Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Harry Potter characters, places, objects, spells or plots. I do, however, own the ideas and plots of this particular fanfic.
Summary: Harry is awoken one night and brought to The Nest where he's taught how to survive the upcoming war. But who is this mysterious woman who appeared out of nowhere?
Time Frame: Takes place after the fifth book. May contain information from HBP and DH but will not follow their storyline.
Pairings: Harry/Ginny, Ron/Hermione, Snape/Character in book but not really
Warning: This story may be quite confusing at times for I am a confusing writer. It may also be very odd and random for I am that too. I apologize in advance for any mind hurting I may cause. Thanks and enjoy the show!
.
.
.
.
.
The Wings of War
By Kadasa Mori
.
.
.
.
.
Chapter 1
Wednesday, July 3, 1996
.
.
.
.
.
At three-thirty-seven am on July 3, 1996, Harry Potter lay out cold in the spare room on the second floor of Number Four Privet Drive, Little Whinging. He was curled on his side, breathing evenly, mind not yet consumed by nightmares. But in about twenty three minutes he would awake sharply, sometimes yelling, sometimes crying, and squash his face into his pillow to hide the howl of anguish.
Right now however he was simply in a drifty state of sleep and awake, like a nap to reenergize the body for a few hours but not enough to keep it going for the entire day. After the events of his fifth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and the events in the Ministry of Magic in the last few weeks, he found that sleep often eluded him in favor of hellish nightmares where his godfather repeatedly asked why he'd gotten him killed. His relatives did not enjoy the frequent nights of shouting at ghosts so he tried his hardest to wake before any sound escaped.
He sighed softly in his sleep and rolled over, a sign the nightmares would start soon. Hands suddenly reached out, lightly landing on his arm and shaking softly. "Harry… Harry! Harry get up!"
Jolting, the fifteen-year-old jumped away from the hands shaking him and blurrily looked around before squinting at the glowing white figure in front of him. "Oh. Your glasses." They turned and grabbed something off the table, holding them in front of his face. He took them and pulled them on before jumping again.
A woman, perhaps in her early thirties, stood there, long white hair in a tight high ponytail, skin extremely pale and eyes gold and sharp. She wore a white gown that draped to the floor with no shoulders. On each bicep was the white tattoo of a feather, several softly jingling thin silver bracelets on her wrists.
He frowned, not recognizing her. "Who are you?"
She put a finger to her lips and motioned to the door. "The Dursleys will wake if you yell. We must leave this place before your wizards realize I'm here."
"Who are you?" he hissed, hand holding his wand tightly.
She frowned softly and opened her mouth then shut it with an audible snap. She glanced at the other side of the room before shaking her head. "It's not important. What you need to know is that I will never hurt you. I am an ally and we must leave quickly!"
He sneered. "I'm not that stupid. Who are you?"
"I cannot tell you here… but I'm on your side Harry." She leaned forward to whisper, "I know of the Order. I know what happened to Sirius and who really betrayed your parents. I know of the prophesy and I know that if we don't leave soon your wizards will realize I'm here. Please."
He knew better… he knew better than to trust her but…
Sliding out of bed he headed to the trunk on the floor and began throwing in what little he'd taken out. He turned to grab the owl cage but she was already handing it to him as well as the pile of papers on his desk and few quills in the drawer. He dropped to the ground and pulled out his things from under the floor panel tossing them in as well. He did one more sweep of the room before nodding to her. She stretched her fingers and let out a slow breath before placing a hand on the trunk. It shrunk down and she held it out to him, the handle on a necklace he pulled around his head. He instantly disillusioned and blinked, holding out his hand to see the floor beneath it.
"I can only apparate myself so you'll need to fly." She pointed out the window. "Head towards the rising sun. I've already sent your owl to greet you at the next point. She'll lead the way."
"She trusts you?"
She smiled. "Hedwig and I have become good friends as of late."
Her use of his owl's name helped ease the distrust roiling about slightly. He nodded slowly then headed for the door. "Be careful Harry Potter… aurors aren't as blind as you think." He stared at her as she shut her eyes and disappeared with a near silent 'pop!' Swallowing nervously he crept downstairs and to the back door.
Aurors aren't as blind as you think… He glanced at the door and knew they'd spot it opening on its own… same went for the front door… A flash of the upstairs window made him grin. The Dursleys always left it open during the summer! He raced upstairs as quiet as possible and spotted it open. Holding out his broom, he whispered "up!" It floated into his palm and he climbed on. He barely fit out the window but just made it, zooming off towards the east.
This is the start of a very odd summer, he thought irritably. School had ended barely a week ago. He'd been finishing his fifth year and made a mistake. In doing so he lost his godfather, Sirius Black, and learned that the evil creature that had been trying to kill him since before he was born was to either be killed by his hands or kill him due to some prophecy his batty divination professor told. Usually he wasn't picked up from his hellish relatives' home until after his birthday at the end of the month… and usually it was by someone he knew.
He shook off his unease and wondered what his friends were doing. They were no doubt asleep at the moment, Hermione dreaming of books and Ron of quidditch. Harry shook his head with a slight smile, swooping down closer to the town below him to fly above the few cars out and about. His friends… he was lucky they were still alive. Any of them, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Neville or Luna, could have been killed in his idiotic rescue mission. He gripped the handle tightly. He'd just have to be smarter next time. If only he'd opened Sirius' Christmas present earlier. If only he'd checked with Snape instead of running to the ministry. If only… He shook his head again, this time more roughly, nearing falling from the broom. With the thoughts of distractions in mind, he pushed the broom faster and tore off towards the east.
What had to be a few hours later made him wish the woman hadn't disillusioned his watch. The horizon was turning pale pink and orange so he knew it was at least three hours later and he still hadn't seen Hedwig. That thought made him slow his broom and look about for any glowing white object nearby.
Is it a trap? he thought anxiously, holding himself still in the air. A 'hoooooot!' close by made him turn and find his gorgeous snowy owl soaring towards him. His heart lifted and he smiled, reaching for her. There was a bit of unsteadiness with her not being able to see him, but he steadied her on his arm and she nipped happily at his sleeve.
"There you are girl." She nibbled his fingers and shifted to take off. "Wait!" She paused and blinked at him. "Is this lady trustworthy? I mean… should we be going where she says?" She flapped a wing in his face and fluttered into the air. "All right! All right! Don't get mad at me! I just wanted to know!" She accepted this answer and hooted again. "Show me the way!" She turned and flew off. Harry sped up to catch her and flew behind her at quick pace. He was surprised that she could fly so fast and so far.
He shut his eyes for a moment, enjoying the cool air whipping his face as the sun was beginning to warm the Earth. There was a jolt around him and his eyes snapped out. He felt extremely odd, like he was somehow not where he was three seconds ago. The town below had disappeared and changed into forest. He frowned, looking up at Hedwig sharply but she continued onward. Nearly ten minutes later, she suddenly slowed. He blinked, spotting the sea beyond the forest. She curled around and flapped back they way they'd come.
As they did, he saw a building he hadn't spotted before. It was rather huge, several balconies around its sides extending over the hill it sat upon, the trees beginning a good fifty feet from the base of the hill.
Hedwig swooped down and landed on the railing of one of the balconies, Harry landing on the porch beside her.
"What is this place girl?" he asked, heading for the door. He knocked and waited a moment before trying the door. "Hello?" he called. The inside was empty and as the door swung open, dust flew up, visible in the rising sun's light. "Hello?" he called again. "Ma'am? Where are you?"
The room was rather large, about four times the size of his bedroom back at the Dursleys. It was completely empty and looked abandoned. There were windows lining the wall his back was facing, the room the length of the balcony outside on his right were two doors, across the room and to the far end a door, probably leading into the rest of the house.
"Hello?" he called again, feeling uneasy when it echoed back to him.
"Harry."
He turned quickly to find the woman leaning against the railing. He hurried back outside, eyes darting around to find his white owl. When he didn't spot any feathered creature nearby, he turned to the woman angrily. "Where's Hedwig?" he snarled.
She dropped her eyes and took a deep breath before standing tall and looking straight at him. "I'm Hedwig."
Harry stared at the woman for a good minute and a half before let out a bark of laughter. "You're mad!"
"I am not!" she snapped. "I'm Hedwig!" She transformed in front of him, floating at head level before transforming back.
"But you… how did… you can't be! You're my owl!"
"I was… I was captured and a spell was place on me. They turned me into an owl and said that in five years I could transform back, if I could transform back. The only way to turn back into a human was to remember what it was like to be human."
"And how'd you do that?" Harry asked, eyes darting between her and his broom lying nearby. He mentally cursed himself for being so careless with his only way out.
"You did that." He looked back at her sharply. "You talked to me… you opened up to me… you acted as though, besides having feathers and wings, I was another person. I remembered what it was like to be a human and so I remember how to be human. Three months ago, the sun rose on five years and I became this again." She motioned to herself. "All thanks to you Harry. To repay you, I've taken you from those horrid people you call relatives and the Order trying to run your life."
He didn't move for a few minutes before shifting uneasily. "Tell me something only Hedwig would know."
She blinked then frowned in confusion and chewed on her lip. After a moment her eyes lit up and she smirked wickedly. "Last semester you were ranting about Ginny and Ron came into the room shouting something and you near had a heart attack when he asked why you were blushing."
"Someone could've overheard."
She pouted. "Fine. In your fourth year, you walked out to the furthest end of the lake with me and you cried because of Cedric."
"Anyone could've seen."
"Damn it Harry!" she shouted angrily but cooled quickly when he got into a defensive position. "Fine… in your summer after first year… your uncle nearly beat you to death because you dropped the steaks for dinner that night." Harry stiffened and swallowed. "This summer, last week Dudley tried to give you a concussion with his smelting stick and Vernon told him not to get blood on the floor. Yesterday-"
"Alright!… all right. I'm still hesitant to believe your wild story but… I suppose I'll agree to it…"
She rolled her eyes. "Oh thank you mighty lord." She stepped towards him and he leapt out of the way, wand still in his hand. She paused then sighed heavily. "I don't know how to tell you that I won't harm you."
He scowled. "There is no way. I've got to trust you. You've got to give me reason to."
Her eyes flashed in hurt. "You trusted Sirius quick enough! Even though you'd been told all year he was the one who murdered your parents!" He flinched slightly at the mention of his godfather, then realized she did have a point… after only knowing Sirius for an hour or so, he'd gladly accepted the offer of a new home. "But I suppose you're right," she murmured. "I'll have to gain your trust somehow…"
Harry followed her back into the room. She looked around with a soft frown. Turning, she headed for the door opposite them and stepped into a long hallway. There was a door almost across from him and to the left. She opened it and stepped inside with a heavy sigh. "My room," she murmured when he stepped inside.
Unlike the last room, hers was filled with things, all draped in thick sheets that must've been white once upon a time but were now layered with dust and looked gray. Her room was a bit bigger, two doors on the right beyond what looked to be a bed, the left side of the room windows looking out onto another balcony. She turned and stepped past him to go inspect the rest of the house.
If he hadn't followed her closely, he'd have gotten lost in the labyrinth of hallways. There were two main bedrooms, three guest rooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen/dining room, a good sized den, a potions lab and workshop, a laundry and storage room and a staircase.
The staircase led down into the base of the hill. The middle floor led onto balconies into the two separate rooms, the bottom floor into the main areas of the room. On his right going down the staircase was a huge library/study room with more books than Hogwarts. On his left was a large sitting room. The wall opposite the door was blank but when Hedwig ran her fingers over it, the wall seemingly disappeared. She smiled at his gasp of surprise.
"It's enchanted, just like Hogwarts' ceiling. It looks out over the forest, or if you so wish, the sea beyond it." She motioned towards the wall on his left. There was a large fireplace and many objects covered in white cloths. She walked over and then went to the corner. A door appeared when she tapped the wall. "This is the only door leading from the ground into the house otherwise you have to fly in on a broomstick. I'd recommended shrinking your broomstick and keeping it on a chain around your neck whenever you leave this place."
Harry, who'd been looking out the enchanted wall, turned to her suddenly and stared for a moment. "And what is this place?"
She smiled softly. "This is where I grew up Harry." She held her arms out. "This is The Nest."
.
.
.
.
.
Twenty minutes later, Harry found himself back in the first room he'd walked into. While examining the library downstairs, his stomach had rumbled loudly, echoing in the large room, a reminder that the Dursleys hadn't fed him in a day or two. The woman–Hedwig– had gone to the kitchen to search for food but found only dust and crumbs. Hedwig had found an old bucket, broom, sponge and a mop and asked him to get started cleaning while she went out to get some food. He'd instantly bristled, not liking the idea of being left alone in an unfamiliar place with a woman, who was his owl, who he'd only met a few hours ago.
She realized this instantly and pulled off one of her bracelets, holding it out. "I'll only be gone for an hour," she told him as he took the bracelet in confusion. "If there's any trouble, any at all, just grab this and yell for me. I'll know and come back immediately. I promise." He'd nodded and she'd sent him a smile and an 'I'll be back in an hour,' before vanishing. Turning to the room, he'd got to work.
The floor, which had been covered in an inch of dust and grime, was now uncovered. It was a beautiful dark wooden floor, smooth to the touch. The windows had been scrubbed clean and now even more light filtered into the room. The walls had been scrubbed as well, not nearly as glamorous as the floor for they were painted white. The ceiling was also white and had been cleaned as best as he could for not being nearly tall enough. The fan, which was out of reach, had been quite fun to clean as it kept spinning out of reach. He'd probably wiped down each blade six times before giving up.
The two doors on the other wall had led to a rather large walk-in closet and a fully equipped bathroom; toilet, sink, shower and bathtub as well as a floor to ceiling mirror. He'd cleaned everything in the bathroom, scrubbed it all down until it shone. The tile was black and glimmered like a polished stone, the utilities white marble, mirror framed in a golden metal. The closet had just needed to be cleared of spider webs and dust on the floor before he wiped it all down.
He glanced at his watch, then at the clean room. It had only taken forty minutes to get everything clean and she still hadn't returned. Shifting uneasily, he wondered if he was supposed to start on her room as well. After a few minutes of wondering, he picked up his supplies and headed into the other room.
.
.
.
.
.
Hedwig scowled as she landed lightly on the balcony. Stupid people… I hate people… why didn't I just stay an owl? It would've made life so much easier. Opening the door, she raised the bags in her hands. "Sorry I was gone for so long Harry. I've… got… food?" Looking around the room, she grinned. "Nice job. This place looks
brand new… Harry?" Swallowing nervously, she set the food down in the middle of the room and checked the bathroom quickly. "Harry?!"
"In here!" She hurried out of the room and into her room. She blinked, just staring for a moment. The floor had been swept and mopped and he was in the process of pushing her dresser back into place, all of the white sheets gone and hanging on the balcony outside.
She blinked stupidly for a minute. "Uh…"
"I'm sorry I didn't finish in time," Harry said sheepishly as he stepped back from the dresser. "The furniture was really hard to move though."
"I… you…" She blinked at him. "You were only supposed to do your room."
"Oh." He ducked his head. "I'm sorry."
"Don't apologize. You just saved me a lot of work… I just didn't want you to push yourself so hard!" She whistled. "Damn Harry. You did a great job! Nothing beats doing it the muggle way!" She waved him towards the door. "My mom always used to say that you know. She was right too. Always gave a sort of satisfied feeling after working hard to do something that you could've just waved your wand and be done with."
"I'm not of age yet." Harry flushed. "So I can't use magic."
"Ah. I forgot about that. After lunch we'll work on getting rid of those tracking spells." She walked over to the bags and took a seat, folding her legs to her side as she began pulling food out.
"You can do that?" he asked, sitting crossed legged across from her.
"Sure thing! Just need to find the right spells. Won't be too hard. Chicken?"
He blinked as she held out the Tupperware. "Chinese?"
She flushed lightly. "Yeah… I remember the one time you stole the rest from the fridge and shared it with me. I enjoyed it." He looked up, clearly remembering it. She grinned. "What did you say about the chicken when I ate it?"
He grinned back. "Isn't this some kind of cannibalism?"
She laughed, it echoing in the room. "Technically it wasn't since I was actually human."
"Well I didn't know that! I worried about that for days and wondered if I was turning you into a cannibal!" She laughed again and he joined her. They spent the next hour sitting on the floor, eating Chinese and sharing stories.
.
.
.
.
.
The day went by pretty quickly after lunch. They'd both finished Hedwig's room, dusting everything and cleaning it spotless. The kitchen was next on their list. The fridge had taken the longest and both had sore hands afterwards. It was a pretty normal room. About half the size of Harry's, one wall entirely countertop and cabinets on the floor and on the ceiling. The fridge was in the far corner, stove on the opposite end and a sink in the middle, all three black with a black granite countertop and light colored wood, the floor a red cherry colored wood. A table to fit eight people sat in the middle of the room. To make more space, they shoved it back against the wall and put two of the chairs in storage, cleaning the rest down. The table was wood and matched the color of the cabinets.
"All right! Last room that needs to be done today!" Hedwig chirped, carrying her mop and bucket as she walked through the hallway labyrinth.
"Which is?" Harry asked as he followed quickly.
"The potions lab."
He blinked. "Why should that be important?"
"Because I'm all out of potions. The sooner it gets up and running, the sooner I'll be fully stocked and ready for anything."
"Oh…" Entering the room, Harry frowned softly. It was completely different than the dungeons in Hogwarts, but still just as dark. The walls were a very dark color, floor gray stone and benches a nearly black wood. Lights were lit around the room, two benches with four cauldrons each in the middle of the room. One wall was entirely lined with shelves with empty bottles. The other wall was lined with different ingredients and the third only half shelves and filled with books.
They got to work quickly and nearly had it all done by dinner. Dinner was late, the clocking chiming seven o'clock. It was Chinese again but Harry didn't mind, eating everything on his plate before putting the little bit left in the fridge.
"I suppose we should get you some furniture," Hedwig muttered. "I think we put all the extras in the box in storage." Entering the storage room, she sneezed as dust came up to greet them. There was a box in the middle of the room labeled 'Furniture' in curly writing. She grabbed it and hurried out to avoid sneezing again.
Back in his room, the sun was dying quickly so she lit a few of the lamps in the corners. Sitting on the floor, she motioned for him to join her. He took a seat and she opened the box. "My mom was an avid collector of room furnishings. She put everything into boxes with a picture on the front of what the furniture looked like." She held out one of the tiny boxes inside.
He took it and found a picture on the front of a bed, cabinet and desk all in a very dark colored wood. He glanced at his floor and frowned softly. "No. Not this one." She nodded and pulled out the next. For the following half an hour, they spent it trying to figure out which furniture would go best and which style he wanted.
Finally choosing the right one, she opened the box and dumped out the tiny figures. She set one on the ground and tapped it, stepping back quickly. It grew into a huge fluffy bed complete with covers. The next was a desk and the last an armoire. All three were a bit paler than what Hedwig called "cherry or cedar" colored but he loved it. They were pushed into place and as the clocked chimed nine, he felt himself drifting.
Hedwig smiled, noticing his eyes drifting shut. "It's been a long day Harry. Why don't you get some rest."
He nodded, changing into nightclothes quickly. As he stumbled back into the room, Hedwig pulled back the covers then tucked him in. "Good night Harry. Sleep tight and I'll see you in the morning."
"Kay," he murmured, already half asleep.
The owl slipped out quickly and made her way to her room, nearly stumbling as she reached her bed. The use of magic today had nearly killed her. Sleep overcame her quickly as soon as she lay down, a wide smile on her face knowing that Harry would be safe now. Harry was also smiling because for the first time in a month he would be getting a full night's sleep and was actually looking forward to the next day.
.
.
.
.
.
To all readers and reviewers,
Welcome to the first chapter of The Wings of War!!
This story came about while I was bored to death and was randomly searching for HP fanart when I came across a doodle of what the HP pets might look like in human form. I saw Hedwig and suddenly thought, "what if Hedwig was actually human? What if Hedwig was actually human and decided to steal Harry away from everyone to keep him safe? What if she were to teach him how to survive?!"
And so, this fanfic was born! Thank you to the artist who drew the picture and as soon as I find it again I shall inform you all of who it was so you can see the awesome Hedwig-as-a-human they drew!
Thank you all for reading and I hope to see you next time!
Kadasa Mori
