A/N: I am truly sorry that I haven`t been able to post this chapter before now, there is an immense amount of research that goes into each and every chapter in order to avoid plotholes. The Harry Potter universe is one of the most complex universes to write fanfiction in, and every time I dive deeper into the ends of the official wiki, I find myself amused by just how deep the universe and the lore actually is. If you have some spare time, I would definitely recommend reading up on some of the curriculum from the History of Magic class. It is very intriguing stuff. But I digress, enjoy the chapter!

The cauldron sizzled and reeked violently of something closely resembling ammonia. The thick substance started bubbling as it hit its boiling point, and the purple flames that burned underneath licked the underside of the iron cauldron as it heated up the contents within. Harry watched in awe as the brown mush slowly took on a floating, grey color that bubbled fiercely.

The potion was, of course, the Invisibility Potion, a strong beverage that would make the taker completely invisible to the naked eye. Only a well-trained wizard would be able to notice the presence of someone who had used it, which was entirely okay, since Harry wasn`t planning on using it in the vicinity of anyone who possessed such abilities. He simply needed it to bypass Argus Filch, the caretaker at Hogwarts, and his bothersome cat.

Harry`s quest for answers had barely begun, but he had already picked up on some quite nifty information. Yesterday, whilst on his way to Herbology class, Harry found himself having an out-of-body experience. It was as if his very being got ripped out of its flesh, and set free to float around in the empty space surrounding his body. His actual individual remained completely still, as if struck by lightning and still fighting the effects of the aftershock.

Whilst in this "spiritual form", if you would, a room on the 7th floor of the castle revealed itself. The curious thing was, Harry didn`t actually see the room itself. He merely felt its presence, a strange shockwave of power coming from the 7th floor. After the out-of-body experience ended (and after a quick visit to Madam Pomfrey to make sure he wasn`t going insane), Harry immediately headed for the library, effectively skipping class. He had to know if such a room actually existed within the castle` walls.

After a long and cumbersome search, he came across a dusty old tome in the Restricted Section of the Hogwarts Library, and it described a room rumored to be located on the 7th floor of the castle. Apparently, the room only revealed itself if the person looking for it was in great need of it. The book called it the "Room of Requirement". Harry had decided that his need for answers would suffice, and hoped that the room would recognize his burning desire to know just exactly what happened that night so many years ago, and why his parents had kept so many aspects regarding the wizarding world hidden from him.

To say that Harry wanted answers was a grave understatement. His entire being surged with the need to know more, to understand, to comprehend. Harry`s abnormally high IQ only contributed to this, as it hungered for more knowledge. His entire life, he had looked up to his parents as the only ones who wouldn`t lie to him, who would always be by his side. Now that he had learnt of their secrets, he wanted nothing more than to expose them, strip them clean of any lies and ask them just what the hell they thought they were doing.

Harry felt his entire body brimming with anticipation of the night ahead, and the discoveries he might make. The question was though; would he like the answers he found? Would his search eventually lead to some grim conclusion that would leave him with few other options but to cut all ties with his parents?

Harry shuddered at the thought of doing something so barbaric, and the cold chill that ran through his body made the hair on his back stand up in protest. There was no way he would have the strength required to do something like that. The love he held for his parents was too strong, it`s grip too firm. But despite all of this, he knew he had to find answers. And nobody was going to give him any answers if he didn`t go looking for them.

Pulling out an empty vial from his pocket, Harry carefully maneuvered it towards the surface of the grey substance. The potion was almost done, and Harry would have to drink it as soon as possible after its completion to obtain maximum effect. Despite its bubbly nature, the substance was cold to touch, and could be drunk straight away. After deliberately filling up the empty vial, Harry pocketed his newly brewed potion, and spent a few minutes cleaning up the mess. Getting rid of evidence was a tricky process, and required utmost attention to detail. Any smudge or trace left behind could be a clue for Mr. Filch and his cat.

Another trip to the library (Harry did spend a lot of time in the library, he was a particularly gifted individual after all, and he had always preferred the company of books over actual human contact) a couple of days ago had brought a spell called "The Vanishing Spell" to his attention. It was a rather complex spell, and required precise wand movements and the phrase "Evanesco" to be uttered in a clear and authoritative tone. The spell fell within the category Transfiguration, and it was apparently one of the most complicated spells taught at Ordinary Wizarding Level of Transfiguration. At first, Harry had been absolutely certain that he wouldn`t be able to do it correctly, and had given it no more thought, but whilst laying in bed that exact day, something had made him remember it, and he had given it a go anyways. After a couple of tries, he found himself able to vanish small objects and stains, something he shouldn`t have been able to do before many years down the line. Every time he thought about performing the spell, it was as if some voice inside of him instructed him with a cold tone on exactly how to do it, and made it happen. It was without a doubt one of the weirdest feelings Harry had ever felt.

"Evanesco," Harry said with a strict and hard voice, doing the correct wand movements with his Holly wand outstretched. The stains and other mess left behind by his potion brewing immediately disappeared, dissolving into oblivion. He put away his wand, took a firm grip around the Invisibility Potion concealed in his pocket and headed out of the Ravenclaw boys' dorm. Time to go hunting for answers.

…

The Ravenclaw common room was, as usual, filled with students sitting around doing homework or other assignments. The "brainy" House of Hogwarts certainly lived up to its reputation, with exceptionally intelligent students diligently doing their tasks. Harry spotted Hermione helping a fellow classmate with his Charms homework, but she appeared to be having a hard time, because the guy she was helping seemed to be more keen on chatting her up than the actual assignment itself. Harry stifled a chuckle as he walked past her, playfully bumping his elbow into her side as to tell her that he had noticed her struggles. She sent him a pleading look, but quickly returned to defusing the rather horrible pickup-lines the guy continuously kept throwing at her.

Harry casually wandered out of the common room, taking a left down the corridor heading towards the Great Hall and the dungeons. In a couple of minutes, Argus Filch would make his way into the Ravenclaw Tower, proclaiming loudly to all of the students that curfew was in effect and, as such, forbidding anyone from wandering around the castle at night. Luckily enough for Harry, he had his Invisibility Potion. Filch wouldn`t be catching him sneaking around tonight.

The castle was eerily quiet at night. The moonlight flooding in through the castle`s windows cast long shadows that stretched far into the hallways. A deafening silence filled the emptiness left in the wake of the several hundred students that were usually there during daytime. It was as if the very castle itself was sleeping, slowly drawing breath every once in a while, causing the entirety of its interior to creak and scrape.

Harry quickly pulled out the vial and unscrewed the cork. The floating, grey liquid emitted a strange smell, something akin to that of early morning rain. He took a deep breath, before chugging down all of the vial`s content in one mouthful. His stomach twisted violently at the appearance of this new substance, before settling down with a barely audible rumble.

Harry felt his entire body starting to transform. His arms and legs felt lighter. It felt like most of his body weight simply disappeared, leaving him with a feeling of being able to sprint for several miles without getting tired. A quick look down told him that he was indeed completely invisible. A bizarre feeling of nausea appeared at the notion of not being able to see his own body, but Harry quickly shrugged it off before heading down the corridor towards the staircase that would lead him to the 7th floor. He had to find this "Room of Requirement".

…

His footsteps sent echoes rumbling through the narrow, twisting corridors of Hogwarts. The feeling of being alone in the dark seemed to intensify with every step he took, but Harry knew that he could not turn back now. If he did, he was certain he would never forgive himself. Despite being exceptionally intelligent for his age, Harry was only twelve years old, and a part of him had always feared what could be hiding in the shadows. He anxiously studied his environment as he slowly made his way towards the staircase. This was going to be a very long night indeed.

After walking for a couple of minutes, Harry encountered an unforeseen complication: the sub-zero temperature. The cold, stone floor certainly didn`t help "warm up" the freezing hallways, and Harry couldn`t help but miss the warmth of his bed in the Ravenclaw dormitory. The temperature, strangely enough, seemed to drop the closer he got to the 7th floor. Such an anomaly could probably just be shrugged off as a normal thing in Hogwarts, it was a school for wizards after all and it hardly followed the normal rules of the universe. But something about it made the hair on Harry`s back stand up, and a cold burst of concern making its way through Harry`s body made him shiver. Maybe he should turn back. The more he thought about it, the sillier it seemed. He didn`t even know if this room existed, let alone where it would be located.

However, as these thoughts started circulating around inside his head, he felt a slight tug towards the staircase. It was barely noticeable, but it was definitely there. Something was telling Harry to walk up the stairs.

"Why is this… entity… helping me?"

"Because you are special, Harry".

The voice made him jump in surprise, the blood freezing to ice in his veins. Who else would spend their evening walking aimlessly around the castle but him? He was too scared to turn around and face the voice, afraid of who or what it might be.

"It`s alright Harry, it`s me, Albus", the voice reassured him in a warm tone. Harry felt his heart slowly starting to beat again in his chest, melting away the ice that had formed inside of him. Albus Dumbledore. The headmaster. He turned around. There was nobody there.

"Wha…"

The curse hit him straight in the back, knocking him off his feet. There was no withstanding the extraordinary strength, and he was pushed forwards. He hit the floor with a painful thud, the sound of his arm breaking clearly audible in the otherwise silent hallway. Pain flooded through his body, washing away any trace of logical thinking. Harry couldn`t speak, couldn`t think, couldn`t breath. The pain was too much to endure. He did the only thing that made sense. He blacked out.

…

The world appeared like a blurred mess as Harry slowly opened his eyes. The unclear shapes and sizes slowly took a more concrete form as his eyes adjusted to the new environment. He was in a white room, which he recognized as the Hospital Wing. Judging by the bright sunlight that flooded through the windows, it was sometime around the morning hours of the day. Someone must have found him unconscious in the hallway, and carried him to the Hospital Wing.

After establishing where he was, Harry went on to inspecting his own body. His arms appeared to be fully functional again, and there was no sign of his arm ever being broken. He knew that Madam Pomfrey was a talented witch, but to have the ability to mend broken bones within a few hours? Extraordinary.

"Ahh, Mr. Potter. You are awake I see," a soft female voice said. Madam Pomfrey came into view a second later, her intense blue eyes locking with his in an acute staring contest. "You really should be more careful, this is the second time in under a week you come to visit my Hospital Wing," she remarked dryly, pulling away to grab a Blood-Replenishing Potion. She handed it to him, indicating that he should drink it.

"Now, as for your injuries, you were hit with a Severing Charm, which made a rather deep cut in your back. I have healed it up to the best of my abilities, but you may experience back pain for some time. As to how you broke your arm, I really have no clue. Maybe you got unlucky and broke it in the fall," she finished, looking down at the notepad she held in one of her hands.

"Umm, excuse me for asking, Madam Pomfrey, but is the Severing Charm a particularly powerful charm? Could it knock a person off his feet?" Harry asked with a surprisingly sore throat. Madam Pomfrey seemed to ponder over this for a second, before slowly shaking her head.

"No, Mr. Potter, the Severing Charm only cuts things, it doesn`t knock them off-balance".

What? How come I was pushed that far into the hallway then? There was no withstanding the amount of power that hit me in the back, that I am sure of.

"You look bewildered, Mr. Potter, is something amiss?"

"Forgive me, Madam Pomfrey, but when I was… attacked… I am pretty sure I wasn`t hit with a Severing Charm. The power of the spell knocked me off my feet, causing me to break my arm in the fall. If the charm works as you described, it can`t have been the Severing Charm that hit me."

Madam Pomfrey raised her eyebrows in surprise and cocked her head ever so slightly to the right. The confusion in her eyes was obvious, and Harry could practically hear her mind racing to find an answer to exactly what type of spell might have hit him, if it wasn`t the Severing Charm. She was interrupted by the door to the Hospital Wing flying open, and in came Professor McGonagall.

"Mr. Potter? Professor Dumbledore would like to have a word with you," she stated with her typical stern voice. Harry had grown rather accustomed to it by now, despite his relatively short stay on Hogwarts so far. Her Scottish accent was rather apparent, and it was, in a strange way, somewhat charming.

Harry let out a shaky sigh, before slowly getting up out of bed. He was immediately met with a sudden head rush, and had to sit back down again. Madam Pomfrey indicated yet again to the Blood-Replenishing Potion resting calmly at the side of his bed. Harry sighed again, this time in defeat, and picked it up. Its rather thick texture and god-awful taste made him retch, but he forced it down anyway. Madam Pomfrey sent him a warm smile as he handed her the empty vial.

"It seems I have you to thank for my swift recovery. Thank you, Madam Pomfrey," he mumbled awkwardly, staring at the ground. Madam Pomfrey let out a weak sigh, before slowly lifting his head back up to face her.

"I`m only doing my job, Mr. Potter, you don`t have to thank me. Now off you go, you better not keep the Headmaster waiting," she answered. Harry nodded in agreement, and rose to his feet. Professor McGonagall waited patiently for him to cross the room and join her on his way to the Headmaster`s office.

"This is the second time this week you have ended up in the Hospital Wing, Mr. Potter. This time, you injuries were a lot more serious than last. I do not know what it is you kids do in your spare time these days, but I better not see you in here again for a while!" she stated sternly, locking him with a hard stare. Harry could do nothing but nod as he felt his face slowly starting to heat up. He had been careless. An Invisibility Potion? In a school full of wizards? How could he possibly have imagined that nobody would notice his presence?

He would have to be a lot more careful in the future. Now that he knew that someone in the school was willing to assault him, he had to watch his back.

"This sure isn`t going easy," he muttered silently to himself.

…

This chapter was noticeably longer than my usual ones. I hope you appreciate that. The majority of my chapters are written in class (what, I can get bored too, believe it or not) but I`m fairly certain that it doesn`t affect the overall quality of the chapters themselves. If you enjoyed the read, please do leave a review, as they help me improve as a writer, and will ultimately improve the reading experience. Other than that, I am super hungry, and I will see you guys in the next chapter!

-Twisted