"All right," The professor said and glanced down at the parchments in her hands. "Seems you've completed your exam. I would suggest you to go to the hospital wing."

"Yeah," Harry replied and walked out of the classroom with Ron and Hermione's help. She stopped and slumped against the wall. She rubbed her head; it was still aching, but not as bad as it had during the exam.

"What happened?" Ron asked, "That wasn't normal."

Harry shook her head and looked at her friends with fear in her eyes, "Voldemort! He's got Sirius! In the Department of Mysteries!"

Ron and Hermione paled.

"Harry," Hermione knelt beside her best friend and asked, "are you sure?"

Harry looked up from her hands, "I saw it. It's just like with Mr. Weasley." Her eyes looked away to a point past Ron's legs. "It's the door I've been seeing before," She trailed away, frowning. She had been practicing occlumency and getting better, but why now did she see a vision? How is it possible Voldemort got into her mind? She has to find Severus Snape and ask, have him check her mindscape, and find out how he had slipped in.

Ron looked down worriedly at the two girls, "What door?" He asked.

Harry looked up at Ron, seeing how pale he had gotten. "I couldn't remember where I'd seen it before. But I know now." She stood up, her resolve strengthened. "Sirius said Voldemort was after something. Something he didn't have the last time, in the Department of Mysteries."

Hermione shot Ron a look and grasped onto Harry's robe. "Harry, please, just listen." She bit her lips before continuing, "What if Voldemort meant for you to see this?"

Harry shook her head, her long locks swaying wildly. "It just can't be. I was getting better with Occlumency and had not had any dreams since Mr. Weasley."

Ron and Hermione shot another worried look at each other. Hermione asked, "What if he's only hurting Sirius because he's trying to get to you?"

Harry shook her head and started going down the hallway, her friends on her heels. "What if he is? I'm supposed to let him die?" She gasped as the breath got stuck in her throat. She didn't want to lose another parental figure. "Hermione, he's the only family I've got left." They paused at the Fat Lady portrait, giving the password, and entered the Common room.

Harry paused in the common room, looking about wildly before settling her eyes onto her friends. "I… I need to talk to Professor Snape."

Ron's face screwed up, "Why? He'll just hand you over to Voldemort!"

Hermione shot Harry a bemused look. "Harry, what about Sirius?"

"What do we do?" Ron asked.

Harry stopped and frowned. She glanced around; a few students were milling about. The exams for most classes were still going on. She turned around and faced her friends, and paused. On the tip of her tongue, she wanted to find Professor Snape, but he was in the dungeon, in the middle of observing a potion exam. Torn about what she wanted to do. She wanted to go to the Department of the Mysteries and help Sirius and Professor Snape.

"I need to go to the Department of Mysteries." Harry said finally.

Hermione's eyes widened, "Harry! But how would Voldemort waltz right into the Ministry of Magic? I mean, he and Sirius are the two most wanted wizards in the world."

Ron bopped his head in agreement.

Harry gave her friend an exasperated look as if she didn't have the answer to everything. "The Floo Network, so I can find out if he's at Grimmauld Place."

Hermione replied, "Umbridge has the chimney under surveillance."

Mind made up; Harry grimly met her friend's eyes, "Not all of them." She twirled on her feet and hurriedly went to the girl dormitory, calling over her shoulder, "I'm going to change. You might want to too."

Once Harry had exchanged her uniform for jeans and jumper, she returned to the common room and found several of her friends. She blinked before and asked, "Guys?"

George stepped forward and slinked his arm around her shoulder, "Words got out that," Fred joined his brother on the other side of Harry, wrapping his arm around her waist, "that you need help."

Harry rolled her eyes and glanced at Hermione and Ron, who returned her look with a shrug.

Luna smiled serenely at Harry, "What can we do to help?"

"I really can't let you help." Harry said, looking at her friends.

Ginny glowered and crossed her arms, "We didn't sign up for DA for nothing, we're helping."

Hermione grabbed Harry's hand, pulling her away from the twins. "They're helping; you're not going to be able to stop them." Hermione looked around and said, "Before we do anything, we need to establish that Sirius isn't at the headquarters. Which means we'll need to break into Umbridge's office." She glanced at the twins, "For that, we'll need a really good distraction."

Fred and George grinned together. Fred glanced to his twin, "Right you are, Hermione. Think we can whip something up, George?"

George gave a thoughtful look as he replied, "Might be able to."

Hermione rolled her eyes and told them as they started to huddle to whisper among themselves, "Mind you, it's got to be really good!"

Fred glanced at her and grinned, "It's going to be!"

"We'll also need to keep everyone away from her office." Hermione said, turning back to the rest of the group.

Ginny grasped Luna's arms, "We can do that! Me and Luna'll guard the hallway."

Harry smiled at the two.

Hermione nodded, "We'll probably only manage five minutes or so."

"That's all we'll need." Harry said.

Fred and George popped up from their private conversation. Fred announced, "Right. You've got ten minutes to get to Umbridge's office. And Whatever you do, stay away from the Astronomy Tower for the next couple of hours."

George shrugged, "Unless they spread, in which case, I'd get out of the castle for a while."

Harry stared at the twins as they bounced out of the portrait hole.

Hermione shook her head, "Harry, break out your invisibility cloak."

Harry was growing desperate as the green flame licked around her head. She stared around Grimmauld Place and called out for the third time, "Sirius! Lupin? Hello?"

While with her head in the flame, chaos was upending the castle behind her. Luna and Ginny were watching the hallway; Neville was patrolling the next hallway, watching out for any of Umbridge's Inquisitional Squad.

Harry clenched her jaws as she looked around the desolate living area in Grimmauld Place. She was beginning to regret not going to Professor Snape after all. Maybe there is still time for her to find him. She called out once more, "Sirius?"

"What's this?" The gnarly wrinkled face of Kreacher appeared on Harry's face. "The Potter girl in the fire."

Harry gasped and asked, "Kreacher! Where's Sirius?"

Kreacher sneered at her, "Master went out."

"You know where he is, don't you?" Harry demanded, glaring at the old elf.

"Master does not tell Kreacher where he goes." The house-elf grumbled.

Harry glared at Kreacher. She had never liked his grumbling and snooping around in Grimmauld Place when she stayed there. "But you know." Kreacher only grinned in reply.

Harry shrilly demanded, "Tell me!"

"Master will never return from the Department of Mysteries!"

Harry heard Hermione cry out, "Harry!" Before, she was jerked back violently by the hair out of the fire and onto the floor.

"Little bitch!" Umbridge seethed, looking worse for wear hovered over Harry. She pointed a shaky finger at Harry, "You think you could simply walk into my office without me knowing about it? Foolish girl!"

Harry stared wide-eyed at the toad-like woman and then around the office to find her friends had gathered in the office held by the Inquisitional Squad. Malfoy was leering from the windowsill where he leaned against. Her friends' wands piled on the floor out of reach.

"Accio wand!" Harry gasped as Umbridge magically took her wand out of her pocket and into her hand. Umbridge leaned in closer, "Who were you trying to contact?"

Harry glared at the woman defiantly, refusing to reply.

Umbridge clucked in disappointment and turned to Malfoy, "Draco, would you fetch Professor Snape, please?"

Harry slowly got up, glaring at Umbridge the entire time. The woman kept her short stubby wand pointed at her and gestured for her to sit in the chair. Harry sat down and waited. At least Professor Snape would be coming, and she could reach out to him.

It wasn't long before Draco returned with Professor Snape. Harry saw his eyes widen for a half second before schooling his face into an impassive expression.

"You sent for me, headmistress?" Severus asked.

"Snape, yes." Umbridge sweetly replied and glared at Harry, "The time has come for answers, whether she wants to give to me or not." She turned back to Severus, "Have you brought the Veritaserum?"

Harry looked at Severus and kept her eyes wide open. His brows furrowed as he met her eyes but did not take her bait to go into her mind. He replied, "I'm afraid you've used up all my stores interrogating students." He paused, frowning as he saw Harry looking desperate at him, "The last of it upon Miss Chang. Unless you wish to poison her." He turned to Umbridge, "And I assure you, I would have the greatest sympathy if you did." He slowly finished, "I cannot help you."

Frustrated with his refusal to go into her mind, Harry exclaimed as Severus turned to leave, "He's got Padfoot!"

Severus paused at the door and turned back. Harry repeated, "He's got Padfoot at the place where it's hidden."

Umbridge looked from Harry to Severus, demanding, "Padfoot? What is Padfoot?" She asked, "Where what is hidden?" She turned to Severus, "What is she talking about, Snape?"

Severus stared at Harry and replied, "No idea." He shot her a tiny frown and a head shake and then left. Harry stared aghast after Professor Snape.

Umbridge scoffed, "Very well." She turned to Harry, "You give me no choice, Potter. As this is an issue of Ministry security, you leave me with no alternative." She held her wand toward Harry, "the Cruciatus Curse ought to loosen your tongue."

"That's illegal!" Hermione objected.

Umbridge turned to Hermione and reached out to place a photo on her desk face down, "What Cornelius doesn't know won't hurt him."

Hermione's eyes widened, looking at Harry, "Tell her, Harry!"

Umbridge turned to Harry and asked, "Tell me what?"

Hermione swallowed hard and said, "Well, if you won't tell her where it is… I will."

Harry frowned, looking at her best friend, trying to figure out what she was planning to do. She was upset that Professor Snape had not gotten the hint from her.

Umbridge looked almost ecstatic as she moved closer to Hermione, "Where what is?"

"Dumbledore's secret weapon."

Harry gave Hermione a quizzical look. Hermione shot her a look back, saying she had got it handled. Harry decided it was best to let Hermione take care of it.

It was not long before Harry followed Hermione through the Forbidden Forest with Umbridge at their rear. It was chaos once they reached the clearing where Hagrid's brother kept. Umbridge offended the centaur and then swept away screaming. Harry didn't want to know but took advantage of the freedom from the pink toad-like witch and hurried back to Hogwarts with Hermione.

Still upset with Professor Snape's unwillingness to help her, she decided to take things into her hands; Harry met with her friends to discover they had gotten away from the Inquisitional Squad with a few prank candies.

Harry looked longingly toward the castle from the bridge as she stood with her friends. "I do need to get to the Ministry of Magic." She looked to her friends, "Look, it's not that I don't appreciate everything you've done, all of you." She smiled wanly, "But, I've got you into enough trouble as it is."

Neville spoke up, "Dumbledore's Army's supposed to be about doing something real. Or was that all just words to you?"

Harry looked to the once shy, tall friend and shook her head.

Ron stepped up and rested his hand on her shoulder, "Maybe you don't have to do this all by yourself, mate."

Harry relented and nodded, "So, how are going to get to London?"

Luna smiled dreamily as ever, looking toward the forest. "We fly, of course."

"That way," Harry quietly said as they approached the hallway she had seen in her dreams. The trip to the Ministry of Magic was interesting; with Luna's suggestion to use the Thestrals to fly to London, her friends found it strange to ride invisible creatures. Harry and Luna were the only ones in the group able to see them.

The Ministry of Magic was quiet, desolate as the small ragtag group entered. It was late in the night, well after closing hour. Harry's heart was in her throat as she crept toward the door that haunted her dream. She fingered the silver bracelet she had gotten for Christmas from the mysterious person (which she still believes to be Professor Snape), feeling a pang of regret about not seeking out Professor Snape. She and her friends were already deep in the Ministry of Magic, about to enter the Department of Mysteries. Might as well go all the way.

Harry reached for the door, and it swung open easily. "Stay close." She stepped in, and her friends followed closely. She looked around the circular room illuminated with blue-flamed candles. The door slammed shut behind Neville, who was last to enter, causing everyone to jump.

Ginny grasped onto Harry's arm and asked, "Now where?"

Harry shook her head in confusion, "This is not what I remembered from the dream. There should be…." She frowned as she tried to recall, "Shelves, with orbs?"

Hermione stepped forward and said with grit, "Well, let's try a few."

Harry bopped her head in agreement, "I'll know when I see it." She went to the first door and opened it, stepping through. Her friends followed as they had done with the last. The room was cavernous, with the sunken ground. An archway stood in the center with a veil fluttering.

Harry was drawn to the archway and stepped down the steps until she reached the bottom. She reached up to touch the veil; it whispered against her fingers like a wisp of ghost. She tilted her head; soft whispering voices filled the air.

"Who's there?" She asked as she peered closer to the veil.

Hermione grasped her arm, "Harry, there's no one here. This isn't the right room."

Harry turned to Hermione, "Does anyone else hear that?" Her friends shook their heads in negation, except Luna.

"I do." Luna smiled dreamily up at the archway. "It's coming from the Veil."

Hermione whispered, "What is it?"

"The doorway to the other world." Luna replied.

Ron screwed his face in confusion, "What other world?"

Harry turned back to the veiled archway, "The Underworld. Land of the Dead. Hades, or whatever you name it. The voices, they're the dead?"

Luna stepped up to Harry and rested her hand on her shoulder, "Yes. You hear them because you are special. I hear them…."

Harry covered Luna's hand on her shoulder, "Because you 'see.' Yeah." She looked into the darkness between the archway, and the voices became clearer, and she listened.

"Child of spring, queen of death…." A tall, dark figure loomed in front of Harry from the other side. Harry looked in awe, staring at the familiar pale face of the man who was easy twice the size of a normal man. The man's fiery red eyes glowed warmth and smiled at her; his blue-black hair framed his face, swirling around him in long tendrils. His long robes swayed in the breeze, merging with the veil's tattered fabric. He reached out toward her with his pale hand.

Harry reached up and felt herself jerk back as a hand grasped her arm, breaking her eyes away from the imposing figure in the veil. "Harry, I think we should leave." Hermione said. "We're here for Sirius, remember?"

Harry looked back to the veil; the man was gone. She felt her breath catch and nodded, "Sirius, yeah. Right." She turned and hurried to the door, opened it back, and returned to the blue-lit chamber. Hermione drew a flaming red X on the door with her wand.

Harry tried the next door, only to find it locked and unable to unlock with Alohomora. Hermione marked the door, and they moved to the next one.

Harry's eyes widened as she stepped into the next room, "This is it!" She waved to her friends to follow. They rushed through the room filled with clocks. "Come on! It's through there." She hurried toward the door on the other end of the room.

Ron grasped the door and opened it; they all entered a very large room filled with shelves that seemed to disappear into the darkness above them. Orbs that emitted pale blue lights filled the shelves.

"He's in here somewhere," Harry said as she walked down the long row of shelves. Her friends followed closely behind, their wands out and ready. They walked from one row to the next and then to the next. Harry turned in confusion, peering up at the shelves, seeing the numbers, recognizing them from her dream.

"They should be here…." Harry said.

Hermione shook her head, "I don't think Sirius is here."

Ron peered up at the shelf near them. "Harry, have you seen this?" Harry went over to him and looked up, seeing an orb with a tag. Ron gestured to the tag, "It's got your name on it."

Harry could see the tag read, 'S.P.T. to A.P.W.B.D.: The Dark Lord and Harriett Potter'. She reached up for the orb and asked, "What's my name doing here?"

Hermione gasped, "Don't touch it, Harry!"

Harry turned her head to her friend, "Hermione! Why not?"

"Yeah, Harry, don't." Neville chimed in.

"But it got my name on it." Harry objected, her hand still reaching toward the orb. She turned and grasped the glass ball. The silver blue smoke swirled inside, and Harry peered closer, she could make out the shape of a person inside and gasped, realizing it was Professor Trelawney, and she was reciting something.

"Good girl. Now you can hand that over to me." Dulcet tone alerted them; Harry turned to find Lucius Malfoy approaching them. He held his hand out toward her, smiling. "Be a darling; give me the orb."

Harry clutched the orb in her hand and stepped back, bumping into her friends who huddled around her. She noted they were back to back, with wands out. She glanced around and saw dozen Death Eaters appearing out from the shadows. She turned back to Lucius Malfoy, "Where's Sirius?"

The other Death Eaters laughed. Lucius rolled his eyes and glanced around, "We don't have him, if that's what you mean."

Harry frowned, "What? You never did, did you? It was all just a trick."

Lucius smirked at her, "Of course not, love. The Dark Lord knows your weakness for heroics. All it took was a little nudge to get you here." He gestured to the orb in her hand. "That, can be only taken by the person it is for, which is you."

Harry glanced at the orb and turned, grasping it out of his reach. "So what is it to you?"

Lucius lost his smirk and snarled, "Foolish girl. That Prophesy, hand it over or we'll have to use wands on you."

Harry raised her wand at the same time as her friends. She tilted her head at Lucius with a raised eyebrow, challenging him, "Go ahead."

Lucius regarded her with a cold sneer on his face. "Very brave of you, Potter. Or are you foolish? You should know your place, and that's beneath a man."

Hermione snapped her head toward the blond Death Eater, "Disgusting masochist."

Lucius glowered at Hermione, his lips curled in a snarl. A Death Eater appeared behind him and said with a high voice, "I haven't escaped from Azkaban for this!"

The Death Eater became visible in the light, her wild hair surrounding her face, her eyes wild, and her smile filled with blackened teeth. She raised her wand, pointing toward Harry. Lucius pushed her arm down, "No! Bellatrix, if the prophecy is smashed," and Bellatrix snarled, snapping away from Lucius.

Bellatrix crackled, shouting, "We'll see how widdle Harriett Potter handles if we torture her dear friends!"

Harry felt her friends close in tighter behind her. She held her wand toward Lucius, glaring at Bellatrix. She clutched the orb tighter and snarled, "You even try, and I'll smash this thing." She tossed it in the air and caught it and caught the horror in Lucius' eyes. Ah, so they need this thing, she thought and slipped it into her bag at her hip. She asked, "So, what kind of prophecy are we talking about here?"

Bellatrix rolled her wild eyes, "You jest, little one."

Harry shook her head, "Not really. How come Voldemort wants it?"

"You dare to speak the Dark Lord's name?" Lucius snapped.

Harry felt rebellious, "Who, Voldemort? Oh, yeah, I dare!" She shouted at Lucius and started to sing, "Voldemort, Voldemort, Voldemort-"

Bellatrix snapped, whipping her wand, casting a stray hex to go off. "Silence! How dare you utter that name from your half-blood mouth!"

Harry turned to Bellatrix and smirked, "Oh, right! Did you know Voldemort's half-blood too?"

Bellatrix looked murderous and pointed her black curved wand toward Harry. Lucius snapped at her, "Control yourself, Bellatrix!" he turned to Harry, "If you're going to be smart about this, darling, hand it over."

Harry held up the orb, looking at the swirling cloud within. "What's so special about this?"

Lucius looked about at his wit's end. "You mean Dumbledore never told you the reason you bear that scar?" he gestured toward Harry's head.

Harry looked shocked. She stepped back and lowered the orb. She whispered to her friends, "When I give the signal, blast the shelves." She saw Ron and Hermione at her sides nod.

Lucius continued, "So that's what took you so long. We wondered."

"Why did he need me to take it?" Harry asked.

"Only a person for whom the prophesy was made can remove it from itself, Potter, and the Dark Lord certainly couldn't get it himself."

Harry glanced down at the orb once again. Frustrated that her Occlumency seemed to have a crack and Voldemort had gotten into her mind, she led her here to get the prophecy. It must have something so important that the Dark Lord wanted. She had fallen into the trap. "So he used me to do his dirty work."

Lucius smirked. "Precisely."

Harry gripped tighter on the orb and shouted, "NOW!" Her friends shot off spells toward the shelves, and it was pandemonium as the orbs on the shelves shattered, raining glass all around them. The shelves started to topple and crash around them. The group of teenagers broke apart and started to run, running for the door.

Harry could not keep track of her friends but trusted that they could handle themselves. She ran, shooting off spells after spells. She heard her friends shouting spells as well. The shards shattered, and the shelves crashed. She kept running, ignoring the shouting and dodging the hexes and curses. She gasped as she reached the door and slipped through the maze of clocks. It tick-tocked, chimed around her.

She gasped loudly as the clocks began to shatter and smash; the room was filled with curses and lit up in different colors of chaos. She can see and hear her friends fighting off the Death Eaters. She frantically looked around, found the door she needed to get to, and made a mad dash toward it. She ducked as a hex exploded on the wall beside her and slid through the door. She turned her head to find Hermione on the ground, bleeding from her chest.

"Hermione!"

Neville rushed to her and checked, looking up, "She's alive."

Harry nodded and pushed the door open. Upon arriving at the circular room with doors all around them, she uttered a small whimper, realizing she had no idea which door to take. The X mark was gone. Neville crashed into her back and asked, "Where do we go?"

"I don't know," Harry replied, whipping her head around. A door opened, Luna and Ginny came through, and Ron was between them. "What happened?"

Ginny replied, "I think my ankle's broken. Ron's been hit with a weird spell…." She glanced up to her brother, who was laughing strangely.

Ron waved at Harry, "Hiya, Harry… you look funny!" He laughed.

Ginny gasped and fell, bringing herself and her brother down to the ground. Harry rushed to her concernedly. Luna knelt beside Ginny.

"Luna, think you can get them to safety?"

A door opened, and several Death Eaters appeared. Harry straightened up and shouted at them, "It's me you wanted!" She waved the orb in the air and ran toward a random door, hoping for the best. She pushed it open and gasped, falling into the sunken pit of the veil. She stumbled to her feet and looked up at the archway.

"Your race is run, Potter. Hand it over." Lucius said as he appeared. Harry looked over her shoulder to find her friends held by the Death Eaters around them.

"Let my friends go and I will." Harry said as she stood up, facing Lucius.

Lucius clucked his tongue, "You are not in position to negotiate."

Neville grunted, struggling in the Death Eater's grip. He shouted, "Don't do it, Harry! Don't!"

"Neville, stop." Harry spoke, not letting her eyes break away from Lucius.

Bellatrix crackled, "Neville? Neville Longbottom?" She dug her wand up Neville's neck, "My dear boy, I paid your parents a visit a long time ago. We had such a time!"

Neville glared at the witch and spat blood into her face. Bellatrix crackled.

"Get away from my god-daughter." Harry gasped, turning to find Sirius approaching her with a wand, pointing toward Lucius. She noticed the others from the Orders appeared, and spells started to fly. Her friends pushed to safety as the Orders and Death Eaters fought.

Sirius reached Harry's side, "Harry, listen. Get the others out of here."

Harry shook her head, "What? No, I'm staying with you."

Sirius turned to Harry and cupped her face, smiling, "You've done beautifully. Now, let me take it from here."

Harry widened her eyes. A spell shot past her face, and Sirius shot a hex back while Harry ducked behind Sirius. She swished her wand, shooting spells toward the Death Eaters, keeping her back to Sirius.

Bellatrix crackled as she fought with Sirius. Harry turned, and her back hit the stone archway. Sirius kept firing, fighting back. She watched the two and softly gasped as time seemed to slow down, and she heard whispering voices from past the veil. She looked up and saw the looming figure of a man with red eyes.

"Sirius Black." The figure whispered, his voice deep.

Harry gasped. "No! No!" She turned and watched as green light shot from Bellatrix's wand, hurtling toward Sirius and splattering onto his chest. Sirius stood stock still for a moment, then the ghostly white hand, far larger than normal human size, grasped Sirius by the shoulder and drew him back toward the veil.

Harry watched, horrified, as Sirius fell back. His gray eyes met her, and he smiled at her; his mouth moved, his voice soft, "I'll see you soon." Then, he was gone, disappearing into the veil.

Harry heard a bone-chilling scream filling her ears and realized she was screaming.

Note:

The delay of this story was because I was so busy over the last few months. On top of my full-time job, I am also going through Grad school, and I had to spend three weeks in Colorado for my summer classes. Then I had to finish packing and move from Alaska to Washington. It had been several long months, and now I am settled in my new home, getting ready for a new school year and, soon, the last semester of my grad school. But I have a few days of summer break left and mostly finished unpacking, so I could get around to the next chapter. Thank you for your support! The next couple of chapters will be mostly canon. I'm not giving up on this story and the other one, Summer of 1976.

I hope you like this chapter. If there was any errors, forgive me. I spent couple days working on this chapter and threw it through grammarly for a quick edit. Thank you.