Disclaimer: I do not own Harry or any of the other characters that you are familiar with. If I did, there would be no house rivalries and Draco Malfoy and Harry Potter would be friends.

(IMPORTANT!) A/N: I'm thinking about adding some mild, extremely mild, almost unrecognizable slash to this story. Let me know if you think I should or not, because right now I'm completely undecided. If I do, it will NOT be Harry/Remus.

This chapter is dedicated to steveperrysgirl. Thank you for the awesome review! I can't tell you how great it made me feel! You made my entire day and I luv ya for it!

I got ten reviews for the last chapter, so I got this one out a lot quicker. Reviews motivate me so keep em coming!

Now, without further delay, back to the story! ENJOY!

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Chapter 4

The Plan

The next day, Harry didn't make it down to the great hall until lunch time.

"I see you finally decided to get off your lazy arse and grace us with your presence," Remus teased.

Harry sat down next to the grinning werewolf. "Shut up Moony," he said irritably. "You're the one who kept me up all night talking about the marauders' glory days."

Remus just grinned and stuck his tongue out at him. Harry returned the gesture.

Snape sneered at them. "Between the both of you, you possess the maturity of a new born flobberworm."

Harry and Remus stuck their tongues out of him simultaneously.

"Brats," he growled, returning to his meal.

As they were finishing their meal, Dumbledore got their attention. "Harry, I would like to see you in my office when you're done here. You too Remus, if you're not busy."

They both nodded.

oOoOoOoOo

"Do you know what this is about?" Harry asked as they made their way to Dumbledore's office.

"No idea. Cockroach Clusters."

The gargoyle guarding the entrance moved aside. They climbed the stairs and Remus knocked on the door.

"Come in."

They entered and sat down at Dumbledore's request. "Can I tempt you with a lemon drop? Or perhaps some tea?"

Harry declined both, but Remus accepted the tea.

"What is this about Professor?"

"Harry, I have called you here today to ask you to do something that I dearly wish I didn't have to," he began solemnly, his trademark twinkle missing from his eyes. "But you deserve an explanation first. Please try not to interrupt as that would make this so much more difficult."

Harry nodded. Dumbledore's uncharacteristic seriousness made him very curious.

Dumbledore took a deep breath before he began. "You see Harry, when I sent you that letter inviting you to spend the summer here, my motives were as I said in my letter. But later that same day, I had Professor Trelawney in here to make arrangements for the Divination classes this year. As we were speaking, Sibyll had a vision. She was so shaken up about it that she couldn't speak so I extracted the vision from her mind and placed in my pensieve. It's not worth me showing it to you because the only important scene is about five seconds long."

"What did she see Albus?"

"The scene was on the Hogwarts grounds. It was dark, and both the castle and the grounds were covered in snow and there was a severe blizzard that made it almost impossible to see. There was a loud explosion and suddenly the dark mark appeared in the sky and illuminated the night. The blizzard calmed down a little and I saw the most terrible army that I have ever seen these many years of my life."

Harry was confused because Dumbledore couldn't have meant what he thought he did. "Exactly what are you trying to say sir?"

"I'm saying that Voldemort is planning to wage a massive assault on the castle sometime during the Christmas season," he stated clearly. "From what I could tell, it will be a surprise attack and with the number of followers he had with him, Hogwarts will fall."

"Are you sure about this Albus?"

"Yes Remus, I am positive. He is pulling out all the stops for this one attack. Dementors, Vampires, Dark Elves, Giants, and even some demons. If his attack succeeds, he will be unstoppable. Fear not though; this vision has given me the most vital piece of information that could end this war before it properly begins."

Harry furrowed his brow. "Em...Professor, how is Voldemort attacking the castle a good thing?"

"Ah, your question brings us back to my question for you. Harry, I have to ask you to complete your sixth year course work and pass your exams in each of your classes before the end of the summer."

"What!" both Harry and Remus chorused.

Dumbledore's annoying cheerfulness, that had been absent through most of the conversation, returned tenfold. His eyes were twinkling like crazy when he said, "You heard me, and it's not quite as impossible as you might think. All it takes is an illegal time turner, a lot of hard-work, and very little sleep."

Remus looked as though he had just received a crucial piece of evidence that proved once and for all that the headmaster truly was insane. "Why? What does Harry's school work have to do with Voldemort attacking Hogwarts?"

"My plan is simple. When Voldemort attacks Hogwarts, I want Harry to be ready to face him and beat him."

"If I wasn't convinced that you were insane before, I am now," Remus mumbled.

Dumbledore chuckled. "Your teachers have all been informed and they are all aware of the situation. If you do happen to complete the course work, you will be appointed the position of Advanced Dueling Professor. It is a class that I have developed specifically for this purpose and is only open for fifth years and up. The class will meet three days a week, after dinner. You will have the rest of your schedule free and during this spare time, I will train you in rigorously in preparation for Voldemort.

"I don't know how to tell you this sir, but it's going to take a lot more than a few months of training, no offense to you, to get my magic up to a high enough level to actually defeat Voldemort. I mean if he is bold enough to attack the castle, he must be a lot stronger than he was before," Harry argued.

That damned annoying twinkle remained as the old man replied with a mysterious smile. "My sources do tell me that Voldemort is getting stronger."

"Then how do you expect me to ever beat him?" Harry cried, ready to pull out his hair in frustration.

"You don't give yourself enough credit Harry, but either way your magic is going to be getting a little help; we'll get into that when the time comes. Right now, I need to know if you're willing to do this. You are under no obligation to do this and if you refuse, your mind will be wiped clean of this whole conversation. What is your answer Harry?"

Harry barely had to think about it. The prophesy had been weighing heavily on his mind all summer and if Dumbledore was offering him a chance to end it all before the people he care about could get hurt, then he gladly take it. "I don't exactly understand this plan of yours, but I trust you sir." He took a shaky breath before he continued. "I will do my part sir, no matter what it entails."

At that moment, the two men in the room had never been more proud of him.

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That's all for now FOLKS! Liked it? Loved it? Hated it? Please review and let me know. I can't change anything if I don't have some feedback, so Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseeeeeeeeeee REVIEW!

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The next chapter should be up soon, but lots of reviews will definitely convince me to get it out a lot faster (wink wink!)