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Summary:Harry has defeated Voldemort, but he can't seem to handle the hurt and pain that goes hand in hand with victory and acceptance. In his heartache, he hides himself away. Meanwhile, Dumbledore is surprised to see the dead showing up on his doorstep very much alive. It seems the Veil of the Dead has a counterpart. Can Remus, James, Lily, and Harry's friends find Harry, before the reluctant hero wastes away into nothing but sorrowful remembrances, and reliving the past?

Prologue - "How Things Come To Be"

Harry stared up at the ceiling of his forest home. When he'd first gotten here, nearly two years ago, he'd made this small forest cottage unplottable, and practically undetectable. It moved about the forest with ease, and Harry had learned to live off the forest. He was a hermit, spending his time with the forest animals. One particular night, after having been blessed by a dying mage, Harry found that he could now speak to animals of all sorts.

A wry grin lit his face. Maybe that's why his home was like a zoo. Currently, Harry housed two phoenix's. One belonged to him, the other came and stayed occassionally and moved on when it felt like it. He also had a rather large python, a small grass snake, a raven, and of course, Hedwig. It was to a particular voice that he found himself wakened this particular morning. It was because of this voice that he was staring at his cottage ceiling.

"Maasssssssssssster. Wakey, wakey."

Harry chuckled at the small grass snake that was currently sticking its forked tongue into his left ear canal.

"Oh Harry. . .wakey, wakey."

Harry chuckled again and swatted at his left ear.

"All right, all right, Theron. I'm awake."

Harry sat up, brushing off his sleeping pants and turning to look at the small snake.

"What is your deal anyway?"

Theron sighed, well, at least, he tried to. It sounded more like a dying water schnozzle.

"You were yelling in your sssssssssssleep again and it wasssssssssss mosssssssssssst disssssssssssturbing."

Harry grimaced.

"Sorry Theron. Where's Madison?"

Theron looked almost annoyed, that is, if a snake could look annoyed.

"That sssssssstupid old Raven?"

The small grass snake shook his head.

"How sssssssssshould I know? Sssssssssssssshe never sssssssssssssticks around."

Harry rolled his eyes. It seemed the Slytherin and Ravenclaw dislike rolled over from humans to animals. . .literally. Sighing, the young wizard extened his arm for the small snake to coil around, and Theron wrapped around Harry's wrist.

"Well, let's go make sure Dianne didn't eat Madison, shall we?"

All he got in reply was Theron's whispy snicker. Quietly, Harry got dressed in a pair of dark brown robes and made his way into the other half of the rather elongated house. There, wrapped comfortably on a large limb that stretched from the left ceiling, to the opposite floor, was Dianne. Lazily, she turned her head to him and allowed her tongue to languidly slip from beneath her snake lips to taste the air.

"If you're wondering where Madissssson issssss, sssshe'ssssssss gone out to collect sssssssome more of her odd treasuressssssss for her nessssssst."

Harry nodded slightly.

"I see. When she comes in, tell her to find me, will you? I'm headed out to the forest to find food today. I could use her keen sight."

Dianne nodded lazily.

"Of coursssssssse, Massssster."

Harry grabbed up his new wand, the one Madison had managed to steal for him even though she'd almost blown her tail feathers off, and headed off with Theron on arm to find meat, and herbs for his next few meals.

Meanwhile. . .

"We've been searching for almost a year!" came the angry voice of Remus Lupin through the doors of Albus Dumbledore's study. "When are you going to stop moping about and ruddy do something? We've got to find him!"

The old Headmaster sighed, and nodded.

"We've been trying, Remus. Honestly, but there's been no sight of him. Please, listen to me, Harry can only be found if he wants to be found."

Remus slammed a fist down on Dumbledore's desk.

"That's not good enough! Send out another search party, anything, or I will find him myself!"

Albus opened his mouth to answer, when an owl came flying in and dropped a letter on his desk.

To Headmaster Dumbledore,

Sir, we've found the Golden Veil. By the time you get this letter, Ministry investigation should be over with. There's been some interesting repercussions sir. I think it best that you come immediately to see for yourself, and to retrieve some. . .valuable things that have come from this Golden Veil.

Ronald Weasley

Albus looked up at Remus, and smiled slightly, a bright twinkle in his eye.

"Remus, they've found the Veil of Death's counterpart. They found the Golden Veil."

It was then that Remuse found he needed to take a seat.

With the Golden Veil in their possesion, the dead could come back, couldn't they? That's what myth said. . .

Maybe Harry. . .

No!

His mind firmly shoved the thought away. Harry was not dead, and they would find them. He turned his gaze to Dumbledore, a fierce determination within them. He would call through the Veil, but Harry wasn't dead. He would never walk through that Veil. . .would he?

"Let's go, Albus. I want to see this Veil for myself."