Harry sat, staring into the darkness. It was nearing eleven o'clock, but he couldn't sleep. He was too excited about everything. One, he had himself a motorcycle. Well, it would be a motorcycle. Someday. Hopefully. Two, he would be returning to work. Three, he would be returning a '64 Cadillac to pristine condition. Four, Uncle Vernon was actually being decent towards Harry. Five, he could admit to himself he had developed a crush on Hermione. It was really no big deal. He would get over her just like he got over Cho. He didn't love Hermione. She was just a friend, and he was more than happy to keep it that way.
He felt a tickling sensation on his forehead. It increased in annoyance and he scratched it gently. Big mistake. A sharp jolt of pain ran through his head, digging deeply into his brain. He howled softly through a clenched jaw. The shock gave way to the return of a dull ache. Harry knew it was coming, and retreated to his bed, pulling the covers up to his neck, and closing his eyes. He had to learn to accept this if he was to maintain his sanity. Slowly, the blackness engulfed him, and he was swept away into oblivion.
/\/ /\/ /\/ /\/ /\/ /\/ /\/ /\/
A room appeared, within it lay a lone four-poster of black drapes and a very dark brown wooden frame. Slowly, in the pale light provided by a green burning candle, a figure, white as paper, exited from the sanctuary of the bed. He was naked, and his face strongly resembled that of a snake. Another figure emerged soon afterward. A woman, of long black hair and yellow eyes. She lacked clothing as well. He had made his way and sat in an armchair he had produced with a wand. The woman, with tan skin looked at him, until he signaled for her the approach him. His hand flew between her legs, and she gasped. His fingernails, very long and sharpened, purposely dug into her sensitive flesh.
"You will come to me again, before dawn." He hissed, his voice thick with hatred.
"Yes master" she said shakily. He released her and lapped up the blood and other fluids that now coated his skeletal fingers. She slowly backed away, and exited. He continued, like a cat, licking his hand clean of her. As much as he hated them, all those who rejected him, and those who had yet to, he had to have them. He felt confined by his strong primal urges to have sex. He hated all women, who had pained him so badly. He finished, and examined his naked body. He looked very similar to a Zombie. Perfect for scaring little children.
"Bring them to me" he spoke in the language of the snakes. Seconds later, two children ran screaming into the room, closely pursued by a snake, joyously snapping at their heels. The children stopped when they saw him, revealed and smirking evilly at them. Happy to be contaminating their innocent little minds before they would die.
They were brother and sister, him five, and her seven. They stood in a horrified silence as the snake circled them. Voldemort had conjured himself a bottle of vodka, and tortured them some more. The silent treatment was always one of his favorite methods of torture; it was very effective, and he could continue on his lazy course of terrorizing the world. Oh, to be rewarded for doing nothing, everyone's greatest ambition. After his second bottle of alcohol he stood up. The serpent slithered to his side, and he eyed the two muggles carefully. He turned slowly, but used his reflexes to spin back to the boy and shout 'Boo!' The girl screamed, which was pleasant enough, but Voldemort got the bonus of watching a wet spot grow in the from of the boy's trousers. The spot grew and trailed all the way down the boy's leg and dripped onto the floor.
"Tsk tsk. Guests should be more kind that to urinate on their host's floor. CRUCIO!" The boy screamed in pain for five seconds, before the curse ended. The boy curled up into a fetal position and cried, no wailed for his Mum and his Pop. Too bad they were at the police station currently filing a missing persons report. The girl stepped back in fear. "Why so scared, muggle? Don't like magic? I thought you would all love magic" he sneered. She continued her movement, until, fed up with her lack of response, he decided the time had come. 'IMPERIO' he screamed at her, and her body became relaxed and expressionless. The girl ran up to her brother and began to kick, again, again, and again. The boy screamed for her to stop, but she couldn't. H began to bleed from the numerous cuts and gashes forming on his body. Finally, with inhuman strength, she picked up the boy and threw him clear across the room, forty feet, and he smacked into the wall with an echoing crack before falling to the ground, dead. The curse was released from her, but his fun wasn't going to end.
"See what you did, little girl? What will your mummy and daddy think of you? You killed your only brother. They will never want to see you again." She broke down crying. She walked over to her brother and cautiously kneeled beside the corpse. She picked up his hand, still warm and sweaty from fear, and she caressed it pathetically. She couldn't help but feel this strange man was telling the truth. There was no one else to believe. For the first time, she looked him in the eyes. Hers were somber, gloomy, and pink, while his were red with a joyful hate.
"Please, sir. I want to go home – please." She begged. To her dismay, he laughed. It was high pitched and cruel.
"So soon to leave your brother, and go home and cry to your parents. No, you will die here with him. In fact, I don't know why I waited so long to do this. AVADA KADAVRA." A green flash illuminated the room, before the girl slumped onto the ground, next to her brother, dead and cold. The snake dipped its fangs in the fresh meat.
"Nagini, I am awake now, so what do we have planned for tonight?"
/\/ /\/ /\/ /\/ /\/ /\/ /\/ /\/
Harry awoke to a pounding headache as well as the expected pain in his forehead. He grabbed a tissue, and dabbed softly at his bleeding scar. He moaned in agony, but was careful not to wake the house. He was laying next to his bed, and slowly climbed back into it, staring at the ceiling while his pain dissipated, breath slowed, and exhaustion settled in. He found his fingernail, and pressed it with what little strength he possessed.
"Professor Dumbledore?"
"Yes Harry. How may I help you this evening?" The exhaustion was winning slowly, so Harry was frank.
"Two dead muggles. Tortured and killed by Voldemort. No witnesses. In a large room. Woman he, he, he sleeps with. Hurt her too. Black hair, down to waist. Yellow eyes. Pointy nose. Dragon tooth earring." Harry said this all very quickly, as the last of his strength dwindled.
"I am loosing your signal, Harry. Get some rest. I'll speak with you tomorrow."
"'Night" Harry whispered, before cutting off the connection, and drifting into an uneasy sleep.
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Harry awoke the next morning aching but strong. He dressed and ran, showered, cooked breakfast and got ready for work. He was beginning to run low on the floo powder Spencer had given him, and resolved to buy more. At eight o'clock sharp, with a full money bag, and a wand, Harry stepped into the fireplace, only to step out at Flourish and Blotts. Spencer dropped a few copies of Vampires: The complete encyclopedia but greeted Harry with an unsure smile.
"' thought you were takin' a few days off."
"I did. I took two days off, but right now it is better if I'm here. So, where do I start?" Spencer examined Harry thoroughly.
"Go to the bathroom, and put on yer little color show. Then, just outside me office is four boxes o' new deliveries. Just fill in the gaps that the sold books left, got it?" Harry nodded appreciatively. He walked into the bathroom, and changed his eyes and hair before concealing the scar on his forehead. He found his way to the entrance to Spencer's office, and just as he was told, there were four boxes of books. Harry picked up the top one and marched into the store, gently gliding the light box onto the table. He judged that from the sizes of books he'd seen in the store, the number of books in the box would be anywhere from three to thirty. The box was light, so he didn't worry, and wondered what he would do after he finished, which he guessed would be soon. He opened the box and gasped. Inside were over two hundred books, of four different titles. The inside of the box was huge.
"I should've known…" he mumbled. He picked up one of the books. It was titled 548 Potions to Drive Your Parents Crazy. 'Children's' he guessed to himself. He closed the box and placed the book on top, searching through the aisles of books. It took seven laps around the store, but forty minutes later he found four books on a shelf of the same title. He double checked to be sure, before opening the box and filling the empty space next to the books on the shelves with the books from the box. The weight of the books forced him to do only two books at a time, and he tired quickly from the heavy lifting. When the last copy was placed on the shelf, he took a different book from the box, NEWTs, What You Really Need to Know. 'Somewhere near schoolbooks…' he trekked through the store again, until he found the void where the books belonged. Only twenty six minutes to find it this time. These books were also considerably smaller and lighter than the previous set, so by going with five books at a time, the shelf was quickly filled. Harry continued his search and supply code, until a little before he was halfway through his second box, Spencer interrupted his progress.
"G'bye Harry."
"Huh?"
"Lunchtime. Git outta here before I throw you out. You're workin' too hard. See ya in an hour." Harry could tell by his voice that this was not open for discussion. He gleefully dropped his books and skipped into Diagon Alley. He stopped in the square and inhaled deeply, feeling the magic around him. He strolled to the Leaky Cauldron and asked politely for a stein of butterbeer and to see a menu. He was led by Tom the barkeep to a secluded table near the back of the pub. Only seconds later, a huge mug of butterbeer, and a book the size of a muggle car tire was sitting in front of him. He took a swig of his butterbeer and opened to the first page. The Complete Menu of The Leaky Cauldron Pub, Diagon Alley, London. Harry's jaw dropped. This huge book was the menu. There were all sorts of creatures listed, but Harry was drawn to the word Human. As soon as his finger touched it, the pages of the book went leafing by at incredible speeds. It stopped on page 4742, and Harry read down the new Contents page. Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Snack, Dessert, Salads, Delicacies, Drinks. Harry this time touched lunch, and watched the pages fly by again. At page 5134 a new table of contents appeared. This Table of Contents was incredibly long, stating all sorts of meats, starches, vegetables by which the food were organized. Harry read through them slowly before giving up. There were to many subcategories for him to bother. As if on queue, Tom appeared next to Harry.
"Can I git yeh anytin', Mr. Pot…White?" Harry grinned appreciatively at Tom. He always attempted to remember the aliases of his countless customers.
"Just, a small salad, and a Swiss cheese sandwich, please." Harry had ordered, and sat back as Tom was engulfed by the loud lunch crowd. Harry scanned the mob, and his eyes fell on a blonde haired man who was looking at him strangely. The man picked up his glass and strode towards Harry, through the wild drinkers who were violently discussing quidditch. Harry quickly debated whether he should run or stay. He ventured to stay, because a large crowd would prevent anything bad from happening, right? The man sopped in front of Harry, closely examining his face. A small smile crept at the corners of his mouth. He leant down and began to whisper.
"Hello Harry. You didn't run away from the muggles again, did you?" Harry was stunned. Who the hell was this stranger, and why was he talking to him.
"Do I know you? If not, please leave." Harry said coldly. He wasn't in the mood for company. The man took the seat opposite Harry, to Harry's great aggravation.
"In that case, Harry, I'm doing well, and so is buckbeak, though it seems buckbeak is a bit lonely with only me around." The smile on the man's face grew wide. It was Harry's turn to lean in.
"Sirius?" he whispered as loudly as he dared in a public place.
"Mr. Greene, for now." Harry laughed.
"Well, then I'm Mr. White."
"Pleased to meet you Mr. White."
"Likewise Mr. Greene." There was a silence before both started laughing earning them a couple of harmless glances. "So, Mr. Greene, what is your business here?"
"I am on break from a mission given to me by Dumbledore, why else would I be here? However, I have been out of contact for a while. Why the hell are you here, and in disguise?" Harry couldn't help but smile mischievously.
"Wouldn't you like to know."
"This is no laughing matter. It is not safe for you to go wandering around Diagon Alley alone."
"Yes mother" Harry rolled his eyes.
"What in bloody hell…"
"Fine! I work in Flourish and Blotts for the summer. Gives me something to do. I'm on lunch break." Sirius weighed this for a second in his mind. Harry took advantage of the silence to change the topic. "Padfoot, what ever happened to your motorcycle?" His ears perk like those of a dog. Go figure.
"I'm not really sure. The last I saw of it I gave it to Hadgrid, and I never really thought about it after that. I had other things on my mind." He finished coldly. "Why?"
"I got Uncle Vernon to get me a motorcycle. It is in worse shape than you were out of Azkaban. I get to fix it up though, and if I can get it to work right, it's mine." Sirius looked at Harry doubtfully.
"There's more to this than you're telling."
"Right, he got himself an old and broken '64 Cadillac, which I have to fix for him."
"I can't believe he's making you do that. I swear, if I ever get my hands on that, that fat bastard…"
"I didn't have to do it, I chose to. I find it a good deal. Then, you can teach me to ride." Harry smiled, but Sirius became serious.
"No" he said flatly.
"Why not?"
"No. It's too dangerous."
"Are you kidding me?"
"No. And that's final." Harry knew not to push it, he would just have to learn on his own. He was about to launch into Sirius's whereabouts over the last few weeks, but was interrupted by Tom, bringing out Harry's sandwich and salad. Sirius started talking about the Marauder's escapade they had, as he picked at Harry's salad. Fed up with losing a bit of tomato to the man, Harry began the routine of slapping Sirius's hand every time he reached for anything. Hey began cracking up again. When Harry finished his lunch, Sirius went back into serious mode.
"Look, Harry, I have to get back to work, and you do too in thirty minutes. You won't be able to contact me. Take care of yourself, and stay alert. Don't trust strangers. Hell, don't trust anyone but your closest friends and Dumbledore. Stay out of trouble, and in heavily populated areas. No Knockturn Alley or any other dark alleyways. Understand?"
"Don't worry about me Sirius, just be safe. I need a godfather to clear. Got it?" Tears formed in the spaces around Sirius's eyes. A couple tears made their way out, and Harry choked back a sob as well.
"Don't worry Harry. I'll see you again, and give you the best home I can. I promise." He stood, as did Harry. They hugged for a few seconds, before Sirius turned around to go into muggle London, and Harry left a bunch of sickles on the table before reentering Diagon Alley.
Harry's spirits immediately rose once he got back into the long avenue of bustling shops. He went to the Apothecary and bought a large jar of floo-powder. He decided he would need to buy muggle clothes, which required muggle money. He didn't remember where, but he could remember reading that it was hard to haggle with Goblins, because they could read thoughts. He walked into Gringotts Wizarding Bank, and approached an open teller.
"I'd like to convert to muggle currency, please" he stated, and placed six Galleons on the table. The Goblin looked at him, then at a piece of parchment.
"Today's exchange rate is…one Galleon to forty seven pounds. Twenty percent exchange rate leaves you with 225 pounds and sixty pence" Harry opened his eyes wide. That was a lot of money for a Galleon, and it was also a lot to give away just to exchange. 'Right, to plan B.'
"I think I'll exchange somewhere else." Harry said slowly, thinking strongly 'The bank in Hogsmeade offered me five percent exchange rate.'
"That does seem a bit high, doesn't it. How about ten percent exchange rate." The Goblin ventured. Harry smiled inwardly, it was working.
"No, thank you." Harry began to pick up his Galleons and continued to think aloud 'Five percent in Hogsmeade.' The Goblin was debating in his mind whether to sink so low.
"Wait! Wait, sir. Four percent exchange rate." Harry froze. Christmas was really all year round, as long as you looked for it.
"Well, I guess. Why not?" Harry handed his six Galleons to the Goblin, who began scribbling on a sheet of parchment, and mumbling aloud.
"Okay. Six Galleons at 47 pounds. 282 pounds. Minus 4%…yes. Your money, Sir. Two hundred, seventy pounds, and seventy two pence. Good day." He handed Harry a large wad of bills, and a few coins. Harry eyes went wide in shock. He had never seen even Uncle Vernon ever hold so much money. Reality came back to him, and he struggled to remember how much he was making each day from Flourish and Blotts. Two Galleons a day. That meant almost one hundred pounds a day! That was a lot of muggle money for one day's work, and accepting so little, according to Spencer. No wonder wizards tend to be well off in muggle society, a little wizard money goes a long way.
With his new found wealth, Harry returned to Flourish and Blotts. He remained cheerful as he continued to restock the shelves. At five o'clock, Spencer called out of his office for Harry, and Harry, sweaty and tired, stumbled in.
"Yes?"
"It's five after. You should go home, try and sleep."
"But I'm only halfway done with the fourth box? I got over a hundred more books."
"Harry, I wouldda been very surprised if you had finished all the books without being familiar with the shop. You did very well today. Here. Now go and get some rest." Spencer handed Harry two Galleons, and Harry move back into the store. He refrained from returning to the box he had been working with and just searched through the shelves, glancing at some books. Fifteen minutes later, he approached the counter carrying; Animagi: The Art of Self-Animalization, Spells and Metals, Muggle Contraptions and How They Work, 1001 Ways to Repair the Unrepairable. Harry met up with James, and paid for the books and left with them in a large bag. Harry had some trouble carrying it, so he tried the shrinking spell. 'Minimus' he said firmly, while flicking his wand. He tried six more times before James did it for him. Harry turned red with embarrassment, but put the now two inch bag into his pocket. He was about to use the floo, to get home, when he noticed he was still carrying a large amount of muggle money. Surely, the Dursleys wouldn't mind him not being home for a few more minutes. Or days.
Harry exited Flourish and Blotts and proceeded through the Leaky Cauldron, picking up a bottle of Butterbeer as he continued into muggle London. He was surprised by the large number of cars everywhere. 'It must be, oh what's the term the muggles use, rush hour.' He walked along the streets until he found a store that seemed to sell clothes for teens, and he entered. He didn't care for any brands or any particular styles, but he knew what muggles wore, and what to look for. He browsed for what seemed like a long period of time, before selecting three pairs of new jeans, six different t-shirts, a pair of running shorts, a comfortable and inexpensive pair of shoes, a tank top, a few packages of boxer short, as well as socks. He even bought himself some nice smelling cologne, just in case he'd ever need it. He was wondering if he had enough money to pay for it. After all, he had never paid close attention to the economy in the muggle world.
However, he did have enough, by twelve pounds and change, but enough it was, and he left the store with a wide smile on his face. He finally had some clothes of his own. He walked quickly back to the Leaky Cauldron, and used the fireplace there to travel back home.
Once he tumbled out of the fireplace, amidst a gasped from Aunt Petunia. Then she saw his shopping bags, and new clothes in them. She snatched them away before he could find his feet.
"Where did you get these?" She demanded, obviously thinking the clothes were too good for him, despite his fixing her plate.
"I bought them." He said casually. She eyed him suspiciously.
"You have no money. You stole them didn't you!" He thought this may happen.
"I have a job, remember? I got paid today, so I bought myself clothes. That's what people do when they earn money." She snorted, very much like an angry bull.
"How much do you get paid?"
"Probably the equivalent of forty pounds a day. I bought all this with my starting bonus." A lie, but he really didn't care. They had lied about his parents for ten years. Her eyes darted from Harry to the bag, and back again. He knew she was wondering what kind of evil she could do to him. A small smile crept at her lips.
"Dudley!! Come down here this instant. I have some new clothes for you." She shrieked. A rumbling was heard from upstairs, and Harry couldn't contain his rage. Who was she, the bitch who had kept the truth of his parents from him, who slandered him always, who tried to keep him from the only place he was happy, who treated him as a slave, even after he had preserved something she held dear to herself.. There was a pulse of energy that ran through him, and the bags gathered themselves into his hands. The rumbling upstairs continued.
"They are mine," he said quietly, but his voice made the house shudder. He turned and walked briskly up the stairs, past Dudley, and closed and locked his room. He wouldn't be eating dinner that night, he assumed, so he immediately opened his books and started working on his motorcycle. It became annoying, finding a problem, searching through the books to find a solution, and then finding a new problem to be fixed, so he sat for four hours, reading straight through Spells and Metals and 1001 Ways to Repair the Unrepairable. With the wealth of knowledge he quickly gained, dismantling his bike went extremely fast. His wand did all the work; Unscrewing screws and bolts, taking off pieces of the machine, cleaning away debris. In a little more than five minutes, his bike was all in pieces, organized around his room. He skipped to the chapter after everything was taken apart, and the first line tied a tight knot in his chest. After you have disassembled your contraption, you must clean and restore every component, before reassembling it by hand, without magic, as magic is only good for taking muggle things apart, and has not been correctly trained as of yet to rebuild things. 'Shit, shit, shit' he thought. This was going to take a lot longer than he was led to believe by the first seven chapters. He was hungry, and it was nearly eleven o'clock. He decided to sneak downstairs for a quick bite.
Avoiding all of the loud stairs, he snuck into the kitchen, and grabbed two apples and a slice of bread. Not bad for a late night snack. He was about to go upstairs, when hissing in the living room grabbed his attention. He strayed away from the stairs and moved close to the entrance to the room. It would be wrong to purposely listen in, so he would just unintentionally find himself listening.
"Vernon, you don't understand! That boy has to go. I don't want him here. Think what he could have done to the baby!" Harry pricked his ears up. Baby? What baby?
"Hold on a second Petunia. Tell me again, what happened?"
"I was knitting by myself, right here on the sofa, when he came flying out of the fireplace. He had these bags, full of clothes. He said he bought them, and I ask him with what money. He said he got paid, and a starting bonus got him these clothes. I said he couldn't have them, and wanted to give them to Dudders, you know how little my cute Dudders gets, and he said no, that they were his." Her voice dropped very low. "He did his abnormality at me, and he stole them back, and went to his room. I was too scared to get them back from him. He stole them from me, and he could have killed the baby! It he wasn't moving so I could feel him, I would have the police take the freak away for killing it. He could have killed the baby." There was silence for a while.
"Does he know about the baby?"
"No."
"Than how could he have killed it, even if he wanted to?"
"You know how those savages work. Always kill the innocent, children. If he knew I was pregnant he would have killed it I swear it. Did I tell you how the lights went out and the house shook when he took them from me? He was being a freak! I don't want him where he can hurt the baby."
"Petunia darling, as much as I want him to leave as well, where would he go? Remember the letter we got from his headmaster. He can't go anywhere else. If we force him to they will all come after us. All the freaks, and then what about the baby? It will be less safe then. We have to keep him here, whether we like it or not. If you're scared, then just stay away from him. I'll make sure he doesn't touch you, or harm the baby. C'mon, sweety. It'll be just fine when he goes back to that school. Have you thought of a name yet?" He heard her sigh.
"I like Michael. Maybe Michael Howard Dursley."
"Michael. Michael Dursley." Vernon chuckled. "It has a nice ring to it, doesn't it. We should get some sleep. I have work tomorrow, and you shouldn't strain yourself." Harry heard them stand, and rushed quietly up the stair and out of sight. So Aunt Petunia was pregnant with a boy. Damn! That means another cousin to beat up on him. What about if the baby was magical. That would be a sight to see. Harry ate his apples in silence, when he felt it again. A dull twinge in his forehead. He cursed heavily under his breath and crawled into bed. Slowly he was once again taken into Voldemort's lair.
/\/ /\/ /\/ /\/ /\/ /\/ /\/ /\/ /\/
Harry awoke, clutching his bleeding forehead, begging the father, the son, and any ghost to take the pain away. He grabbed a used tissue and dabbed fervently at his scar. Very shortly, the tissue was saturated in the crimson liquid. As the blood flow slowed, Harry tapped his fingernail.
"Professor."
"Yes Harry?"
"Four Dementors, two unknown Death-eaters. All tortured horrendously. I don't know the spell he used on the Dementors. Cruciatus on the Death-eaters. No deaths. The same woman was there this time, and he slapped her a bit. Black hair and yellow eyes. I don't know why, but I am not as tired this time. I fell very awake, though I don't feel like moving around."
"Did you recognized the location?"
"No. It was the same as last time. Same room."
"That's all?"
"Yes sir."
"Thank you Harry. Sleep well" The connection died and Harry sat up. He walked to the bathroom and washed his face. He silently made his way back to his bedroom, and jumped in surprise to find Uncle Vernon looking around curiously. Harry didn't want to get his uncle's attention, fearing the worst, but it was going to happen anyhow.
"Uncle Vernon?"
"Oh. Sorry Harry, didn't mean to intrude. You have some, some blood on your face."
"I know." There was some uncomfortable silence.
"I was told you were able to buy yourself some clothes today." Harry nodded. "Good, good for you. Don't let her get to you. She's still a bit…intolerant." Harry froze at this statement. Was Uncle Vernon, purple faced angry Uncle Vernon, calling Aunt Petunia intolerant? Despite Harry's pain he managed a faint smile.
"I know." There was another silence.
"I see you've really made some progress on your motorcycle."
"I only took it all apart. To put it back together I can't use magic. It hasn't evolved that far along." 'Bullocks! Just said magic.'
"Oh. Well, you can use my tools. When are you going to start on the car?" Harry thought about it a while.
"I think I'll rotate weekly. That way I work on both equally, but I can focus more on each of them."
"'t's a good idea. Here, I went around today and got you these. I hope they help." Harry opened a plastic bag and found all the necessary books regarding the mechanical standpoints of the car and motorcycle. Harry smiled widely and looked them over, while Vernon glanced at the open book on Harry's desk. "Can you do all of these...spells?"
"Um, with enough practice I should be able to. Why?"
"Just wondering. I'm going to go to sleep. See you tomorrow Harry." Uncle Vernon turned to leave.
"Uncle Vernon." The man turned slowly, as he didn't' want his large body to knock anything over.
"Yes, Harry?"
"Thank you, for the books, and for using my name. And or letting me keep my clothes."
"Your welcome. Good night."
"Goodnight, Uncle Vernon." He left the room, and Harry closed the door. He knew if he fell asleep, the nightmares would come, as they always did. Surprisingly, the thought that came to mind was Hermione. Did she ever go into his room while he was sleeping, or was it a dream? He wished it was a dream, but it made him feel so good when he thought it had really happened. To have her kiss him, even if it was on the cheek. It was only so clear to him now. He had a crush on Hermione, and he had kissed her. He should be happy, he should be laughing and smiling, but one thought was invading his thoughts. Ron. What would Ron think when he learned that Harry had kissed Hermione. Ron always was quick to get angry, and this would be no substitute. Harry would just have to conceal his feelings for Hermione, and watch hopelessly as Ron asks to date her. But Ron may never muster the courage. The thought amused Harry. But what about Hermione? Would she return his feelings. She had kissed him, but she was upset. He was kicking himself for taking advantage of her. He should have never kissed her. What if she hated him. What if she never wanted to speak to him again?
"Slow down." He told himself. He had to focus on something or Cedric…Cedric…Cedric and Hermione, and Ron, and Malfoy, and Azkaban would invade his mind and drive him insane. He had a motorcycle in hundreds of pieces sitting in front of him, and he said he would put it back together. He started piece by piece, like he had planned, taking off the rust, putting it back into shape, before restoring it from it's scratches and repolishing it. Some of the spells were quite difficult, depending on the metal. Steel, which was a very difficult metal to do magic on was used a lot in these motorcycles. His first screw, to return it into perfect condition took over thirty minutes. He continued at a snail like pace, until with one last glance at the clock reading 4:52, he fell asleep.
Another chapter done, and a thousand apologies to give. Sorry for taking so long, maybe a week for this miserable little chapter. I hate having 4 tennis matches in one damn week. Sorry to everyone. I NEED REVIEWS. I am very angry at the world in general, minus my faithful reviewers. I read a pretty bad fic; I won't even mention the title or author. It sucked. A lot. It was six chapters, like 5000 words, and it had 400 reviews. Someone explain it to me. I don't understand. Why do I not have these reviews? If there is any word you can spread of me to friends or acquaintances, then please do. I really need reviews.
HarryHermione4ever – I can't tell you if it was Hermione or not, or even if it actually happened. That would be cheating! But it was not Ivy, ok? That would just be wrong, even though she is attracted to Harry.
Stoneheart – My favorite reviewer. I was stretching credibility, wasn't I. Well, Aunt Petunia goes back to rejecting it. Vernon, however sees through the hate, and begins to accept it, but he will be alone. At least for a while. Vernon will learn to understand that magic can't solve everything, and I am quite sure, eventually he will have a traumatic event with magic, and it will be memorable. Harry was distracted, but begins to get his thoughts in line. He and Hermione will see little of each other from now on. it is sad, but like so many things are, such is life. I wish I was NAPPA's twin. He is god. No question. This is real, and I will do my best to keep it that way, but it will begin to get extreme. Harry, I think will become very, very powerful, but not omnipotent, and he will get his power by himself. Harry will be isolated much of this novel, but he will usually have someone isolated with him. As you may have guessed, he will isolate Uncle Vernon along with himself from Petunia and Dudley. I thank you for your enthusiasm, and swear to continue.
ADJ – I understand completely that you are happy it will take a while. It is not realistic, and you loose interest when it all happens too fast. You said "maybe if harry ran away people would realize that he is not a normal fourteen year old and can take care of himself" That will happen. He will end up taking care of more than himself. Harry is going to grow a lot magically, and he will leave to be by himself, less out of choice than it may seem. Fudge is going to eventually point the finger at Harry, and he will loose that finger for good. Harry will not become all-powerful, but he will become very powerful, by choice. He will also gain an interest in the dark arts, for reason that I can't disclose yet. I think it'll be a fun story. Malfoys, both of em, will end up playing major parts, and I think both will die, unexpectedly. (wink, wink) Anyway, thanks for reviewing, and enjoy.
Achilless – There is something we have to remember here. From his inexperience, Harry doesn't easily recognize when woman are giving him the look (the good one). He is very confused about it, and his growing hormonal feeling are confusing him as well. He recognizes his physical attraction to Hermione this chapter, but it will take him a while to realize the depth of his feelings for her.
Kneazle – Yes, Harry does seem to bounce back, but I have experienced depression in family members. Depression is never constant. It varies in severity. Harry is going through a good phase now, but it will change throughout my pretty little fic. Harry won't fight for Hermione, because he fears Ron's wrath, well not really his wrath, but loosing Ron as a friend. Ron will ask Hermione out when Harry is gone, and she will tell hi no, and why. Ron will become jealous of Harry, but Harry will be in…San Fran? LA? NY? Hong Kong? Somewhere far away. Ron will grow up, and he will see the futility of pursuing Hermione. So realistically, Hermione will have noone fighting over her, just two guys who love her, and both stay away, for different reasons. Or the same reason, just reversed. Kind of. Does that make sense to you? I assure you, there will be no walks on the beach. It's too fluffy, and would not fit in the little scenarios I have created in my crazy little mind. Thanks for the reviews ad happy reading.
Freda Potter – Freda, Freda, Freda. How could you even suggest that I put Harry in leather? Does Harry really seem like that type of person? C'mon! Be realistic. Harry isn't leather type of guy, unless it is necessary, like when riding his motorcycle when he finally finishes it. So I may be nice and throw it in. Sirius. That's a thought. I never really thought of including him very much. I think when Harry disappears I may send Sirius after him, but who knows. Sirius will always be funny and humorous.
Nibowin Black – Whoa. Slow down there tiger. A lot to ask in a few lines. Harry will go through fixing them, but he won't go into too much detail. I'm going to tell you how to fix your car. Hehe. Well now, the Ivy sex thing. It's not that she necessarily wanted to screw him, more that she wanted to maybe see him, watch him, seduce him. Try to overpower him with her sexual prowess. Intimidate him, and maybe screw him, but I made sure it was cloudy for a reason. We are not let on to how far Ivy would have gone. Maybe she was attracted to him for the same reasons of all the women in the wizarding world, he's a celebrity. She could be after him for the same reasons. We just don't know. Thanks for the review.
Ryoko Blue – (Everyone. This person is an amazing author. If you haven't read his stories, go do it NOW!!) Lemme ask you something. Some of these weird folk come up to you and take your kid to this unknown school somewhere that you've never heard of, and they send home excellent grades. Your kid can't show you anything she's done because of legal restrictions. Wouldn't you still be just a little suspicious of what's going on at that school, so far away with no real hard evidence of what she's doing? I know I would. It's a matter of a second opinion, they get from harry. They are a bit out of the ordinary, but not all parents are the same.
