The sound of birds chirping outside his window woke Ron up, annoying the hell out of him as he grumbled under his breath as he pushed his blanket off himself. Ron rubbed his eyes tiredly and pulled his bed hangings back, looking at the full boy's dorm, apart from Harry. Ron did a double take and looked back at Harry's bed, where the curtains where drawn back and the bed was made. Ron glanced at the clock Harry always kept on his nightstand, and found it was only a little after six in the morning. Harry never returned back to the dorm after dinner last night, and Ron was worried. Harry was already acting strange, but Ron knew in his gut something was very wrong. Getting up off his bed Ron made for his trunk, he pulled out a pair of Muggle jeans and a red sweater along with his school robes, and dressed hastily and made his way down to the Common Room.
Ron smiled as he walked towards the fireplace, finding Hermione curled up on one of the chairs with a blanket thrown over her and a thick book laying on the ground beside her. He walked over towards her and gently shook her shoulder, watching her stir and felt her hand try to swat him away. As she opened her eyes Hermione jumped a little at the sight of Ron, blushing as she tried to get her hair out of her face.
"Wha's wrong?" Hermione asked through a yawn, covering her mouth.
"This is the second time you've fallen asleep in the Common Room." Ron said with an amused smile.
"I've been studying for an Arithmancy test that's tomorrow." Hermione replied, hauling herself off the chair.
Ron couldn't help but laugh at her disheveled appearance that looked so different from the prim and proper Hermione that could tame everything but her head of curls. Hermione threw a mock glare in his direction as she grabbed her book off the ground and stuffed it in her bag.
"I don't get why you study so hard. You always pay attention in class and take notes, plus you can recite anything you've ever read. Why go over it if you already know it?" Ron questioned, sitting down on the couch.
"Because I could of easily missed something important, and I don't always pay attention in my classes or take notes!" Hermione said, as if defending herself.
"Hey, I never said it was a bad thing." Ron said carefully.
Hermione sighed, grabbing all her hair in her hand and using a hair tie she had around her wrist to pull her hair into a ponytail.
"Sorry for snapping, I've just been moody lately." Hermione said, looking away from Ron as she searched for something in her bag.
"Everything okay?" Ron asked.
"I-It's girl stuff Ron, you wouldn't understand. Plus I'm worried about Harry." She added, a small blush creeping on her cheeks.
Ron ignored the first part she said, not wanting to hear anymore about it for obvious reasons, and nodded his head.
"I'm worried about him too, he never came back from dinner last night." Ron told her, staring out the window, watching the first few snowflakes of the year flurry around in the wind.
"He didn't?! Why didn't you mention it before?" Hermione asked in shock, her head snapping towards Ron.
"I mean I'm still worried, but I figured that he might of fell asleep in the library since he's spending all his damn time there now." Ron said bitterly.
Hermione came over and sat next to him, and put a hand on his shoulder for comfort.
"I know you're mad and want answers from him but so do I. I sent Sirius a letter three days ago telling him what's been going on with Harry, and hopefully he sent Harry a letter or had Tonks talk to him since he won't come to us. But just give him a few more days, something's wrong and I don't believe it's all Harry's fault."
Ron nodded at her words, knowing they were true, but he was still frustrated with the whole situation. In a way he wanted to make up for the ass he had been to Harry during the Tri-Wizard Tournament last year when he believed Harry had entered himself. Shaking his head at the stupid mistake he had made, Ron got up off the couch.
"I should grab my bag before we go to down for breakfast, so we can head right to class." Ron muttered before he started up the stairs to the fifth year boys dormitory.
Hermione watched him go before she headed for her own dorm room, so she could quickly change into something different and that would keep her warm, since the first day of December brought the first snowfall of the year. Putting on a light blue sweater and jeans along with her black school robes Hermione took her hair out of the messy ponytail and brushed it then put a charm on her hair so it wouldn't frizz before putting it back up, not having the time nor patience to do anything else do it. Hermione walked back down the stairs and found Ron waiting for her, and heard the door behind him close.
"Professor Dumbledore wants us to meet him in his office." Ron told her, clutching a piece of paper in his hand.
Looking up in alarm she saw the worry clear as crystal on Ron's face.
"What's wrong? What happened?" Hermione asked.
"It's Harry."
A loud crash somewhere behind the couch he was sleeping on woke Harry up, and he jerked up, making the blanket fly off him, and reached for the wand still in his pocket.
"Relax Harry! It's just me!" Sirius said, holding his hands up as he saw Harry's wand pointed at him.
Harry instantly put his arm down, and put his wand on the table next to the couch and reached for his glasses. As he put them on he found Sirius picking up the few books that he must of dropped.
"Padfoot, you klutz. You're almost as bad as your cousin." A voice said that Harry recognized as Remus, who appeared in the room a moment later.
"You would know, wouldn't you Remus?" Sirius asked, waggling his eyebrows.
Remus was about to retort when he saw Harry sitting up on the couch, and offered him a warm smile as he made his way to the couch.
"Good morning Harry, or should I say good afternoon?" Remus said, glancing down at his watch.
Harry looked over the clock set on the fireplace mantel and found it was a little after eleven thirty in the morning.
"Why did you let me sleep so late?" Harry asked, rubbing his eyes.
"Because you were in desperate need of it. You looked like the walking dead when you came through last night Harry." Sirius replied, sitting next to Remus.
Harry grabbed the blanket off the ground and put back on himself, finding the room chilly even with the fire going.
"You have a bit of a fever, I checked this morning to see if it was still there." Sirius said.
Harry nodded, and a moment later his stomach loudly grumbled, making the two men sitting next to him laugh.
"Kreacher!" Sirius called, and a second later the old house elf appeared in front him.
"Yes, Master?" Kreacher asked, a sour look on his face.
"Would you make Harry a light lunch?" Sirius asked.
"Please," Remus added for him.
Kreacher muttered under his breath low enough that Harry couldn't hear, but a moment later the old elf disappeared with a snap of his fingers.
"What about school?" Harry asked, "My classes for today?"
"Merlin, you were out like a light last night," Sirius said with a chuckle, "I talked to Dumbledore and he said that you were excused from all your classes today. And speaking of him, Albus said he would come over and explain an idea he had to block Voldemort out of your mind."
Harry felt his heart skip a beat at the thought of Voldemort invading his mind, and flinched away when Remus put an arm around his shoulder as he picked up on Harry's distress.
"It's okay cub, we'll fix this. Dumbledore has a brilliant idea that's complicated for us to explain without getting something mixed up." Remus reassured him.
Harry nodded and looked down at his hands.
"We informed both Ron and Hermione this morning of what's been going on." Remus added.
"What?" Harry yelped in shock, quickly getting to his feet. "Why would you tell them?" He asked in outrage.
Both Sirius and Remus got to their feet and looked at Harry, noticing his hands clenching into fists at his side as he tried to control his anger.
"Harry sit back down, you need to calm down," When Harry didn't move Sirius continued, "We needed to tell them because they were the ones that noticed what was going on with you first and told us. We need them to tell us how exactly you were acting so we know for sure that it was Voldemort influencing your behavior."
At the mention of Voldemort influencing him Harry desperately tried to get a grip on his emotions, but found he couldn't fully control them. Seeing the flicker of panic on Harry's face before it turned back into anger Remus hurried towards Harry, not caring at what Harry might do, and pulled him into a tight hug, feeling Harry try to push him away.
"Just focus on my voice Harry. You need to try to calm down. I know it's hard because Voldemort probably knows what is going on and is trying to get full control of you, but you need to keep fighting. Not for just you, but for me, Sirius, Ron, Hermione, everyone that loves you." Remus whispered in his ear, feeling Harry's rapidly beating heart against his chest.
Harry's face screwed up into a look of concentration as he fought with Voldemort internally for control of his emotions, frustration building inside him as he tried pushing Voldemort back, Voldemort's emotion mixing with his own. Sirius and Remus watched in fascination as Harry fought mentally with Voldemort for the next few minutes, before Harry's face relax and he took a deep breath. Remus let go of him and checked over him for a moment, finding only that Harry's fever went up a degree.
"Sit down, Kreacher'll have your lunch in a moment." Sirius told him, sitting next to him on the couch and gripping Harry's shoulder tightly.
Harry relaxed against the couch and closed his eyes for a moment, trying to calm down his rapidly beating heart.
"Voldemort's fight weakened when Remus touched me, that's why I tried to push you back, or he did I should say." Harry informed them in a quiet voice.
"Voldemort hates any type of love. Emotionally, physical, mental. It would be enough to weaken his hold on you. We need Albus to get this started today, Voldemort figured out what's going on and will try to fight it." Remus said, running a scarred hand through his graying hair.
Kreacher then Apparated right in front of the coffee table and set sown a plate full of sandwiches and a few glasses of pumpkin juice before he snapped his fingers and left in a hurry. Harry gingerly took a sandwich and nibbled on the sides as Remus and Sirius continued talking, but Harry zoned out as he lost himself in his thoughts.
"Harry?" Sirius asked.
Harry looked up at him and placed his barely eaten sandwich back on the plate. "Yeah?"
"We only told Ron and Hermione because they were ones that noticed first and can help. We didn't tell anyone else, not without your permission." Sirius told him.
Harry was taken aback for a moment, no one had ever really asked him for permission before.
"I'd rather wait and see how Ron and Hermione act before we tell anyone else." Harry answered.
"We had Ron gather some clothes for you and had them sent here for you whenever your ready to shower and change, because Ron and Hermione will be coming over after lunch." Sirius informed him.
Harry glanced over at the clock again and found it was a few minutes to twelve, "Why didn't you tell me before?" Harry asked, getting off the couch and heading towards his backpack that was placed near the fireplace.
"We had other things to deal with." Sirius answered.
Harry quickly gathered his clothes out of the backpack and hurried up the stairs to the second story where the closest shower was and hoped in, only cleaning his hair and not bothering to shave, and stepped out five minutes later, drying himself off. As he shook a towel through his hair he heard a 'thump' and Ron swear, and Harry quickly dressed in a green sweater and old jeans while he put a comb through his hair. Harry walked over to the mirror and studied his face carefully, noting that the shadows under his eyes hadn't fully disappeared and he was pale, only his green eyes having any real color.
"Here goes nothing." Harry muttered under his breath before he opened the door and walked out.
Hermione entered Sirius' fireplace and stumbled as she made her way out, and to her surprise was caught at the last second by Remus who had been waiting by the fireplace for them.
"Thank you Professor Lupin." Hermione said, brushing herself off.
"I'm no longer your Professor, Hermione. You can call me Remus." Remus said with a warm smile.
Before Hermione could answer Ron came tumbling out of the fireplace, and before anyone of them could put their hand out for him he landed on his knees on the ground at Hermione's feet.
"Bloody hell!" Ron said loudly, allowing a giggling Hermione to help him to his feet.
As Ron brushed of the soot clinging to his sweater, Remus led them both the couch where sandwiches and glasses of pumpkin juice sat on the coffee table.
"Where is everyone?" Hermione asked, taking a glass of pumpkin juice off the table and taking a sip of it.
"Harry went to take a quick shower, and Sirius went to change his clothes he's been wearing since yesterday. He refused to leave Harry last night after everything Harry told him." Remus explained.
Before Hermione could push the subject more Sirius walked into the room with a huge grin on his face as he spotted Ron and Hermione.
"Hey you lot! I've missed you!" He said as he came over and hugged Hermione and patted Ron on the back, "It's been boring without any of you kids here."
"Trust me Sirius, I'd rather be here then Hogwarts." Ron muttered.
"C'mon Ron, school isn't that bad!" Hermione argued.
Sirius laughed and looked over at Remus, who was shaking his head with as amused look on his face, "Let me guess, all your teachers are on your backs about OWL's?"
The groan from Ron was enough to answer, but Hermione nodded and said, "It's not that bad, just a little more homework and lectures."
"Easy for you to say, you get school easily, not everyone is as lucky as you." Ron said, not noticing the way Hermione's eyes brightened at the compliment.
"Yeah, Ron and I wouldn't make it if it wasn't for the notes and memory you have." Harry said, leaning against the wall behind them.
Everyone watched as Harry made his way over to where Ron and Hermione sat, a hesitant look on his face as he watched his best friends for any signs of anger or bitterness, but all he received were blank looks from them. In the end Harry decided to sit in the chair on the side of couch where Sirius stood. Harry looked up as silence continued, looking uncomfortable as Ron and Hermione watched him closely.
"Are you okay?" Hermione finally asked, her voice full of concern and worry.
"Yeah," Harry answered after a moment of thinking, "I'm okay."
"What happened? All Dumbledore told us was you told Sirius everything and Voldemort was involved, he just didn't say how. What did that bastard do to you?" Ron asked, his voice rising.
No one in the room scolded Ron for his use of language, but watched as Harry contemplated what he wanted to tell them. After a moment Harry launched into his story, telling them everything that he had told Sirius last night and what had happened to him before they had arrived with Sirius added in things that he hadn't, which surprisingly didn't bother Harry. Ron and Hermione sat there stunned, trying to process what they had learned, but what got Harry's attention was Remus, who did not seemed shocked by anything Harry had just told him, but figured Sirius must of told him whenever he had arrived.
"Why didn't you tell anyone before?" Ron asked, his voice soft and quiet.
"I didn't want to bother anyone with it, I figured it was my problem and I could fix it." Harry responded, looking down at his hands, "I'm used to handling things on my own, I figured this was no different."
Hermione got off the couch and hugged Harry, gripping his back tightly as she held him to her, letting him soak in the comfort. Ron just stared at him, then looked over to Sirius who shook his head, telling Ron not to yell at Harry for his stupidity. When Hermione finally let go of Harry she went back onto the couch with Ron, looking at Harry with sadly, and Harry sighed.
"This is why I didn't want to tell anyone. I hate the sympathy I get and the being yelled at for not knowing what to do. I'd rather just fix it myself and have it over with."
"We're not hear to yell at you Harry," Ron said. "We're here to help. I don't care if Voldemort plants these stupid ideas in your head that we're all gonna die and leave you, Hermione and I are staying with you throughout all this, whether you like it or not."
"Don't forget Remus and I," Sirius spoke up, "I'm your godfather and Remus is as good as your godmother - shut up Remus I'm making a point -," He added as Remus opened his mouth to retort, "And we're as involved in this war as you are. We're with you and nothing will change that, not even Voldemort trying to use you to get rid of us."
Harry nodded, feeling exhausted from everything that had happened and what he had told them; it felt like he was reliving everything he had said.
"I'm sorry for not speaking up." Harry said tiredly.
Sirius put his hand on Harry's shoulder and squeezed it, while Remus just nodded with a small smile on his face. "Just please speak up next time, you never know how bad the situation could be."
"Yeah, you git." Ron added with a grin, letting Harry know he was joking.
Harry laughed as Hermione drove her elbow into Ron's ribs and told him off for being insensitive. Sirius and Remus shared amused looks as Ron let Hermione scold him for Harry's sake, just to bring back some normality into his life. When Harry yawned Hermione brought up the subject of OWL's with Remus much to Ron's horror, knowing that Harry was tired from today and needed sleep, so left him to rest as she talked with Remus. Sirius then challenged Ron to a game of chess, both of them going to other side of the room where Sirius had a table set up with the chess board and the pieces. About ten minutes later Hermione looked over at Harry, and found his eyes closed with a small grin on his face, and found a blanket on the couch to put over him, and bent down to kiss his cheek.
"Sweet dreams." She whispered, before she went back onto the other couch with Remus.