Title: The Sides of Fear (14/?)
Author: Azeroth
Author E-mail: mrlindberg3h@yahoo.com
Category: Mystery, Drama, Action/Adventure, Romance
Keywords: Harry, Ginny, Voldemort, Chalice
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: For all four books
Summary: Harry begins his fifth year at Hogwarts with a female Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, feelings of guilt for Cedric Diggory's death, and looking for someone to share his emotions with. Voldemort has steadily begun to build his reign of terror as a sense of urgency and vigilance goes through Hogwarts and the rest of the wizarding world.
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.

SPECIAL THANKS TO MADDY FOR INSPIRATION FOR THIS CHAPTER.

I have decided to put up this story on my own website since ff.net never works for me. I will continue to update on ff.net, but the chapters will most likely be up faster and more regularly on the website. There will be a message board for people to leave a review and you will be able to submit your fanfiction. Thank you!

Azeroth's HP Fanfiction Emporium
http://azeroth_fics.tripod.com/

The Sides of Fear

Chapter 14
Revelations

Hermione left the hospital wing after Harry's scar had made him fall off the bed and faint. Hermione had tried her "matter of life and death" speech, but Madam Pomfrey had shoved her out in a rather rude manner. She knew there was nothing she could do, but go and try to talk to Ron about what had happened. Ron was sitting on a chair by the fire, arms crossed, and eyes twitching. This was going to be difficult. She took a deep breath before she walked over and sat down next to him. He did not even acknowledge her existence.

"Ron?"

No answer.

"Ron? If you're still alive nod your head," she said coldly.

A few seconds passed before Ron slowly nodded his head, but turning back into a statue. Hermione sighed knowing she had to be careful about what she said since Ron was clearly not in the mood for a chat.

"Ron, all you have to do is either nod or shake your head. All right?"

Ron glared at her then nodded.

"Are you going to talk to me?"

Ron shook his head.

"Fine. Please think before you answer, and be honest. Is Harry your best friend?"

Ron seemed to think about it for a moment before shaking his head furiously. Hermione rolled her eyes at him and sighed heavily.

"Ron, I said you have to be honest...and think about it."

Ron turned his head and opened his mouth ready to say something only to remember he was not going to talk to anyone until he could get his hands on Harry again. Then he would give him a piece of his mind, again. They sat there in silence for a long time before Ron finally nodded.

"Do you trust Harry?" she said a smile creeping up on her face.

Ron let out a deep breath and nodded.

"Do you trust Ginny?"

Another nod.

"Do you really think they would go behind your back like that?"

Ron was biting his lip as he seemed to have an inner struggle with his stubborn self. His head finally dropped and he slowly shook his head.

"Why are you mad at Harry?"

He looked up at Hermione with a frown and quickly grabbed a quill and a piece of parchment and scribbled something down, handing it to Hermione.

That's not fair. You said I would just have nod or shake my head.

"Well, I changed my mind. I think it's rather stupid to be mad at someone if you don't even know why you're mad," she said matter-of-factly.

"I'm not stupid," he muttered.

"He speaks," Hermione said, throwing her hands up in the air.

There was another silence before Ron spoke again.

"You know...he...she...they..." tried Ron. "They KISSED," he said, looking like he had just swallowed a vomit flavoured Bean. "Ginny just..." Ron stopped obviously trying to forget the whole traumatizing experience.

"That's your problem?"

"Yes, that's my bloody problem. My best friend and my little sister...kissing," he yelled.

"You know, Ginny is old enough to make up her own mind," said Hermione, holding up her hand to stop Ron from interrupting. "In any case, you need to talk to her and Harry, not me."

Hermione stood up and left to go find Ginny in order to calm her down as well. She carefully opened up the door to the fourth year girls' room. Ginny was perched on her bed looking eerily similar to the way Hermione had found Ron. Hermione rubbed her forehead and took a deep breath before she began the nodding game with Ginny.

***

By the next morning Ron had calmed down considerably, and he had practiced his apology to Harry several times in front of his mirror. McGonagall had taken him to Dumbledore who had reprimanded him by giving him detention and a warning that this behavior would not be tolerated. Ron could handle detention, but Dumbledore had insisted a letter was sent to his parents explaining the incident. In other words, Ron was dead. For once he was not excited when the owls came with the mail.

Instead of Errol who usually carried the mail for the Weasleys, Hermes swooped down and landed in front of Ron's bowl of porridge. He was surprised to see that there was no smoke coming from the letter. He had expected his mother to send him a Howler, but all that was attached was a small note neatly folded. He carefully pried it from Hermes and opened it up.

Just wait until I get my hands on you.

That was it. Nothing more. Ron put his head on the table wishing she would have sent him a Howler instead. Maybe he could stay at Hogwarts for the rest of his life.

***

Harry was able to convince Madam Pomfrey to let him go down to the Great Hall to eat breakfast. He came to a halt when he saw the unmistakable flaming hair of Ron. He was resting his head on his arms looking like he did not want anyone to come near him. Harry had lost his appetite and made his way up to the common room where he sat down by the fire.

"Harry? When did you get back?"

Ginny was standing at the bottom of the stairs with a shade of pink at the tip of her ears.

"I just got here...managed to get Madam Pomfrey to let me go even though she was going to lock me up in there for the rest of the year," he replied, feeling his cheeks burn.

"I...I'm sorry Harry." Ginny hid her face in her hands as the tears began to fall.

"Ginny? What are you sorry about?" Harry said confused

"For causing all this...for telling everyone that we...I'm so sorry," she turned to leave, but Harry quickly got up and grabbed her arm.

"Ginny, it's not your fault. Well, it kind of is, but I don't blame you for anything," he added quickly not wanting Ginny to keep on crying.

"But I said those horrible things about you and me. I lied," she sobbed.

"Now that was your fault," Harry started, "but it's not your fault Ron is an idiot, is it?"

Ginny could not help herself as she her sobbing was intertwined with laughter. Harry led her back to the sofa where they sat down without saying anything.

"Excuse me."

They both jumped as the person standing behind them had walked in without them hearing anything. Harry looked at the young girl. She was about the same height as him, and her ash blonde hair was hanging down on her shoulders. Her deep blue eyes seemed to exhibit sadness. Harry could have sworn he recognized her from somewhere.

"I'm sorry if I scared you," she said shyly. "You probably don't remember me," she looked down, "but I have something for you."

She handed Harry a small green box with silver lining. Harry stared at it and looked up at the girl again.

"Colin would have wanted you to have this," she said as tears started to form in her eyes. She left before Harry had a chance to say thank you.

"Who was that?" he asked Ginny, opening up the box. There were at least a dozen pictures of him from the past three years.

"That was Amanda Lopez. She's in my year. Don't you remember? She's the one that talked to the rest of the students after Colin..." Ginny trailed off.

Harry suddenly remembered where he had seen her. Only days after Colin had been killed Dumbledore had announced that someone had requested to say something about Colin. A girl at the end of the Gryffindor table had stood up and walked up to the front of the Great Hall clutching a piece of parchment.

"Most of you probably don't know who I am, but those of you who do...Colin was my best friend. When no one else would give me the time of day, he stood by me and helped me. I...I wrote this and I wanted to share it with everyone."

She fumbled with the parchment that dropped to the floor. There were a few sniggers from the Slytherin table, but the deadly stares the rest of the students gave them quickly quieted them down. The girl started reading with a quivering voice.

Memories

A whisper of silver hearts clicking.
Faint glazes of remembering.
Tears come no heed of warning.
Flashes of people grieving.
All is memories coming back...
of that fateful night of losing
a loved one.
That's been in your life

At the end of the poem tears were streaming down her face, and she ran out of the Great Hall. She had dropped her parchment on the floor and Dumbledore slowly got up and picked it up.

"Remember this when people deny that Voldemort has risen again," he said holding up the parchment, pocketing it in his robes before he sat down again.

Harry remembered sitting at the table hiding his head in order not to let anyone see him crying. He had never really wanted to have Colin follow him around everywhere, but now he would never have to think about that again. It finally sunk in. Colin was gone. Just like his parents. Just like Cedric. He would not let anyone else lose their lives because of him. He had to find out what Voldemort was planning, and the only person who could help him was the cleverest witch at Hogwarts.

***

The fireplace lit up behind Dumbledore as the face of Remus Lupin appeared. Dumbledore turned around surprised to hear from them.

"Albus, Death Eaters attacked at Bill's apartment. We were lucky enough to get there before the attack, but we feel that Bill is no longer safe here. Voldemort will surely send more people the next time, and we were barely able to hold them off."

"That is most unfortunate. We would have needed all the information we could get as the clouds grow darker around this mystery."

Dumbledore sat back closing his eyes as he let his fingers press against each other. Finally, he opened his eyes and spoke.

"Very well. Bring back Mr. Weasley to England. I will inform Arthur and Molly that their son is no longer in Egypt, but will be arriving at the Burrow in a few days. I would like to have a word with him before he leaves to stay with his parents," he said, looking very tired and sighing heavily.

"We will be there as soon as we can. We will tie up some loose ends here then we will leave for Hogwarts," replied Remus before his face disappeared and the flames died down.

Dumbledore turned to the person who had been sitting on the other side of the desk.

"This was expected, but I was hoping we would have more time. Our only hope now is that you are able to gather the information we need. It is imperative that we find out what his exact plans are. I will see to it that everyone is informed of your absence," Dumbledore said gravely.

The man got up to leave and opened the door leading to the hallway.

"Oh, and good luck Hagrid. The safety of everyone rests on your shoulders."

"Thank yeh, Professor Dumbledore, sir. I will do my best," Hagrid bellowed.

"I know you will Hagrid. I know you will," smiled Dumbledore, giving Hagrid a nod before the giant left his office.

***

A pair of red eyes were glinting in the darkness accompanied by a hissing sound. They eyes turned to where the sound was coming from and a pale bony hand stretched out towards the curling snake. The man was making hissing noises directed at the snake.

"Nagini," hissed Voldemort. "You are my only true servant. Tell me, what do you see?"

"Massster, the boy has grown ssstrong," replied Nagini, sounding like the basilisk Harry had faced three years ago.

"Yes, I know. Every time he has thwarted my plans. It will not happen again, will it?"

Nagini stirred and let its head rest in the lap of it's master. She lifted her head and faced Voldemort.

"I sssee the boy in the foresst. He iss not alone. They are looking for sssomething."

"Does he know about the Chalice and the four elements?"

"No, he knowss nothing. He sseeksss the ansswerssss."

"He will find out soon enough, but we must have patience. This time he will not escape...yes, there will be no escape this time," cackled Voldemort.

Harry woke up drenched in sweat and his scar was hurting ever so slightly. He slid off his bed and walked down to the common room where he sat down by one of the tables. He buried his head in his hands trying to figure out what to do. I need to find out what Voldemort is doing. I'll talk to Dumbledore. Maybe he can tell me what he knows.

"Harry?"

He spun around and saw Ron standing in his pajama bottoms, rubbing his eyes.

"What do you want?" Harry said coldly.

A flash of anger raced across Ron's face, but it disappeared quickly.

"Harry...emsurre," he mumbled, letting his head drop.

"What?"

Ron took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry."

"You should be," muttered Harry.

"I am...really sorry, that is. I s'pose I'll just go back to bed then."

Ron walked back up the stairs before Harry could say anything. It was strange that Ron had been so apologetic. Usually he stayed mad at Harry for weeks. He suspected Hermione had something to do with it. Tomorrow he would go talk to Dumbledore and tell him all about the Chalice, but now he needed to get some sleep. There would be no time for that tomorrow as he did not have History of Magic.

***

Hermione had told Harry to meet her in the library after he had finished with Dumbledore. He had told her about his nightmares, and she seemed to think hard before she let out a smile of triumph before heading off to the library. Harry was sure he would never have passed any of his classes without Hermione's help. Just as Harry was going to start calling out randomly selected passwords Dumbledore's office door swung open and Viktor Krum was standing there. They both looked at each other with eyes marked with surprise and confusion before Dumbledore himself walked up to them with Fleur right behind him.

"Ah, Harry. Just the person I wanted to talk to. Please, follow me," he said gravely, inviting Harry into his office with a motion of his hand. "Mr. Krum, Ms. Delacour, I wish you luck."

The two of them nodded silently as they left Harry alone with Dumbledore who now looked as tired as he had looked that fateful night of Voldemort's return. He sat down across from Harry and looked over his half-moon glasses. Harry was not quite sure where to start as the sight of Viktor and Fleur had reminded him of other questions he had been harboring. Dumbledore seemed to sense this and with a wave of his wand he conjured up two cups and a kettle of tea. He poured tea into both cups and handed one over to Harry who drank it slowly, feeling strangely relaxed.

"It is a special blend of tea leaves from India. One of my more secret hobbies, but I suppose you wanted to know more about Sirius and the Chalice."

It was a statement rather than a question, and it took Harry by surprise. It was almost as if Dumbledore could read his mind.

"I haven't heard from Sirius for a month now, and, well, I thought maybe you knew more about where he is, sir."

Dumbledore took another sip of his tea drawing in the aroma that emanated from his cup.

"Sirius is fine, and he will be arriving here later today. That is all I will tell you about that. As far as the Chalice goes, I can only tell you what I know. I believe you deserve to know what Voldemort is planning."

"Professor, I had another nightmare last night. Voldemort was talking to Nagini about a Chalice and something about four elements," Harry confessed.

"I am sure Ms. Granger has already located what information we have in the library, but you will find there are no details about the four elements," replied Dumbledore, thoroughly enjoying Harry's face drop.

"How did you...Hermione...How?" Harry was now thoroughly confused, and also feeling unnerved by the fact that Dumbledore knew so much.

"I pay close attention to everything that goes on at Hogwarts. You would be surprised as to what you can find out," Dumbledore smiled knowingly.

"During the summer a Chalice along with other Egyptian artifacts was stolen from a private collector in London. You might have read about it as it was in the Muggle newspapers. In the wizarding world the Chalice is known as the Chalice of Llerin. It is believed to possess enormous powers, but so far there are no known records of anyone being able to use it. There were no records left behind resembling instructions, but stories were passed down through generations. The stories told of assembling the four elements of power. However, those four elements would be different in each case. Therein lies the problem," Dumbledore paused for a brief moment before continuing.

"In Voldemort's case the Chalice would be the first element. He already has that. The second element would be his mortal enemy, which is you Harry. The final two elements are more difficult. Thanks to extensive work some of our operatives were able to find out what the third element was, and it was handed to me to keep for protection. It is the Consacrer Dagger and I can assure you its Keeper will guard it with their life. That leaves us with one more element, and we do not know what it is. I thought I knew, but more research led us down a different path. We have our suspicions, but that is all it is. Mere suspicions."

Harry had been sitting quietly trying to take in everything that Dumbledore had told him.

"What do you think the fourth element is, Professor?"

"What is the one thing Voldemort has been trying to do ever since you banished him into his lifeless existence?" Dumbledore said, giving Harry a piercing look. Harry thought for a moment before he answered.

"He wants to live forever. Immortality. He told me so last year when..." Harry's voice faltered.

"Yes, Harry. Voldemort is looking for something that would make return him to his powers, and ensure his immortality once again. What element brings life and rebirth? You were brave and loyal enough to be on the receiving end of its services."

Harry looked at Dumbledore. He really did hate it when he spoke in cryptic messages. He could hear Ron's voice saying that Dumbledore was off his rocker. What had he used? What had given him life once? Then he knew.

"Fawkes," he blurted out earning a smile from the Headmaster.

"Very good Harry. I have told you all that I know. It is therefore imperative that you do not leave Hogwarts until we have retrieved the Chalice and destroyed it."

"Why don't you just destroy Consacrer Dagger?"

"That is a good question. The Chalice does not work on specific parameters, but it is a dynamic form of magic. If one element is destroyed it will be replaced by another item. You see, it would become a never-ending quest. The elements are never the same Harry, and that is why we must find the Chalice and destroy it before Voldemort is able to use it. I believe it is time for you leave. I will inform you when Sirius arrives and we will arrange for the two of you to spend some time together," Dumbledore said, effectively putting an end to the conversation.

"Professor? One question."

"Very well, one more question. Then you must be off."

"What were Viktor and Fleur doing in here? I saw them come out of your office once before," Harry asked, hoping to gain some more insight.

"I am afraid I can not tell you that. I would suggest you ask them yourself. Now, if you will, I have matters I need to tend to," Dumbledore said not sounding dismissive.

Harry rose from his seat and walked through the halls toward the library deep in thought as to where the Consacrer Dagger was kept. When he entered the library Hermione waved him over to undoubtedly show him everything she had found regarding the Chalice.

End of Chapter 14

A/N: The poem "Memories" in this chapter was written by Maddy a.k.a. Amanda Lopez. She was gracious enough to let me use it in my story. It will be published this coming Fall so go check out some more of her work and leave a review. Just click on her name or copy and paste the below address. Thanks again Maddy.
http://www.fanfiction.net/profile.php?userid=176789

CactusKitty: I have actually been unable to upload until the 24th since ff.net is suffering from severe problems.

BellaBlack: If you actually left a million and five reviews I would probably do anything you said...maybe. The romance will probably have to take a back seat for a while since other things are happening.

RogueAngel: I think Ginny and Crabbe would make a cute couple...naah, I wouldn't do that to you.

AnGeL: Voldemort has great plans for the Malfoys...and that's all I can say about that.

Conlan: I haven't really tried to make it funny, but parts of it just turn out that way I suppose. Hey, thanks for the heads up on the section that didn't make sense. You're right...makes no sense whatsoever. I was probably suffering from stuttering or something of the sort.

Danny: Thank you for the nice compliment. The best you've read huh? Don't really know what to say to that except thanks. I'm trying to be modest here *flaps his binder in the air* Yes, rumor has it that book 5 is not coming out until next year sometime. I shudder with you.

Britzy (the bubbly and fluffy ghost): I'm glad your first fanfiction story turned out to be mine. Now spread the word ^-^ I'm so happy that you're enjoying this little piece of mine, but I'm sad that you kicked the bucket out of joy. I'm trying to finish up this story, but it looks like it'll take longer than I expected. Thanks again though for your happy, bubbly, and fluffy review.

alia: I will not stop writing since I have a 7th year sequel planned already. Like JK I have the ending written already, but mine's not locked away in a vault. It's just sitting here in my desktop folder. That sugary sweet smile will get you nowhere...no...I'm not going to write anymore...well..since you're batting your eyelashes I suppose I'll keep on writing.

niffler86: Thanks, I'll try to keep writing in much the same style.