AN: As always, thank you for the reviews:) And for the many who read:) This chapter has an odd break in the middle, which I apologize for. Nonetheless, Fifth year is ending for Holly.


She didn't come to consciousness in a disoriented sense. She didn't roll over and groan, slowly blinking until her vision cleared. Instead, Holly sat straight up with a sharp gasp and terror in her heart. The last thing she remembered seeing was Snape's throat slit wide open and Dumbledore's blue eyes, focused and wise. Her hands groped around the bed for her wand, but she came up empty. Her neck was swinging every direction before she realized she was in the Infirmary at Hogwarts. Adrenaline was pumping through her veins like hot lava as she jerked her head up when she caught the sound of footsteps.

She wasn't surprised to see Albus Dumbledore calmly standing right at the foot of her bed. His eyes were solemn. They certainly weren't dancing with amusement and secrets like usual. His silver beard was neatly combed and held together with a thin golden chain. His half-moon spectacles sat perched atop his crooked nose and he was wearing silk robes in his signature midnight purple color. Holly didn't know much about anything, but she was absolutely certain that nobody could make such clothes look as dignified as Dumbledore did.

Her throat felt dry as she croaked, "Voldemort disappeared."

It was a statement, not a question, and she felt relief that Dumbledore understood her. He nodded and gravely replied, "He left, but I am afraid he will be angrier than ever before. You must understand, Holly, that you beat him at his own game for the fifth time. He attempted to possess your soul…and you cast him out."

She shook her head and murmured, "I don't know how I did it."

Dumbledore's lips pulled up in a smile, but he didn't look happy at all. He looked as if he was in mourning as he explained, "Not even I know why you were Chosen to defeat the Dark Lord, Holly. We could drive ourselves mad in attempts of asking 'why me?' What I do know is that you have shown bravery and integrity beyond measure. Voldemort knows nothing of these traits. He doesn't know why a person would die for another. He proved just that when he was speaking last night. He ridiculed you for being loyal, for running to the aid of those you care for. Acts of love confuse him because he knows not how to love."

"I told him that." Holly realized with astonishment, "He was inside of me. He was in my head and I could feel him. I told him that he didn't know love. That he didn't know what was worth fighting for."

She looked up, met his eyes, and said, "I told him that he will never win."

Dumbledore stared at her for a long moment before he whispered, "Let us ensure that he never does. I have complete faith that we will all prevail with your help."

"But why am I so important when it comes to Voldemort?" Holly asked in frustrated exasperation, "He broke the protective magic my mother gave me in her death. He used me to resurrect himself back to power, so why am I still important?"

Dumbledore held up a hand and replied, "I will tell you, despite so many who wish me not to. I do this because these are dark and dangerous times. You are in peril and your life is constantly in danger. I will not be the one to keep valuable information from you. Information that could save you."

Seconds ticked by in silence before he slowly explained, "The Minister of Magic held a Prophecy of Voldemort's downfall. It was made by your Divinations teacher, whom I hired sixteen years ago to teach at Hogwarts. You already know that the Prophecy told of a girl born at the end of June that will defeat him…because I told you of this last year. What you, nor Voldemort knows, is that there is more to the contents of the Prophecy."

Dumbledore sat on the edge of Holly's hospital bed and sighed before saying, "I was the only person in the room when Professor Trelawney gave this prediction. Later, after the Prophecy was recorded and put into a device, it was stored where all Prophecies are stored."

Holly interrupted, "At the Ministry of Magic?"

He nodded before continuing, "Yes. Both unfortunate and fortunate, the only person allowed to touch the device and hear the Prophecy are the people within the Prophecy. Voldemort has spent the majority of the year in attempt to sneak into the Ministry without alerting our world to his presence. I have been keeping close tabs on him through various…allies of mine that are also working for Voldemort. That was how I knew he was going to attempt taking the Prophecy himself."

Holly asked, "So you and everyone else went to stop him? What else was in the Prophecy? You said it holds additional information."

Dumbledore nodded and said, "I went to prevent him from hearing the Prophecy. Professor Trelawney's Prophecy stated that a young girl would have powers that Voldemort would not. It also stated that neither may live while the other is alive."

Holly swallowed heavily and didn't give time to fear for herself. Her voice was hoarse as she asked, "Did Voldemort hear the Prophecy?"

"No," Dumbledore answered, "It was destroyed by me and Alastor Moody."

"Is that why it took you so long to show up to the fight?"

"Yes. Of course, it was difficult to leave those I care for at the hands of Death Eaters, but they were all well aware of the importance of that Prophecy."

"So what was the point in Voldemort needing to hear it?"

He explained, "You have managed to do what no other has ever accomplished. You rendered Voldemort powerless when you were an infant. You have evaded death by his hands on numerous occasions. After he restored his powers last year, he assumed he would finally kill you. After a spectacular escape from you, Voldemort was furious beyond measure. Now, you have evaded him yet again. You used his own mind tricks against him."

Blue eyes met bright green as he quietly said, "Voldemort needed to hear that Prophecy in hopes of discovering how to destroy you, Holly."

The seconds ticked by before Holly cleared her throat and abruptly changed the subject. She asked, "Where were Mr. and Mrs. Weasley? Why weren't they at the Ministry of Magic last night?"

"Because," Dumbledore replied, "They were searching for you. Professor Flitwick sent out a distress call by Patronus charm. He couldn't find you and several students saw you running in the direction of my office. Professor Flitwick knew that you had somehow figured out what was happening."

Holly shook her head and strongly stated, "I couldn't stand aside and do nothing. Snape was there. Sirius and Remus and everyone who I couldn't let die."

Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling now as he said, "There are many teachers here who are members of what is called the Order of the Phoenix. They are those who are as brave as you are and are willing to fight for the good of the wizarding world. It was those people who aided me last night."

"Professor McGonagall, Professor Flitwick, Moody…" Holly's mind was racing as she listed, "Sirius, Remus, that pink-haired girl…"

Dumbledore gave a small smile and said, "She likes to be called Tonks."

Holly blinked and whispered, "Is Snape a part of the Order of the Phoenix?"

Dumbledore nodded and thoughtfully replied, "Yes. I daresay that he is my most loyal friend, although he would be extremely annoyed if he knew I said that."

Her heart was pumping quickly in her chest as she asked, "Why didn't he leave last night? When you gave a signal to everyone else and they Apparated away…"

Dumbledore gave a kind smile and said, "Some would say he was too weak from being touched by the Torturing curse. I say he wished to offer you any protection he could, even if it meant his death."

Holly's voice was filled with wonder as she quietly said, "Snape knew I couldn't Apparate. He knew I would struggle against anyone who would have tried removing me from the room. He knew I would want to stay with you. To fight. That's why he stayed."

Neither spoke as this profound discovery weaved its way through Holly's heart and gave her sweet hope. She wrapped her arms around her middle and hugged herself before finally asking, "Why did Voldemort call Snape a traitor?"

Dumbledore looked at her for an unknown amount of time, but it surely felt like forever. She had no idea what he was trying so hard to find on her face, but he must have found it. He finally said, "A very long time ago, Severus thought he belonged in the Darkness, but he paid gravely for being there and eventually found purpose in the Light. Voldemort didn't realize he had lost a valuable person until last night. Now, he will want his vengeance on his follower."

Holly jumped off of her bed and exclaimed fiercely, "No! It won't happen. I won't let Voldemort touch Snape!"

Dumbledore looked at her thoughtfully before asking, "Does it not bother you that Snape was once Voldemort's follower? A Death Eater in Voldemort's inner circle?"

"No," Holly retorted in defense. She wasn't thinking logically. Her heart was too filled with Snape. She took a deep breath and began to pace before she turned to Dumbledore and spoke in a shaky voice, "People lose their way. People make mistakes. He came to you. You said he's your friend, so how could you judge him for his past?"

He smiled and softly answered, "I don't judge him at all, my child. Indeed, Severus is a good man that the majority of the world doesn't get to see because he doesn't allow them to see. I'm exceptionally happy that you, of all people, can comprehend who he truly is."

She watched as the older wizard stood up and walked toward the doorway. He stopped and said, "Exams are starting tomorrow. In a few days, after the last of your OWLs are completed, you will go back to Privet Drive. The Blood Wards must stay in place as long as they possibly can, although I know it is dreadful to stay with the Dursley family."

Holly huffed as she muttered, "You have no idea, sir."

Dumbledore smiled knowingly and said, "I will have someone collect you halfway through the summer holidays. You will then return to Grimmauld Place for the remainder of the summer."

He paused and his eyes danced with amusement as he added, "Since you were most unfortunate to be burdened with training Dumbledore's Army and participating in so many detentions, I know that left you with little time to study for all your exams…"

She shrugged and mumbled, "Doesn't matter, sir. I found other things more important than tests."

Dumbledore said, "I will allow you to be exempt from one exam of your choosing."

Her eyebrows rose as she repeated, "Exempt?"

He nodded and explained, "Of course, you will eventually have to take whichever exam you choose to bypass. However, I will allow you to have adequate study time once you return to Grimmauld Place before the exam is given."

Holly blinked at the mischievous smile on his face before slowly asking, "Would it be too much to ask if I could have an instructor review classroom material with me while I say at Grimmauld Place?"

Dumbledore nodded and said, "I see no reason why the Minister won't be sympathetic to your need and approve of your thirst for knowledge."

"I think I need additional time for Potions, sir." Holly replied as she tried not to smile, "I have improved my skills, but there are some more complex potions I would definitely like the time to practice on."

Dumbledore nodded as he opened the door. He began to walk out before turning back around and calling out, "Oh, Holly?"

"Yes sir?" She asked.

"Our ability to love is not a weakness. In fact, it is our greatest strength. Love is a powerful magic and it knows no boundaries."

Then he closed the door and walked away with a smile on his face.


Holly's summer holiday was going about as terrible as all the others before this one. She had only been at the Dursley house for four days, yet she was ready to face an angry dragon just to get back to her beloved castle. She would even take the cramped, dark, musty Grimmauld Place over the Dursleys' bright and clean house. She missed Sirius. She hasn't got to see him face-to-face since the battle. She missed Ron and Hermione and wanted to apologize for her distant behavior throughout their last school year. She wanted to explain that she stayed away from them for their own protection because she had felt out of control.

She wanted to listen to Dumbledore speak in riddles as she attempted to solve what he was actually speaking about. She wanted to eat Mrs. Weasley's wonderful food and listen to Mr. Weasley babble about Muggle inventions. But, most of all, she wanted to see Snape. Holly desperately wanted to see him. See the way he walked and watch him sip on a large goblet of wine at the dinner table. She knew the exact shade and shape of his dark eyes. She had spent so much time watching him last year and now she was having withdrawals. She dreamt of him nightly and woke with sorrow in her heart.

It was yet another gray-skied day as Holly did her chores. She raked the leaves and hauled garbage cans to the dump. She trimmed the hedges and mowed the lawn. She polished Aunt Petunia's large pottery vases and watered her flowers. Despite the cloudy day, Holly was sweating by the time she filled buckets of water and dragged them toward the driveway.

She tied her gray t-shirt just beneath her ribcage and felt instant relief when a muggy breeze wafted across her bare stomach. She knew Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia would throw a fit if they saw her exposing her midriff, but she didn't much care. Her temperature was soaring too high for her to care. She felt odd at exposing herself, but she focused on the task at hand and washed Uncle Vernon's perfectly boring SUV to perfection.

She was polishing and buffing the vehicle when she heard the scraping sound of footsteps behind her. She turned quickly and slapped her hand over her leg. Feeling the comfort of her wooden wand, hidden beneath the fabric, calmed her pumping heart. She straightened up and set the bottle of polish on the hood of Uncle Vernon's SUV when she saw a dark-haired boy smiling goofily at her.

He was standing out of arms-reach, so Holly guessed she was safe for the moment. She frowned and asked, "Are you here to see the Dursleys?"

"Who?" The boy asked in a surprisingly deep voice. He seemed to take great effort in tearing his eyes away from her and glancing at the Dursley house before he asked, "What is your name?"

She blinked and said, "Um, I'm Holly Potter."

He gave her another goofy smile and it was pleasantly warm. He greeted her happily, "Hey, Holly. My name is Shawn Vanderbilt."

She nodded and awkwardly replied, "It's nice to meet you."

"You too," He grinned and stated, "That's quite an outfit you're wearing."

She glanced down at her dark denim jeans, boots, and wet shirt tied off at her ribcage. She blushed hotly and mumbled, "It's my working clothes."
He laughed freely as he replied, "I like it. You look good in it."

Holly was stunned. A boy had never told her she looked good in anything before. She mumbled, "Um, thank you."

He gestured toward the car and suggested, "How about I help you finish up with this car, so we can go grab food in town? We could hang out, if you want to."

Holly's eyes widened as she slowly shook her head. Her stomach dropped and irritation filled her up to the brim as she bitterly replied, "My aunt and uncle wouldn't like that at all. I'm sorry, Shawn."

He gave her a careless smile that reminded her a bit of Ron. He shrugged his thin shoulders and flippantly asked, "Why would you obey anybody who wants to keep you from living happily and having fun?"

The smile slowly grew on Holly's face as she gawked in wonder at the tall boy with black hair and innocent brown eyes. She glanced behind her, checking to make sure Aunt Petunia wasn't peeking behind the curtains. She turned back to the boy and eagerly asked, "Can you meet me at the end of Privet Drive after dark?"

Shawn Vanderbilt grinned brilliantly, "Of course."

And so began Holly's first romance. It was certainly forbidden for Holly to sneak out of her bedroom window, but she did so anyway. She stole Uncle Vernon's toolbox directly after washing the car and successfully snuck upstairs with a bolt cutting tool. With considerable effort, she cut two bars off of her window. It was during times when she snuck out of her window that she was thankful for being a slim girl. The hole was small enough that Uncle Vernon wouldn't notice unless he was being overly observant, yet the hole was large enough for Holly's thin body to slip right through.


AN: There will be another one of my favorite chapters coming up next week:) I would appreciate reviews. Thanks. Taytay123456:)