(A/N: All people, place, and times belong to the one the only JKR...some people have all the luck! This is my Very first FanFic. MNFF won't take me and no one gives me feed back at so I'll see what people here think please read and hopefully Enjoy)
1: The war rages on
It has only been a couple of days since Dumbledore's death and the thought was weighing heavy on Harry's mind. Sighing, he continued to pack his trunk in the boys' dormitory, which was almost completely empty except for Neville and Ron, who were also packing.
A feeling of sorrow hung in the air and the tension was so thick it could be cut with a knife. Sighing again, not able to take the stress, Harry dropped the last of his schoolbooks into his trunk and flipped the lid shut.
Walking down the stairs to the common room, Harry paused when he saw Ginny sitting in one of their favorite chairs by the hearth. Her fiery-red hair was let down and she propped her head up with one hand. He tried to muster up the courage to walk over and sit by the fire next to her. Taking a couple of deep breaths, he slowly made his way towards her. When he finally reached the chair beside her he paused for a moment, her familiar scent strong in his nose. He sat down, but Ginny did not acknowledge him.
Closing his eyes, he could see them sitting together by this fire only weeks earlier. Ginny was resting her cute little head on his knee while he ran his fingers through her sweet-smelling, soft hair. The thought of being that close to her again burned deep inside his chest.
When he opened his eyes and stole a chance to look at her, Harry noticed that she was looking at him blankly. She raised an eyebrow and spat, "Can I help you, Potter, or do you just want to enjoy my company?"
Harry flinched at the tone of her voice and sat there, looking at her and trying to find the right words to say. He knew that she was hurt by his choice to not be with her. But before he could even get a word out, Ginny got up and walked away, fury etched on her face. His silent thinking always got him in deeper trouble than just acting on his feelings, it seemed.
Feeling defeated and more depressed than when he entered the room, he sat there until someone walked up behind him and placed a rough, awkward hand on his shoulder.
"Hey, mate, it's time to go. We have to leave before it gets too late," Ron said anxiously from behind him. Harry nodded and stood wearily, making his way out the portrait hole and down to the main hallway, all the while looking feebly for a glimpse of Ginny. His hopes were crushed when he did not see her.
Ron apparently felt his friend's self-conflict and tried to make him feel better. "Listen mate, Ginny will get over it. I mean she's always been a little hot-headed, but she'll be back to her old self in no time." But Ron's words didn't help Harry feel any better.
Harry rolled his eyes. "Yeah, she'll probably slip me some poison or something like that to make herself feel better."
Ron laughed a little at that. "You're right; she can be pretty vengeful when she wants to." Ron glanced nervously at Harry when he saw no reaction.
"Hey, it's alright. It's just going to be a little awkward while I'm staying with you. I just don't want to step on anymore toes than I already have," Harry said, shrugging a shoulder.
Hermione finally caught up with them, a little out of breath. When the both of them looked at her, she tried to avoid looking right at Ron as she attempted to catch her breath. "Well, its another long summer away from you guys," she said sadly, her breathing a little more normal. "You will write me and tell me what's going on, right, Harry? I want to be able to help you out if you need it." Her voice was determined.
Harry smiled in spite of himself, nodding as he flung an arm around Hermione's shoulder and the other over Ron's. As they walked towards a Thestral-drawn carriage, Harry said, "I'll be staying with the Dursleys until my birthday and from then I'm going to Ron's, just like always. After that, I don't know. I have no idea what's going to happen -" he was interrupted as Hermione slipped from under his arm and stood in front of him, taking a careful look at his face.
"Whatever you do, Harry, you know that you've got us, right? We will help you in whatever you need." Her eyes pleaded with him to understand that though he felt alone, he wasn't.
Harry smiled and gave her a quick hug. "I know Hermione, I know."
With that he stepped into the carriage and waited for the both of them to join him. It felt like an eternity as they traveled to the train station. But finally they arrived and went their separate ways. Knowing that they had arrived early, Harry quickly said his goodbyes, leaving them to their prefect duties.
He stepped onto the train and headed for the back, trying to find a compartment where he knew he would be alone for the duration of the ride, finally settling into the last compartment on the train. Harry sat down and propped his feet on the seat across him. There he waited for the train to start moving, knowing it would take awhile. Stifling a yawn, Harry slumped deeper into the seat and let sleep overtake him, hoping that it would be more peaceful than the last couple of nights.
As she walked away from Severus Snape's house, the petite woman in black wandered aimlessly through the maze-like streets of the Muggle neighborhood. Her boredom finally took over and she stepped into the shadows of an alleyway, promptly Apparating away without missing a stride.
Pausing, she now stood in front of an old wooden door – modest, yet foreboding for those who knew what lay behind it. Slowly and gently, she tapped on the hard wooden door and from within she heard a dark, commanding voice beckoning her. Gingerly, she opened the door and stepped inside.
"Well?" an impatient voice said from a tall chair, its back to her. The small woman stepped forward to stand next to the chair.
"My lord, he understands, I think. He's not happy about it, but he will not move until he is called for. My lord, I only have one question." She moved closer and rested herself on the arm of his chair, facing a blazing fire.
"Yes, my dear, what is it?" Voldermort placed his hand on her leg and pulled her closer, into his lap.
"Well, I just don't know if Potter will trust me fully. If there is any moment of doubt, then all this planning and hard work will be for nothing."
A dark cackle came from the smooth-skinned, almost snake-like, man. "My sweet that is what you and your charming personality are for. With your background of working for the Ministry, things will go very smoothly. Have you been practicing your Occlumency?"
The dark- haired woman nodded slightly and ran a finger gently down his face. "I won't let you down, my lord."
The corners of Voldemorts mouth twitched into a small smile and he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her completely in his lap. He held her there, looking at her for a moment; his, thin almost none-existent lips close to hers. The young woman's heart beat faster as Voldemort ran his hand through her long, dark hair. Her full, red lips trembled slightly at his touch. She closed her almond-shaped eyes and he ran his fingers down her flawless white skin, tracing her throat and letting his hand rest on her delicate collarbone. Feeling her heart beating quickly and her body trembling at his touch, Voldemort grinned, pleased with him self.
Voldemort raised himself and let her get up effortlessly. As she stepped away from his chair, she wrapped her arms around herself and hugged tightly, a cold sweat prickling on her forehead.
After composing herself and wiping her forehead, she asked, "When will we be taking the first step into your plan, my lord?" The dark young woman walked closer to the fire, as if to warm her self.
"I have made plans for you, already. All you need to do is go into work, get some rest and get in touch with me as soon as you've made contact with 'the Chosen One.'" Those last words were said with disgust. He then waved her away and she quickly walked to the door, leaving the Dark Lord to his own thoughts. She had things to do things to prepare.
Harry woke with a jolt, feeling as though his heart were about to burst out of his chest. Trembling slightly, he looked around to see that the train had begun moving. Rain beat relentlessly on the window as they made their way down the winding tracks.
Wiping his forehead of the sweat that had formed there, Harry pulled at his scraggly hair and closed his eyes again. Frowning he struggled with his thoughts. Was that a dream or was it real?
Shaking his head again, his thoughts were interrupted as the door opened. Harry reached for his wand, a tingling sensation running up his spine as he rigidly sat there. Harry squinted his eyes when the lights from the corridor spilled into the dark compartment and a beautiful young woman he'd never seen before stepped in. Her hair was waist-length and the darkest black, and she had surprisingly sharp blue eyes that seemed to stare straight through to his soul.
"I'm sorry, did I wake you up?" she inquired sweetly as she fluttered her big eyes at him.
Straightening up, Harry shook his head. "No, you didn't, I was already awake."
Harry crossed his arms and stared back out the window, watching the rainfall. Something familiar about her tickled his thoughts, but Harry shook it off as he heard her struggling with her bags. Raising an eyebrow, Harry stood up slowly. "Would you like some help with that?"
Smiling at him, she nodded. "Thank you. They are quite heavy. Normally, I wouldn't be changing compartments so long into the train ride, but I couldn't rest due to some kid snoring and another one rummaging for his frog." She pursed her lips in thought as Harry looked at her in disbelief.
"You don't go to Hogwarts, do you?" Harry finally pushed her bags onto the overhead rack.
"Well, no, I don't. I work for the Ministry." She took a seat and unfolded the Daily Prophet in her hands.
Harry stared at her warily. "And what do you do at the Ministry?" Harry asked, sitting down directly across from the woman and looking at her with open interest.
"Well, I was at Hogwarts, doing some investigation for the Ministry. They wanted to know about something that went on there." She never looked up from her paper as she talked, deliberately avoiding his question and smoothly giving him in an answer. Self-confidence radiated from her, but something about her felt dark and Harry couldn't quite put his finger on it. Finally, she looked up at him with those stabbing eyes once again and smiled. "Don't worry. I've found out what I needed."
Looking back at her he frowned; something was not quite right. "And why didn't you just Apparate?" Harry asked rather rudely, unable to stop himself.
"Well, I don't Apparate, it doesn't feel right. You know what I mean? It's not just me." She looked back down at her paper.
"Then why didn't you fly?" He was still not satisfied, but he knew that he was pushing it with her.
But she only looked up again and rested the paper on her lap. "Well, flying has been restricted along with Flooing and Portkeys. But I do not have the clearance to do those things, so I am stuck on the Hogwarts Express." She shrugged a shoulder and sighed. "It's the only other transportation there is - while not very convenient, it will get me where I need to go." Returning to her paper, she peered over the edge at Harry, who was still blatantly staring at her.
Looking back down she asked casually, "Will that be all for the questions? Or do you have any more questions that do not involve you? Unless you work for the Ministry as well; then I would be glad to talk more."
Still engulfed in her paper she didn't even glance at him. Harry only huffed to himself and scooted closer to the window to watch the rain flail against the train, hoping that the ride would end quickly. There was something about sitting in this woman's presence that disturbed him, although he still could not put his finger on it.
When Harry woke again, he jumped up, startled, and looked around. The train had stopped and there was commotion in the corridor outside his compartment. Looking around the cabin he saw only the Daily Prophet folded neatly across from him. Looking closer, he saw a note with something scribbled on it in dark red ink.
"It was very nice meeting you, young Harry Potter. I can only hope we meet again. Have a nice summer."
Flipping it over, he saw that nothing else was written on it. Frowning to himself, he noticed the crowd outside the window beginning to thin. Hurriedly, he got his stuff together and stepped outside, still clutching the note and newspaper. He would ask Mr. Weasley if he knew anything about this woman who worked at the Ministry.
As he stepped off the train, he saw a blur of redheads fly past him and run up to two adult redheads: a humble, plump woman and a man wearing a mismatched vest and round glasses. Smiling, he watched the Weasleys reunite and smile at one another despite the tragedies that had happened only days ago.
His smile quickly disappeared. Harry couldn't help but feel a touch of sadness and jealousy as he watched other families on the platform come together, hugging one another and smiling. Turning his head away, Harry spied the Dursleys, looking as if they might faint from the sight of all the magical folk gathered in one place. They were probably worried that they might get mauled and torn to shreds.
When Harry finally walked down the platform to join them, he looked back once more and saw the Weasleys were walking towards him. Smiling, he waved at them and stood there while they caught up.
"Well, Harry, how have you been?" Mr. Weasley walked up first and held out his hand to him. Harry took it smiling. "I've been fine, Mr. Weasley. You've already met the Dursleys." He stepped back and motioned to the three Muggles standing behind him, obviously taken aback.
"Yes, we have, haven't we?" Mr. Weasley offered a hand, only to be stared at blankly by Harry's uncle, Vernon.
"Well, we should be going now. No need to stay in this place," Petunia sneered and started for the exit. She looked back at Harry. "Well, come on boy, we don't have time to dawdle." She stared at him, anger crossing her face. When Harry ignored her and walked up to Mr. Weasley, he heard her sigh impatiently.
"I have something to ask you when I come to the Burrow." Mr. Weasley nodded and took off his glasses. "We will be waiting for your visit, Harry, and we will be able to talk about it then." He looked over Harry to the Dursleys, then back to Harry.
Mrs. Weasley walked up behind her husband. "Harry, take care of yourself. I don't want you to come back looking like you haven't eaten in weeks, again." She shot an evil look at Petunia and then turned away, hurrying her children towards the exit. Mr. Weasley smiled at Harry and patted him on the shoulder, following his wife.
Turning back to the waiting Dursleys, they finally made there way to the car. Harry instantly began counting the days till his birthday. Still, as Harry looked out the car window, he couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched.
After what seemed to be forever, Harry finally arrived at his aunt and uncle's home. Never had he felt more depressed. Before his aunt and uncle could say anything, he hurriedly took his things up to his room, not even bothering to unpack.
As he lay on his bed, his thoughts trailed off to the woman he had met earlier on the train. He never got her name, but he was dying to find out more about her. Her eyes were taunting him, pulling his mind deeper into the thought of her. Shaking his head, he knew she was least of his problems.
He sat up and opened his trunk, hoping that his uncle would leave him well enough alone until his birthday. Then he would be gone for good. Sighing, he rummaged through his things and pulled out the several books that he had acquired over his six years at Hogwarts. He took out the magical journal Hermione had given him for Christmas one year ago, seeking out a quill and ink well, as well. He began to do as much research on the remaining Horcruxes as his limited resources would let him.
Later, when Harry looked up and stretched, he was shocked to see it was a quarter to midnight. Running a hand through his already messy hair, Harry flopped down on his bed. He didn't find it hard to fall asleep, but he prayed fervently for a peaceful night's rest.
The summer night's warmth crept through the window and Harry could smell a familiar perfume. Looking up from his small bed, the door creaked open and a slim, shadowed figure leaned in the doorway. Scrunching his face up, he tried to make out the woman staring at him from his door.
"Ginny?" he asked, unsure. Propping himself up on his elbows as the woman took a step into his room, he noticed now that she was wearing only a white lace slip. Her hair fell over her face, making it impossible to see.
The laugh that came from her told Harry that it was not Ginny. "No, Harry. You're right; it's not Ginny," the soft, sweet voice said, as if reading his mind.
He tried to sit up more, but was stopped as a hand from the mysterious women pressed against his chest, pushing him down further into the bed as she straddled him. She slipped her other hand under his shirt and ran it up his chest. Harry took a sharp intake of breath as she kissed his bare stomach gently and let her hair fall around him as she moved farther up his stomach to his chest.
A moan escaped Harry's lips despite himself. The woman stopped at his face and he reached up to push the curtain of hair away from her face. Harry didn't know what was going on, but her smell was all too real and her touch made him tingle with anticipation.
When he moved her hair, he discovered a pair of sharp blue eyes staring into his. Something flashed over her face as she bit her lower lip and she pressed down on his chest to sit up. Tossing her long mane of jet-black hair over her shoulders, she moved his hands down her slim waist to rest on her hips. Then she traced her hands back up his chest and gently took off his glasses, letting them fall to the floor.
Bending down close to him, she paused only inches from his face, her full lips brushing his lightly, sending an urge through him that he had never felt before. Harry didn't stop himself as he ran his hand up her back to her neck, pulling her down to him roughly. As soon as their lips met, Harry grabbed onto her tightly. Kissing her made his whole body light up with a fire he didn't know whether he could put out.
Harry suddenly jolted upright in his bed as he heard the bang of the front door, followed shortly by the start of a car. Breathing heavily, he ran his hands over his face and paused, looking around for his glasses. Puzzled, he cautiously looked on the floor, and there they lay. Frowning, he bent to pick them up, knowing that he hadn't taken them off before he lay down.
Harry shook his head at the thought that the dream he had was real. 'No, it wasn't real. It was obviously just a dream, Potter, what are you thinking.' Shaking his head again, he took the opportunity to go downstairs to get some food to quiet his growling stomach.
Walking slowly downstairs, Harry paused at the bottom of the darkened stairwell and looked around the empty house, sleep still lingering in his eyes as he tried to blink it away. Sighing to himself, he turned the corner into the kitchen and walked to the refrigerator. Harry didn't know if he could stay in this house for two weeks, waiting only to come down and eat when the Dursleys left to go eat or go to a show.
Harry found a jar of jelly and turned to grab a loaf of bread. Pulling a butter knife from the drawer, he made himself a snack, seeing as there was nothing else easy to fix in fridge. Gobbling down the sandwich almost whole, Harry reached down and replaced everything neatly, lest Aunt Petunia yell and rant about her perfect kitchen.
Wiping a few crumbs from the counter, he walked back up to his bedroom and laid back down, sleep still lingering over him. Harry fell asleep easily, letting it take him over as he fell into the darkness. This time no mysterious women visited him and no Voldemort taunted him. He only knew darkness and felt relief.
Harry woke the next morning and reveled in the fact that there wasn't a burning sensation coming from his scar and that he actually felt, well, rested. It was an odd feeling, but a good one, and upon hearing the familiar sounds of the Dursleys eating breakfast, he actually thought about going down there to get something to eat. His stomach urgently growled at him to feed it, but a light tapping at his bedroom window interrupted his thoughts.
Harry automatically knew it was Ron's family owl and promptly let it in. After giving the old brown owl a treat, it left quickly - if not a little clumsily - through the open window. Shaking his head, Harry noticed that it was his daily mail from the wizarding world, along with letters from almost every one of the Weasleys except Ginny. Feeling his heart sink a few inches, Harry tossed the junk mail to his bed and sat at his desk to read the letter from Ron.
Hey Harry,
How has your first day at the Dursley's been? Hope they're not treating you badly. Just in case you're not eating well, mum will be sending you some cakes and treats. Sometimes I think she feeds you better then she does us.
Mum is worried sick; she sees you every year and thinks you're shrinking to nothing every time. HA! I know you're resourceful. You'll make it mate.
Well, I'll let you go. We're going to visit Fred and George at their place for dinner. I just hope they don't try any of their gimmicks on us, but I doubt we'll be that lucky.
Be seeing you,
-Ron
P.S. If you're wondering about Ginny, she's fine. She's just been sulking around the house and snapping everyone's head off. When you get here you should really console her or something. Ugh, girls!
Laughing a little at the letter, he knew Ron was right. He shouldn't have treated Ginny like that. He would have to think of something before he left the Dursley's place to make it up to her.
Harry didn't open the letters from Molly or Arthur, as he knew what they probably said. 'Make sure you're eating and don't let those Muggles push you around.' Sighing, Harry took out a clean sheet of parchment and his quill, pulling the ink well close to him.
Ron,
Thanks for the letter. I will have to do something for Ginny so that she stops being so edgy with everyone. I just wish she would understand why I did what I did. But anyway, better watch yourself. I don't want to see you've grown two heads or something.
And tell your mum and dad that I appreciate their concerns and I'm looking forward to her delicious minced pies and great muffins. If Hermione gets there before I do, tell her I said hello. I have yet to get a letter from her.
Well, I better go so I can brave eating breakfast with the Dursleys so your mum doesn't come blowing down half their house, thinking I'm not eating properly.
-Harry
Harry sealed the letter and let Hedwig out of her cage, giving her instructions to deliver it to the Weasleys. Sitting at his desk for a moment longer, he finally got up when his stomach gave an awfully loud growl, urging him to get moving.
When he finally made his way downstairs, he didn't find sullen stares at his presence. Dudley was buried in his laptop, which was apparently an early birthday present. Uncle Vernon had his nose deep in his morning paper and Aunt Petunia was busy cleaning unnecessarily.
Harry raised an eyebrow. He wasn't used to not being noticed when he walked into a room with the Dursleys. Taking advantage of the silence, Harry quickly sat down at the table away from the two other men of the house and fixed himself a small, but satisfying, breakfast.
The silence was finally broken when Petunia turned around to clear the table and started to talk. "Well, my sweet Dudley, your birthday is tomorrow. What would you like to do?" she inquired in a babying voice to her only son. She only got a shrug of his shoulders in response as he continued to chat with his friends online. Sighing, Petunia continued to fuss over her pig of a son. Harry smiled at the memory of Hagrid giving Dudley a pig's tail.
Vernon finally looked up from his paper at Harry. "What are you smirking at, boy?" The question was so sudden that Harry choked on his eggs slightly. Shaking his head, he continued to finish off his eggs and mopped the rest up with some toast, which he shoved into his mouth.
"I know that you will be leaving as soon as your birthday arrives and I don't want so much as a peep out of you 'til then. Got it, boy?" Vernon spit the words out in disgust. Harry only nodded and was taken aback as he heard the next words out Vernon's mouth. "Some of your 'friends' have already made arrangements to come and get you right after your birthday, so make sure you have your things packed beforehand." Vernon went back to his paper, seemingly ignoring Harry.
"Don't worry. I won't even unpack my trunk 'til then." Harry stood up with his plate and took it to the dishwasher and placed it inside. Turning back to the three at the table he inquired a little feebly, "Do you know who is coming to pick me up?"
It was Petunia's turns to look at him and answer. "As a matter of fact, the Order will arrive. We really didn't have a choice in the matter. But they said that as soon as you left, we would be out of danger for holding such a wanted wizard." Her voice was a little shrill, and Harry was not the only one surprised that his aunt hand mentioned the Order. His uncle was, as well.
Heaving himself up the stairs, he locked himself in his bedroom and was determined not to come down until the day of his freedom arrived. The thought actually pleased Harry and lifted his heart the couple of inches it dropped only moments ago.
(A/N: Like it? Hate it? hope its the first personally but alas I can't please everyone (thats why I got married and have a kid hehe) tell me what you think people!)