Chapter 7
"Oh, Beelzebub," Harry mumbled sleepily, taking the letter off the vulture's foot. Seeing that Snape, McGonagall, and Pomfrey were looking at him interestedly, he proceeded to read the letter aloud.
Harry,
Thanks to you and Severus for your valuable help.
Tell the old fool that you had a vision about me telling Lucius Malfoy that there was only one way for you to kill me completely without having to get rid of the Horcuxes, which I created over the time, first. I even mentioned the spell you'd have to cast, which would be through an incantation in Parseltongue. When I kidnapped you on your shopping trip with Professor Snape in Hogsmeade, you remembered that spell and efficiently used it on me, killing me and completely vanishing my body and soul with it.
Since the old fool will definitely use Legilimency on you, I'm going to send you a fake vision as soon as Beelzebub returns to me, knowing that you'll have read this letter by then.
You'll probably receive the Order of Merlin for your deed. Have fun with it.
I'll inform you about my further plans in a few days' time. I'll need to plan the details first.
Tom
Harry groaned as he set the letter aside. "I hate these visions."
Snape stood up and fetched a pain relieving potion. "Here Harry, drink this in advance," he instructed the boy, who gratefully gulped down the potion and lay back on the sofa to await what was going to happen. He had nearly drifted back to sleep when all of a sudden his scar began to burn and he felt himself being pulled into a vision. Several minutes and two fake visions later, Harry allowed Snape to use Legilimency in order to witness the kidnapping part of the story, in which he was involved as well.
"That was very thoughtful of Tom," Snape said as he pulled off. "He sent the vision of his demise twice, once from Harry's point of view and once from mine."
"I hadn't thought that Voldemort was so considerate," McGonagall replied dryly, smiling at her younger colleague.
"All right, we have to inform the Headmaster," Severus finally stated, rising from the edge of the sofa.
"Then you must call him here. Harry is not going anywhere," Pomfrey replied firmly, throwing the Potions Master a look, which told him to obey.
He stepped to the fireplace, trying to give his voice a slight touch of relief. "Albus, you're needed in my quarters. Please bring your Pensieve."
Two minutes later, the Headmaster stepped out of the fireplace, looking at the assembled members in surprise as he put the Pensieve on the table.
"Harry, do you know how to put something into a Pensieve?" Severus asked gently. "The memory from the vision will do though. I can share my memory of the attack."
Harry nodded, and two minutes later, a small silvery strand made its way into the Pensieve, followed by another one from Snape's wand, and the four adults dove into the Pensieve to watch the memories.
"Harry, you fulfilled the prophecy," Dumbledore said in complete amazement after observing the demise of his greatest enemy. "Congratulations, my boy. I'll inform the Aurors and the Minister." With that, he stood up and headed back to the fireplace.
"Professor," Harry called him back. "Please don't tell them my name. I don't want more attention. Otherwise, I'll be gone, and you won't see me again."
"Ah, my boy, but where would you go?" the Headmaster asked gently, and Harry watched as his eyes were twinkling merrily. "I'm sure you'll receive the Order of Merlin for your deed."
"Let me surprise you," Harry growled, throwing his guardian a pleading look.
"Albus, you better take Mr. Potter's warning seriously," Snape voiced his concern, but Dumbledore was already gone.
Harry grabbed a parchment and the quill that was still on the table and scribbled a note.
Hello Tom,
I'm sorry, but now I need your help (probably). Do you have a fireplace connected to the Floo Network, which I could use to floo to your place? I might need to hide from the Headmaster.
Please help me and answer quickly
Harry
Putting down the quill, Harry handed the parchment to Severus, who called Dobby and asked him to take the letter to Tom Riddle, the former Dark Lord.
"Yes, Master Professor Snape," Dobby replied, frightened.
"Dobby, don't worry; he won't do anything to you, but I need his help, and I need it quickly. Err... Dobby, maybe I need to hide from Dumbledore; would you go with me in that case?"
The small elf bowed deeply. "Of course, Master Harry. Dobby wills always goes with Master Harry, sir."
"Thank you, Dobby," Harry replied warmly, and the elf popped away.
"Harry, don't do anything stupid," McGonagall spoke up in concern, throwing the boy a worried look.
"Professor, I promise that whatever I do, I'll always inform the three of you," Harry said sincerely. "I won't give up my schooling either. I'll find a way to hide from Dumbledore without throwing my life away. But I can't stand any more fussing than I already had to endure so far, especially since this time I didn't even do anything to earn it."
"We will always try to help you, Harry," the Deputy Headmistress promised.
All of a sudden, the fireplace flared, and Tom's head appeared in the flames. Snape quickly told Tom what had happened, explaining that McGonagall and Pomfrey were the only people knowing the truth and that Harry wanted to hide from Dumbledore.
"Of course, Harry can come here," Tom replied.
"I'll come over tomorrow morning to discuss how to proceed further," Severus announced.
"Mr. Riddle, Harry is ill and not allowed to run around or do magic," Pomfrey threw in sternly.
"All right, I'll keep an eye on him," Tom promised.
Harry hesitantly walked over to the fireplace. "Tom, do you mind if I bring my free house elf, Dobby?"
"Of course not; I don't have any elves," Tom replied, stepping away from the fireplace to give Harry space to floo over.
Harry quickly called Dobby and asked him to bring his trunk and his school bag with him, before he stepped into the fireplace.
HP HEALER POMFREY HP
Harry found himself in a very dark living room with huge bookshelves covering all four walls. Not exactly sure what to say to Tom, he was relieved when Dobby appeared with a 'pop.' He introduced him to Tom, who eyed the elf curiously.
"We know each other, don't we? You were the elf of the Malfoys, weren't you?"
"Yes, but Master Harry freed me, and now I is a free elf, but still I belongs to Master Harry, sir."
"Well, you could head up to the second floor and prepare a room for your master, Dobby. All the rooms except for the Master bedroom are free," Tom advised Dobby in a relatively friendly voice, before he turned to Harry. "So you want to hide from the old fool, because he wants the magical world to adore you even more?"
"Yes. I'm sorry, but coming to you seemed to be the only option at the moment," Harry apologized, averting his eyes to the floor, noticing that the carpet held a small pattern of different non magical herbs.
Tom remained pensive for a few minutes, before he spoke up. "All right, I know what we're going to do. However, it will take a bit of time, and we need Severus to help us."
tbc...
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I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them.
All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.
