Disclaimer: I in now way own Harry Potter and co. Everything belongs to J.K.Rowling and the publishers.
Summary: AU:An eighteen year old Harry Potter goes to sleep one night only to wake up lying down in the grass by the lake. In a world where Harry Potter disappeared during the third task, and is presumed dead, how will people react to this new Harry who is the same but different.
Eyes of Emerald and Steel
By: Jodelle
Harry Potter lay on his bed stretching some as he tried to get comfortable. He felt too tired to change out of his clubbing outfit. Taking a look at him one could easily say he looked very different than he had in sixth year and he knew it was a big change. His now long hair was pulled into a ponytail as the nape of his neck, he was wearing a tight green shirt that showed of his muscles, and his vivid green eyes, no longer hidden behind glasses, stared up at the ceiling as though trying to bore a hole in it.
He had graduated from Hogwarts three months earlier. It made him feel quite content knowing he'd lived long enough to do so. But most of all he was glad Voldemort was gone and had been for a little less than a year. So yes life was good he thought as his eyelids drooped.
The only bad dream that plagued his mind was the loss of friends and family. If only he could assuage his guilt by bending the rules of time & space and stopping it from ever having happened in the first place.
His magic flared up inside of him and prepared to do something quite incredible as well as quite impossible. If Harry had been awake he would know he wasn't clutching his pillow but rather tufts of grass and that the wind wasn't from his cracked window.
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The Slytherin quidditch team was walking outside to start practice. Draco looked around fervently for the other houses spies. It didn't take very long to spot someone over by the lake. Warrington saw who Draco was pointing at. Honestly, he thought with a snort, just because you're wearing green doesn't mean you're a Slytherin.
Crabbe and Goyle followed at Malfoy's heels as the came upon a sleeping boy. If this really was a spy he was good at acting innocent. He looked too old to be one of the younger students but Draco was sure he wasn't in his year or the one above him.
Goyle nudged him with his shoe. The boy put an arm over his eyes and mumbled, "Whadayawon?"
(What do you want?)
Draco raised a brow at the mumbled words. Bending down he drawled loudly into the boys ear, "We're wondering why you're trying to spy on our practice. You may be wearing our house colors but you're not a Slytheirn."
"Slytherin? Are you joking? We graduated already so who gives a damn about house colors." The boy snorted before sitting up rubbing at his eyes. If Harry didn't know better he would have sworn he was talking with Draco Malfoy but he was dead…wasn't he?
Harry thought he must still be dreaming so he risked asking, "Malfoy?"
"Hmm. So you've heard of me," Draco said with a smirk on his lips, "I'm flattered, but who are you?"
"Did you take a hit to the head during practice, Malfoy? It is I your beloved scarhead." Harry said with a low laugh moving his hands to his lap and looking up with his green eyes to meet a pair of stormy gray ones.
"You can't be!"
"-But it does kind of look like him…"
"He's looks way too old to be Potter."
"Where'd he get polyjuice."
"SHUT UP!" Harry yelled holding his head. He didn't usually drink very much but it was clear he had a hangover.
Harry glared at the group that made up the Slytherin team.
"I don't know or care who decided to play this joke on me but I'm not buying it! You're dead he pointed at Malfoy, you two are in Azkaban he pointed at Crabbe & Goyle and I haven't the slightest clue why the rest of you are still here but you've already graduated so stop being so immature! Harry gestured at everyone who was left.
Harry broke out in a run anger etched onto his face. He didn't take kindly to people making a joke out of him he got enough of that from Rita Skeeter and other Prophet writers. It was at this moment he realized he'd lost his wand. Swearing he started sprinting back before stopping in his tracks. Albus Dumbledore and several teachers were looking straight at him and none of them looked happy to see him. Professor Snape was twirling his wand with his long fingers.
He didn't stand a chance as he was promptly stunned.
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"Well, that settles it, this really is Potter." Harry knew this voice to be Alastor Moody. He didn't dare open his eyes as he was confused about what was going on.
"Yes, but he looks too old to be Potter. He looks to be eighteen or nineteen but surely not sixteen." Madame Pomfrey.
Harry wasn't sure why everyone thought he looked too old. Maybe he was in heaven and those who'd died were remembering the boy they'd left behind.
"James always did look older than he was." Sirius being here confirmed once more that he must be dreaming, hallucinating, or dead.
Thinking to himself he recounted in his mind all of the people who were dead out of everyone he'd met so far. Hmmm. At least a third of everyone he'd met had been proclaimed dead or missing.
"What are we waiting on," Harry heard Snape's voice cutting through the air like a bullet. "The boy's been awake for the last few minutes."
Harry opened his eyes with a snap and shrank back from all the people he knew to be dead. He looked from one person to the next at break neck speed before trying to control his panicked breathing.
He ran through a calming exercise Snape had taught him without thinking about it. Taking in a deep breath he held it as he tried to clear his mind.
He felt calmness fill his body and with that he opened his eyes again. Snape gave him a strange look perhaps realizing that Harry had used an exercise he'd invented or, if not that, he'd noticed that Harry'd blocked him from his mind.
Moody didn't play games he froze Harry in place and strode over to his bedside. Harry realized as the Auror lifted his sleeve that he was looking for the dark mark. He did over a dozen spells before he seemed satisfied.
"He either didn't mark Potter or has some way hidden it beyond my ability to reveal it. Although marked or not a good dosing with veritaserum wouldn't be amiss. Constant Vigilance!"
If Harry had had his fear under control for that short while he started to hyperventilate again as the people he knew were dead converged on his hospital bed.
"Someone stun him!"
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Those present looked startled as the boy slumped back in the bed. All the fear that had been etched on his face had been washed away leaving behind a tired looking boy.
"Why is he so afraid of us?" Sirius whispered to Remus tears in his eyes.
"Padfoot, he may be a death eater! We can't assume just yet that he's the same boy that left us those two years ago."
Snape sneered. "Why does no one believe my story of him getting murdered? I saw his dead boy with my own eyes when we were called the following day to…" Snape made a disgusted face, "the celebration."
Molly Weasley glared at him and said in a slightly shrill voice. "I won't believe he's dead when you didn't see the murder but only a body which could have easily been transfigured!"
"Quiet! Quiet!" Moody said in a gruff voice. He turned his stare on Snape before calmly asking, "the potion, Snape."
Molly looked shocked, "you can't make him answer when he's unconscious!"
"Silly women, if we don't administer it to him when he's like this he will most likely refuse to swallow it."
The Auror opened the boy's mouth gently before pouring the liquid down his throat. The boy coughed some but it went down.
They heard a door thrown open in haste. Dumbledore was back with a large scroll. The scroll was a list of rights that a person being questioned, searched, or imprisoned had.
When it was handed to Moody the Auror made a face. It was a long list that had to be read to the person being questioned to remind them of their rights. Waking Harry with an, "Enervate," Moody wasted no time reading through the list so quickly one wondered if he was breathing.
The boy looked calm but also looked as though he was about to cry. He kept avoiding eye contact with many people in the room and shook his head every few minutes. As the list was almost finished he had his hands clenched so tightly that his nails bit his palms drawing blood.
Madame Pomfrey sat bolt upright when she saw the blood start to stain the sheets as it dripped heavily. Pushing Dumbledore and Sirius aside she roughly grabbed Harry's hand before forcing him to open his hand.
Startled by the bleeding marks she quickly pulled an antiseptic out of her robes pocket. The boy didn't look fazed at all when he saw the red splattered across his hands. Holding his hand tightly she quickly swiped a cloth coated in antiseptic oven the cut quickly before pressing the cut hard to stop the bleeding.
Gesturing for Remus to come closer she let him start holding pressure on Harry's hand as she did the spell the heal it. By now the boy was looking at his hand as if it belonged to someone else. When he tried to remove his hand from Remus's the werewolf looked him square in the eyes causing him to start shaking again. As he began to sob everyone looked startled.
"Yooooour de-de-dead hiccup. Why won't you leave me alone!? Moony died, Sirius died, Moody died, Dumbledore died, Flitwich died, Sprout died, Draco died… I'm talking to dead people! I've finally hiccup snapped hiccup Skeeter always said I'd go crazy and she was right!"
Dumbledore and Moody stepped aside to talk in a corner.
"If he thinks we're dead his mind may have been tampered with. He may be under a confundus charm and therefore have been made to think he's Potter. As it is he can't lie when under versiterum. It may be useless to question him on who he is but perhaps we can get the idea of what he's to do."
"Yes, I understand." Dumbledore said looking over in Harry's direction. "The only way to lie at a time like this is when you're telling what you think is the truth but isn't."
"All the same let's get this done with."
Everyone moved back either to sit on hospital beds or stand in the back of the room. Harry watched Moody without blinking as they started the questioning.
"Your full name if you please."
"Harry James Potter."
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"How old are you."
"I just turned eighteen."
-
"I see but if you are indeed eighteen you surely can't be Potter as he is only sixteen."
"Hmmm. Then who am I if not Harry Potter?"
"We don't know. We were hoping you could tell us how long you have been Harry Potter."
"I've been Harry Potter since I was born. My parents wanted to call me James initially but it got too confusing for them."
Sirius interrupted "That's true! Lily got frustrated when people couldn't tell if she were talking to her son or husband."
After people making a shushing noise they continued.
"Where do you think you are right now?"
"I think I'm in Hogwarts. Although I also wonder if I'm in heaven seeing how so many who I know have died are here."
-
"Where have you been since the third task?
"I've been going to Hogwarts and living with the Dursleys as I always have. My understanding of this situation is you're sure that I disappeared only to return now. I'm guessing I've either had false memories given to me or I've been in a coma and dreamed it all."
"Have you ever supported Voldemort in any way?"
"No! He didn't just kill my parents he went after anyone I called friend. You'd have to be crazy to consider him your friend."
-
"Have you ever used an unforgivable?"
"Once but it was in self defense. My friends and I were being surrounded and stunners just weren't enough when it came to the thing leading the other group. There was no alternative unless I wanted my whole team killed."
-
"If you are allowed to return to your old life can you be trusted no to hurt anyone."
"Unless it's Voldemort, yes I can be trusted."
-
"Are you under imperius? Or can you fight it off?"
"I'm not being controlled. I've been able to fight it off since fourth year."
-
Moody once again pulled Dumbledore aside. The boy's green eyes followed them with curiosity written on his face. However, at that time people had started talking to him and his attention was diverted.
"Even if this is Potter you heard him say it himself he's lost two years of his life where he isn't sure what happened! Merlin knows what he was up to. What's worse is that I'm positive he's been confounded and been obliviated more so than is good for anyone who wishes to be considered sane. I know he might be a threat to the school but I think that you ought to keep him here so you can keep an eye on him."
Dumbledore frowned some before nodding. "I think we should give him an assistant teaching job. When not teaching I want him in his lessons with his year mates. Remus has been looking for someone to help teach class for him when he's ill."
"Yes, that sounds perfect. But, Albus, do you really think he'll be willing to attend classes when he thinks he's already graduated?"
"We tell him the truth in this world he can't live alone seeing as people think he's sixteen rather than eighteen which makes him a minor still. He can't do magic outside of school yet. So how can he get a job?"
"Okay. Let's go talk to him."
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"We've heard you say that you've already graduated. If that's true would you like to be a teacher?"
"The only job opening is the Defense Against the Dark Arts post and you & I know that it's cursed. Sigh Although I suppose I could take it." The boy looked tired before meeting Dumbledore's eyes.
"That's not all is it?" Harry gave a small sigh.
"No, seeing as you really ought to be sixteen we will need you to attend classes until you turn seventeen next summer."
"Why?" Harry had confusiong written on his face. He rubbed his tired eyes and tilted his head to the side.
"You haven't passes the Newts or Owls in our world which means you probably won't be able to find a decent job. So this weekend we will be getting someone to administer your O.W.L s and then set up your sixth year classes."
Harry laughed lightly. "You do realize that I'll be nearly twenty before I graduate."
"Yes. We will be giving you a potion to make you look younger in the face. It won't affect things like your height, voice, or hair but it will make you somewhat smaller in your build as the Harry who left here was toned but not quite that much."
Harry nodded and felt himself drifting off to sleep.
AN: Okay I know that this is somewhat messy but I'll try to smooth it out by the next chapter.
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