Home Sweet Home
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Chapter 5
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Molly knew something was wrong. For a start, Harry wasn't in his room. When she got sent up to pack she went in to see if he was finished and he wasn't there. Further search proved just as fruitless. She moved back downstairs.
"Mum, do you know…" she started, but her words got lost as James came out of the lounge and headed for her. Molly looked at him, lost for words, as she had never seen her dad like that before.
"Molly, I have to tell you something…" he started as he bent down to her.
"Dad, where's Harry? He isn't in his room, I've looked all over for him, but I can't find him" she replied with, her hand still holding onto the banister as she took the last step down.
"Molly, I don't know how to say this any other way…Harry's left. He's not moving with us."
At those words Molly sat down heavily on the stairs behind her, words escaping her frantic grasp as she just stared at James.
"…But, why?" she managed to croak out, trying to hold back tears.
"He's got something else to do. He left us a note, he said he wanted us to be safe. He said he might find us, one day." James replied, his voice also wavering with the attempt to be strong for his daughter. He moved forward and hugged her as she started to cry.
"He's strong, you know Harry, he's never let us down, he hasn't now and he will be ok." he said firmly, still holding onto his daughter. He heard the door behind him open, moving feet and a hug, encompassing him and Molly. Lily, James and Molly sat there for a while, trying to consol each other, but before anything else could be done, the door bell rang.
***
Darkness reigned in the abyss. No sound was heard but the steady even breath of one man. Shrouded in silence and shadows he waits.
The only visible door to the room opens, letting only the smallest sliver of light in. As it closes, the person that opened it walks nervously towards the silent man.
"Well?" the silent man asks quietly, as if unwilling to break the silence. "Did you bring him?"
"I…uh…we went to his house, we have his family…" came the louder edgy reply, silently shattering the hostile stillness.
"But where is he?" again the calm, dangerous voice.
"He wasn't there…"
Suddenly, the quite man uttered silent words to go with the silent room and with a quick flash of green light the subordinate fell awkwardly, a look of surprise on his still face.
"Not good enough" was the reply to the news and with another set of muttered expressions the room was again void of anything but the original occupant.
"Definitely not good enough!" he exclaimed in a abrupt rage and promptly stalked out the room to the gathering outside and made new orders, ones which he knew would be obeyed without question, or else.
***
"It started yesterday…" Harry began. He was sitting on Severus's lap, while Severus himself sat on the large couch. They sat in a comfortable loose half embrace so that Severus could comfort Harry if he needed it, but Harry still had his space and could tell his story without interruption.
"Did you know it was our…" Harry hesitated.
As if reading Harry's mind Severus said quickly
"You are free to say everything at Hogwarts. No information gets out. It's the strongest place we still have. The Raiders can't hear you, or get to you, while Dumbledore is still here."
Nodding slowly Harry continued, if a little reluctantly. The Raiders were not the only reason he didn't want to say anything. "It was our…moving day." Severus gasped at those words and started the lecture Harry was certain he was going to get.
"Harry! Why are you here!? Why were you in Hogsmeade in the first place? Oh hell, what are Lily and James gonna say when they find out you're here, of all places? What got into you?"
Harry had sat silently waiting for the lecture to stop, but at that he held up his hand to silence his lover and started his own demi-lecture.
"I stayed because of you! I came looking for you…would you let me finish please?" Harry asked, exasperated.
"Go on"
Harry sighed. "It was our moving day yesterday…but I didn't want to move. I wanted to stay here with you…I had a dream the night before moving day. You were in it…the Raiders came…there would be no point in me leaving! I only live when I'm with you. You are my whole life…so I left them a note, saying that I was staying. I didn't tell them why" Harry hastily added, seeing the look on Severus's face. "I just told them not to worry about me, and to just go. They need to leave, they can't stay here, it's too dangerous for Molly, especially since she's not old enough to come here yet." Harry said, motioning around. "You said it yourself, Hogwarts is the strongest place we have left. Its practically the only place we have left, full stop." another sigh.
"I want you to be safe as well." Severus cut in with when he had the chance.
"I know, but I figured, I'd be safest here with you. But there is still that risk, that's why they had to go."
Nodding, Severus said, "I suppose yes, you will be safe here…so then what happened?"
"I came looking for you. I needed to find you, to know if you were safe. And so I looked in Hogsmeade. It never occurred to me to look here." Harry laughed hollowly.
"I know I am a free spirit, but you know I usually stay here for the holidays. Mainly because of the Raider problem…the things I've done against them…it would be suicide to go out there." Severus said while he had the chance.
"I know…but anyway. So I'm in Hogsmeade and I stumble across Paul…you remember his shop on the outskirts…well I forgot. And so I find him…" Harry sniffed and while he composed himself again, Severus hugged him.
"Take your time, it's ok."
"I'm fine…so I find his shop, we talk…he asks about you…"Harry laughed slightly at Severus's expression.
"Oh he did, did he?" Severus asked smirking.
"Yes he did, now stop interrupting. We chat, I ask him if he's seen you, he said not lately, and I tell him I have to go and that I'll miss him…I try to tell him, with my eyes that I probably won't see him for a while…Hogsmeade isn't safe from the Raiders, so I tried to be discreet. And I think Paul gets it. But next thing I know he's handing me a package…hang on, where is that?" he asked suddenly.
"It's ok, it's with your other things."
Nodding slowly Harry continued.
"So he gives me this, and he hugs me…and I know…I know what he's going to do…"
"What?" Severus said sharply. Harry started crying.
"He…the Raiders…he knew…I don't really know but…" he took a deep breath and sighed then began again.
"He obviously did something, I don't know what, but he knew, he knew and he was saying good bye…he hugged me…wait a minute…" Harry suddenly put his hand up to his mouth.
"What?!" insisted Severus.
"The note…"
"What note?"
"THE note! Oh no! That was it! When he hugged me, I felt something go in my pocket, right. The Raiders came….Paul…" sigh the he continued quietly "they killed Paul and…the note…one of them asked me to empty my pockets and the note fell out. I don't know what was in it…I'll never know now, but that must have been it…"
Severus took the role of sighing this time and wrapped his arms around Harry as he flopped back.
"I'm really gonna miss him Sev…"
"I know you are, honey…life isn't fair, and I doubt it would change so suddenly."
Harry turned and buried his face in Severus's robes and cried and they sat in silence for a while until Harry suddenly sat up so quickly he nearly fell off Severus's lap.
"Sev, the parcel…"
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End of Chapter Five
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Doo doo doo…fun, fun…hahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!! ooooh, I just came up with the whole plot thing *waves hand dismissively* you know, that…pah! Well anyway, you are never gonna guess this…well you might, but don't try!! I think it goes well with the story and the whole silent guy thing…not the fact that he's silent, just that he's him. *shrug* I'll expect high praise for this.
