A/N: Hello, people! Thank you for the good responses for the first chapter!
I don't own Harry Potter.
I have no beta.
ENJOY! The name of the story was inspired by Christina Perri's song, 'The Lonely'. Check it out.
Harry rolled to the side, falling off whatever he was laying on. He scrambled to his feet and looked around, wondering faintly why he was in a train station that was covered in white and not dead. Or at least, he thought he wasn't.
"You aren't."
Jerking, he spun around to face the strange black cloaked figure with the face of a skeleton.
"Who are you and what do you want? Where am I?" he demanded, glaring.
The person?- snorted. "This is Limbo, Harry James Potter. You have not been killed, not really."
"Why the hell aren't I dead? And who the bloody hell are you anyway?!" Harry hissed.
"I am Death. Some call me the Grim Reaper. You have been on my list for many years, because you evaded me so many years ago. And to see you walking around with my cloak, using it to the best of your ability…"
He was Death. As in, Death himself?
"Why are you here and what about a cloak?"
Death's head turned to the side, at a very unnatural angle. Harry could see the vertebrae in his spine and shivered in disgust.
"You've been marked. By me and another. The scar upon your brow is the joint mark of me and another person."
"Who?"
Death raised a finger and crooked it three times.
Harry followed slightly and was reminded of a muggle movie called A Christmas Carol. Where the creepy cloaked figure takes the greedy old man to the future and makes him see what will become of him.
With that skeletal finger pointing downward, underneath a bench, he looked.
It was a child. Or a body of a child. It looked emaciated, deformed and overall, gross.
"Who is that?" he asked.
"You know him by the name, Lord Voldemort. On that night, many years ago, a part of his soul detached itself from his body and latched itself into your scar. The scar I had created when his killing curse failed. That is the piece of his soul. When you survived, I marked you as mine. Meaning you cannot be killed unless I allow it. So when your body died, that piece of Voldemort's soul, which had been clinging to you for sustenance, was killed instead. And now here he lays. This is not all of him though. The reason I marked you, is because I have job for you to do and it involves the real Voldemort."
Harry gaped in horror, "Are you saying that I can't die? At all?"
"Correct. The reason I chose you, was because you somehow, lived. I can take a life at any moment, but Voldemort has made it a bit harder for me to do so for him. There is a bit of Dark Magic that requires the taking of a life. By doing so, you can seal a piece of your soul into an object in order to remain earth bound and become, in a sense, immortal. Voldemort has split his soul six times willingly. You were the accidental seventh. I marked you as mine so that you can go and find these pieces for me and destroy them. Once you do that, I can kill the fool easily.
My power reigns over life and death. I do not have the power to destroy these objects that hold his soul, but you do. As my marked one, you will be given similar powers to my own and your magic will come a lot easier for you to wield. Since you do not know the spell that can destroy these artifacts, you can either use a Basilisk fang or the Sword of Gryffindor. The sword absorbed the venom of the Basilisk when you killed it, making it impervious to the venom and therefore giving it the power to destroy these items. You will do this."
"Why me?! Why the hell is it always me? I just wanted to die! I want no part in dealing with that bastard and yet I have to?! What the hell?"
Death sighed. "There are currently, four people within Hogwarts you can trust. Who are actually on your side no matter what. That little blonde girl who interrupted your talk with the Diggory boy. Her name is Luna Lovegood, she is a Seer and a Ravenclaw. She is also an outcast like you, but only because she's different and doesn't try to be something she isn't.
Then there is the Diggory boy, who genuinely likes you and feels for you.
Severus Snape is another. Yes, you are completely skeptical, but tis true. He was once good friends with your mother and cared very deeply for her. As a result, he has sworn to protect you to the best of his ability. It may not seem that way to you, but he has saved your life countless times. He was once a Death Eater, but his love for your mother changed his views. He no longer believes in what Voldemort fights for. He hasn't since the day you were born. But he is a spy and as a spy for both sides, working for Dumbledore and Voldemort, he has to keep up an appearance by letting everyone think he hates you. He is kept from suspicion and can protect you better so long as everyone believes what he wants them to believe.
I am Death, I know everything, do not argue with me. The final person you can trust completely, is Rubeus Hagrid and for reasons you obviously know. He did not tell you about the dragons because of the Weasley boy, it was all him. He was just trying to get your friendship back together. Do not trust anyone else from Gryffindor. The twins may try to get on your good side once more. They may succeed in proving themselves. We'll see in the future. Other than that, you cannot even trust your Headmaster, because the man knew about Voldemort's soul pieces and knew you would have to die one day in order to kill Voldemort fully. He did not tell you and was never going to. I know this is hard for you, but it is the truth."
Snape was on that list. Snape? The dungeon bat, the greasy git and overall hater of Harry Potter, was someone he could trust?
"Yes."
"Stop doing that!" he yelled.
"The faster you come to grips with this, the sooner you can get back to the Living World and shock everyone. You will have to continue your schooling, but you will be able to hunt for the soul pieces during that time. I know where they are. During this time, you will have my powers. Teleportation, telepathy, healing, the ability to take a life or give it back and invisibility. However, you possess my Invisibility Cloak, so you wouldn't really need that ability."
"You're Invisibility Cloak?" Harry asked, incredulously.
"Yes. You do not know the story. Years ago, I met three brothers. One was your ancestor. They had evaded me by using their magic, so I decided to play a little game with them. I granted them each a wish of sorts. The eldest asked for the most powerful wand ever and I gave it to him. He died a few days later when someone stole it from him and slit his throat while he slept. The second brother asked to be able to recall the dead from the grave, so I gave him a magical stone that would do just that. He killed himself when the power didn't work the exact way he wanted, and his dead love was unhappy to be with him. The last brother, who was very smart, asked for something that would allow him to live his life, free from my watchful eyes. So, I gave him a piece of my cloak. When the time came, he finally revealed himself, gave the cloak to his son and greeted me as if we were friends. For his intelligence and honesty, I decided to take him to the Afterlife. Not just his soul, all of him. He is the only person to have not truly died and was able to move on. A reward, for being humble and not trying to humiliate me by rubbing it in my face that he had evaded death, like his brothers did. From this man, came your family, the Potters. And the cloak, has been passed down ever since."
This was all too much. He was in possession of Death's cloak? He was unable to die? He was going to be able to read people's minds. Actually that last part didn't seem so bad.
However, he did not want to live still. He had wanted to meet his parents and now he couldn't. Great.
"It isn't as bad as you think. Now with that soul piece taking your magic and life force is gone, you will be able to control your magic easier, whereas before, you had struggled. And then comes the extra abilities that you can't complain about. Besides, your parents wouldn't have wanted you to give up. Get back up and prove everyone wrong. Become something better and when they grovel at your feet begging for forgiveness, leave them hanging. You can always talk to me if you are unsure of someone. I know everything."
"So if I do this, will you finally let me die?" Harry asked.
"Sure. But by the time that happens, you may not want to die at all. Things can change. The Weasley's minus Percival, Ronald and Ginevra are good people. The twins weren't necessarily ignoring you, they were busy with other things. But they feel guilty anyway and will insist that they make it up to you. Milk it for all your worth, I suggest. You may get some interesting things out of it."
"If you were human, you would totally be a Slytherin."
"So are you. You are not a Gryffindor, no matter how much you wanted to be one. And why would you want to be connected to an entire lot of backstabbers? They aren't worth your time."
Harry sat on the bench. "When do I have to start destroying these things?"
"You already destroyed one. The diary held a soul piece and then the one that was inside you, is gone as well. Finally, you have Slytherin's Locket, Hufflepuff's cup, Ravenclaw's diadem, the Gaunt ring and Voldemort's familiar Nagini. You've seen her in your dreams. This summer you will get the Gaunt ring. It is very imperative that you do not destroy the stone itself. Remember that I told you the second brother asked for the ability to recall the dead and I gave him a stone?"
Harry nodded.
"Well, the Gaunt family came from that brother. So it was placed in the ring. Remove the stone before destroying the ring. I warn you now, Voldemort's mother was Merope Gaunt. The Gaunts were the last family to have descendents from the Slytherin line, which had married into it early on. They were Parselmouths. So, it only seemed appropriate for Tom Riddle to make the ring the container for his soul piece. Speaking of Parseltongue, usually, you would have lost the ability to speak to snakes when the soul piece inside you was killed, but I let you keep it, because I know you secretly like talking to snakes. Also, the Gaunt ring is protected by a curse that can only be solved by a Parselmouth. So, it would just be easier for you to continue to speak with serpents."
To have someone you don't know, telling you things about yourself, is a very creepy situation. And the whole mind reading thing was really annoying too.
"Really?"
"Alright, you seriously need to stop doing that!"
Death gave a snicker, but said no more.
"Okay, so, how long have I been here. I mean, is this all real, or is it just happening in my head?"
"Of course it's happening inside your head, silly boy! But why should that mean that it isn't real?"
Harry stuck his tongue out. "When do I have to go back? I want to get this over with."
"Now. The first container you will find is in the Room of Requirement. On the seventh floor, there is a tapestry of trolls dancing ballet. Opposite to that, is a large open space on the wall. Walk by it three times and think about entering the Room of Requirement and a door will appear. Inside, you will look for Ravenclaw's diadem. It may take a while, but you'll find it. Also, if you walk by it three times, thinking of any specific room you need, it will become what you want. Just a tip for the future. Now, goodbye. If you wish to talk, all you have to do is think of me."
A train suddenly materialized beside them and Death grabbed Harry by the scruff of the collar and shoved him inside it.
The whistle blew and there was a rushing feeling before Harry jerked upward, eyes opening to see the white of the Hospital Wing.
Looking down, he could see the large hole in his chest, closing up.
Pulling his robes and jumper aside, he could see the hole growing skin and veins and blood vessels. His organs were growing new parts and overall, the entire process looked disgusting, which determined that he would never want anything to do with medics.
He stood from the bed and waved off the stasis charm that had been placed on his body.
He had to make a statement.
After fully removing his jumper, he left the Wing, wanting to get this over with.
Albus Dumbledore regarded the student body with steely eyes. Never in all his life, would he have expected this sort of thing from the whole school!
"I am particularly disappointed in you all. Though some are not as responsible as others. We stated very clearly, that Mr. Potter did not enter his name into the Goblet of Fire. There was no possible way for him to do it. And yet, what happens? You all turned on him. Even his own House. Is this what you all are truly like? Because we do not condone that sort of thing here. How is it, that an entire school of children are all a bunch of bullies? Do you like it when people bully you? Do you think it's funny, when your feelings are trashed and you are treated as if you are nothing worth living? Because if you don't like it, why are you doing it to others? What did Mr. Potter ever do to you?"
With a snap of his fingers, every Potter Stinks badge was ripped from the students that were wearing them and cast to the floor before the Head Table.
Another snap of his fingers and they were set aflame.
"I hope you realize, that he let the dragon kill him. I cannot speak Parseltongue, but I understand some of it. And I was able to glean from what I knew, that they were talking about death the entire time. He took a Numbing Draught when he entered the stadium. He was fully prepared to die.
See, some of you were under the impression that he was a spoiled child and you couldn't be further from the truth. I made a mistake thirteen years ago. I placed him in a family of magic hating muggles that treated him horribly because they knew he was magical, but never told him that he was. I had realized my mistake, but I had nowhere else he could go. There was no wizarding family that could be trusted with taking care of him. He has never received fan-mail or gifts. His first gift ever was from Professor Hagrid, who had to literally hand deliver his Hogwarts letter, because his uncle kept burning the ones we sent. They told him that no one would ever want to write to him, so he had no business reading them. And Professor Hagrid gave him a cake for his birthday. The first birthday gift he ever received. The first gift he ever received. The first cake he ever received.
He never said anything. No one really knew the extent of the treatment he received at home. Because he didn't like to complain. Just like he didn't boast that he had fame and fortune. Since when did any of you hear Mr. Potter himself, talk about his money or his fame, to where he was puffing himself up and acting like a snob? Never. Neither have I.
This school is singlehandedly responsible for the death of the Boy-Who-Lived. I hope you enjoy the feeling of knowing that you pushed an orphaned boy who is unwanted by his only living family, to commit suicide. I see a lot of you don't care and it's really sad, that the future of Magical Britain, lies within the hands of a bunch of cold-hearted brats who think a fellow student's death is hilarious."
Before Dumbledore could continue on, the doors of the Great Hall opened and in walked a ghost. Or what many had thought was a ghost, seeing as he just couldn't be alive.
Harry James Potter stood there, shirtless with a large gaping hole showing very clearly through his stomach.
"Uh...hi. It seems, I have this remarkable ability to not die when I'm supposed to."
A/N: Another chapter is finished! I have chosen the pairing! Cedric/Harry. That is it.
How was it? Let me know in a constructive, respectful manner, please?
Check out my other Harry potter stories. Surge de Hydra(SLASH, complete, creature fic) Tom/Harry. It's Okay Now(SLASH, just updated, creature fic) Tom/Harry/Draco. Friend or More?(SLASH, just updated) Tom/Harry. Her Eyes(updated recently, creature fic) femHarry/Snape. Careful What you Wish For(SLASH, in progress) Draco/Harry. What's in a Name?(just updated.) femHarry/Tom. Harry Potter and the Vampire's Ring(just updated, SLASH, creature fic) Severus/Harry.
See ya! :D