Waiting for an apology

Harry Potter had just finished his argument with the minister for magic, Rufus Scrimgeour when Hermione and Ron hurried over to him.

'What did the minister want?' Ron asked.

'for me to be his poster boy. I told him to stuff it,' Harry folded his arms then stared at his two friends, 'Well, I've been waiting since that death eater killed Dumbledore and I'm still waiting.'

'Waiting, what are you waiting for?' Hermione asked in her usual bossy voice.

Harry stared at Hermione then shook his head, 'Work it out, only then, talk to me. Otherwise, leave me alone.'

Harry walked away, back to the castle. He slipped his invisibility cloak on when he heard hurried footsteps behind him. It was Hermione and Ron trying to catch up to Harry to find out what was going on.

By the time Hermione and Ron got to Gryffindor tower, they instantly saw that all Harry's things were gone, except his trunk, which was almost empty. The only things left were some old books, cauldron and some old clothes.

'He must have snuck down to Hogsmeade,' Hermione said.

'If he did that, he would have taken his trunk. The stuff he took was stuff he wanted to keep,' Ron said, 'I think he left. But what was he waiting for?'

'I don't know. He said he had been waiting since the death eater killed Professor Dumbledore and he was still waiting. I just don't understand what he meant.'

'Neither do I. Let's hope you're right and he is down at Hogsmeade waiting for the Hogwarts express. We can get him to explain.'

'Yes, we will get him to explain. We better get our things, the train will be leaving soon.'

It didn't take Hermione and Ron long to realised Harry had left, he was not at Hogsmeade or on the Hogwarts express. They did tell Tonks, who was on the train, for a bit of security, that Harry wasn't there. They also told Tonks what Harry said before he walked off.

'I'm sure we'll see him. Just stay in here and away from the other end of the carriage. I'll be in this section to keep the juniors away.'

'Juniors, who are they?' Ron asked.

'The students who was marked. Professor Dumbledore told us that about two dozen Slytherin students were marked with the dark mark, but so were a few from the other three houses. Mad-eye is keeping an eye on the other end of the train where the Slytherin's are. So stay in here, unless you need the toilet.'

Hermione had to leave with her parents but she did get Ron to promise to send her an owl if they found Harry.

Ron had to explain to his parents and the order that were at the station that Harry left after the funeral. He also explained about his stuff that he left behind.

'So he left things he would not want or need anymore. That tells me he did leave and doesn't plan on going to the muggles,' Mad-eye said.

'But Professor Dumbledore said he had to until he became of age,' Molly said.

'It seems he decided against it. But what about what he said, he was waiting?' Mad-eye asked.

'We don't know what he meant. We were hoping to ask him on the train,' Ron said.

'We better go. It's not safe to hang around,' Arthur said.

It was around dinner time that Mad-eye Moody worked something out. He knew he could not go speak with Harry, now he figured out where he was. He would have to send an owl.

Harry stood just inside the door of his house, waiting. As soon as he saw the man limping towards the house, he held up the note just outside the ward so the man could read it. Once he did, he stepped back to allow the man to enter.

'What do you want Mad-eye?'

'You sent everyone in a tizzy by disappearing. You were supposed to go to your aunts.'

'She's nothing to me, so if the wards fall, it's their own fault. What else to do you want?'

'Ron explained what you said yet no one seems to know what you mean.'

'It's up to them two to figure it out. They should be smart enough to work out why I'm waiting and what I'm waiting for. But they only have another couple of days to work it out. Now if that's all, I have some things to do.'

'No, there's more. Albus explained to the order of the phoenix that you were our best chance. I was hoping you could explain why he believes that?'

'You're guess is as good as mine. If he thought I could do anything, he's delusional, well, he was. He never taught me anything to help against Voldemort. I wouldn't even survive against his death eaters. So you tell me Mr x auror, how am I, an underage untrained wizard supposed to help?'

'What about the prophecy?'

'If that prophecy was still active, then he would have trained me to fulfil it, he didn't. I would say it was finished the night I lost my parents. Beside, no one's helped me, so why should I help anyone. Now I really have to ask you to leave, I'm busy.'

'If the prophecy means you, then it is up to you to stop him.'

'No, I won't be stopping him even if I could. All of you in the order kept me prisoner in that abusive house. All of you kept Sirius away from me. The only person who I cared about died because the old man wouldn't get off his wrinkled old arse to help him, so no, I'm not helping anyone,' Harry flicked his wand, activating the extra ward he set, Mad-eye slid right out the door, 'Tell all of them they are on their own and it's their own fault,' Harry slammed the door, activated his main ward before heading back into the kitchen.

Harry was glad that Dobby had finished cleaning up after he, Harry had killed Kreacher. Now it was time to activate his last ward, which would be the only way he would get any peace.

There was a lot of yelling and a lot of people trying to talk over others until a large firework went off in the kitchen.

'We heard what was going on at Hogwarts,' Fred said.

'Yeah, it seems Harry knew Malfoy and Snape were trying to kill someone,' George said.

'Yet no one would listen to him,' Fred said.

'We also know that Hermione became quite bitchy towards Harry,' George said.

'Then Ron sided with her over Harry just because he fancies her,' Fred said.

'I would say he is waiting to be told he was right,' George said.

'And he's waiting for an apology,' Fred said.

'I've never once heard you or Hermione apologise to Harry,' George said.

'Even when it was proven he was right,' Fred said.

'It's also true what he said to Mad-eye,' George said.

'He was mistreated, badly by those muggles, we even had to rescue him,' Fred said.

'Yet you thought it was perfectly okay to keep him there just because Dumbledore said so,' George said.

'It's no wonder he said he won't help when no one bothered to help him,' Fred said.

'He would see our parents as some of the worst,' George said.

'Right, we told you how he was locked up and being starved,' Fred said.

'Yet you agree with Dumbledore that he had to go back there,' George said.

'Which is why he snuck away. He knew all of us were there to make sure he went with his aunt an uncle,' Tonks said with a sigh, 'I never knew they mistreated him. No one told me that.'

'Then you're not much of an auror,' Fred said.'

'If you can't see the signs of abuse,' George said.

Everyone watched as the twins left the house. Bill and Charlie hurried after them.

'We weren't told anything about Harry being abused in any way,' Bill said.

'We noticed he was thin but figured it was just his build,' Charlie said.

The twins sighed before facing their brothers, 'When he came here,' Fred said.

'We would notice fresh bruises,' George said.

'Ron told us he found a piece of muggle paper in the pocket of his robes,' Fred said.

'It had a list of things that had to be done around a house,' George said.

'The list would take the four of us all weekend to do,' Fred said.

'But Harry was expected to do it all alone before it got dark or he wouldn't get anything to eat,' George said.

'That was his life there. Being hurt by the uncle and cousin,' Fred said.

'While being a slave for them,' George said.

'We always thought Harry would leave one day,' Fred said.

'We thought he would have before now,' George said.

'If he tried before Dumbledore died, he would not have gotten very far,' Bill said.

'So he waited until the right time. He probably had plans to leave even if Dumbledore didn't die,' Charlie said.

'Mad-eye mentioned the prophecy. If there is one about Harry and...him, then he should have been kept here and trained. With the people Dumbledore knew, he could have Harry learning all sorts of magic to help,' Bill said.

'Right, so why didn't he?' Fred asked.

'Why make him stay with those people and why allow Snape to mistreat him?' George said.

'It's why we changed our mind about the order,' Fred said.

'They weren't really doing anything,' George said.

'But when it came to Harry, all of the order were keeping him prisoner in that house,' Fred said.

'He wouldn't even allow Harry to stay with his own godfather,' George said.

'Harry's had enough,' Bill said.

'Do you think he'll leave the country or just stay away from all of us?' Charlie asked.

'Leave the country?' Fred and George said together.

'Was Ron and Hermione that bad?' Bill asked.

'Yes, Hermione was very bitchy according to Lee,' Fred said.

'Ron kept saying they should listen to Hermione,' George said.

'Snape might have killed Dumbledore, but Malfoy was going to,' Fred said.

'It was Malfoy that almost killed Katie and Ron,' George said.

'Harry knew it but no one would listen to him,' Fred said.

'Why was Hermione acting like that?' Bill said.

'From what Lee could find out,' George said.

'It was because Harry was beating her in potions,' Fred said.

'He always beat her in defence against the dark arts,' George said.

'She hated that she couldn't beat Harry,' Fred said.

'So she was jealous and took it out on Harry,' Bill said.

'Ron fancies Hermione so he stuck by her and not his best friend,' Charlie said.

'You're right, he will leave the country because he has no one here. He has no family left and Sirius was the one person Harry truly cared about. Now he's dead as well, there's nothing to keep him here,' Bill said.

'Also add things that's happened, like how the ministry was bad mouthing him. The dementors and that trial. The triwizard tournament along with everything else we're heard that happened to him. He basically had almost the entire wizarding world thinking he was a liar thanks to Fudge. If that was me and I had no family, I would leave,' Charlie said.

'Are you going to tell that lot?' Fred said.

'We'll explain what we know and worked out. Everyone will have to know that we could be in for a war worse than last time. They will have to make plans to hide or leave,' Bill said.

'If it begin to get worse, which we know it will, do you think we can talk our parents into leaving?' Charlie asked.

The twins instantly said no, Bill shrugged. All charlie did was sigh. He thought maybe they should just work on a way to take their parents, their brothers and sister and just leave the country. They would have to spike their drinks with a sleeping draught so they couldn't fight. Charlie and Bill knew it would have to happen, now they just had to work out when.

It only took Harry three days to work the rest of his plans. Once they were done, he used his invisibility cloak to sneak out of Grimmauld place and get to London. He had things to do now he knew he could do them.

It was two days later that Harry sealed Grimmauld place but he did leave the wards around the house. He stayed on the top step, under his cloak, he apparated away from the house but he was also apparating away from his old life and everyone he'd ever known.

When Hermione arrived at the Burrow, she had been surprised when the two oldest Weasley boy's along with Remus and Tonks spoke with her in private. They told her what they figured out about what Harry meant. They instantly saw that Hermione was going to argue.

'You were wrong and it's time to admit it. No one, not one person can be right about everything. Also, every person have different beliefs and opinions, so what is right for you is not right for others. You're acting like a child just because it was proven you were wrong,' Bill said.

'It doesn't matter anymore, Harry's gone and he refuses to have anything to do with any of us,' Remus said.

'We all did wrong by Harry by listening to Dumbledore. He was also wrong. Now it's going to give you-know-who a win and we'll all be hunted.'

'He will listen to me,' Hermione growled. She was furious at what they said to her. She didn't bother going up stairs to see Ron, she left the house and apparated away.

'She's impossible,' Bill said.

'She's not coming with us when we leave,' Charlie said.

'No, I'd end up throttling her,' Tonks said.

'She's as bad as Dumbledore,' Remus said, 'Sirius and I argued with him so much, he refused to listen. I couldn't get near the house to get Harry, not until Dumbledore removed those wards that stop dark creatures. Sirius couldn't even send Harry an owl since Molly kept them here and not at Grimmauld place. Hedwig was taken to Hogwarts by Dumbledore so we couldn't use her. I don't blame Harry for feeling like he was deserted, because he was.'

By the time all the Weasley's along with Fleur, Remus and Tonks sat down to dinner, Kingsley and Mad-eye stepped into the house, with Hermione floating behind them.

'What happened?' Ron yelled as he ran over to her.

'She's dead. We found her on the grass outside Grimmauld place,' Mad-eye said.

'We went to talk to Harry, but no one answered,' Kingsley said, 'We couldn't see movement through any of the windows but we also knew we couldn't get close, not with some of the Black wards.'

'Who killed her?' Ron asked in a whisper as he stared down at the girl he liked.

'We don't know. The death eaters would know of the house now. They might not be able to see it, but that doesn't mean they couldn't watch the area from the park across the street,' Kingsley said.

'If they were there, then it was them that killed the girl,' Mad-eye said. What he didn't say was that there was a chance that the wards around the old Black home is what killed her. He also didn't say that he believed Harry Potter had left, not just left the house but the country.

Harry had left. He had worked on magical conjured papers so he could leave Great Britain. He wanted away and had been planning it for years. When Dumbledore was killed, Harry knew it was the perfect time.

When the plane first took off, Harry look down at the surrounding city and country side. The only thought he had was, finally, he was free and he was free.

It only took a week before Bill and charlie spiked the drinks of his family. Fleur had gone to France to work on some accommodation for them. Remus and Tonks had been able to talk Tonks' parents into leaving the country as well. Some of the old order of the phoenix members had also left. Only those who fully supported Albus Dumbledore stayed. They would be dead within a month.

Harry Potter made a home for himself in the Caribbean. The moment he saw the beautiful blue ocean, he knew this was the place for him. Now he just hoped he never saw anyone from his old life again.

'That is my past, this is my present and future. I won't allow anyone to destroy it,' Harry stared out over the water while he lounged on a deck chair. He had some type of tropical drink in his hand. So while he was resting, de-stressing and drinking, he was doing what any young man would do, he was checking out all the women on the beach.

'Life can't get better than this and I will fight to the death to keep it,' Harry smiled, took another drink before he relaxed back and closed his eyes. He finally felt at peace.

The end: