A Light in the Dark
Important Story Notes:
-Everything in Harry's world from book 1 to book 7 has happened, with a few additional scenes that I added myself (such as Harry being fed love potions, or Harry meeting Winky the house elf's mother).
-The world in which Harry gets to through the Room of Requirement by complete accident is one where there were never any Dark Lords. Magic managed to work with muggle technology, though granted it's not used very often. Everyone is alive and well, except for the few mentioned in the story later on.
-Harry's world was not as true as he thought it was. He was manipulated, not to mention tricked several times. Ginny fed him love potions, with the help of her brother Ron. The Weasley's-some of them-in his world were bad, whereas the weasley's in this new world would never do such a thing.
-The wand Harry carries, his phoenix, wasn't broken. He never got Draco's wand, therefore gaining another of the Deathly Hallows. In fact, the Deathly Hallows do not exist, though the invisibility cloak is still very special, as it was the first one ever made in his world.
-Snape is not evil, nor is Dumbledore, in this world. Both honestly feel revolted at their other selves and how they had tormented the 'young man'. Snape is actually friends with James and Lily both of whom are alive.
-The Ministry is different. For one thing, Kingsley isn't an Auror though he still works at the Minsitry, and Tonks is actually the school's librarian as Madam Pince had retrieved a few years before.
-One final note: the title, 'a light in the dark', comes directly from Dumbledore's speech from the third year when the students returned to Hogwarts, how 'one can always find a light in the darkness if one only remembers to turn on the light'.
Hogwarts Staff:
Potions- Severus Snape
History of Magic-Lucius Malfoy
Defense Against the Dark Arts-James Potter
Charms-Lily Potter nee Evans
Transfiguration-Minvera McGonagall
Herbology-Sirius Black
Care of Magical Creatures-Ruebus Hagrid
Divination-Firenze (trewlawny never came to Hogwarts)
Ancient Runes-Remus Lupin
Chapter One:
Harry woke to a throbbing headache. He remembered being stunned by none other than Sirius Black-not possible!-and seeing himself in the corridor. He had thought for a moment maybe he'd transported back in time or something, to when he and Hermione were springing Sirius from his cell. But it not only didn't make sense, as he didn't have a time turner, it seemed quite…impossible.
And then he heard Madam Pomona talking, sounding as though she were repressing tears.
"-been through hell, Severus. He's been hit with some particularly dark spells, ones even I am unfamiliar with, though perhaps you or Sirius might recognize it? He's been hit with stunners so often, it is a miracle he has not fallen into a coma. He was forced to use a blood quill, which as you know are banned as illegal dark items. He's had so many broken bones, some of them back from when he was a child as they've never set up quite right. I think his magic tried to fix it for him, Severus." She was sobbing, Harry realized.
"There there, Pomona," A new voice said, and at that Harry inwardly froze though pretended as though he were still breathing. He kept his wall for his thoughts up, and hoped that none of them noticed he was yet awake. Was he in hell? He didn't doubt it, because he was in the infirmary and everyone he hated-save for Pomona-was in the room, from the sounds of it. "I'm sure that the young man can be healed."
"Poor child," At that, Harry's heart stuttered-it was his mother's voice! His mother, who was dead. It shouldn't be possible…
"Lily, come away from him. He's hurt, and I don't want him to accidentally be jostled." His father's voice. At that, Harry felt like hyperventilating or shutting down or something. Maybe they were Death Eaters in disguise? Could he take one hostage? His wand was still in his sleeve-amateurs, Hermione said in disgust in his head. He almost smiled at that, before a new voice made him inwardly frown.
"If he's that badly injured, I don't see why you would worry about him being jostled a bit more," Lucius Malfoy drawled. "I heard there was a commotion. Filius sent me to see if I could help?" He seemed to be questioning, as though unsure of how he could help at all.
"You're the best one what knows the darkest magics, Lucius. Pomona can't figure out which spells were cast, do you think you could?" Severus asked, sounding serious.
"Cast the information spell, please," Lucius's humor was vanished, and Pomona must've cast it for Lucius made a low curse that even Harry didn't understand.
"Lucius?" Severus asked, concerned.
"He was hit by the three Darkest curses possible, Severus. This child should, in point of fact, be dead." Lucius said, and they gasped.
"What spells were used upon him?" Dumbledore's voice was cold, and chilled Harry. Someone must've noticed for they pulled a blanket up his body.
"The first curse, from what I can tell, is the Death Curse. The Avada Kedavra," Lucius said, and there were whimpers. "Yes, it is one of the deadliest curses-no wizard or witch has ever survived such a curse before."
Old news, Harry thought to himself with a quiet sigh.
"The second curse is the Imperio. The curse that forces witches and/or wizards to do the cursers bidding. He was hit with that one quite a few times," Lucius said darkly, and Severus muttered a whispered prayer. At least, it sounded like a prayer. It was in another language, so Harry wasn't sure what he had said.
"And the next curse?" Dumbledore asked tightly.
"Cruciatus Curse. The torture curse. He's been hit with this one at least twenty five times. Enough to make any witch or wizard go mad, especially with how long he's been under the curse." Lucius said flatly.
Shocked cries from the women, and even the adults all seemed to be stunned.
"Who would dare to do such to a child?" James-or the person who sounded like James-demanded harshly.
"Obviously someone intent on creating a very powerful enemy. This child is strong, not only for surviving such curses and obvious torture, but I can feel his magic from here. Can you not? Here," Severus uttered a spell, and suddenly there were startled gasps-but not ones of horror this time, ones of awe instead.
Harry wondered what they were seeing, and opened his eyes.
At first, he was confused-he wasn't in the infirmary, the infirmary was white, not a pale soft yellow that seemed to brighten the room somewhat. The bed, he noticed, was actually somewhat comfortable. He still had his wand, his beautiful phoenix wand, and tightened his grip on it.
"He's awake," Lucius said suddenly, and there were suddenly people near him.
"He can't possibly be! I hit him hard enough to knock him flat for a week," James protested, while Harry gripped his wand.
"You only hit me hard enough to be unconscious for about maybe ten minutes," Harry said quietly, staring at them all. It was definitely James and Lily Potter, Severus and Lucius and Dumbledore, and Pomona-who seemed to be moving towards the door, obviously to get help. He considered stunning her, or freezing her, but decided against it. Instead, he kept his wand visible, and Dumbledore said quietly,
"Child, we do not mean to hurt you-only to help you,"
Harry replayed the words in his mind, and said with a snort,
"You don't mean to hurt, but that doesn't mean you won't."
Dumbledore appeared much younger than ever, and Harry saw that he had no wand out-nor did any of the rest of them.
"How did you come to be here?" James asked, frowning.
"Room of Requirement," Harry said, dismissively.
"What's that?" Lily asked, after a moment's pause. Harry blinked.
"You guys don't know?" He asked, taken aback. He glanced at Dumbledore who was just as curious as the others-but maybe he was trying to hide the fact that he knew. Harry shrugged. "It's on the fifth floor next to Barnabus the Barmey. You walk in a circle three times thinking what you need, and the door should appear. Helga Hufflepuff made it," He added the last bit almost absently, as Hermione would've done.
"Fascinating," Severus commented, sounding as though he meant it.
"You guys know the Four Founders, right?" Harry asked, suddenly wondering if maybe this wasn't built by the same founders. Maybe it was something like Hermione had said once, an alternate reality…or maybe he was just insane, he thought with an inner grimness. And if that was the case…
"Not personally," Lily said evenly, though curiosity and excitement were obvious in her eyes. "Do you?"
"Met Rowena's daughter who was a ghost-she might still be here, in fact. Beyond that, I haven't met any of them, though I've learned a lot about them. I even know where Slytherin's Chamber of Secrets is. Found it in my second year," Harry said, shrugging.
"You know where the Chamber is?" Severus asked sharply, sounding surprised and uneasy. "Are you a Slytherin then?"
"Gryffindor," Harry corrected, and frowned. He shouldn't be giving away so much information, especially not for free-and not to Snape of all people.
"Will you show us where it is?" Dumbledore asked, and Harry considered.
"Maybe. You might want to get a rooster, though, just in case, because there's a fifty foot basilisk in there," Harry offered, and they glanced at one another in surprise, and Dumbledore nodded.
"I will speak to my gamekeeper about such. In the meantime, here is the sorting hat. Should you wish to be a student," Dumbledore offered, and Harry blinked. He must be younger than he looked, and he wouldn't mind being a student again. He considered, before tentatively taking the hat, and placing it on his head. He was curious about what the hat would say, after all.
"Professor," The Hat spoke, sounding irate. "I am going to have difficulty in placing this child,"
Dumbledore blinked at that, looking momentarily startled, and Harry knew that look wasn't faked. It took quite a bit to startle the Headmaster, Harry knowing that for all the times he's tried to do so in the past.
"Why?" Dumbledore asked, frowning.
"Blocks,"
At that, gasps of outrage and shock came from almost every person in the room. Harry felt confused.
"What are blocks?" He asked, frowning.
"They block the true potential of a child…essentially, think of it as a mental handicap. Blocking your true magical powers," James explained. "It's one of the most illegal things a wizard or witch could do to another person,"
"I've never heard of them," Harry said, frowning.
"You wouldn't. It's an extremely rare thing," Lily said, softly. "For the only way that a wizard can actually be able to block a child is if that child is so powerful that they cannot control their own gifts, and then action is taken. But the blocks are removed much later when they are calmed and have studied their gifts. But the dangerous side effect is that those who have blocks can die, because it suppresses their power, turning into something dangerous…like a ticking time bomb," She informed him.
Harry considered.
"Well, I guess that explains a few things," He said, shaking his head. "How do we get rid of a block?"
"Therein lies the crux of the matter, Mr. Potter. It is more than a simple block, it is over a dozen of them. It will take quite a bit of spellwork, but it should be accomplished within the hour-should you be amenable to it," Dumbledore said seriously.
Harry considered. If Blocks were removed, it would make him more powerful-and he could definitely use more power, if this turned out to be some wild trick from Death Eaters.
"Go ahead, I guess." Harry agreed, and a moment later, Dumbledore approached with a wand. Harry resisted backing away and pulling up a shield, but then Dumbledore uttered a spell. It hit Harry fast enough that he didn't catch what spell it was, and a moment later-
Agony.
The walls were crumbling, and his vision was blurred. His head was on fire, not to mention the rest of his body. He was unaware that he was screaming and clutching his head, and a few moments later…
The pain faded, and he fell unconscious when a stunner was sent his way without him even realizing it.
When he woke, everyone was surrounding him. Pomona was giving him a potion, though he wasn't sure what kind it was. Pepper up, maybe? He chugged it down-and was surprised at how good it tasted.
"There now. Are you better, young man?" Pomona asked, sounding worried and concerned.
"Fine," Harry said, settling on his usual response. He did feel better, however. He looked around to see that most of them appeared pale and upset, and he wondered what had happened. "Are the blocks gone?"
"I believe I managed to destroy all of them." Dumbledore reassured him. "Would you like to try your sorting now, or later?"
"Uh, now, I guess." Harry said, hesitantly.
A second later, and the hat was on his head again.
Potter. Ah, interesting, not this Potter's child, but another Potter. Fascinating. Still I will sort you, because the Headmaster wishes it, and because I feel it would offer you some sort of protection against this world should they think you still a teen.
Not Slytherin. Harry thought at once.
Young man, there is nothing wrong with Slytherin house. Although even I can see the memories you have, it will make you quite a few enemies were you to act on your thoughts. Therefore, I will not put you in Slytherin-though that elimates Gryffindor too, you understand.
Harry frowned at that, and the Hat seemed to ponder a bit.
Then where? Harry asked, confused.
How would you feel about Ravenclaw? You are smarter than you look, don't you doubt that. Ms. Granger of your world certainly has helped your intelligence quite a bit, and you did achieve O's in Defense almost every year. A sure sign of a Ravenclaw if I ever saw one. The Hat seemed to muse.
But that was only one subject. Harry pointed out.
The Hat sighed.
Mr. Potter, do you like to read? Do you enjoy learning? And do you enjoy getting good marks in your classes? The Hat asked impatiently.
Um…yes? Harry said tentatively.
Then there you are-a true Ravenclaw. While you are certainly brave, you also act much like a snake. You have loyalness to mark that of a Hufflepuff. But I feel your strongest path lies in Ravenclaw. Use your mind and your wits well, and you will succeed far beyond that of any other house. Good luck Mr. Potter, though I'm sure you'll not need in when you're in-
"RAVENCLAW," The house announced, gaining interested looks.
"Congratulations, young man. Now would you care to tell us your name?" Dumbledore queried, and Harry frowned at him, hesitating-not only because he didn't want to tell Dumbledore his name, but because he was quickly thinking of one to tell. "Come now, it can't hurt to tell us your name?" Dumbledore asked, as Harry had paused for longer than he'd mean to.
"H…Harry," Harry said, hesitantly. "Harry Harrison," He figured it was close enough to his old name, he'd be able to keep up with it. The Harry part anyway, he wasn't sure where Harrison came from. Maybe from a muggle name he'd heard somewhere? He didn't much care at the moment, though Harry Harrison sounded like a legit enough name, and it seemed to, well, fit him rather better than he'd thought.
"Mr. Harrison, we apologize for stunning you earlier-especially given your condition-but perhaps you'd tell us how you got the Room of Requirement to bring you here?" Dumbledore questioned.
Harry shrugged.
"I honestly have no idea," He admitted, confused. "The last I remember was going into the Room to search for something that I could use against Voldemort, and then I came out here."
There was a silence that fell at the name.
"Voldemort?" Dumbledore asked cautiously. Harry sighed, took out his wand, and did the same trick that he'd seen Tom do in the Chamber, writing the name 'I am Lord Voldemort' and then swapping the letters around so that it read 'Tom Marvello Riddle'.
"Tom," Dumbledore said softly.
"Wait-isn't that who the Prime Minister is?" James asked suddenly.
"It is indeed," Dumbledore agreed, nodding. "Mr. Harrison, would you please recount how you came to know about this?"
"No he won't," Pomona said, gaining startled looks. Even Harry was surprised by her tone. "This boy has been up far too long already. He's exhausted, and he needs immediate medical attention. He's going right back into bed,"
"But, Madame Pomfrey-" James began, and was silenced with a look that made Harry glad he wasn't on the receiving end of it. "Oh, alright. We're leaving."
"All of you but Severus and Lucius may leave now," Madame Pomfrey said firmly. Orion had never been more glad to see her than now.
He was given a potion-this one tasted rather good too-and mumbled just before his head hit the pillow,
"How come all your potions taste good?"
Never seeing Pomfrey's startled look as he slipped into a dreamless sleep.
"I can't believe it, James." Lily was on the verge of tears. "That poor boy…he is-so defensive to the point I don't think even he realizes it. He doesn't trust anyone, it seems. He's incredibly polite, even when he's defensive…how can he still be so strong after all that's happened to him?" Lily wondered, weeping.
"I've just come from examining the boy," Severus said, coming into the room. "The only new evidence I've found of something wrong is a year prolonged love potion. To whom, I am uncertain, but as it stands I do not think it will be much of an issue-unless he sees the person, in which case he will need to be detained from that person."
"A love potion?" Sirius said, bewildered. "What would that accomplish?" He asked, confused.
He, James, and Lily missed seeing Remus's sharp gaze to Severus, and the three also missed Severus's tiny nod of the head. Remus drew a breath, and Sirius asked slowly,
"Is the love potion…dangerous? I mean, more than the others? What happens should he meet that person?"
"Then I suggest all of us keep a sharp eye, and make sure that person does not appear. I realize that he comes from a…different place, however." Severus paused. "However, the…appeal might still be there, if you take my meaning."
"A love potion," Sirius said, slowly, glancing towards Remus who gave a tiny nod just as Severus has. James and Lily were talking in low, anxious whispers, and then James spoke up.
"What did Harrison mean when he said that the potions taste better? How can a potion taste bad? I mean, apart from the students dreadful attempts at making them in your horrid potion class, but…" James ignored the dark glare from Severus, as well as the quiet laugh from Sirius and Remus. Lily shot them looks, however, and they fell silent, waiting for an answer. "Aren't potions supposed to taste good in infirmaries?"
"Perhaps he was only ever fed potions that tasted exactly like they were made?" Severus said, frowning thoughtfully. "For example, you have seen what a polyjuice potion looks like, what it smells like even. Imagine if, without adding any of the flavoring, you were to drink its contents without being able to protest or demand better?" He asked.
They were aghast.
"But…that'd be torture in itself! A wizard or witch's stomach, especially at that young an age, can't handle that type of…" James frowned, searching for the right word.
"Exactly. Which we can add that to the list as well," Severus said, nodding. "Granted, his world is different perhaps they might not know how to make potions taste better. It is something to ask, when Harrison awakens,"
They all agreed.
Out of sheer reflex, Harry reached for his glasses when he slowly woke up. He began to wonder if perhaps it had all been a horrible confusing dream, but upon putting his glasses on, he could-
Hang on.
He frowned, realizing that his glasses seemed to make everything even sharper than normal. He could make out details about the wall he'd not noticed before-cracks in the beautiful white ceiling, the pale sunlight slanting against the floor with the shadows from the furniture. It…someone had changed his glasses.
He took them off immediately, feeling suspicious of them, and a voice said mildly,
"Unless you like being blind, I'd think you'd much rather put them on. I promise they weren't tampered with, aside from making your vision better."
He hesitated, fingering the glasses. He didn't trust anyone, though he wasn't quite sure why-perhaps because at least five of these people were supposed to be dead? He stared down at the blurry glasses, and the familiar voice said with an exasperated sigh,
"Well, they were certainly right about you. You're not one to trust anyone. Please put your glasses on. Why would we want to keep you blind?"
"So that you have a better advantage, especially if it comes to a fight or a duel," Harry said automatically, but pushed his glasses onto his face to glance over at the person-and blinked in surprise at seeing none other than Kingsley Shacklebolt.
"Recognize me, I take it? And that's an interesting idea, I'll keep that in mind," Kingsley said thoughtfully. "Now, how do you know me, young Harrison?" He asked gently, and Harry stared at him.
"You work for the Ministry as an Auror," He said finally, feeling that was safe enough. "You're sometimes partnered with Tonks."
"Which Tonks?" Kingsley asked, frowning. Harry blinked.
"Nymphadora," Harry said, staring at him. Kingsley chuckled.
"I'm not an Auror, Harry…may I call you Harry?" He asked, and Harry hesitated, but nodded. "Thank you. As I was saying, I'm not an Auror, though I could definitely see myself being one. Was I a good Auror?"
"You were famous for it. People feared you because you were so good at catching dark wizards from across the world. You were good at flying too, we went flying together once, and you had some interesting moves that you'd said you'd learned in Korea." Harry informed him.
Kingsley chuckled.
"It's fascinating, hearing about my other life." He said, studying him. "However, I'm not an Auror. I DO work with the Ministry, however. That seems a common theme. Instead, I'm a Wizarding Child Protector. Do you know what that means?" He asked.
"You protect wizard children?" Harry asked, rather sarcastically. Kingsley blinked, and grinned.
"To a point, yes. But it means that I investigate why they need protecting, so that I might get to the how to protect them. Believe it or not, it's a dangerous job in itself sometimes." He said, shaking his head. "Especially for the children."
"And how many children have you helped?" Harry asked, curiously.
"Oh, many hundreds I should say. I started quite young, apparently I was…really rather gifted at it," Kingsley mused thoughtfully, as though to himself. He shook his head after a moment and said, "But enough of that for now-I assume you're hungry, yes?" He asked, and Harry nodded, just now realizing that fact himself.
"Good. Please may I have a house-elf at this time?" Kingsley asked, and a sudden pop came. Harry blinked-and then smiled.
"Hello, Dobby," He said quietly, and Kingsley looked at him with sudden sharp-eyed interest while Dobby the house elf blinked.
"Young Wizard knows my name?" Dobby asked, staring at Harry suspiciously. "What might sir wizard want?"
"Some food for young Harrison here…Dobby?" Kingsley asked. Dobby snapped his fingers, and a plate of chicken, carrots, green beans, bread, potatoes, and a slice of chocolate cake and pumpkin juice and tea appeared. Enough to feed an army.
"Thank you, Dobby." Harry said, with that same quiet smile.
Dobby stared.
"No witch or wizard ever be thanking Dobby before," Dobby said, and smiled back at him, bowing quite low. "It be a pleasure to serve, young wizard." He then vanished.
Unbeknownest to Harry, who started in on the plate of food, the others who were all invisible to him were watching, and Sirius muttered to James,
"That was interesting,"
Lily elbowed him to keep him quiet.
Almost ten minutes later, and Harry had barely finished a quarter of his food, when he said,
"I'm full, thanks."
"Your quite welcome, Harry. Are you sure you don't want to eat more? At least have a bit more chocolate cake? I'm sure Dobby will be disappointed if you do not at least finish your desert," Kingsley said smoothly, helping himself to a glass of pumpkin juice.
Harry hesitated, but then began to eat more of the cake, pushing it aside when it was mostly gone.
"He didn't even eat a third of what a regular wizarding child eats!" Lily hissed, sounding upset and angry at his behalf.
"Quiet, lils," Remus breathed, and she fell silent-though Harry wouldn't be able to hear them anyway, with the silencing spell placed on them.
"That's much better, I take it?" Kingsley asked him, and Harry gave a reluctant nod. "Good, I'll have Dobby pick them up later. You're familiar with house elves then?" He asked.
"I know a few. Dobby and Winky. Also, I think I met another house elf whose name was…Mopsy? I dunno, her name was a bit weird. And she was very old, she was Winky's mother, I think." Harry said, shrugging.
Kingsley blinked.
"You met an elf-family?" He asked, interested in spite of himself.
"Barely. I only caught a glimpse of her. Dobby explained it was so that Mopsy could come take care of Winky because she was just too drunk all the time," Harry said, frowning.
"A house elf can get drunk?" Sirius asked, surprised.
"When they're well and truly upset, yes. Shut up, Siri." James ordered, and they fell silent.
"And what other creatures have you met?" Kingsley asked. Harry considered.
"Well, there's the centaurs in the forest. I met Firenze twice, actually. Once he saved my life when I was twelve, because we were hunting a dead unicorn with Hagrid. Then, we met him when he became the Divination teacher. He was…interesting."
"Is that all?" Kingsley asked, curiosity on his face.
"We met Aragog and the spiders in the forest, the merpeople in the lake," Lily gave a gasp. Merpeople were incredibly dangerous. "There were the dragons, particularly the Hungarian Horntail was quite vicious but beautiful,"
"Yes, they are," Kingsley agreed in a reverent tone.
"And I also met Hagrid's little brother Grawp," Harry said, and Remus snorted in amusement. "Oh, and the school's threstles. And, uh, there was the sphinx in the maze, and the unicorns and other magical creatures in the Care of Magical Creatures class."
"Quite," Kingsley, agreed.
"And the werewolves," Harry said, and Remus started. "Mostly one werewolf in particular and he was nice, but I once met another one…he was vicious," Harry fell quiet.
"Can you spare his name, out of idle curiosity?"
"Fenrir Greyback," Harry said quietly; Remus jerked violently, and Sirius grabbed him.
"He's dead, Remus." Sirius reminded him, and Remus slowly drew a shakey breath and nodded, returning to the conversation of which Kingsley was speaking.
"-impressive bunch of magical creatures. But also rather dangerous. What ages were you when you met these creatures?" He asked, curiosity on his face. "Surely you were at the very least sixteen?"
"Naw, I met the spiders when I was twelve, along with the house elves and, oh yeah I forgot about the fifty foot basilisk," Harry said, and Lily squeaked. "It was massive, and it seemed really cool-not at the time, of course, but-"
"You mean to say that you went up against a fifty foot basilisk when you were twelve years old? Wherever did you find the thing?" Kingsley asked, staring at him. The Quick Notes Quill was still going in front of the group hiding beneath the invisibility and silencing spell as he was speaking.
"Inside Hogwarts," Harry said, and there was a silence. "It was in the Chamber of Secrets, built by Salazar Slytherin. You can only get in if you speak Parseltongue though," He added, frowning.
"And you speak Parseltongue, do you?" Kingsley asked, sounding skeptical.
Harry sighed, and closed his eyes and then-
An odd series of hissing noises came, and they realized with dumbfounded amazement and outright fear that Harry could, in fact, speak Parseltongue.
"I see," Kingsley said faintly, staring at Harry with mild shock. "Do you realize, Mr. Harrison, that you are the first wizard in this world to speak Parseltongue-a language that's been dead for well over fifty years?"
Harry shrugged, clearly not bothered by such a fact.
"I don't think he realizes the gravity of such a thing," Remus mused quietly, and then fell quiet when Kingsley spoke again, sounding serious.
"Harry, I feel that I must tell you-should you enter Hogwarts and do well in your classes…even if you don't do well in your classes…there are hundreds of jobs around the world that would snap you up in a heartbeat just because you speak Parseltongue," He informed him.
"Why? I thought wizards feared it," Harry said, frowning.
"Some do," Kingsley reassured him. "But nonetheless, it's a rare gift-an extremely rare gift, in fact. The Dragon Preserve in Romania would be particularly thrilled to get a hold of you."
"But how would speaking Parseltongue help with the dragons?" Harry asked, bewildered.
"Because dragons are linked with snakes…they are both reptiles, and if you know the language, then you can communicate with the beasts if you practice hard at it," Kingsley said, staring at him. "You didn't know?"
"I didn't speak the language a whole lot-usually by accident," Harry said, shrugging. "People didn't like it," He added.
Kingsley sighed.
"Yes, I imagine so. Still, it is an honor that you shared with me the language. Would you mind telling me what it is you said?" He asked, suddenly.
Harry smiled sheepishly.
"I asked if I was speaking in English."
Kingsley stared at him, and then laughed, as did the others who were hiding under the cloak.
A few minutes later, and Kingsley had wound the talking down a bit to normal things-what do you like to do, what's your favorite class, what do you think of Quidditch? By the time that they'd reached that subject, Pomfrey came in with a new set of potions. Kingsley noted how he tensed before relaxing as she entered the door, and mentally reminded himself to make lots of noise when entering the room next time.
"Hello again, Mr. Harrison. Are you feeling tired yet? Or perhaps you'd like to visit the privy?" She asked, and Harry considered before asking for the privy. "Can you get there by yourself, do you think, dearie?" She asked gently, and in answer Harry swung his feet over the side of the bed, and walked to the lavatory as though there was nothing wrong with him at all.
She sighed miserably, and turned towards Kingsley who looked at her for an explanation.
"He's in pain-I can feel it, Mr. Shacklebolt, I can feel it heavy in the air. That poor boy is suffering so…I've been trying to heal him as much as possible, but I'm afraid-I may need to call in more expert healers," She said, staring at the floor.
"Madame, I'm sure you are doing everthing just fine," Kingsley reassured her, but even still his heart seemed to be quite heavy as the boy returned to bed.
Harry wasn't stupid. He knew that Kinglsey was trying to gain as much information as possible out of him. He knew that the reason that it was Kingsley was because-even if he wasn't an auror here, he was still lethel. Perhaps in a different way, because the man kept catching him off guard. Harry frowned, as he was snuggling into the covers, feeling rather tired but not wanting to sleep. He didn't take any dreamless sleep, he just wanted to stay awake and figure out what had happened and where he might be at.
He yawned, and felt his eyes beginning to slip close, and was aware of quiet voices talking over his head as he slowly and reluctantly fell into a deep sleep.
When next he woke it was to a familiar set of voices, and of course at least two of those voices belonged to dead people. He sighed in his sleep, hoping the voices would shut up and go away.
No such luck.
"Seriously you two, can you not remain quiet? He's trying to sleep," A woman's voice-Hermione, his brain reasoned-protested.
"Come on, Granger, where's your sense of adventure? Of interest? Our parents have been hiding him away for hours, we wanna know who he is!" Fred's voice.
"After all, Hermione, you're the Ravenclaw-you're supposed to be curious about his history and stuff." George, he supplied mentally to himself, breathing deeply. He could smell the comforting smell of the Weasley household-dusty sweaters, grass stains-indicating Quidditch obviously-and other things he couldn't quite put his finger on. Hermione smelled of old books, dust, and…
"-think he's waking up?" Hermione sounded doubtful. "He's moving around an awful lot. Maybe he's having a nightmare," She
"The only nightmare I'm having is thaaddt people won't shut up," He grumbled, unable to help himself.
"Aw, the little tyke is finally awake! I told you he'd wake up. Pay up, Georgie," Fred said, and George heaved a long suffering sigh, but forked over the gold. Harry fumbled for his glasses, and Hermione said anxiously,
"Here. Is that better?" She pressed his glasses on gently, and he could see her face-more clearer than ever before. This Hermione looked absolutely beautiful, he thought to himself with surprise. Her golden brown hair shined in the sunlight, hanging a little past her shoulders. It wasn't bushy hair, like he remembered, but straight hair-much like the hair that Beauxbatons had, he surmised. He saw that she was carrying a heavy book-of course-and looked anxious and uncertain as he was staring at her. He had the sudden strong sense of loss-sure, Hermione was beautiful…but he missed his Hermione, his friends. "Harry? Are you okay? Should I fetch Madam Pomfrey? Were you having a nightmare-"
"Hermione, let him at least answer a question, and I thought I told you three to leave him alone until he's out of the infirmary." Lily's stern voice broke through her rambling questions, and the three teens startled. Harry had his wand out, but quickly lowered it upon seeing it was only Lily. He still held on, however, and Fred and George (as well as Lily) noticed.
"You've got the right idea, mate!" Fred crowed. "Lily Potter is one of the most dangerous witches ever! You don't wanna cross her, she's absolutely lethel."
"Fred…or George…that's just…" Lily protested, as Hermione giggled. Harry reluctantly smiled, and then glanced towards the doorway as Pomfrey came in.
"Time for more potions dear. Don't worry, they still taste quite good," She reassured him, smiling. "Also, we felt you might want to eat in the great hall. It's currently during the winter holidays, so most of the students aren't yet back from their trips home." She added, and he nodded slowly. That made…a lot of sense, actually.
"So, do you mind if we call you Harry?" Hermione asked, after a moment.
"What? Oh, no go ahead." Harry said, distracted from his thoughts. "And you are…" He asked, pretending ignorance. He wasn't sure if it was a good ideal to reveal a whole lot of information about himself-or the fact that he knew them.
"Hermione Granger, Fred and George Weasley, and Lily Potter-of the last one you've already previously met," Hermione introduced with a smile.
"Pleasure to meet you all," Harry said automatically. "Um, I'm gonna…go to the privy, I'll be right back," He said, and quickly left.
When he got back, Sirius and Arthur were chiding the three of them. Well, mostly Fred and George, it seemed, and the twins looked guilty, but also determined-which Harry knew wasn't going to work out in the adults favor.
He almost grinned at seeing Arthur so irritated, but the grin was changed into a frown when he noticed that Madam Pomfrey wasn't there.
"Seamus managed to blow himself up again, by accident of course," Hermione informed him, as he came to the bed. "And of course he needs medical attention." She said, rolling her eyes. "Seamus blows himself up at least once a week, the boy can't get any worse than when it comes to Neville exploding potions." She said, amused.
Harry nodded.
"So everyone's back, then?" He asked, frowning.
"Well, actually most of us are staying over because the parents had talks with the Professors about more advanced classes. And we like staying at Hogwarts, especially with family," Hermione explained.
"Aren't you muggle-born?" He asked, without thinking.
They stared at him.
"So you do know who we are," Fred observed. Harry sighed. "Why lie? You don't trust us?" He asked.
"Harry's got good reason not to trust you two," Hermione said wryly, and they looked momentarily startled-and then grinned.
"That's certainly true," A cheerful voice said, coming into the room. "Hello, all. I see the mysterious guest that everyone is talking about is awake. Hi, I'm Ginny Weasley, the twins younger sister…are you okay?" She asked, as Harry was staring at her.
She still looked remarkably beautiful, and while he could see images in his head of him wanting her-and not wanting her-it was…very difficult…
"Mr. Harrison," Snape said, coming into the room. "Please, drink this immediately."
Harry eyed the potion suspiciously, momentarily distracted from Ginny-not noticing how Hermione stood protectively near her, or Fred and George exchanging frowns. Harry sniffed it, but it seemed okay, and he swallowed it…feeling a calming sensation.
"Calming draught," Harry observed, after a moment.
"Very good," Severus said, surprise on his face. "And this one?" He handed the next one to Harry, a smooth looking purple potion. Harry sniffed, frowning, but couldn't tell what it was yet again, due to it smelling delicious instead of horrible. He swallowed it tentatively, and then blinked. "I…don't know," He admitted.
"That would have been a powerful anti-love potion, to counter the years worth of forced love potions I'm sure you don't remember taking," Severus said, sincerely. "Such a potion is rarely needed, but I suspect we will need it again every time Ms. Weasley enters the room, which answers one of my previous unasked questions, actually."
"I would never!" Ginny declared, sounding in tears. "Why would I…"
"Gin…it's alright," Fred soothed, and glared at Severus. "What on earth are you talking about, Professor? Why do you think that Ginny gave Harry here a years supply of love potions?"
"This Ginny did not, but despite that knowledge, Harry's body and mind is fighting that information. He knows he's in an alternate universe, thanks to the Room of Requirement, but his body and memories do not-nor does the potion allow him to. He still sees Ms. Weasley as an object of desire as he is meant to. Ms. Weasley will need to take care around him as well, for he is…quite powerful, I would imagine."
Harry frowned, fighting the feeling of sleep and bewilderment running through him. He also seemed to be seeing Ginny again for the first time in a long time, and he saw her as a vivid bright redhead girl…but was entirely unappealing.
Harry was inwardly shouting that it wasn't true-she never fed him love potions…
But he knew that it was.
A memory came without warning-Ginny pressing a glass into his hand, Ginny feeding him cookies, Ginny giving him something to drink and then pressing a kiss against his wishes…
He shook his head.
"Professor," A kid came barreling into the room. "Professor, Madam Bones is here. She wants to speak with Mr. Harrison, she feels he might need some answers and some assistance from the government. Dumbledore's coming too," He added.
Harry realized with a start that it was actually Colin.
"Of course. I'll fetch Pomona just in case. You four, shoo,"
"They can stay if they want," Harry said softly, gaining a startled look from Snape who huffed.
"Fine, they stay. But if there's trouble between you and Ms. Weasley…"
"We'll keep an eye on them," George said firmly.
With that Snape left, and a few moments of quiet settled between the five of them. Ginny still looked upset, and Harry said hesitantly,
"I…I don't blame you or anything…"
Ginny glanced up at him, waiting for him to speak. When he couldn't seem to find more words, she shook her head.
"I can't understand why Other Me would do such a horrible thing!"
"Because I was famous," Harry said simply, but before he could explain more, the doors opened and in came Dumbledore, Madam Bones, Fudge, Shacklebolt, and Tonks. Snape came back in with Pomona a mere second later.
"Mr. Harrison, is it?" Fudge asked, sounding suspicious. "You somehow came upon Hogwarts, with a certified wand and you seem to have convinced everyone here that you are from an alternate universe thanks to this mysterious 'room of requirement' that you claim a founder had built."
Harry scowled.
"I do not claim anything, Minister," Harry snapped, gaining a startled look from him. Madam Bones and Tonks looked like they were trying to repress snickers, and Shacklebolt smiled.
"Ah, Harry," Shacklebolt said gently. "Cornelius Fudge is not the Minister of Magic, I'm afraid. Do you not recall who t is? You mentioned his name earlier, in fact," He reminded him.
Harry blinked.
"I am Minister of Magic," A familiar-if slightly different-voice declared coming into the room.
Harry's reaction surprised everyone, as he immediately launched himself from the bed to the other side near the windows, and pulled up a very large and powerful 'protego' charm.
Notes: I've got the next three chapters done, but it may be a bit before I can post them. I'm working on this story, and a few others. This has about fifteen thousand words written so far. Reviews/Favs/etc are much appreciated and welcome. Thanks for reading, and hope you enjoy!