Disclaimer: As usual I own nothing (writing this for the tenth time is very depressingL)

Disclaimer: As usual I own nothing (writing this for the tenth time is very depressingL)

The Secret Keeper X

"Yes, I'll do it."

Harry heard the words spilling out of his mouth and suddenly doubted if he had given the correct reply. His headmaster had certainly seemed reluctant for him to reach such an important decision too quickly, and Harry didn't like the idea of displeasing Dumbledore who had, afterall, never given him improper advice. He glanced tentatively at Sirius to see if there was any possibility that he could reconsider his answer without causing him too great disappointment, however his godfather had a driven, determined expression that Harry couldn't bear to deflate. It was understandable, really, that Sirius would be so desperate to see someone strike a serious blow at Voldemort, and if the glory of doing so could fall to his godson, who had afterall lost his own parents to the Dark Lord, then so much the better.

Sirius was frantically thumbing through the text of, "Advanced Curses for Aurors", muttering continually under his breath as he flicked from one chapter to the next. Beside him, Remus had finally fallen asleep, exhausted by the previous night's full moon. Harry sat quietly, fiddling with his wand, feeling slightly self-conscious for some inexplicable reason. Perhaps because I'm the centre of attention again. 'Good thing Ron isn't here…where is he, anyway? Harry looked up and realised that Hermione was looking at him with a closed expression that he had long ago learned to be wary of. No doubt she'll have plenty to say, as usual. 'Just not in front of Sirius and Remus, naturally…

"Here it is! You should read over this, Harry. It explains the whole theory of Avada Kedavra quite well, but, of course, it can't possibly compete with the teachings of two of the best aurors the Ministry ever had, eh, Moony?"

Sirius thrust the enormous volume into Harry's arms and looked to Remus for confirmation, but his friend merely continued to breathe softly, bringing a sarcastic scowl to Sirius' face.

"Well, we don't need him, anyway. It's not as hard as you might think, Harry. All you have to do is point your wand at a particularly ugly death eater, concentrate on a memory or thought that makes you angry as hell, and say the words Avada Kedavra. That's all there is to it. Why don't you give it a try?"

Harry looked at Sirius in disbelief.

"On who?!"

"Oh", comprehension dawned on Sirius' face, "We'd better go outside and catch an insect or something. I don't particularly want to be a guinea pig."

Harry got up, gratefully dropping, "Advanced Curses for Aurors" on the armchair, and hurried after Sirius and Hermione.

***

Ron leapt back from the living room door as the sound of rapidly approaching footsteps reached his ears. He desperately rearranged the invisibility cloak to ensure that no part of him was visible. Seconds later the door burst open and Harry and Hermione marched out after Sirius in the direction of the back garden. For a moment, Ron looked after them, afraid to move lest he be heard in the otherwise completely silent hallway. Feeling alone and shunted, he scanned the room for other people, before carefully stepping into the living room, satisfied that he was quite alone. A gentle hush of breathing made him halt in midstride, but seeing that Lupin was fast asleep, Ron continued into the room. On the armchair, he found a thick crimson leather-bound book, with the words, "Advanced Curses for Aurors" inscribed in bold black lettering upon it. A page had been marked for reference. This must be where Sirius was reading…"Avada Kedavra-the Killing Curse, first developed by Salazar Slytherin…"

Ron felt very uncomfortable to be sneaking around behind Harry's back and under the unseeing eyes of Professor Lupin. However, this was an opportunity that he couldn't afford to ignore. The chance to learn the Killing Curse…The chance to make Percy's killer pay…the chance to share in, or perhaps even gain for himself, some of Harry's glory…Harry wouldn't mind. He didn't seem to appreciate glory very much, anyway. Besides, it's just like Harry said. 'Just 'cause I'm learning to use the curse, doesn't mean that I actually will use it. At least this way I can choose whether or not I want to use it. Ron was by no means sure that he would even have the courage to kill Wormtail, but at least learning to perform the Killing Curse would allow him the luxury of choice if the opportunity ever arose. It would be nice to be the one to at least catch Wormtail, if not kill him. It would be in all the newspapers and Sirius would be free and respected once again. Harry would finally have the family he deserved, nobody else would die at Wormtail's hands… In that instant grim determination set upon Ron's face and he reached the decision his conscience had been struggling with ever since Percy's death. He would stop Wormtail from ever killing another living soul. It would be an achievement worthy of his brothers, perhaps even worthy of Harry…His mind made up and afraid that it might change, Ron scooped the large book in his arms and quickly left the room.

***

Sirius led Harry onto the lawn and turned him to face the invisible security perimeter.

"Right, Take a shot at it, Harry!"

Harry looked back at him uneasily, wondering what would happen if he destroyed the protective fence, but laughed inwardly a moment later as he realised how ludicrous he was being. As if he could destroy the fence! His wand would probably just ignore him when he said the incantation, his mind not having the power to enforce it. Surely, that was why the book was titled "Advanced Curses…". How could Sirius possibly expect him to perform Avada Kedavra? He hadn't even sat his O.W.L.s yet! Sirius was eying him impatiently. Oh, well. I might as well try it. Here goes…Okay, something that makes me angry. Gee, so many things…Alright, I'll start with Draco Malfoy-

"Avada Kedavra!"

Nothing happened. Harry smiled gingerly at Sirius and shrugged his shoulders, as if to say that it was ridiculous to try in the first place. Sirius, however, did not seem so keen for Harry to abandon the curse after just one botched attempt.

"You probably weren't concentrating enough. Try to imagine that, whatever your angry thought is, it is happening to you right now. Channel all your anger into your wand!"

Harry sighed resolutely. Okay, here goes again…Right, Draco Malfoy in his expensive robes, sneering at Ron and calling Hermione a mudblood. I can picture him right now, the slimy little git- Harry concentrated as hard as he could, focusing on how much he hated Draco Malfoy. He clenched his fist tightly around his wand, which began to shake with the strain, and, with all the assertion he could muster, he bellowed the fatal incantation.

"Avada kedavra!"

Once again, nothing happened. Harry lowered his tired wand arm and looked pleadingly at Sirius, who seemed unperturbed by another failure.

"Right, try again! Maybe your thought isn't powerful enough. Why don't you try something else?…"

Alright, thought Harry as he closed his eyes and tried to focus, that wasn't powerful enough. I have to think of something that makes me really furious, furious enough to kill…Cedric, of course…If I hadn't asked him to take the cup with me, he'd be alive right now, and I wouldn't have to learn how to use this awful curse. If I hadn't been so damn noble, or rather been trying to look so damn noble, I would never have suggested he take it with me. I was so stupid! I should have known, or sensed that something was wrong…but I was too busy showing off and 'doing the right thing' to notice. 'But Voldemort needn't have made Wormtail kill Cedric; he was no threat. How could anyone be so evil?…Harry ignored the constriction building up in his throat as the image of Cedric, white and prone, came unbidden into his mind's eye. It formed such a strong contrast to the Cedric that Harry had known before that fateful night: a cheerful, vibrant, teenage boy, with a fine sense of sportsmanship and fair play that Harry had greatly respected. How can he be dead?…

Harry felt a strong impulse to perform the curse that did not arise consciously; rather, it seemed to occur to him as subtly as does the decision to open one's mouth when eating. It seemed the most natural thing in the world, to say those two fatal words that would demolish his pain. In a quiet voice, laced with unspeakable venom, the words escaped his pursed lips:

"Avada kedavra!"

As the bright green flash of light emanated from his shaking wand, Harry was stunned to notice that he felt nothing. There was no anger or thirst for revenge. The rage that had slowly been building up in his body a moment before seemed to vanish in that bright emerald pulse, leaving him drained and partly unaware. He didn't see Sirius jump in astonished delight, or Hermione back away towards the house in fright. For Harry, it was as if the moment had become frozen in time, and it took Sirius a full minute of shouting to lift the glazed look from his godson's eyes and bring his attention back to the present.

***

In a stiflingly hot torch-lit cave, Severus Snape was carefully reading from an ancient manuscript, occasionally taking notes at the relevant passages. He deeply resented helping Voldemort improve upon his new curse, but knew that it was necessary to persuade him of his innocence. He was in a large grotto, containing many Death Eaters who were also hard at work on the same project, and the heat from the fires was making it very difficult to concentrate. Lord Voldemort himself, was somewhere in the room, though Snape could not see him. However, his cold, reptilian voice echoed off the rock surfaces:

"You will owl our Friend, now Wormtail, and let him know how to proceed. Also, I want him to find out what that muggle-loving fool Dumbledore has discovered about the curse- we must- must-…"

"My lord?"

Snape became aware of the confusion filling the cavern and looked up to see a large group gathering around the Dark Lord. Severus got swiftly to his feet and hurried over to investigate the commotion. He was startled to see Lord Voldemort lying prostate on the ground, his eyes shut, seemingly against unmerciful pain. Within an instant, however, Voldemort recovered and stood up, glaring furiously at his faithful servants. One word sufficed to explain his collapse.

"Potter!"

A great distance away, Harry Potter pocketed his wand and returned to the Burrow, his head bowed and his feet dragging on the damp grass. So, I can do it…

***

When Harry returned to the bedroom he shared with Ron, he was surprised to find that his roommate was not there. Where on earth is he? I haven't seen him since breakfast…God, I hope he isn't mad at me for something. He can be such an idiot at times! He opened his bedside cabinet and carefully took out the Pensieve that Dumbledore had given him only a day or so before. Such a lot had happened since then, when he had thought that his life couldn't possibly get any more complicated. It wasn't enough that he had had to learn that he was the heir of Gryffindor, or that he was his mother's Secret Keeper, guarding an immensely powerful talisman (What did he call it? A Penna?), but since then he had had to deal with Percy's being murdered, Wormtail's breach of the Burrow's defences, and now being taught to kill. It was difficult to think clearly when he had so many apparently disconnected threads running through his mind. Dumbledore was right, sometimes there are too many thoughts to deal with all at once.

Harry settled comfortably on his bed with the Pensieve next to him. Where will I start? Hmmm. The Penna-Dumbledore said that I know where it is…I'll think about our conversation and see what happens. Harry raised his wand warily to his head, as it expecting green light to erupt from it. As he brought it back down to the Pensieve, he was pleased to see a long white strand attached to it. Once placed inside the liquid, the thread developed a foggy image, which quickly began to sharpen and come into focus. Amazed, Harry hunched over the glowing liquid and watched as a beautiful golden forest came into view. What's that supposed to be? I didn't think about trees! Deeply confused, Harry began to wonder if perhaps there was something wrong with the Pensieve. It was only supposed to show his own memories, but Harry was certain that he had never been in a forest like that. He would remember if he had been anywhere that picturesque. The image began to shift and the trees parted to show a large stone house partly obscured by thick hedges. Harry was about to put the Pensieve away when the vision of a bright, wood-panelled room filled the dish. There was something very familiar about that room, especially the large portrait hanging over the mantelpiece, but Harry was sure he had never been in it. How could he have memories about a place he had never visited? Damn! It must be broken. I'll ask Sirius to look at it later…

Disappointed, Harry returned the Pensieve to his bedside cabinet and sat back on his bed. It was only two o'clock in the afternoon, but Harry didn't know how he should spend his time. He thought briefly about looking for Ron. Perhaps he hadn't been giving him enough attention, considering his brother had just died, but sadly, he sensed that Ron was finding his company annoying. It was true that Harry had been spending a lot more time with Sirius than with his best friend, but it was most unconsciously done, and mainly due to the severity of recent events. With so much happening in his life, it was difficult to find time for all his friends, however much he cared about them. It was the same with Hermione. He couldn't recall having had more than two conversations with her since her arrival on the day of the funeral, however she seemed aware of his predicament and did not take offence. Ron, on the other hand, had been decidedly cool to him since Percy's death, speaking only when entirely necessary, and saying as little as possible. If I don't do something about this soon, it'll get out of hand…I'll see if he's downstairs.

***

Harry wandered from room to room, but found no sign of Ron. Ginny was in her room talking to Hermione, but nobody else, other than Sirius and Remus, seemed to be home. Sirius was sitting at the kitchen table writing a letter and he looked up when Harry entered. Harry asked him if he had seen Ron anywhere.

"No, actually, I haven't. He's probably visiting the grave with the others."

"'But I saw him this morning after Mr. and Mrs. Weasley left. If he did go to the grave, he left later than they did."

"That must be it. How do you spell, "bosom"? Is it –om or –um?"

Harry gaped at Sirius, not sure if he had heard correctly. Sirius seemed annoyed at his expression.

"It's for Arabella, of course; Women love this kind of thing. I just wish I could be a little better at it, though. Maybe I should wake Moony. You wouldn't think it to look at him, but he's really quite a lady's man-"

"Whatever you say, Sirius. It's –om. Listen, I think my Pensieve must be broken, it's acting really weird."

" "…wrap my arms around your tender bosom, -om…" Right. What was that Harry?"

"Nothing…"

Harry shrugged in resignation and left the room, Sirius' quill scratching ceaselessly behind him. Noticing that the living room door was open, Harry stepped quietly inside so as not to disturb Remus. Unfortunately there was no sign of Ron, and Lupin seemed to still be asleep. Harry was about to leave when he noticed something odd. I could have sworn I left that book on the armchair. 'Guess not. "Advanced Curses for Aurors" was on the couch next to Remus. Having nothing better to do, Harry lifted the heavy book and turned to leave, but Remus stirred and opened his eyes slowly.

"Hello, Harry. How did it go?"

"I did it! It wasn't like I thought it would be, though. I didn't really have to think about what I was doing, it was just sort of natural. It felt more instinctive than the curses we've learned at Hogwarts."

Remus looked vaguely annoyed at this statement. Harry looked questioningly at him, trying to remember if he'd said anything wrong.

"I'm sorry, Harry. It's just that I think you're too young to be using Avada Kedavra, but I'm impressed that you are powerful enough. Many older wizards have difficulty with it."

Harry smiled gratefully, "Have you seen Ron anywhere?"

"No. He's probably upstairs with Ginny-"

"No, he isn't. I checked. I can't find him anywhere. Sirius thinks he followed the others to see Percy's grave."

"Well, they'll be home soon. I've noticed that Ron seems very angry about Percy's death. You must be worried about him-"

"Yeah, I am. Since I've barely spoken to him since the funeral and haven't a clue what state of mind he's in…Um, do you know anything about Pensieves? Professor Dumbledore gave me one, but I think it's broken."

"What seems to be the problem?"

"When I tried to think about the P-. "

Harry stuttered as he remembered Dumbledore's advice not to speak of the Penna to anyone, no matter how trustworthy they were, and continued cautiously.

"I mean, when I tried to put a memory into it, it showed me something different. I saw a forest and then a big stone house. Then there was a room, with all the walls covered in wood…"

Harry suddenly shivered, recalling some sensation that he subconsciously associated with that room. Maybe I was there, but I can't remember…For a minute or two, Harry struggled to search for the illusive memory, but could recall nothing more. He noticed that Lupin was looking at him in an odd way, as though wanting to say something particular, but afraid of the effect his words might have.

"What did you see in the room? Did you make out any details?"

"Hmmm. There was a portrait hanging over the fire; I think it was an old wizard, but I can't remember it very well. The carpet was red and gold…No, there's nothing else."

Remus looked at him in amazement.

"Harry, that's incredible! It sounds like you're describing Godric's Hollow, but I can't see how that's possible. You were less than a year old when you lived there!"

A/N: Okay, I'm really sorry this is late. From now on I won't make any promises to get these up on time as something invariably comes up to keep me from writing. I hope this part is okay, and I swear I will do my best to get the next part up by Friday. Honest! Please everyone review, this is my tenth chapter, so why not mark this historic occasion by giving me the most reviews I will ever get in my lifetime?! Please…

Thank you to everyone who reviewed, as always. You people are the best. If you have any suggestions I'd love to hear them e.g. do you want a happy ending or a sad ending, should I give any characters more precedence etc. Anyway, special thanks to:

PEZ: I'm sorry, it was cruel of me to tell you there was a hint in the last part. It was there, I swear, but it's not very easy to spot. I also hinted at it in this part. I certainly hope Ron doesn't do something rash, but going by this chapter, I think he might have something up his sleeve…

Dumbledore: Thank you for reviewing, I love to get new reviewers J

SailorCelestial: Ooooh, you're paying attention! And you're right; he wasn't referring to Sirius' thirst for revenge. I'm sure you know who by now…Thanks for reviewing again, but I shouldn't thank you-you're only doing what I'm making you do!

ryuu kaze: I think this chapter explains the dreams. Thank you so much for coming back to review. I really appreciate it.

Sublimechik: Again, so sorry this took so long. I'll try to get them up quickly in future.

Amanda mancini:Sorry if I'm taking the whole Ron thing too far, but its integral to the plot. Thanks for reviewing again!

ItsKR4all:Thanks for reviewing (twice-great!). Yup, Ron's acting strangely. I think this chapter partly explains it-more on this later…

Harry's mum lily: Thank you so much for reviewing again. I'm glad you like it.

Alexa: Thanks for reviewing. Sorry this part is late.

Rede:Thanks for not flaming. Glad you're enjoying it.

Pleiades