severus saying something about a test tomorrow."
Harry groaned. He had completely forgot about the test. Ron had probably forgot about it too, but he was so focused on Nathaniel that he didn't hear what the headmaster just said.
"Goodnight" said Dumbledore and left the great hall before any one of them had time to answer.
Hermione was the one who first spoke. "He's right, we should return to our common room. I have to check the potions book one last time before going to bed. You should do the same."
Harry nodded and started to walk towards the common room. The others followed him. Harry tried to talk to Nathaniel a couple of times, but he didn't answer, he didn't even open his eyes to see were he was walking. Eventually Hermione were the only one who occasionally broke the oppressing silence by pointing out classrooms and other important places that they passed. She told Nathaniel the password and then how he should do if the fat lady weren't in his painting.
When they arrived in the common room, Nathaniel went straight up to the boys' dormitory. Harry hadn't even had to point it out.
"Could someone please tell me who he is?" begged Harry as soon as he thought Nathaniel was out of range.
"Harry, do you honestly mean that you haven't read a newspaper in the whole summer?" said Hermione with a raised eyebrow.
"Me and Ron were busy," he said and smiled, remembering all the things they had done during the vacation. It was the best summer he had ever had.
Hermione sighed despondently. "Accio The Daily Prophet," she said while waving the wand. Almost immediately a newspaper came soaring through the air. She held it infront of Harry so that he could see the front page. Serial killer freed, students in danger. Under the headlines there was a picture of someone, looking a lot like Nathaniel, who stood bent over a corps. On the sky above him the dark mark was clearly visible.
"I can't believe that Dumbledore will let him attend Hogwarts. He's a death eater!" Lavender cried.
"I don't want to sleep in the same room as him.." Neville mumbled.
"How could he even be sorted into Gryffindor? He's the personification of a Slytherin student."
"Quit it," said Harry suddenly. He knew how it felt to be shunned and he couldn't watch them doing that to Nathaniel. "Sure, he's a bit weird, but he can't be a serial killer. He was found not guilty, right?" Harry looked everyone of them in the eye. "You heard what the sorting hat said. He was placed in Gryffindor for a reason. It's our duty to help him in any way we can."
"Harry's right!" Hermione agreed. "Dumbledore knows what his doing, and he would never put his students in harms way." The others seemed to disagree, but at least hey stopped talking trash about Nathaniel. Their concentration was instead redirected towards Fred and George, who were giving away free samples of their latest edition to their skiving snackboxes.
"Come on, let's go and show him which bed is his," said Hermione after a while. When noticing Ron's face she added: "It's actually a part of being prefect."
"Okay, but he's gonna sleep as far from me as possible."
"Ron, honestly!"
"You're not the one who'll be forced to sleep in the same room as him!" Hermione and Ron continued arguing while ascending the stairs that led to the dormitories.
Harry had to go in first, since Ron blankly refused and Hermione for once hesitated to enter the boys' dormitory. Inside they spotted Nathaniel sitting in the window frame with his eyes still shut. He didn't react when they stepped inside and looked as if he was sleeping. Over the years Harry had himself fallen asleep in that exact spot several times, alarmingly often with his potions book in his hand.
Hermione hesitated at first, but then she walked up to him and put her hand on his shoulder.
"Yes?" he asked without looking at her. His voice made Harry shudder with it's lack of emotion and coldness. A bit like the voice of Lucius Malfoy, but younger and without drawling so much.
Hermione quickly pulled back her hand and smiled nervously, which was unnecessary considering that Nathaniel never opened his eyes.
"We thought we should show you were to sleep."
Nathaniel didn't answer, but pointed at his trunk that had been placed at the food of an unoccupied bed. Hermione turned towards Harry in search of some kind of confirmation, and he nodded.
"Yes, that bed isn't occupied. Good that you're making yourself feel at home." Hermione was nervous, Harry could hear it in her voice.
".. I guess everyone is afraid of me?" said Nathaniel hesitantly, as if he was afraid of their answer.
"Not really," Harry lied. "Gryffindor students can't be scared that easily. Go down and talk to them and you'll see." He tried to sound as reassuringly as he possibly could.
Nathaniel shook his head, but said nothing more. After throuwing nervous glances at each other for what felt like a minute, or two, the three friend desided to leave him alone. The rest of the night they spent in the common room together with Seamus and Neville, practising for tomorrows test.
When the clock struck two all the guys in Gryffindor were still down in the common room. Several of them were sitting with their eyes half shut and didn't want anything but to go to bed, but their courage didn't suffice. Harry and Ron were the first ones to go to bed, closely followed by Fred and George. However, when they entered, the room was empty. Nathaniel's bed looked untouched and his trunk were standing in the exact same spot as before.
"How the hell did he get out without anyone noticing him?" Ron asked indignantly.
Harry shook his head and pointed at the ajar window. "He must've flown out of here."
"He brought a broom?" Ron looked around the room and uttered a dismayed shriek.
Harry sighed. "What is it now?" When he turned he saw what it was Ron had meant. His firebolt was gone.
(I really hope that you as a reader find my English somewhat acceptable. I noticed a few mistakes that I can't do anything about without mucking up the story later. For an instance, Fred and George should already have left Hogwarts, even if they hadn't pulled of that stunt with the fireworks. Please review! - Alvarin)