Ok, here's the thing, I haven't written in this story for a very long time, so, I decided to refresh my memory of how much I had posted so far. I was reading, and I became horrified at the inconceivable amount of grammar and punctuation errors I had made, not to mention the structure sentences themselves. I have tried to fix the most glaring problems as much as possible, but I am not done. Which means I am going to be reposting the old chapters, even adding things. I may repost the chapters several times. I am sorry if this is inconvenient in any way, but it was just so bad. Now on with the fic!

Summary: Long ago, a war began between two demon clans. From this war came tears, blood, and a child. Now the remnants of one of those clans have joined forces with the most dangerous wizard alive, Lord Voldemort. Harry must fight his way through a maze of fear, hate but most importantly love. Can he be true to himself before it's too late? Or will he succumb to the mind-numbing darkness? Only one way to find out...

Disclaimer: If I owned HP would I be writing this crap? Brianna, James, Lucien and the Portillo-Martinez family are mine; ALL MINE! MWAHAHA!... Okay, I'm done now...

Warnings: This story contains yaoi. Meaning there's some hot M/M action in here somewhere. If you have a problem with this...I do NOT care! My suggestion to those who do is this: Go take your homophobic ass to the nearest bar, drink yourself silly, and then promptly jump into your crappy ass car and drive off a bridge. Do the world a big favor. You have been warned...

Criticisms are welcome flames are not!

And no, I did not pick out the name of this fic after I heard the title of the 6th book. It's in the sixth year, btw.

This means someone is speaking Spanish, thinking to themselves, or a word is being emphasized.

Chapter 2: Recuperation and Coffee

Harry

August 6

St. Mungo's Hospital, London

3:24 PM

"I was afraid this would happen," a raspy, somber voice said. "We should have gotten him sooner."

Harry didn't move. In all honesty he didn't think he could, even if he tried. His body felt like it was on fire. Where was he? The bed underneath him felt softer than normal. He felt cool but there were blankets covering him. What the hell?
"You shouldn't blame yourself Remus. I take it as my sole responsibility for Harry's condition."

Remus?! In excitement Harry opened his eyes-- Then promptly closed them. Well, that was stupid. Pain shot through his entire skull. He felt like a herd of tiny, little gremlins were playing Quidditch in it. He moaned in pain.

"Albus, I think he's awake." A crisp yet concerned Scottish voice rang through his mind.

"Yes I see, Minerva," said Dumbledore, his school headmaster, in that annoying, calm voice he always had. And right now Harry hated that voice. He wanted the voice to die. He felt a hand touch his arm. "How do you feel, my boy?"

A scratchy "ow," was all he could muster in response. The gremlins were still there and he could have sworn he heard one laughing. Wait, that wasn't the gremlin. That was Dumbledore! Bloody bastard.

"Yes, you've been through quite an ordeal," the old man said suddenly serious.

Ordeal? Harry thought with his eyes still closed. Then it hit him all at once, in a flash of realization. His uncle had... Oh, God. He opened his eyes in horror. He honestly didn't care if it hurt. He just stared at the ceiling, not really looking at anyone. When he tried to sit up a firm grip kept him down.

"Harry, relax." There was that voice again. "You mustn't exert yourself. You may very well have a concussion."

Well, shit. He stopped struggling and finally looked at everyone. There were three people in the room. Albus Dumbledore was sitting on the bed with that twinkle he always had in his eye. Another thing he hated about the man at that moment. Minerva McGonagall, the transfiguration teacher at Hogwarts, was standing at the foot of his bed looking concerned and a little angry. Then there was Remus Lupin, sitting in a rather uncomfortable looking chair at his side seeming just a bit frightened. Harry gave him a reassuring smile, even though it hurt like hell. Lupin relaxed, though only slightly. He smiled back but it looked tense.

He must have been worried sick, Harry thought grimly. Don't know why; it's not like I haven't had worse. He started to take in the man's appearance. Lupin's clothes looked a little shabbier than their last meeting and he didn't look healthy at all. The bags beneath his eyes had seemed to deepend exponentially. The poor guy looked like he hadn't slept or eaten in days.

Harry didn't realize how lost in thought he was until Dumbledore piped up. "Ah! Right on time!"

Confused, Harry turned his head as far as it could go -which wasn't very far and didn't bother hiding a slight scowl when out of the corner of his eye he saw a tall, black-robed man swept into the room. Severus Snape wasn't exactly a sworn enemy but he was pretty damn close. The potions professor absolutely loathed Harry. It was then that he noticed where he was. It looked like a room at the Three Broomsticks. But it seemed brighter. Why wasn't he at Mungo's. Or even... Harry stopped that train of thought before he could delve into any unwanted memories.

"I have brought the potion you requested, Albus," replied Severus Snape in his usual dangerous tone. "Although I still don't see the reason for it."

It was then that he noticed the boy. Harry could have sworn for a moment, just a moment, mind you, there was something akin to worry in the potion's professor's eyes. Nah, He thought closing his eyes against the harsh light of the room. Like he even has a heart to worry about his own mother, let alone me.

"It's quite simple Severus," Dumbledor replied jovially as if he were discussing the weather. "There really is no need to alert Madame Pompfrey. The dear woman has her hands full as it is."

This brought Harry out of his revelry. "Did something happen?" He cracked out.

James

May Twentieth

9:23 AM

Los Angeles, California

"No means no, Bri," James said grabbing another box with his name on it. "I just moved. Why would I want to go through it again?"

A woman in her early thirties sat in an armchair by the fireplace. She stopped filling her nails, smiled sweetly and said, "Because this move comes with a view, a car space, and hunky Brazilian men who carry out all your heavy, heavy boxes." She winked at him.

James nodded a full head of dark golden curls towards his rather large living room window overlooking the and the San Gabriel Mountains. "I have a very nice view, I don't own a car, and it comes with hunks?" he asked incredulously.

"Well... no. But we could always conjure them." Brianna Jackson smiled brightly.

"No, thank you," he replied in a distracted tone, trying to remember why he had boxed a copy of Moliere plays with a Jane Austin. "I've had enough magic in my life, you know that."

She threw her nail file at him and huffed when he moved his head aside as it sailed harmlessly past. "James Elijah Tanner if I hadn't known you for three years and if you hadn't dated my cousin, I'd swear you were-"

"But you have, I did, and I'm not," he interrupted smoothly. "And I'm sure you're very familiar with my family's stubborn streak." He stood and put the two books in their respective bookcases. "So, I implore you to kindly drop it. I could really use someone on my side right now."

Bri flipped her red hair over her shoulder with a manicured hand. She leaned back in her chair, letting her voice soften. "It was really that bad, huh?"

James gave up trying to unpack. Shoulder's slumped, he sat in the love seat beside her chair. "It could have gone better. Then again, it could have gone much worse."

"Jamie, sweetie, your dad sucker-punched you," she proclaimed, gently touching the bandage on his cheek. "I'd call that worse."

"Not so," quipped James with a weak smile. "It could have been Mum."

She winced sympathetically as she moved his bangs out of his eye. "Too true, too true. You never did tell me the whole story. What exactly happened?"

"Nothing spectacular, luv," he said with an uncomfortable shift. "I simply told them of my decision."

"With better tact than that I hope."

"Of course," James said, feeling slightly stung. "I was very gentle."

"Meaning you told them you were going to go through with it whether or not they approved, knowing it would break their hearts."

"I am not that heartless and you know it, Brianna. But yes, I'm afraid I may have come off a bit confrontational. I should have been more subtle, I suppose."

"Ok," interrupted Bri. "The suspense is killing me. Give me details, what did they say?"

James smiled at his friend. She had always been too impatient and too nosy for her own good.

"I'm sure you can guess how it went, but if you want a rehash, I'd like some coffee."

She pinched him on his arm hard. "Look at you. One day in a new job and you're turning into William Shatner. I was going to make some anyway. You unpack that new maker I gave you?" she asked, standing up.

"It was the first thing out, luv."

Bri sauntered into the kitchen while calling back, "That's the caffeine addicted James I know and love."

James smiled after her and leaned his head back against the couch. He wanted to tell her the details, he really did, but he didn't want to worry her. She always worried about him. He closed his eyes and tried to remember exactly what had happened. The memories came easily.

Louis and Stacy Tanner stared at their son. It was obvious that they were debating whether or not they had heard him correctly. Surely he hadn't just made them tea, sat them down in the sun room, and told them he was turning his back on everything they stood for. Yes, this had to be a joke. Their son would never give up magic.

If the situation had not been so serious, James would have laughed at the expressions on their faces. Stacy was a small woman with a slight build. but under the soft skin was muscle. She was a gymnast. Her clothing was simple. James liked that about her. Stacy always wore plain jeans and a t-shirt. She was usually so collected and steady. Right now, however, Stacy looked like someone just torn up her Anne Rice collection. Compared to her, Louis looked like a giant hairdresser. He wore bright colors, but nothing over the top. He was a painter but he never got any paint on his clothes. He liked to wear his heart on his sleeve and he urged others to show their true feelings. Why the two had ended up together, James still couldn't fathom. Whatever his parents were feeling right now, James couldn't tell. It seemed, for the moment, they had decided to keep a calm quiet demeanor when dealing with their son.

"Jimmy," his mother started in a too-even voice. "But you- you can't- It's your destiny."

"Mum, you don't know that. I may have been born this way but I don't have to like it, nor do I have to entirely embrace it," James tried to explain rationally.

"'This way?'" Louis asked, standing to tower over James. "This way saved your life!"

So much for calm and quiet, James thought.

But Louis wasn't done. Not by a long shot. "You were born into something great. You aren't some low born Muggle. You have a larger-"

"I swear, Father, if you finish that sentence, I'm leaving right now." James looked him square in the eyes.

"Don't you dare talk to your father that way, young man!" They were all surprised at Stacy's outburst. She was outwardly calm but underneath, a storm was brewing. "If it weren't for him, for us, you wouldn't be here right now."

"I wish everyone would stop bringing that up," James mumbled under his breath.

Bad idea.

"We keep reminding you because you seem to keep forgetting," she said in an icy calm voice.

James decided to try another tactic. "I can't live like this, Mum. It's all too much. I just want a normal life. I can't handle anymore..." He stopped, trying t think of the right word.

"Anymore what, James?" Louis pointed a long finger at him. "Truth? Or is it that you've finally gotten bored of us? Just like everything else. You have amazing talents, amazing potential, an excellent education, but because it takes a while to adjust, to learn, you throw it all away. What do you plan to do out there, hmm? You can't survive on that pretty face of yours out on the streets. Or maybe that's what you actually plan to do. You're certainly delicate enough,. I'm sure you could get at least..."

James couldn't hear anymore. This was crazy. Louis was accusing him of prostitution. Stacy had her hand over her chest as if her heart was breaking. James's head was spinning. So, he did the one thing he could think of to stop those incessant, hateful words. James hit his father square on the jaw. He didn't go down though. Something in Louis seemed to snap. He lunged at James, fist flying. James caught the first right punch, but he didn't see the knee coming towards his abdomen. Stunned from the blow, he didn't have time to block as another fist came out of nowhere. It hit James right below his eye, on the left cheekbone. He fell with a harsh "thud."

For a few minutes, everything stopped. No birds were singing outside the window. The wind had ceased. All that any of them could hear was James's shaky breathing. Realization dawned on Louis's face.

"James," he said breathlessly collapsing back into his chair. He bent over and covered his face with his hands. "Good God, Jimmy, I am so sorry."

Stacy had the sad expression on her face again, albeit she seemed a little stunned. She had just seen her her husband get into a fist fight with her 19 year old son. She put a hand on Louis's back and said to James, "Is this what you really want? Do you intend to go through with it?"

James stood up. He tried not to wince but he wasn't very successful. "I'm sorry, Mum. This is something I have to do for myself. I can't live off of you two anymore."

He called his luggage from upstairs. It appeared in a shimmering of blue lights. He vowed that that would be the last spell he ever used. Reaching into his coat pocket he pulled out a card. He handed it to Stacy. Louis still had his head in his hands. James had the uncomfortable feeling that the man was crying.

James didn't let his unease show on his face as he said to her, "I don't know my new address so if you'd like to send a letter, use the one on the card. It's where I'll be working. I'll call to tell you my number when I get a phone line hooked up. Don't worry about me, please. I'll manage somehow." He turned around, grabbed his luggage, and left out the front door. He couldn't look back. He didn't want to see his parent's expressions when they saw the title of his new job.

He was pulled out of his reverie by a voice from the kitchen. "So what's the name of this agency again?"

"Kontroll Inc. It's supposed to be one of the best modeling agencies in town."

"That's right," Bri said, coming back in the room with a tray of coffee, milk and sugar. "I forgot. It's run by a man named… Something Dove, right? That place is kinda creepy."

"How so?" he asked while pouring some cream into both of their cups. "Everyone's very nice there."

"That is what is so creepy," she replied immediately. "This is Los Angeles. They should be dipping your hair in ink and calling you funny names."

"So in your world my coworkers should be five years old?"

"Enough of that. What happened with Lou and Stacy?"

He sighed. James really didn't want to tell her what he had done. Louis never exactly approved of his friendship with Bri, but they hadn't been hard enemies either. Bri and his mother had always gotten along. So in the end he decided he might as well take a leap and tell her the truth.

"I should tell you, it wasn't a sucker punch, Bri. As I'm sure you can guess, I started out by telling them that I was quitting magic for good…" He told her the entire thing, not leaving out any details. As he spoke her eyes got wider and wider.

"Holy shit," she said softly.

"Exactly."

"You really deserved that punch."

"I beg your-"

He was interrupted by Brianna's cell-phone making a disturbing sound as it vibrated against the side table's marble surface.

"Hello?" she answered, harsher than she wanted to.

A moment later James saw her gasp and cover her mouth. "Of course, sir. I'm terribly sorry." She glanced up at James who raised his eyebrow in question. She held her finger up in response. "One moment, sir." She covered the phone before continuing. "I need to use your bathroom. Thanks." And before he could say anything, she was gone.

James blinked after but sighed and shook his head. That's Brianna for you. He thought picking up the black folder from the coffee table. The contents were his portfolio he had made for his interview the other day. It was woefully thin, but his manager, Candi, assured that with his "ga-ga inducing pretty face" he could have it filled in no time.

Suddenly, without warning, an ear piercing scream could be heard from his Asian inspired bathroom. He was about to jumpo up and charge to the rescue but Bri zoomed into the room, jumped in his arms and kissed him fully on the lips.

"Guess who just called me!" She shouted.

James couldn't reply. He was trying very hard not to spit the taste of coffee and ciggaretts out of his mouth. He did cough a couple of times before managing to reply. "I thought you quit!"

"Stop changing the subject! Guess who just called me."

"I didn't realize that was one of our topics on the list for discussion," he said while trying to dislodge her from his person, but her legs were wrapped too tightly. Finally he gave in and sat carefully on the couch, with her on his lap. "All right. Mercy. Who called you, my dear?"

"Oh, come on, Jamie! It's no fun if you don't guess."

"Yet somehow, I think you can live with the disappointment of boredom. Just tell me, Brianna."

"That was Al," was her simple answer. She was grinning again. Not good.

James decided to play along. "Al who? And what did Al want."

"Al as in the Albus Dumbledoor, the Headmaster of Hogwarts." She paused looking impish. "Al, my new boss! The nice man who signs my paycheck. He just called and asked me to be the new DADA teacher!" She seemed pleased.

"The new dah-dah… what?"

Bri smacked him soundly on the back of his head. "Defense Against the Dark Arts. D-A-D-A." she said slowly. "I'm going to be a professor!"

For a moment, James was stunned. "You? Why you?"

"Aw, Jamie, I love you too."

"No, I mean, I thought you hated teaching young kids."

She bounced off his lap to slide back into her chair. "I do, but we both know I can't get a job at a university anymore."

He didn't know what to say. Think, James, think. Ah, yes! "Isn't that where Aunt Minnie teaches?"

"Yeah…" she trailed off, averting her eyes.

She wouldn't. "You didn't tell her, did you?"

"Well, you know how she is," she practically shouted, folding her arms. "She would never let me work there if she knew."

"Your aunt is not that cruel, Brianna. You don't give her enough credit. She really cares for you."

"Yeah, right," she replied venomously. "You ever heard the story of the scorpion and the tortoise?"

"Stop exaggerating, Bri. She's your family."

"Oh, look who's talking. You didn't even care enough about yours to give them a proper farewell." The instant the words came out of her lips, she clasped her hands firmly to her mouth. She was obviously horrified with herself. "Oh, James, I'm sorry I didn't mea-

"Yes, you did," he said with a slight smile. He gently removed her hands from her mouth and held them. "It's alright."

"No," she said as he stood up. "It's never alright. Zero to bitch in 2.3 seconds. I-"

"I have a meeting with my ner manager in a few hours. I better get ready." He tugged her to her feet.

"But-" James gave her a peck on the lips to stop her from talking.

"I really do need to prepare. Go home. Give David a kiss for me."

Before she could protest anymore, James had led her to the door, handed her her crimson purse and gave her another kiss on the cheek. "Congratulations, love."

He closed the door. He did not move until he eventually heard her walking towards the elevator. With a sigh, he collapsed against the door's faux-wooden frame.

"She really didn't mean to be cruel, James," he said softly to himself.

That doesn't make it hurt any less, replied a small voice in the back of his head.

He pushed himself from the door and snapped, "Shut up." He really could do with that shower.

A/N Yes, yes, two new characters! There's really a point to them, I promise. I originally had them in the eighth chapter, but, thanks to some advice from several reviewers, I put them in sooner.

I cannot, for the life of me remember where Mungo's is. If someone knows, please tell me.

As always, please review, or else I won't feel like writing at all. Enjoy!