Chapter One: Drunken Days After Dangerous Knights

The boy groaned softly as he sat up suddenly his eyes snapping open. He looked around and saw a very large, if oddly decorated room. He was sitting in a large four-poster bed and he felt an odd tingling over his entire body. He turned suddenly when he heard a distinct click. An old man had suddenly entered in the room.

"Hello Harry" The old man spoke softly staring at the confused boy before him. The man seemed to be very wise his body exuding an aura of age and intelligence, similar to old Leather Tomes and dust. Harry's heart panged sadly at the image. That was what Hermione had always smelled like, with her attraction to the old books that Harry could always find for her.

"Hello" Harry's response was cautious and curt. He sat staring at the old man and his mask slipped into place, a mask that Harry hadn't needed to use in a long time. The old man spoke softly and his words brought a look of confusion to the Young Boy's face.

"Harry, what did you do to you do to your scar?" He asked softly. His eyes were kindly but Harry was an expert at reading people and he knew that this man trusted him implicitly but still suspected him of something.

"Scar? What Scar?" He said and the aging headmaster coughed and lost the twinkle in his eye.

"The scar that used to be upon your forehead." He said slowly and Harry reached up touching his forehead gently. He pulled his hand back noting the odd looking appendage. He stood and walked over to the floor length mirror he had noticed earlier. He took one good long look in it and blinked softly.

"Hmmm, I seem to be about 15 again…" He spoke in a strangled voice and then proceeded to faint dead away.

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When the boy awoke he didn't move feeling warmth around his head. He shifted slightly and noted the reaction. The fingers that had been running through his hair paused and he sighed softly and smiled as the scent filled his nose. Old books and dust always calmed his nerves. He began to speak as he lay there.

"Hermione? I had the weirdest Dream." He said softly. "Tom found out about us and then he had been blackmailing you about it. Finally I returned home once and found...found you…dead." He paused for a moment and then continued.

"I killed him...I made him hurt, I ripped him apart and then I took you in my arms and started to walk." He drew a shuddering breath as the hand brushing through his hair stopped. "I carried you till I couldn't walk anymore, and then I just lay beside you till I died." He took a deep breath at this point and reigned in his emotions.

"After that it got weird I saw a long blur of shadow light and colorful energy before I came woke up. I hurt all over especially over my heart. When I opened my eyes all I could see was this intense violet light and then I screamed and then it all went black.

"I woke up and saw this man that had to be at least a thousand years old sitting next to an odd bed I was laying in." He smiled here and laughed slightly before finally noticing the tension in Hermione's legs. He spoke slowly.

"What's wrong Hermione?" He asked Softly as he opened his eyes and blinked suddenly noticing how young Hermione looked. He slipped out of her lap and stepped away suddenly and felt how different his body felt, how weak it was. He stood looking around the room. He noticed the odd look in her eyes. He knew that look she had something that was just out of her grasp, she almost knew it but couldn't quite figure it out fully.

He studied the other occupant of the room and noticed the look that was harbored in the boy's eyes. He didn't like it all that much. He studied the boy from head to foot and decided that he didn't like him. From the jealousy and rage in his eyes to the flaming red hair on his head. The looked around the room and moved quickly out the door leaving the fuming teenager and the younger Hermione in the bedroom.

"This is definitely strange…I wonder if I am in Hell." He commented to no one in particular and then an interesting smell reached his nostrils. "Food" he said simply "And where there is food people generally gather. Maybe one of them can tell me where the hell I am." he walked into the room that the smell was coming from and saw a bunch of children sitting around a table looking down-trodden and a few adults sharing the same expression.

As the noticed him they stood as a group and rapidly approached him. As they approached they began to shout questions and comments en mass.

"Harry! You're okay!" A female voice said. Harry was unsure of the source.

"Don't ever scare us like that!" Another voice, feminine as well said.

"Harry you arse, what were you thinking?" A distinctly masculine voice said.

"Harry Potter If I get my hands on you I am going to strangle you!" Another voice said threateningly.

Harry was getting crowded and starting to back away. He lifted his fist in a defensive pose and continued backing away slowly.

"What the hell is going on? Where the hell am I? And the Million dollar question, who the hell are all of you?" He said in commanding voice that the normally reserved for disciplining his troops. Everyone was stunned speechless as the older man from before suddenly entered the room.

"I can answer those questions, and a few more that you might have if we could all seat ourselves around the table and enjoy Molly's wonderful cooking while we wait." Professor Dumbledore said softly. With confused looks and disturbed looks of concentration everyone seated themselves. Hermione and the red-haired boy included who had entered during the commotion. Harry sat between a tall man with an electric blue eye and a wooden leg, and a black man that had a stance very similar to the men that Harry had served with among Tom's Ranks.

Professor Dumbledore cleared his throat and then began to speak softly. "Last night, I went to Privet Drive because my detection spells went off displaying a total collapse of the wards around Privet Drive. It seemed that a massive Energy Spell was used there it vaporized the house and the grounds as well as all the residents." He said slowly as people began to look at Harry or Dumbledore in Shock. "I arrived to discover that young Harry had seemingly disappeared, or been killed. Before I could organize a search party though Molly contacted me to say that Harry had appeared in the Front Hall with nothing but his Trunk."

At this point Molly blushed bright at the validity of that statement. The explosion had vaporized Harry's clothes and his trunk was the only thing that had survived other than him, which would have been all right if he hadn't unpacked but, as it was he had nothing but school robes in the Trunk, and his supplies, which his relatives forbid him to remove during his stay. He was currently wearing Sirius' old hand me downs which fit all right.

Everyone looked oddly at where Harry was sitting and as Ginny began to speak up. But Professor Dumbledore's raised hand stopped her. "Miss Weasley, allow me to finish up my explanation before you attempt to question me." Dumbledore said wearily.

"Well, as I was saying, Harry seemed to have vanished. I cam back here intent on discovering what had happened to the boy and when I awoke I questioned him. He seemed surprised by his appearance. I can only assume that he tried a high level spell that backfired and caused him to lose his memories as well as destroy Privet Drive." Dumbledore said and continued to look at Harry as everyone turned to look at the boy.

Harry glanced at Professor Dumbledore. "Uh, sir I have memories, lots of them. I remember my parents, and most of my life. I remember up until the day I should have died. I just woke up here and you appeared." Harry said slowly causing everyone to look at him oddly.

Harry blinked softly and then heard a long drawn out sigh from the younger Hermione. "Sir, It could be that something happened to Harry and then the prophecy brought him back to life and pulled another convenient Harry into the body. One that could do the Job or so the muggles say." She said softly and everyone turned to look at her and then to Harry.

"If I might ask, what in the bloody hell are you talking about? I have no idea who this Lord Voldemort is. I also thought that Prophecies were merely mumbo jumbo like witches on broomsticks and the like." He said in a confused voice and everyone continued to stare at him oddly.

Professor Dumbledore sighed and then continued to speak. "I am afraid Young Harry, that magic does exist, and it seems that you must defeat one of the most powerful practitioners of Magic in our world." He seemed genuinely sorry for what had happened. Harry blinked and stared at him slowly.

Harry drew a deep breath looked around at all the expectant faces. "I am sorry I'd like to help you all out but honestly, I don't know how to fight someone with Magic! I can't do anything useful against this Lord Voldemort Fellow." Harry said in a disbelieving tone.

To the casual observer it would seem that Harry had been taking this all too easily. But apparently the situation was a mixture of mild shock, confusion, and realization. Harry had always been able to do weird things when he needed to; he had the ability but had kept it secret out of fear of the things that his previous master might do to him.

Harry was staring down at the table his eyes downcast as he floundered under the attention of all the people who were still looking at him with incredulous glances.

Dumbledore cleared his throat and everyone returned to their attention to him. Harry looked at Ron and Hermione were sitting and instantly understood the situation. The way she looked at him made him regret his earlier actions. Those two were close, very close. Harry blinked and then drew his mask up from where it sat always waiting and turned to the headmaster and spoke his voice causing a few in the room to shiver at the tone.

"Mr. Dumbledore, I would like to hear the contents of this prophecy, verbatim if you can." Harry said simply and the man nodded slowly and began to speak as everyone listened intently.

"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches. Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies. And the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not. And either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives. The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies." Everyone looked at him and Hermione spoke up softly.

"But Professor, if this boy is actually from another dimension with no magic than this prophecy cannot possibly be the mentioned boy." Hermione's words seemed to ring true until they noticed they boy turn to them all.

"Actually I do fall under that criterion." Harry said softly and then stood walking slowly over to a spot where everyone could see him. "I think I should start with the story of my life."

"I was born in 1981 on July 31st." Harry said simply and then glanced at the other occupants of the room and moved back to lean against the wall. "My Parents were James and Lily Potter. I lived with them till I was about four. I am going to start there as that was when my life turned upside down." Harry said simply. With those words the boy began to weave a story that would leave the others in shock at what he had survived in such a place.