Starspeaker
Chapter 1: Starlit Meetings
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any characters in it. Harry Potter belongs to JKR. Characters that are not in canon but are in here are mine, though.
Saturday. Yes, it all began on Saturday, on his fifteenth birthday. I was traveling through his town, on my way to meet a potential customer for my day job. In all honesty, I'm still disgusted at how absolutely boring the village was. No little fun shops, no sights, nothing. Then, passing the empty park (it was about midnight, after all) I saw a figure stumble through it. Then the person, to my astonishment, collapsed.
I fumbled for my cell phone, thinking to call someone, when the logical part of me intervened. Perhaps he's not hurt, I told myself, but simply tired, or perhaps he's practicing for a play. Still, my instincts were screaming that he was in danger, and I always have trusted my instincts.
That's how I ended up casually walking by him, acting as if I needed to get across. Only one glance was necessary to assess the situation. It was bad. My instincts were right again.
There wasn't much blood, but there were a lot of ugly bruises and a few new scars. I knelt by his side, shook his shoulder once. His eyes shot open.
"Please, no…don't tell…get…isus…igg." He gasped it out, his chest heaving, straining to get it said. I kept my hand on his shoulder.
"Alright. I won't tell anyone. But you need help. I'm taking you to my place" Lifting him onto my shoulders easily, I heard one more thing.
"Please…the…Pheonix…Death…"
Confused, I ignored it, and took him home. I used my ability and was able to leave Little Whinging in moments.
He was actually hurt more than I had originally thought. There were lots of old scars and bruises, and some new ones. There was also a curious mark on his forehead, a scar it seemed, and two other marks, one on each wrist. Those I passed off as tattoos and ignored. Besides that, he was thinner than any teenager should ever be. I tended him as best as I could, and he quickly recovered. While he slept on, I finished my business in Little Whinging, so I could stay at home for when he awoke. Finally he did.
His eyes opened quickly, just like before. He tried to talk, but nothing came out. Before he panicked, I handed him a glass of water to drink. This time, he spoke clearly.
"Where am I? What happened?"
"Calm down. You're at my house. I took you here after you collapsed in the park. Before that, I have no clue." Yet, I added silently. His eyes traveled, noting, I hope, the tidy room, and also my First Aid equipment.
"Thank you. For helping me, I mean. But, who are you?" I smiled.
"My name is Asitel. Asitel Starspeaker, as I'm called. And you would be?" He grimaced, which I found odd.
"I'm, er, Harry Potter." He watched my face; as if afraid I'd recognize him. When he decided I didn't, he moved on. "Sorry, but why are you called 'Starspeaker'?"
"That's for later. Now, I imagine you need some food. If you think you can walk, come with me." He could, so I led him to the kitchen, where he was given a plate heaped with food and an order to eat. After he did so, I refilled his plate and repeated the order. He managed to obey. Barely.
"You are extremely malnourished. Do you have an eating disorder, or are you just neglected?" At my last choice, he winced, and sighed. "So you're neglected. Let me guess, you're also abused." Hesitantly, he replied.
"Yes. But please, don't tell them." Now that was confusing.
"Tell who? Look, if your parents are abusive, someone's got to be told. Namely, the police."
"It's not my parents. I'm an orphan. It's mostly just my uncle. But look, it doesn't matter anymore. So don't bother."
"What? If you've got someone to take custody of you, I can't keep you here forever, kid. You're probably going to have to go back to them eventually unless you tell someone." He smiled sadly.
"How can I go back when they're dead?" I didn't understand.
"What's that mean?"
"It means that they're dead. My uncle, my aunt, my cousin. They came. They wanted me, but I got away. I tried to get to Mrs. Figg, she's my old babysitter, and she lives 2 streets over, but, well…" I finished for him.
"You collapsed before you could. So I'm to understand that your parents have been dead, your uncle abused you, and your relatives were all somehow murdered the night I found you." He looked down.
"Yeah." I remember still, how a chill ran through me at the casual answer. I looked at him closely then, and when I saw that boy's eyes, I swear that those eyes looked a million years older than they ought to have. This boy, still a scrawny child just two years into his teens, had seen too much, lived through too much, and he was tired. I felt determined to provide him with access to the rest he needed so badly. Perhaps it was my maternal instincts finally kicking in, but I was already making plans about taking him shopping, personalizing a room for him, and teaching him the things he would need, completely forgetting about his schooling. That, I believe, was when I remembered. He might have more in the world than just family.
"Harry, do you have anyone who might be concerned about you? Because I want you to stay with me." Harry's face lit up then. It seemed that he had taken to me as much as I to him. Then, his face fell.
"What is it? What's wrong?"
"It's just, well, September 1st I go to my boarding school. And I don't know how to contact my friends and godfather about what happened. Or my headmaster." He paused, and I smiled. Harry had seemed very confused as to why he told me that. I later learned that he rarely opened up to people that much, even with his closest friends. I decided to hand out some revelations.
"Do you mean Albus Dumbledore, of Hogwarts?" Harry's eyes widened and his shoulders sagged in relief.
"How do you know Dumbledore?" He glanced around, as if expecting some of the magical things that were common in wizarding homes. I smiled, amused at his obvious confusion. "Are you a witch?" I laughed.
"No, Harry, I'm not. Dumbledore once asked me to attend Hogwarts, but I declined. I have power, but not like Dumbledore's or yours. I know of the wizarding society and how it works, but I am not a member, and my knowledge may not be current. I haven't bothered with that world for years. I trained alone, and I have mastered my gifts."
"But if you're not a witch, than why did he want you in? I thought only witches and wizards could attend Hogwarts." I smiled and leaned back.
"That is a story for another time. Do you have a, oh, what was it, um, a toad? No, that's not it. How do you wizards communicate? I forgot."
"An owl?"
"Yes, thank you. Do you?" He looked down.
"I did. I don't know where she is. She was hunting when the Death Eaters attacked. At that precise moment, we heard a rapping on glass. I spun, to see a beautiful snowy owl tapping on the window. I rushed over amid Harry's cry of "Hedwig!" and let her in. She flew over to the ecstatic teen. "Hedwig! Oh, girl, you're okay!" The owl seemed quite pleased with herself, but also rather concerned with her master.
"Speak of the devil," I muttered, relieved. "So, Harry, it seems you do have an owl. I'll tell you what. Let's get Hedwig some rest and something to eat, you can explain what's going on in the wizarding world, like why you were attacked and who did it, and later we can head to your home and get your possessions while your owl takes a letter to Dumbledore. He can tell your friends what happened." He nodded, grinning happily. "What can she eat?" I asked, gesturing to his owl. He bit his lip, thinking.
"I sometimes give her toast, but I think she can eat most things. I once only had broth for a few weeks, and both of us survived that easily." I smiled, though inwardly I remember demanding why he only had broth to eat for a few weeks.
"Oh, good. Well, I'll get some toast for her." While heading to the toaster, bread in hand, I added, "Oh, Harry. Your surname's Potter, right?" He nodded. "About 15-16 years ago, I heard about Voldemort being defeated by a child named Harry Potter. That you?" He winced.
"Yeah. Hang on, you said his name!"
"Yes. Problem with that?"
"No, but most people can't say Voldemort's name. They just say You-Know-Who or something like that." I shrugged.
"Well, I've always hated mass hysterias. Why should I confuse things when his name's so much easier to say? Oh, here give this to your owl." He grinned and obeyed.
After a while, Harry and I were looking over his letter, checking it. Satisfied, we sealed it in an envelope addressed to Dumbledore and gave it to Hedwig, who flew out the window. 5 minutes or so later, we too were outside.
A/N – By the way, for those of you who noticed and are confused now, yes Harry does know about the Order of the Pheonix. Yes, this fic does take place after Harry's fourth year, not his fifth. I know those facts conflict. But hear me out. See, about an hour or so before Harry boarded the Hogwarts Express and left, Dumbledore pulled him aside and told him about the Order, and that if anything were to happen, Harry was to go straight to Mrs. Figgs' (a squib in the Order) house and she would take him to the Order Headquarters. Dumbledore did not tell Harry where that was – it was too dangerous. So you see, the facts really don't conflict. Everyone's happy. At least, I hope so.
My inspiration for this fic was the song "Only Hope" from A Walk to Remember, We sang the song for choir in, um, I think 8th grade, and every time I heard the verses, I thought of a girl named Asitel who could hear the stars' song. Sometimes, it told her the future, sometimes it merely caused the ache in her heart from her mothers' death to ease. For the most part, though, it was simply transformed her from an awkward, right-handed, and slightly retarded girl to a graceful, left-handed, and very intelligent young lady. I began creating her story then, but I never knew where she and I would go, or if I'd ever even finish her story. Maybe I'll write her story one day. Should I?
Anyway, "Only Hope" is a very good song. I'd like to have it here for you, but unfortunately I can't. So go look it up!