Author's Note. Here's the first chapter and I really hope that everyone likes it.
Chapter One: Eyes in the Shadows
Harry's eyes opened slowly. The only noise he could hear was rain hitting the window and Ron's soft snores. Like he had done many mornings before, he put on his glasses and quietly slipped out the door. The stairs creaked under his bare feet as he descended to the familiar spot. The door he had come to was plain. But the girl in the room was not. Ginny Weasley was like fire and left a mark wherever she touched. Harry remembered the first time he found himself there. One night he had stayed up studying until the wee hours of the morning and he need a cup of tea. He meant to go down to the kitchen, but ended up in front of her door. He didn't need tea, he needed her. He thought about peeking into her room and watching her sleep. But, that seemed too stalkerish. He wanted to march into her room, pick her up, and kiss her the harder that he had ever kissed a girl in his entire life. That would just make things more complicated. They had decided that they couldn't be together, it was too dangerous. But Harry, no matter how hard he tried, couldn't stop loving her. He admired her from afar, like he was now. Sitting outside her room gave her some sort of comfort, knowing that she was asleep and safe.
In on week, he would be back at Hogwarts and wouldn't be able to do this. If he stepped one foot up to the girl's dormitory, the entire stair case would turn into a giant super slide. He didn't want to go back to Hogwarts. He fought with the Order for the most of the summer, trying to repeal their desire for him to go back. When he turned seventeen, he used the excuse that he was considered an adult in the wizarding world. But they ignored that reason too.
"Your mum and dad would want you to stay in school."
"You need to be fully schooled in order to fight Voldemort." They would all say, changing words here and there.
Finally, with much grudging, he decided to go back. In a few hours, he would be going with Ginny, Hermione, and Ron to Diagon Alley to buy their books. It was almost a bitter sweet, sad that
Of course, Harry knew that the end was coming, the end where either he, or Voldemort, or both must die. The thought of this day lingered his head like a rainy cloud in comic stripes.
Suddenly, the door creaked open, revealing a far sleepy eyed Hermione.
"Harry." She said surprised at the raven head boy sitting at her feet. "What are you doing?" she lowered her voice to a whisper, careful not to wake the other slumbers.
Harry shrugged, he didn't have an answer.
"I thought you and Ginny broke things off?" she asked, taking a seat next to him.
"We did."
Hermione looked at him in disbelief.
"Then why are you sitting outside her door at," she grabbed Harry's wrist and checked the time on his watch, "three o'clock in the morning."
Harry shrugged again.
"You have to let her go Harry."
"I love her."
" I know you do Harry, but you know that you can't be with her. You'll be risking her life. If you truly love her, let her go. Let her be safe from Voldemort."
"Don't you think I already know this Hermione?" he said angrily.
Didn't anyone think he knew anything?
He let himself calm down before he spoke again.
"Breaking up with her was the hardest thing I've ever had to do. I'm trying to move on, Mione. It's hard. It's hard to give up something you've wanted so long."
"I know Harry, but have you ever thought that Ginny may not be the one for you."
"How could you say that, Hermione?"
"I know that you think I'm crazy, but hear me out."
The rage had built up in Harry vanished.
"Every girl you ever been with has been to, not to offend Ginny, has been too weak. You won't let Ginny be with you because you know that."
"But Voldemort…"
"I know that you think your decision has to do with wanting to protect them from Voldemort," she interrupted, "but that's just your excuse."
"You need someone stronger Harry, someone who can face Voldemort beside you and you don't have to be afraid for their protection. You need someone who could protect you as much as you protect them"
Hermione left down the stairs, leaving the young wizard to think. Needless to say, he wasn't there when she returned.
"Breakfast!" Mrs. Weasley called up the stairs. A stampede of feet followed, echoing with boisterous noise through the small house. Ron was the first to appear, followed by Harry, Fred and George (who had been visiting for a few days), Ginny and Hermione.
"Now," Mrs. Weasley began, piling eggs on Harry's plate, "we will be leaving in exactly one hour for Diagon Alley." She had now moved onto Hermione's plate, "I want everyone to please remember to bring your school supplies list, since." She moved onto Ron's, "some of you are in different classes. I really hope that..."
Clash!!
Something hit the window, causing all of them to look up.
The noise in question was caused but the family owl.
"Fred, get Errol. I promise you that ruddy bird is blind."
Fred obeyed his mother and went to the window.
"Mum, it's urgent." Said Fred, handing it Errol was carrying to his mother.
She quickly read it, her eyes scanning back and forth across the page.
"The Order has been called in for a meeting in an hour. Fred—George," she looked at both twins respectively, "I need you to get your bothers. Remus contacted Percy, but he doesn't want to send owls outside the country. Fred, go to Romania for Charlie. George, France for Bill and Fleur. We will meet you there."
The twins took their instructions and vanished with a 'pop'.
She folded the letter and placed in her apron pocket.
"Hurry up and eat, I'm going to get ready. And remember your school lists, Remus will be going with us to Diagon Alley after the meeting."
Leaving the skillet of eggs on the table, she left up the stairs.
Harry hadn't been in the Grimmauld place since his godfather's death and he didn't want to be in it now. After Sirius's death, the Order has asked him if they could still use the old house as there meeting place. Harry, of course, said that they could. He didn't want to house. I was too depressing and old, and smelt of bad cheese. But the house belongs to him, and there was nothing he could do to change that. It was exactly as he remembered, every dust bunny and cobweb in its place.
"I must send that little rat of a house elf I have to clean it soon." He thought to himself, scanning his surrounding, "If it's ever going to be livable again."
He didn't know if he would ever live in it. He thought about using it as a second house, living in the country and returning whenever he wanted to embrace city life for a while. He also thought about giving it the Order, but it was the only thing he had left of Sirius'. For now, he just wanted it to sit there until he could finally deal with it.
"Molly, dear," Said a frantic Mr. Weasley, peeking down the stairs, "the meeting's about to begin!"
"Oh, right. Now," she began turning back to the youngest Weasley children and their friends, "you four stay here and, Ginny---Hermione, please make Harry and Ron some lunch if the meeting runs late, would you girls."
Ginny and Hermione nodded at the red-headed woman, before she ran out of the kitchen.
"So," Ron said, once his mother had left, "what are we going to for the time being?"
He looked at his brown haired girlfriend and gave her a wink. Smiling, they both went up the stairs to, no doubt, one of their senseless snogging sessions.
Harry looked at Ginny, who was sitting at the wood table, staring at the flickering fire.
He could see the reflections in her eyes, enlightening her brown orbs.
For a while, Harry just sat there, watching the girl he loved.
"What, Remus, was so important that you called an emergency meeting?"
"We have a matter to discuss, that slipped my mind at our lasting meeting." Said the werewolf, now in his more pleasant, human form. "It will require all of the members help, Minerva"
The cat at the other end of the table jumped, transforming quickly in to the strict looking witch.
"To understand what I about to tell you, we must go back over a thousand years to Merlin's age."
She told them the story of 'The Magic', up to Dumbledore's death at the end of last year.
"The new keeper of 'The Magic', or Merlin's Heir, as they are usually referred to will be attending Hogwarts this year."
"Not to be rude," said Charlie Weasley from the corner, "but what exactly does that have to do with the Order. Our job is to fight Voldemort, no worry about so timid first year who happens to have amazing magical powers."
Minerva McGonagall smiled as sweetly as she could.
"Thank you, Mr. Wealsey, for asking that excellent question. That leads to another story. One that began sixteen years ago, onHalloween"
"That's the night Voldemort killed Lily and James." Arthur exclaimed.
"Exactly, Arthur. You see, Harry wasn't the only baby Voldemort was after that night."
"What do you think they're talking about?" Ginny asked Harry, breaking the long silence.
"Who, Ron and Hermione...we'll I think talking is out of the question right now, if you know what---"
"I meant the Order, Harry." Ginny interrupted, rolling her eyes at his joke.
"No idea."
"Why didn't you join the Order? You are of age now."
"Dunno," he shrugged, "I guess I just don't want to know what's going on, you know... with the war and all."
"Harry," her voice was soft and calm, "you can't ignore the war. Sooner or later, you'll have to face Voldemort and I, for one, have faith that you will succeed."
Moments like that, Harry realized how much he wanted Ginny and how much he hated Voldemort from taking her away from him. His missed times like now, were they simply talked. They hadn't talked much since they broke up; it was a little too uncomfortable for both of them. The times they did talk, however, were magical to the wizard. Her voice calmed him of all uncertainty and fear.
Ginny smiled slightly.
"We did have some good times, didn't we?" She said.
"We did, "Harry agreed with a nod, "like the time we won the Quidditch house Cup." "The first time you kissed me was at the victory party."
The room became uncomfortable for both of them, thinking about all of they times they were together.
"But you understand why I have to break it off."
"I know Harry." She said quietly, "Sometimes I wish I could find Voldemort myself and do him off for breaking us up."
"I wouldn't want you to place yourself in any type of danger. If something was to happen to you, I don't know what I'd do with myself, Gin."
She nodded, holding back the tears that had filled her eyes. She always loved when he called her Gin.
"So," he began, trying to clear the awkwardness of the conversation, "are you excited about school?"
Diagon Alley was extremely crowded and dry, considering the rain. Everywhere the streets were full with procrastinate student and their parents, who have waited for the last week to do all of their Hogwarts shopping.
Mrs. Weasley stopped dead in the middle of traffic and turned around to face her followers.
"You three," her head nodded towards Harry, Ron and Hermione, "take Remus and go get your Potions supplies. I've got to take Ginny to Madam Malikin's to get new robes. But hurry, we need to meet at Flourish and Blotts in one hour."
She turned on her heel and rushed through the crowd, Ginny following behind her.
"C'mon you three." Remus said, smirking, pulling Ron and Hermione, like a mother pulling her child. "I would hate to see Molly's face if we showed up late. She would think that we were attacked by Voldemort and dead somewhere." Harry snorted, amused that Remus sounded a little like Mrs. Wealsey. After a few steps, the couple broke free and their hands slid into each others. Harry followed afterwards, rolling his eyes. They walked down alley after alley, growing closer to their destination.
Harry had been staring absent mindedly at the ground when, out of nowhere, a piece of parchment landed in front of him. He looked around, trying to find it's owner, probably a anxious looking witch, someone like Mrs. Weasley, who had lost her shopping list. No one so much as glanced at him. Being the good Gryffindor he is, he knelt down to pick it up. Just before his hand reached it, though, another hand appeared.
Curious, he looked up. He would never expect what he saw. He knew it was a person, but their face could not be seen. It was hidden by a hood, which cast a shadow over all of his' or hers' exposed flesh. All he could see was their eyes. They were big and blue and burned into the dark like a candle in the depth of night. They intrigued him, drawing him closer in to their depth. But in a blink of an eye, they were gone.
"Harry?"
He looked up at Hermione, who was leaning out of a small shop.
"Are you coming?"
Author's Note: So was it horrible? I hope that you liked it. If you did..review please. Also, I'm looking for a beta I already have one, but I would perfer to have two so thay one doesn't get swamped. Tell me if you would like to. Thanks for reading.
