Disclaimer: Hey guess what everyone? I don't own Harry Potter! J.K. Rowling does. And the lyrics at the beginning are from Linkin Park's "Pushing me Away" so I don't own them either. *Sighs*
A/N: Err...hi...Sorry this took me so long! I was planing on posting this the other day but I was, umm...otherwise detained. But anyway, here it is. Chapter two. I don't really like this part, it's a bit shorter and the first one was better, but I needed this one so...here it is. Please r/r.
***
The Edge of Forever
Chapter Two: Consequence
***
~Everything has to end...you'll soon find we're out of time left to watch it all unwind~
Harry eye's slowly fluttered open, soft rays of sunlight falling gently across his face. He'd actually slept well last night, as he was far too exhausted not to, but this morning things were different. This morning he sat up with a start.
"What did I do?!" He wondered out loud, surprised at the frantic voice coming out of his horse throat. "How could I..." He trailed off as he realized he was talking to himself, throwing his legs over the side of his bed and resting his elbows against his knees so that he could effectively bury his face in his hands. It had suddenly dawned on him how completely stupid he had been the day before. How could he have sent Hedwig away without writing to Dumbledore? How could he send such an owl to Sirius?
That was what really bothered him now, Sirius. He couldn't even remember what he'd written in that owl, only that it had been pathetically desperate, and was sure to make his godfather terribly worried. Knowing Sirius, he'd come out of hiding just to help him, and it would be all his fault when he got caught! How could he not think of that? How could he be so selfish? He'd always gone out of his way to keep his godfather from worrying about him, and now...now he would surely risk his freedom to get Harry out of a perfectly safe house.
OK, so perhaps, 'perfectly safe' wasn't the best way to describe it, not after what his uncle had done to him the other day. But he'd never done that before, so maybe it was only a one time thing, and it's not like Harry had really gotten hurt then...much. His cheek was still a bit tender where Uncle Vernon had hit him, but that bruise would fade away soon, and his headache had gone almost completely. He was fine. Even the cupboard instant hadn't been *so* bad. It wasn't like he hadn't grown up in there. Of course, he really was a little big for it now, the light no longer worked and it was a bit more cluttered, but that hadn't exactly been the end of the world. And it certainly wasn't worth Sirius getting caught just to get him out of there!
There was also the whole disturbance with his scar the other day. Dumbledore needed to know! But still, right then, that seemed almost insignificant to the boy. He couldn't stop thinking about Sirius. About what could come of all this.
He finally decided that he'd just have to send another owl, he knew that he shouldn't use Hedwig so much, but what more could he do? And so, pulling out a quill and another blank piece of parchment, Harry began writing his godfather second letter, somewhat of a retraction of the last one.
~~~
Dear Snuffles,
I'm fine. I was sick the other day when I sent you that owl, but I'm really OK now. Seriously. Don't worry about me, I don't need any help!
-Harry
~~~
There. It was done. And it could be believable. Maybe...If he was lucky...Very lucky. Now all he had to do was wait for Hedwig to return and he could send her back to Sirius before he had a chance to run off and do something stupid. The only *real* problem Harry'd had lately was his scar--which he had no intention of telling his godfather about right now--and on that note he decided that he'd better at least get his owl to Dumbledore written so he wouldn't have a chance to forget it again.
~~~
Dumbledore,
Sorry to bother you, but my scar hurt the other day and you said that I should owl you if it did. It's OK now, so it's probably nothing to worry about, I'm just letting you know.
-Harry
~~~
Harry nearly laughed as he read though the hurried owl. It had only been a year ago that he'd thought better of even writing one that sounded suspiciously like that. Of course he didn't know then that it could actually be important.
Setting the two short owls on his desk, Harry got to his feet and looked for some clothes. After dressing rather quickly he made his way down stairs, ready to begin another day as his relatives lackey. After all, what else was there to do?
***
The rest of the day was pretty uneventful, aside from a few lesser comments thrown his way, and the ever lasting glare of everyone one in the household. But that was all something he'd grown used to over the years. It had all fallen on deaf ears anyway, for Harry was far to preoccupied with his thoughts about Sirius to pay much attention to anything else. He went through his day rather mechanically, doing what was bid of him, and keeping quiet as he did. It wasn't until later that evening that anything unusual happened.
Harry had just sat down to read the discarded owls he'd received from Ron and Hermione the previous day when his uncle's booming voice met his ears. "Boy, get down here right now!" Harry frowned. He didn't exactly sound happy.
Cringing slightly at his uncle's irritated tone, Harry stuffed the letters into his pocket and pushed his chair back from the desk, ready to leave his small room behind. His hand had just began turning the door knob when he thought better of it. Walking back into the room he threw his trunk open and rummaged around hurriedly for his wand. Uncle Vernon sounded upset about something, and after what happened the other day Harry wasn't taking any chances.
Shoving his wand carefully into his overly baggy pocket, Harry walked quickly from the room, and made his way down the stairs. "What is it, Uncle Ver..." And trailed off in confusion as his eye's fell upon the unexpected man standing in the doorway.
His attire wasn't exactly, well...normal. He wore an old gray suit jacket, a pokadot magenta tie, and a pair of too short trousers from a blue pinstriped suit. But it was the lime green bowler atop his head of gray hair that gave the man away instantly.
"Fudge?!" Harry exclaimed in surprise, nearly falling the rest of the way down the staircase. "What are-"
"You know this man?!" Uncle Vernon demanded, glaring at the boy as he finally reached the front door before turning a disgusted gaze on the Minister of Magic.
If Fudge noticed the man's bitter stare he ignored it, instead turning his attention to the obviously confused boy before him. "Harry, I'm afraid something rather...unexpected has come to our attention, and your going to have to come with me to the Ministry right now."
"Wait a second, who do you think you are?!" Uncle Vernon seemed quite perturbed at the strange man's intrusion, and was glaring at both Fudge and Harry for some kind of answer.
"Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic." He replied, and then trying to read Vernon's expression he added, "I understand that you must be worried about your nephew, but I can assure you that he'll be just fine. We only need to talk with him a little."
Harry all but laughed at the way Fudge had misread his uncle's words. The Dursleys'd probably be happier if something did happen to him! It would surely be the highlight of their summer.
"You haven't been telling *them* where we live again, have you?" Uncle Vernon looked absolutely furious. After what had happened with the Weasley's last summer Harry had been given strict instructions not to let any one of "his kind" anywhere near number four Privet Dr. Oh, he was definitely going to hear about this later.
Sighing at the hopeless situation, Harry turned to his uncle and said, "No, I didn't tell him where we live." He then turned to Fudge, wondering what exactly he was doing here. For a moment he just stared, confusion written clearly across his young face. What on earth could he want? Didn't he think that he was crazy or something? What could be so important? "You said you needed to talk to me about something?" The boy didn't know what else he could ask.
"Yes, Harry. But not here, in my office." Fudge replied quietly before turning to Uncle Vernon with a look that hid not a trace of his annoyance. "I'm sorry for coming to your home uninvited, Mr. Dursley, but it's very important that we speak with your nephew. C'mon Harry, we'll portkey from the living room. I don't want to attract any unwanted attention by doing it outside."
Harry nodded at the minister, wary of what Uncle Vernon's reaction would be to all this. They entered the living room to find Dudley and Aunt Petunia on the couch watching television. Both gave a start as Fudge entered the room.
"Who's that?" Dudley asked rather bluntly, eying Fudge with obvious confusion and distaste. "And *what* is he wearing?!"
"Vernon?" Aunt Petunia turned to her husband, startled at the angry look on his face. "Oh NO! He's not one of those-?"
"The boy just doesn't know when to quit!" Uncle Vernon exclaimed, a look of utter contempt coming over his purpling face. "But he will." He added under his breath so that Harry barely heard him. He frowned.
Dudley, suddenly looked quite frightened as the realization of what was going on finally dawned on him, and so clung to Aunt Petunia as though his life depended on it--Which he probably thought to be the case. He looked, for a moment, as if he wanted to say something, but the unpleasant memory of last summer made him keep his mouth shut. Apparently the boy wasn't taking any chances.
"All right, Harry, ready to go?" Fudge looked a bit confused at the scene that was unfolding before him. He obviously hadn't expected the Dursleys to act like this. Like they'd never seen a wizard before in their lives--And after he'd gone out of his way to dress in muggle clothes for them.
Harry nodded again, the frown on his face not even coming close to betraying how tense the situation was making him. He tried not to look at his uncle, the thought of what might happen upon his return all to bleak.
Fudge reached into his pocket then and pulled out an old quill, extending it quickly to Harry who took hold of it with a sigh. The effect was immediate as he suddenly felt a familiar tug behind his navel. A frightened scream from his aunt filled the air as he and Fudge disappeared.
***
It wasn't until he was sitting alone in Fudge's office that Harry began to feel nervous about something other then what would happen when he got home. Namely what had brought the Minister of Magic himself to Privet Dr in the first place. Perhaps he was finally beginning to believe that Voldemort had come back. That had to be it. He probably wanted to question him about what happened after the Triwizard Tournament. As much as he didn't really want to discuss that with anyone, if he could actually get through to Fudge then it would definitely be worth it. It was the only way Voldemort would ever be beaten again. They couldn't do it if Fudge didn't learn to acknowledge what was going on.
Harry cringed at the thought, something really terrible must have happened to have finally bring the Minister to his senses. Something awful. Perhaps whatever it was had something to do with the way his scar had been burning like that. Harry sighed in relief, now he wouldn't have to worry about owling Dumbledore. If Fudge really did know about it all, then he could just tell him, it wouldn't be long after that before Dumbledore found out too. At least one good thing seemed to be coming out of Fudges untimely visit. If Harry was going be in as much trouble as he thought he was then he was glad to know that it would at least help bring Voldemort down.
Of course that look on Uncle Vernon's face had been murderous when they left, maybe he *shouldn't* go back there. Maybe he could persuade Fudge to let him spend the rest of the summer with the Weasely's at the Burrow. Harry couldn't think of a better way for him to spend the summer! It would definitely beat staying with the Dursleys, especially with Uncle Vernon on the war path again. Fudge would let him go, he'd have to. He'd seen the look on his uncle's face before they'd left, there was simply no way that even he'd send Harry back to that!
It was then that Harry heard the soft hoot of an owl coming from behind Fudge's desk, and he turned to look in the direction of the noise. The desk was somewhat of a mess, several quill's and pieces of parchment cluttering it's surface. An open bottle of ink was balancing dangerously on a large pile of papers. For an office that was quite on the large side, it sure was a mess! But then again, with everything that was going on right now, and all the trouble the minisrty'd had lately, he supposed that a bit of disorganization was to be expected.
And then the sound again...
Harry's brows wrinkled in confusion and he climbed cautiously to his feet. He didn't really want, or need, to be caught wandering around Fudges office--it was bad enough being caught like that in Dumbledore's, and Fudge was a lot less understanding--but he simply couldn't stay seated. Something about that sound had been...familiar, and he wanted to see where it was coming from. Harry could have smacked himself for being so stupid, of course it was familiar, it was an owl! How thick could he possibly be? But still...
He simply couldn't restrain himself from walking over to Fudge's desk, careful not to bump anything in the cluttered office on his way. When he got there he found the owner of the sound gazing up at him from a tiny cage on the floor--And his mouth quickly fell open in surprise.
"Hedwig?!" The boy exclaimed, staring down in bewilderment at his own snowy owl. "But if your here..."
Harry trailed nervously, spinning around as the door behind slowly swung open. Fudge entered then, a slightly crumpled piece of parchment clutched in his hand.
"Harry, what are you doing over there by my desk?" Fudge asked, a tinge of annoyance in the back of his tone.
"What is Hedwig doing over here by your desk?" Harry demanded, fear in confusion making themselves quickly evident in his voice.
"Well, Harry, that's what I brought you here to talk about." Fudge told the boy, stepping the rest of the way into his office. The door slid closed behind him. Harry's heart sank. "You see we intercepted this, not far from Diagon Alley." He explained holding out the battered parchment in his hand so that the boy could see it.
But even as his eye's scanned the page he didn't appear to fully comprehend what was going on, the all to familiar scrawl seemed so distant and strange. So strange in fact that the next thing that Fudge said was still quite an unpleasant surprise. "How long has this been going on, Harry?" The man asked, gazing down at the bewildered boy with inquiring eye's. "How long have you been in contact with Sirius Black?"
The question hit him so hard that he nearly fell over. He'd suddenly grown terribly dizzy, his thoughts were spinning out of control. But it wasn't until that moment that his vision cleared and the distant words before him morphed into something more legible. It was the owl he'd sent with Hedwig just last night--And it was addressed to Sirius!
Harry paled. What had he done...?
~~~
A/N: Yeah, I didn't like this one much. The next one should be better...I think. I did a bad job with Fudge, but, I dunno, I tried. Well, I hope it wasn't too bad! Anyway though, thank you all so much for the awesome reviews! I didn't expect to get so many, so it was a really nice surprise for me :) I've noticed that a lot of other authors are replying to their reviews lately, and I know that I always enjoy reading them so I'm gonna give it a try. I used to trying emailing people, but this is waaaaayyy easier! So thanks to everyone whose reading this and especially to all the wonderful people who actually reviewed. You rock!!
~~~
bobbi: Yay! My first review :) I'm glad you liked it. Really JK-ish? Wow, that's one of the nicest compliments I've ever gotten! Thank you!!
Stonehenge: Yeah, I was getting kinda sick of reading stories where Vernon just started beating on Harry because he was there. I'm glad you liked Harry's reaction, I thought that it would probably be more in character for him to fight back, I'm really happy that you thought so too!
Dark Whispers: I care what you think!! I love hearing what the readers think! Hopefully I wont give up on this, I enjoy writing it. So far I've only hit a little patch of writers block, but I think I'm gonna be OK. Thanx for the review!
Camel Socks: Really? You could actually see it? ALL RIGHT!! Detail's kinda hard for me sometimes, so I really appreciate your input!
Moonlight: Well, I didn't get this up very quickly did I? Sorry...Argh! I'm slacking already! Glad it didn't suck though, that makes me feel better at least. Thank you!
Joey: Thank you! I'm glad it was OK!
Elizabeth Bathory: I'll try to keep the chapters longer, but some of them...well...aren't. Maybe after they're revised. I'm glad you liked this!
Mystical Witch: Yikes, sorry I took so long! As far as Harry's rescue, well, I can't get into that now. It'll be discussed in the next chapter though. Thanx for reviewing!
Storyspindler: Hey, I'm glad you liked it! And thank you so much for actually giving me some criticism! Any advice people can give me is much appreciated. I agree that Vernon did go a bit overboard there, it originally wasn't so bad, but then it didn't seem bad enough so...I dunno, I improvised a little and that's what came out. And as for Harry forgetting to owl Dumbledore, well when Harry was locked up he was thinking more about how to get away from the Dursleys than anything else, his scar wasn't really bothering him anymore by then. Plus, I kind of felt like making Harry a bit reckless and irrational sometimes so that he could beat himself up over it later. It just seemed like fun, so...
JaiyAlex: Thanx for reviewing! Glad you like it!
Sky Chief: Thank you! Yeah, Harry's scar never does seem to bother him in front of the Dursleys, I just figured that would be a bit more realistic. That and Harry's fighting back. I'm really glad that went over so well, I was little worried, even though it did seem more natural to me that way. Thanx for the advice too, I'll keep that in mind. scenes that have more action give me a lot of trouble sometimes, I usually try and get them done as fast as I can, so sometimes it doesn't flow so well. Any help I can get on anything is always great! Thanx again!!
carolyn (fairyprncs88): Thank you! There's more to come!
Someone: Thanx!
evilraven: Glad you like it, and that my descriptions are OK :) Thank you!!
A/N: Err...hi...Sorry this took me so long! I was planing on posting this the other day but I was, umm...otherwise detained. But anyway, here it is. Chapter two. I don't really like this part, it's a bit shorter and the first one was better, but I needed this one so...here it is. Please r/r.
***
The Edge of Forever
Chapter Two: Consequence
***
~Everything has to end...you'll soon find we're out of time left to watch it all unwind~
Harry eye's slowly fluttered open, soft rays of sunlight falling gently across his face. He'd actually slept well last night, as he was far too exhausted not to, but this morning things were different. This morning he sat up with a start.
"What did I do?!" He wondered out loud, surprised at the frantic voice coming out of his horse throat. "How could I..." He trailed off as he realized he was talking to himself, throwing his legs over the side of his bed and resting his elbows against his knees so that he could effectively bury his face in his hands. It had suddenly dawned on him how completely stupid he had been the day before. How could he have sent Hedwig away without writing to Dumbledore? How could he send such an owl to Sirius?
That was what really bothered him now, Sirius. He couldn't even remember what he'd written in that owl, only that it had been pathetically desperate, and was sure to make his godfather terribly worried. Knowing Sirius, he'd come out of hiding just to help him, and it would be all his fault when he got caught! How could he not think of that? How could he be so selfish? He'd always gone out of his way to keep his godfather from worrying about him, and now...now he would surely risk his freedom to get Harry out of a perfectly safe house.
OK, so perhaps, 'perfectly safe' wasn't the best way to describe it, not after what his uncle had done to him the other day. But he'd never done that before, so maybe it was only a one time thing, and it's not like Harry had really gotten hurt then...much. His cheek was still a bit tender where Uncle Vernon had hit him, but that bruise would fade away soon, and his headache had gone almost completely. He was fine. Even the cupboard instant hadn't been *so* bad. It wasn't like he hadn't grown up in there. Of course, he really was a little big for it now, the light no longer worked and it was a bit more cluttered, but that hadn't exactly been the end of the world. And it certainly wasn't worth Sirius getting caught just to get him out of there!
There was also the whole disturbance with his scar the other day. Dumbledore needed to know! But still, right then, that seemed almost insignificant to the boy. He couldn't stop thinking about Sirius. About what could come of all this.
He finally decided that he'd just have to send another owl, he knew that he shouldn't use Hedwig so much, but what more could he do? And so, pulling out a quill and another blank piece of parchment, Harry began writing his godfather second letter, somewhat of a retraction of the last one.
~~~
Dear Snuffles,
I'm fine. I was sick the other day when I sent you that owl, but I'm really OK now. Seriously. Don't worry about me, I don't need any help!
-Harry
~~~
There. It was done. And it could be believable. Maybe...If he was lucky...Very lucky. Now all he had to do was wait for Hedwig to return and he could send her back to Sirius before he had a chance to run off and do something stupid. The only *real* problem Harry'd had lately was his scar--which he had no intention of telling his godfather about right now--and on that note he decided that he'd better at least get his owl to Dumbledore written so he wouldn't have a chance to forget it again.
~~~
Dumbledore,
Sorry to bother you, but my scar hurt the other day and you said that I should owl you if it did. It's OK now, so it's probably nothing to worry about, I'm just letting you know.
-Harry
~~~
Harry nearly laughed as he read though the hurried owl. It had only been a year ago that he'd thought better of even writing one that sounded suspiciously like that. Of course he didn't know then that it could actually be important.
Setting the two short owls on his desk, Harry got to his feet and looked for some clothes. After dressing rather quickly he made his way down stairs, ready to begin another day as his relatives lackey. After all, what else was there to do?
***
The rest of the day was pretty uneventful, aside from a few lesser comments thrown his way, and the ever lasting glare of everyone one in the household. But that was all something he'd grown used to over the years. It had all fallen on deaf ears anyway, for Harry was far to preoccupied with his thoughts about Sirius to pay much attention to anything else. He went through his day rather mechanically, doing what was bid of him, and keeping quiet as he did. It wasn't until later that evening that anything unusual happened.
Harry had just sat down to read the discarded owls he'd received from Ron and Hermione the previous day when his uncle's booming voice met his ears. "Boy, get down here right now!" Harry frowned. He didn't exactly sound happy.
Cringing slightly at his uncle's irritated tone, Harry stuffed the letters into his pocket and pushed his chair back from the desk, ready to leave his small room behind. His hand had just began turning the door knob when he thought better of it. Walking back into the room he threw his trunk open and rummaged around hurriedly for his wand. Uncle Vernon sounded upset about something, and after what happened the other day Harry wasn't taking any chances.
Shoving his wand carefully into his overly baggy pocket, Harry walked quickly from the room, and made his way down the stairs. "What is it, Uncle Ver..." And trailed off in confusion as his eye's fell upon the unexpected man standing in the doorway.
His attire wasn't exactly, well...normal. He wore an old gray suit jacket, a pokadot magenta tie, and a pair of too short trousers from a blue pinstriped suit. But it was the lime green bowler atop his head of gray hair that gave the man away instantly.
"Fudge?!" Harry exclaimed in surprise, nearly falling the rest of the way down the staircase. "What are-"
"You know this man?!" Uncle Vernon demanded, glaring at the boy as he finally reached the front door before turning a disgusted gaze on the Minister of Magic.
If Fudge noticed the man's bitter stare he ignored it, instead turning his attention to the obviously confused boy before him. "Harry, I'm afraid something rather...unexpected has come to our attention, and your going to have to come with me to the Ministry right now."
"Wait a second, who do you think you are?!" Uncle Vernon seemed quite perturbed at the strange man's intrusion, and was glaring at both Fudge and Harry for some kind of answer.
"Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic." He replied, and then trying to read Vernon's expression he added, "I understand that you must be worried about your nephew, but I can assure you that he'll be just fine. We only need to talk with him a little."
Harry all but laughed at the way Fudge had misread his uncle's words. The Dursleys'd probably be happier if something did happen to him! It would surely be the highlight of their summer.
"You haven't been telling *them* where we live again, have you?" Uncle Vernon looked absolutely furious. After what had happened with the Weasley's last summer Harry had been given strict instructions not to let any one of "his kind" anywhere near number four Privet Dr. Oh, he was definitely going to hear about this later.
Sighing at the hopeless situation, Harry turned to his uncle and said, "No, I didn't tell him where we live." He then turned to Fudge, wondering what exactly he was doing here. For a moment he just stared, confusion written clearly across his young face. What on earth could he want? Didn't he think that he was crazy or something? What could be so important? "You said you needed to talk to me about something?" The boy didn't know what else he could ask.
"Yes, Harry. But not here, in my office." Fudge replied quietly before turning to Uncle Vernon with a look that hid not a trace of his annoyance. "I'm sorry for coming to your home uninvited, Mr. Dursley, but it's very important that we speak with your nephew. C'mon Harry, we'll portkey from the living room. I don't want to attract any unwanted attention by doing it outside."
Harry nodded at the minister, wary of what Uncle Vernon's reaction would be to all this. They entered the living room to find Dudley and Aunt Petunia on the couch watching television. Both gave a start as Fudge entered the room.
"Who's that?" Dudley asked rather bluntly, eying Fudge with obvious confusion and distaste. "And *what* is he wearing?!"
"Vernon?" Aunt Petunia turned to her husband, startled at the angry look on his face. "Oh NO! He's not one of those-?"
"The boy just doesn't know when to quit!" Uncle Vernon exclaimed, a look of utter contempt coming over his purpling face. "But he will." He added under his breath so that Harry barely heard him. He frowned.
Dudley, suddenly looked quite frightened as the realization of what was going on finally dawned on him, and so clung to Aunt Petunia as though his life depended on it--Which he probably thought to be the case. He looked, for a moment, as if he wanted to say something, but the unpleasant memory of last summer made him keep his mouth shut. Apparently the boy wasn't taking any chances.
"All right, Harry, ready to go?" Fudge looked a bit confused at the scene that was unfolding before him. He obviously hadn't expected the Dursleys to act like this. Like they'd never seen a wizard before in their lives--And after he'd gone out of his way to dress in muggle clothes for them.
Harry nodded again, the frown on his face not even coming close to betraying how tense the situation was making him. He tried not to look at his uncle, the thought of what might happen upon his return all to bleak.
Fudge reached into his pocket then and pulled out an old quill, extending it quickly to Harry who took hold of it with a sigh. The effect was immediate as he suddenly felt a familiar tug behind his navel. A frightened scream from his aunt filled the air as he and Fudge disappeared.
***
It wasn't until he was sitting alone in Fudge's office that Harry began to feel nervous about something other then what would happen when he got home. Namely what had brought the Minister of Magic himself to Privet Dr in the first place. Perhaps he was finally beginning to believe that Voldemort had come back. That had to be it. He probably wanted to question him about what happened after the Triwizard Tournament. As much as he didn't really want to discuss that with anyone, if he could actually get through to Fudge then it would definitely be worth it. It was the only way Voldemort would ever be beaten again. They couldn't do it if Fudge didn't learn to acknowledge what was going on.
Harry cringed at the thought, something really terrible must have happened to have finally bring the Minister to his senses. Something awful. Perhaps whatever it was had something to do with the way his scar had been burning like that. Harry sighed in relief, now he wouldn't have to worry about owling Dumbledore. If Fudge really did know about it all, then he could just tell him, it wouldn't be long after that before Dumbledore found out too. At least one good thing seemed to be coming out of Fudges untimely visit. If Harry was going be in as much trouble as he thought he was then he was glad to know that it would at least help bring Voldemort down.
Of course that look on Uncle Vernon's face had been murderous when they left, maybe he *shouldn't* go back there. Maybe he could persuade Fudge to let him spend the rest of the summer with the Weasely's at the Burrow. Harry couldn't think of a better way for him to spend the summer! It would definitely beat staying with the Dursleys, especially with Uncle Vernon on the war path again. Fudge would let him go, he'd have to. He'd seen the look on his uncle's face before they'd left, there was simply no way that even he'd send Harry back to that!
It was then that Harry heard the soft hoot of an owl coming from behind Fudge's desk, and he turned to look in the direction of the noise. The desk was somewhat of a mess, several quill's and pieces of parchment cluttering it's surface. An open bottle of ink was balancing dangerously on a large pile of papers. For an office that was quite on the large side, it sure was a mess! But then again, with everything that was going on right now, and all the trouble the minisrty'd had lately, he supposed that a bit of disorganization was to be expected.
And then the sound again...
Harry's brows wrinkled in confusion and he climbed cautiously to his feet. He didn't really want, or need, to be caught wandering around Fudges office--it was bad enough being caught like that in Dumbledore's, and Fudge was a lot less understanding--but he simply couldn't stay seated. Something about that sound had been...familiar, and he wanted to see where it was coming from. Harry could have smacked himself for being so stupid, of course it was familiar, it was an owl! How thick could he possibly be? But still...
He simply couldn't restrain himself from walking over to Fudge's desk, careful not to bump anything in the cluttered office on his way. When he got there he found the owner of the sound gazing up at him from a tiny cage on the floor--And his mouth quickly fell open in surprise.
"Hedwig?!" The boy exclaimed, staring down in bewilderment at his own snowy owl. "But if your here..."
Harry trailed nervously, spinning around as the door behind slowly swung open. Fudge entered then, a slightly crumpled piece of parchment clutched in his hand.
"Harry, what are you doing over there by my desk?" Fudge asked, a tinge of annoyance in the back of his tone.
"What is Hedwig doing over here by your desk?" Harry demanded, fear in confusion making themselves quickly evident in his voice.
"Well, Harry, that's what I brought you here to talk about." Fudge told the boy, stepping the rest of the way into his office. The door slid closed behind him. Harry's heart sank. "You see we intercepted this, not far from Diagon Alley." He explained holding out the battered parchment in his hand so that the boy could see it.
But even as his eye's scanned the page he didn't appear to fully comprehend what was going on, the all to familiar scrawl seemed so distant and strange. So strange in fact that the next thing that Fudge said was still quite an unpleasant surprise. "How long has this been going on, Harry?" The man asked, gazing down at the bewildered boy with inquiring eye's. "How long have you been in contact with Sirius Black?"
The question hit him so hard that he nearly fell over. He'd suddenly grown terribly dizzy, his thoughts were spinning out of control. But it wasn't until that moment that his vision cleared and the distant words before him morphed into something more legible. It was the owl he'd sent with Hedwig just last night--And it was addressed to Sirius!
Harry paled. What had he done...?
~~~
A/N: Yeah, I didn't like this one much. The next one should be better...I think. I did a bad job with Fudge, but, I dunno, I tried. Well, I hope it wasn't too bad! Anyway though, thank you all so much for the awesome reviews! I didn't expect to get so many, so it was a really nice surprise for me :) I've noticed that a lot of other authors are replying to their reviews lately, and I know that I always enjoy reading them so I'm gonna give it a try. I used to trying emailing people, but this is waaaaayyy easier! So thanks to everyone whose reading this and especially to all the wonderful people who actually reviewed. You rock!!
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bobbi: Yay! My first review :) I'm glad you liked it. Really JK-ish? Wow, that's one of the nicest compliments I've ever gotten! Thank you!!
Stonehenge: Yeah, I was getting kinda sick of reading stories where Vernon just started beating on Harry because he was there. I'm glad you liked Harry's reaction, I thought that it would probably be more in character for him to fight back, I'm really happy that you thought so too!
Dark Whispers: I care what you think!! I love hearing what the readers think! Hopefully I wont give up on this, I enjoy writing it. So far I've only hit a little patch of writers block, but I think I'm gonna be OK. Thanx for the review!
Camel Socks: Really? You could actually see it? ALL RIGHT!! Detail's kinda hard for me sometimes, so I really appreciate your input!
Moonlight: Well, I didn't get this up very quickly did I? Sorry...Argh! I'm slacking already! Glad it didn't suck though, that makes me feel better at least. Thank you!
Joey: Thank you! I'm glad it was OK!
Elizabeth Bathory: I'll try to keep the chapters longer, but some of them...well...aren't. Maybe after they're revised. I'm glad you liked this!
Mystical Witch: Yikes, sorry I took so long! As far as Harry's rescue, well, I can't get into that now. It'll be discussed in the next chapter though. Thanx for reviewing!
Storyspindler: Hey, I'm glad you liked it! And thank you so much for actually giving me some criticism! Any advice people can give me is much appreciated. I agree that Vernon did go a bit overboard there, it originally wasn't so bad, but then it didn't seem bad enough so...I dunno, I improvised a little and that's what came out. And as for Harry forgetting to owl Dumbledore, well when Harry was locked up he was thinking more about how to get away from the Dursleys than anything else, his scar wasn't really bothering him anymore by then. Plus, I kind of felt like making Harry a bit reckless and irrational sometimes so that he could beat himself up over it later. It just seemed like fun, so...
JaiyAlex: Thanx for reviewing! Glad you like it!
Sky Chief: Thank you! Yeah, Harry's scar never does seem to bother him in front of the Dursleys, I just figured that would be a bit more realistic. That and Harry's fighting back. I'm really glad that went over so well, I was little worried, even though it did seem more natural to me that way. Thanx for the advice too, I'll keep that in mind. scenes that have more action give me a lot of trouble sometimes, I usually try and get them done as fast as I can, so sometimes it doesn't flow so well. Any help I can get on anything is always great! Thanx again!!
carolyn (fairyprncs88): Thank you! There's more to come!
Someone: Thanx!
evilraven: Glad you like it, and that my descriptions are OK :) Thank you!!