AN: Written by percyjackson135 and edited by me. We hope you all enjoy!

Chapter 17:

Although Zacharias felt much calmer and relieved with the headmaster at St. Mungo's, he was still very worried, and with good reason. Being very young himself, Zacharias sometimes wondered how and why it was so natural for him to parent, when he himself was not yet a legal adult by magical standards. Yet, Zacharias found himself doing it surprisingly well. Along with being that parent, came the responsibility of explaining to the headmaster exactly why he was so concerned and needed to talk to him so urgently.

With that, Zacharias launched into his story, "Headmaster Dumbledore, this story is not an easy one to tell, but it is important that you understand what is going on. A few months ago, shortly after Harry and I permanently moved into the Room of Requirement, I began to see something very strange with Harry's lightning scar. For reasons unknown to me, whenever it would pain him, I could see a glint of red in his eyes that was not his own. Usually, as a baby, Harry feels safe enough, but lately, he has been getting sick a lot and the red glint is almost always present. The school nurse is running some tests on him now, but I am not sure how long he will last. Just before I had him admitted here, he thought he had bitten Mr. Weasley and he feels incredibly guilty about it."

A sudden look of realization dawned on Dumbledore's face and he smiled kindly. He knew exactly what the young Hufflepuff was describing and he was almost too afraid to ask, but he knew he needed an answer, "Mr. Smith, what happens when you see this red glint in Harry's eyes?"

Zacharias bit his bottom lip and thought. After about 5 minutes, he answered the headmaster's question, "Well, sometimes he screams and cries in extreme fear and pain when he is a baby, but as a teenager, he is very moody, doesn't want anything and is almost hostile, but feels incredibly guilty about it later on. I am also concerned about the scars and words on his right hand. The defense professor has been making Harry use a blood quill whenever he is in detention with her. I don't know for how long, but it was long enough to leave lasting scars. Is there anything I can do as a Prefect? Harry has been abused enough and I cannot allow it to happen again. For three years I turned a blind eye, but not anymore. Right now, all I want is to help Harry reclaim his childhood and innocence if I can," And as an afterthought, Zacharias added, "I also wanted to tell you that Harry's scar is no ordinary scar. It has not healed nor faded with time as most normal scars do. It's just as open and raw now as it was when he first received it. That is not normal and something very evil is lurking behind it. That's when I see the red glint."

Dumbledore looked sad, but he was not shocked by the news. Lupin looked mad as a hornet when he suddenly realized what Zacharias was talking about. He was especially angry about the blood quill and the words on his honorary godson's hand. How did he not see that? Remus inwardly fumed as the teenager explained things, but he kept quiet so that Zacharias could finish the story, "My poor little cub," Remus Lupin thought desperately, "If only I had known sooner!"


Meanwhile at Hogwarts, Harry was in the Hospital Wing on an exam table. Poppy was running her wand over the small body. She tried her best to keep Harry calm by making clucking noises with her tongue.

Although the boy was feeling much better after passing his stone, there was something else that Poppy found extremely troubling, and it was found in the little boy's scar. Mr. Smith was absolutely right. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was indeed trying to possess Harry and it was making him very sick.

"Oh, sweet, sweet boy," Poppy thought sadly, "Don't you worry; we are going to try and make you all better."

Harry, still in his one-year-old body, gurgled softly. Apparently, when he was at this age in real life, he had no words or speech. He could only make sounds. Which is why, even now, with a special potion, Harry was the exact same way he was as a true infant. A little bit of drool dripped from his lips, but he was otherwise relaxed. The other reason for this was because the healer placed Harry under a mild sedative so that she would be able to do her testing without him freaking out.

By the time Poppy was done, she had already fire traveled back to the hospital room where the rest of the adults and Zacharias still were. Upon seeing the baby, Zacharias rushed over and cradled the warm, soft body against his chest. He talked to Harry, softly and gently, all the while, rocking from foot to foot. Apparently, the dose of the special potion lasted longer than expected, which was okay, as Zacharias didn't want the little part of Harry to be even more frightened than he already was. When he saw the school nurse, though, Zacharias asked in concern, "What did you find?" Is it as I feared?"

Poppy smiled sadly as she answered, "Yes, Mr. Smith, I am afraid that you were correct. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is indeed possessing or trying to possess young Mr. Potter through his scar."

Without warning, the young Hufflepuff burst into silent tears as he hugged the child close to him, "So, what can I do?" He asked tearfully, "Does Harry really have to die because of him? Is there nothing that can stop Voldemort without an innocent child having to die?"

All of the adults looked at the teenager and their hearts broke for him. After a while, Dumbledore spoke, "Now that we know what we are dealing with, I believe there is a way to destroy Tom without putting Harry in danger. For now, I suggest that Harry and Zacharias stay in here one more night before coming back to school."