Wanted: Love
Ch2: Vanished
"What do you mean he never showed up!?" Sirius shouted at Dumbledore.
"Exactly that, Harry, never boarded the Hogwarts Express." said Dumbledore calmly but his eyes showed Sirius that he was deeply troubled.
It had been several days since the welcoming feast at Hogwarts. Everything had been going wonderfully, considering that Voldemort was wreaking havoc every night, until Hermione, Ron, and Lavender(the new addition to the group) had come up to the staff table and asked Dumbledore if he knew where Harry was. He had told them no and that he probably just missed the train. Disappointed at the little help they had received, the three had walked away muttering to each other. Dumbledore waited three days and still had yet to get an owl from Harry. So, naturally, he had begun to worry and with Sirius showing up all of a sudden matters weren't getting any better.
"Well! Why are we just sitting here!? Let's go get him!" said Sirius beginning to walk to the fire place.
"Wait, Sirius. Molly and Arthur Weasley have gone to check on him. They will be reporting back to me any moment now. Just try to relax." said Dumbledore motioning to the chair in front of his desk. The Weasleys had been living at Hogwarts over the summer as the Ministry had taken over their house. And when Dumbledore mentioned that something might be wrong with Harry, Molly and Arthur had jumped at the chance to help.
Sirius looked at the chair than at Dumbledore.
"I don't know how you can be so calm about all this. Voldemort's after him for God's sake! He's only sixteen, what kind of chances does he stand against someone like that!?" asked Sirius, taking a seat.
"Harry has escaped Lord Voldemort's clutched four times already. I'm sure if the time comes he'll be able to do it again." said Dumbledore placidly.
"He better be." said Sirius more to himself than Dumbledore.
_~_~meanwhile...~_~_
Mr. and Mrs. Weasley stood on the porch of number 4 Privet Drive waiting for someone to open the door. They didn't have long to wait. Within the minute, a rather sour looking Mr. Dursley opened the door. He was wearing a ridiculously large hat. (AN: Who knows why? I do, I do!)
"What do you want? If it's the boy, he isn't here." he said gruffly.
"N. . .not here? What do you mean he's not here?" asked Molly, wide eyed.
"What do you think I meant? He ran away two days ago. Now if you don't mind." said Vernon beginning to close the door.
Arthur pushed the door back open, "Why did he run away!?"
"How should I know what that little freak was thinking?" asked Vernon nastily.
"You live with him!" said Arthur angrily.
"I tolerate him. I by no means live with him." said Vernon with a foul look on his face.
"How dare you! What did Harry ever do to you!?" shouted Molly.
"He was born!" Vernon shouted back. Molly and Arthur stared at him with equal looks of disgust. Then, without second thought, Arthur's fist connected with Vernon's large stomach. Vernon fell to the ground and his hat fell off revealing bright green hair with small neon pink polka dots scattered throughout it. Temporarily forgetting their anger, Arthur allowed a chuckle to escape him and Molly brought a hand up to her mouth to hide the smile that was creeping onto her.
"Glad to see Harry doesn't just sit around and take all your bul-" started Arthur but was interrupted by a stern look from Molly, "Right then, are any of Harry's things missing?"
"How should I know? Woke up a couple days ago and the cupboard was open." said Vernon, a little more wearily, as he jammed the hat back on his head.
"The cupboard?" asked Molly.
"You don't actually expect us to let him practice that rubbish in this house do you? Hmph! Well it hardly seems to matter now that he's gone. Everything's up in Dudley's second bedroom." said Vernon eyeing them cautiously.
Arthur and Molly exchanged glances then hurried up the stairs. The door to Harry's room was open and so they couple rushed in and started looking around. Arthur found the chest of Harry's school things and started looking through it.
"His broom and wand are gone." he announced a few minutes later but Molly wasn't listening.
"Molly?" Arthur asked tentatively.
"Arthur, look." said Molly, shaking with barely suppressed rage, as she pointed to an area on the floor where there was a large circle of dried blood and a broken lamp. Arthur caught on quickly and apparated downstairs.
"Dursley!" he shouted, stalking around the rooms but found no one. Obviously, Vernon had known what they would find and thought it best to leave while he still had the chance. Arthur had never felt such rage towards anyone, not even Lucius Malfoy, and that was saying something.
"Molly, let's go report this to Dumbledore!" shouted Arthur.
_~_~Back at Hogwarts~_~_
"If something happened to him I'll never be able to forgive myself." said Sirius with his head in his hands.
He and Dumbledore had been waiting for a good hour for the Weasley's to return and Sirius was turning into putty with worry.
"I didn't even send him an owl all summer. He probably thinks I hate him." he droned on.
"Sirius, you don't honestly believe that, do you. I'm certain Harry doesn't." said Dumbledore calmly.
"But I should have been there to protect him!" Sirius cried out.
"We have yet to ascertain that anything is wrong. Harry could be, and probably is, perfectly fine." said Dumbledore.
"But what if he's not?" asked Sirius. Dumbledore was about to respond when Arthur and Molly Weasley stepped out of the fireplace.
"Ah, Ar-" Dumbledore was interrupted by Sirius.
"Where's Harry? Is he okay?" Sirius asked rushing up to him.
The grim look on their faces was all Sirius needed, "Jesus! What happened!? Was it Voldemort? I'll kill him!"
"Sirius, please, let them explain." said Dumbledore.
Molly couldn't take it any longer, she burst into tears. Arthur held her as she cried and told them everything they had found out.
"He did what!? I'll kill him! Just wait till I get my hands on him!" Sirius yelled after hearing what the Weasley's presumed to be Harry's home life.
"Sirius, please, you wouldn't want to do something that would warrant your arrest, would you?" asked Dumbledore, though there was no twinkle in his eyes. Instead, they held nothing but the hottest of fires.
"I don't care! It'll be worth it!" shouted Sirius.
"We will deal with the Dursleys later. Right now we need to concentrate on finding Harry." said Dumbledore. This stopped Sirius. True, at that moment he wanted to wring the very life from each of the Dursleys' necks but Dumbledore was right, as always. They needed to find Harry. Who knew what kind of condition he could be in? Sirius didn't even want to think about it.
"Arthur, Molly. I am going to ask you to go tell Ron, Hermione, and Lavender. They have a right to know. But don't tell them about the blood. No need to worry them until we're certain." said Dumbledore quietly. Molly nodded her head, still crying, and Arthur led her out of the room.
"What are we going to do?" asked Sirius.
"We are not going to let anyone outside the staff know about this. If Voldemort finds out that Harry is missing without any protection he will be in even more danger."(AN: Ironic, ain't it?) said Dumbledore, "In the meantime. . ."
_~_~_~_~
It was late in the Gryffindor common room. Only three people remained awake, sitting in utter silence, staring at the fire.
"Where do you suppose he is?" asked Lavender, breaking the silence.
"Dammit, Lavender! How should I know!? I haven't heard from him in over three months!" snapped Ron then, "Sorry."
Lavender nodded, "I know. I'm worried about him, too."
Hermione was watching them. She was dying to ask Ron why he hadn't asked Harry over, like he had done every year (she would have done it herself but her parents felt it would be inappropriate) but knew that it wouldn't be wise given the current tension the room held. The three had been out of their minds with worry when Harry didn't show up on the train. They knew Voldemort was on the rampage and that killing Harry was probably number one on his list of things to do. Then when they questioned Dumbledore about it, he merely brushed it off as missing the train and said he'd look into it. Hermione sighed. None of it made sense. She must have written Harry at least ten times but he never responded. He didn't even send her a thank you for the gift she sent him for his birthday which she thought was really odd. He had always sent her a thank you and when she didn't receive one. . .that was when she really began to worry about him. She was about to ask Ron if he had received a thank you when the entrance to the common room opened.
Arthur and Molly entered the room, Molly still bawling like a baby.
"Mum? Dad? What's wrong?" Ron asked as he, Hermione, and Lavender got up and hurried over to them. Molly's sobs only doubled as her son asked her the question.
"Dad?" asked Ron, still looking curiously at his mother.
"Well. . .there's really no easy way to tell you this so. . .I just come out and say it. . ." said Arthur, "Harry. . .he's. . .gone missing."
Ron's jaw dropped open and Lavender and Hermione's faces were quickly drained of all color.
"M. . .missing? What do you mean, 'missing?'" asked Hermione.
"He. . .his broom and wand. . .they're missing along with him." said Arthur.
"Harry ran away!?" Ron asked incredibly.
"We don't know. . .he. . .he. . .he's just gone!" sobbed Molly then smiled through her tears at Hermione, "D. . .don't c. . .cry, dear. It's very unbecoming."(AN: Yet again, ironic, ain't it?) Hermione brought her hand to her cheek; she hadn't realized that she'd been crying.
"But he's okay. Right?" asked Hermione. No one answered.
"Right?" Hermione asked again.
"We can only pray so." said Arthur.
Author's Note: Short? I know, sorry! I promise the next one will be longer! Did I make Sirius' character too wimpy? Geez, I think I did. . .gotta fix that. But besides that, how do you like it so far? I should hope that you like it a lot! To prove it please write me a review! Pretty, pretty please!? If ya don't I might not let you all in on what happens next!
Ch2: Vanished
"What do you mean he never showed up!?" Sirius shouted at Dumbledore.
"Exactly that, Harry, never boarded the Hogwarts Express." said Dumbledore calmly but his eyes showed Sirius that he was deeply troubled.
It had been several days since the welcoming feast at Hogwarts. Everything had been going wonderfully, considering that Voldemort was wreaking havoc every night, until Hermione, Ron, and Lavender(the new addition to the group) had come up to the staff table and asked Dumbledore if he knew where Harry was. He had told them no and that he probably just missed the train. Disappointed at the little help they had received, the three had walked away muttering to each other. Dumbledore waited three days and still had yet to get an owl from Harry. So, naturally, he had begun to worry and with Sirius showing up all of a sudden matters weren't getting any better.
"Well! Why are we just sitting here!? Let's go get him!" said Sirius beginning to walk to the fire place.
"Wait, Sirius. Molly and Arthur Weasley have gone to check on him. They will be reporting back to me any moment now. Just try to relax." said Dumbledore motioning to the chair in front of his desk. The Weasleys had been living at Hogwarts over the summer as the Ministry had taken over their house. And when Dumbledore mentioned that something might be wrong with Harry, Molly and Arthur had jumped at the chance to help.
Sirius looked at the chair than at Dumbledore.
"I don't know how you can be so calm about all this. Voldemort's after him for God's sake! He's only sixteen, what kind of chances does he stand against someone like that!?" asked Sirius, taking a seat.
"Harry has escaped Lord Voldemort's clutched four times already. I'm sure if the time comes he'll be able to do it again." said Dumbledore placidly.
"He better be." said Sirius more to himself than Dumbledore.
_~_~meanwhile...~_~_
Mr. and Mrs. Weasley stood on the porch of number 4 Privet Drive waiting for someone to open the door. They didn't have long to wait. Within the minute, a rather sour looking Mr. Dursley opened the door. He was wearing a ridiculously large hat. (AN: Who knows why? I do, I do!)
"What do you want? If it's the boy, he isn't here." he said gruffly.
"N. . .not here? What do you mean he's not here?" asked Molly, wide eyed.
"What do you think I meant? He ran away two days ago. Now if you don't mind." said Vernon beginning to close the door.
Arthur pushed the door back open, "Why did he run away!?"
"How should I know what that little freak was thinking?" asked Vernon nastily.
"You live with him!" said Arthur angrily.
"I tolerate him. I by no means live with him." said Vernon with a foul look on his face.
"How dare you! What did Harry ever do to you!?" shouted Molly.
"He was born!" Vernon shouted back. Molly and Arthur stared at him with equal looks of disgust. Then, without second thought, Arthur's fist connected with Vernon's large stomach. Vernon fell to the ground and his hat fell off revealing bright green hair with small neon pink polka dots scattered throughout it. Temporarily forgetting their anger, Arthur allowed a chuckle to escape him and Molly brought a hand up to her mouth to hide the smile that was creeping onto her.
"Glad to see Harry doesn't just sit around and take all your bul-" started Arthur but was interrupted by a stern look from Molly, "Right then, are any of Harry's things missing?"
"How should I know? Woke up a couple days ago and the cupboard was open." said Vernon, a little more wearily, as he jammed the hat back on his head.
"The cupboard?" asked Molly.
"You don't actually expect us to let him practice that rubbish in this house do you? Hmph! Well it hardly seems to matter now that he's gone. Everything's up in Dudley's second bedroom." said Vernon eyeing them cautiously.
Arthur and Molly exchanged glances then hurried up the stairs. The door to Harry's room was open and so they couple rushed in and started looking around. Arthur found the chest of Harry's school things and started looking through it.
"His broom and wand are gone." he announced a few minutes later but Molly wasn't listening.
"Molly?" Arthur asked tentatively.
"Arthur, look." said Molly, shaking with barely suppressed rage, as she pointed to an area on the floor where there was a large circle of dried blood and a broken lamp. Arthur caught on quickly and apparated downstairs.
"Dursley!" he shouted, stalking around the rooms but found no one. Obviously, Vernon had known what they would find and thought it best to leave while he still had the chance. Arthur had never felt such rage towards anyone, not even Lucius Malfoy, and that was saying something.
"Molly, let's go report this to Dumbledore!" shouted Arthur.
_~_~Back at Hogwarts~_~_
"If something happened to him I'll never be able to forgive myself." said Sirius with his head in his hands.
He and Dumbledore had been waiting for a good hour for the Weasley's to return and Sirius was turning into putty with worry.
"I didn't even send him an owl all summer. He probably thinks I hate him." he droned on.
"Sirius, you don't honestly believe that, do you. I'm certain Harry doesn't." said Dumbledore calmly.
"But I should have been there to protect him!" Sirius cried out.
"We have yet to ascertain that anything is wrong. Harry could be, and probably is, perfectly fine." said Dumbledore.
"But what if he's not?" asked Sirius. Dumbledore was about to respond when Arthur and Molly Weasley stepped out of the fireplace.
"Ah, Ar-" Dumbledore was interrupted by Sirius.
"Where's Harry? Is he okay?" Sirius asked rushing up to him.
The grim look on their faces was all Sirius needed, "Jesus! What happened!? Was it Voldemort? I'll kill him!"
"Sirius, please, let them explain." said Dumbledore.
Molly couldn't take it any longer, she burst into tears. Arthur held her as she cried and told them everything they had found out.
"He did what!? I'll kill him! Just wait till I get my hands on him!" Sirius yelled after hearing what the Weasley's presumed to be Harry's home life.
"Sirius, please, you wouldn't want to do something that would warrant your arrest, would you?" asked Dumbledore, though there was no twinkle in his eyes. Instead, they held nothing but the hottest of fires.
"I don't care! It'll be worth it!" shouted Sirius.
"We will deal with the Dursleys later. Right now we need to concentrate on finding Harry." said Dumbledore. This stopped Sirius. True, at that moment he wanted to wring the very life from each of the Dursleys' necks but Dumbledore was right, as always. They needed to find Harry. Who knew what kind of condition he could be in? Sirius didn't even want to think about it.
"Arthur, Molly. I am going to ask you to go tell Ron, Hermione, and Lavender. They have a right to know. But don't tell them about the blood. No need to worry them until we're certain." said Dumbledore quietly. Molly nodded her head, still crying, and Arthur led her out of the room.
"What are we going to do?" asked Sirius.
"We are not going to let anyone outside the staff know about this. If Voldemort finds out that Harry is missing without any protection he will be in even more danger."(AN: Ironic, ain't it?) said Dumbledore, "In the meantime. . ."
_~_~_~_~
It was late in the Gryffindor common room. Only three people remained awake, sitting in utter silence, staring at the fire.
"Where do you suppose he is?" asked Lavender, breaking the silence.
"Dammit, Lavender! How should I know!? I haven't heard from him in over three months!" snapped Ron then, "Sorry."
Lavender nodded, "I know. I'm worried about him, too."
Hermione was watching them. She was dying to ask Ron why he hadn't asked Harry over, like he had done every year (she would have done it herself but her parents felt it would be inappropriate) but knew that it wouldn't be wise given the current tension the room held. The three had been out of their minds with worry when Harry didn't show up on the train. They knew Voldemort was on the rampage and that killing Harry was probably number one on his list of things to do. Then when they questioned Dumbledore about it, he merely brushed it off as missing the train and said he'd look into it. Hermione sighed. None of it made sense. She must have written Harry at least ten times but he never responded. He didn't even send her a thank you for the gift she sent him for his birthday which she thought was really odd. He had always sent her a thank you and when she didn't receive one. . .that was when she really began to worry about him. She was about to ask Ron if he had received a thank you when the entrance to the common room opened.
Arthur and Molly entered the room, Molly still bawling like a baby.
"Mum? Dad? What's wrong?" Ron asked as he, Hermione, and Lavender got up and hurried over to them. Molly's sobs only doubled as her son asked her the question.
"Dad?" asked Ron, still looking curiously at his mother.
"Well. . .there's really no easy way to tell you this so. . .I just come out and say it. . ." said Arthur, "Harry. . .he's. . .gone missing."
Ron's jaw dropped open and Lavender and Hermione's faces were quickly drained of all color.
"M. . .missing? What do you mean, 'missing?'" asked Hermione.
"He. . .his broom and wand. . .they're missing along with him." said Arthur.
"Harry ran away!?" Ron asked incredibly.
"We don't know. . .he. . .he. . .he's just gone!" sobbed Molly then smiled through her tears at Hermione, "D. . .don't c. . .cry, dear. It's very unbecoming."(AN: Yet again, ironic, ain't it?) Hermione brought her hand to her cheek; she hadn't realized that she'd been crying.
"But he's okay. Right?" asked Hermione. No one answered.
"Right?" Hermione asked again.
"We can only pray so." said Arthur.
Author's Note: Short? I know, sorry! I promise the next one will be longer! Did I make Sirius' character too wimpy? Geez, I think I did. . .gotta fix that. But besides that, how do you like it so far? I should hope that you like it a lot! To prove it please write me a review! Pretty, pretty please!? If ya don't I might not let you all in on what happens next!