Disclaimer: I don't own any Harry Potter characters. Also, I was inspired by Lamb of God and Dying Fetus lyrics (yes, there is a band called Dying Fetus.) If u recognize them, then congratulations! You have my taste in music. (I don't know if that's a good or a bad thing, but whatever). I only own the plot and the slightly distorted owl.
A/N: I changed the name of Hogwarts to 'Ogwats mainly for my own amusement. This is my first fic that I wrote by myself, so if it's very horrible, then please be nice to me in the reviews. I would appreciate it. Let me know what you think.
Chapter 1: The Dark AlleysHarry Potter woke up to a painful sensation on his head. Instead of waking up from the soft bed in Gryffindor tower, he felt the cold, hard floor beneath him. He was wearing torn robes that didn't quite fit him. His body even seemed unfamiliar to him. Even though he was on the ground, he could tell that he grew taller. He felt like he hadn't been awaken in years. Perhaps, he thought, that is the case? He could feel the pain on his head increasing. Was that the source that had awakened him? He opened his eyes and turned around. He saw a small owl pecking madly on his head. The owl looked slightly distorted, with one eye larger than the other one. For some odd reason, it kind of reminded him of Mrs. Norris. "Get off of me!" he yelled. The black owl obeyed as Harry took the letter from it. It read:
To Whoever Finds This Letter:
A surprise is waiting for you on 3 Maynard Avenue. Come quickly, or you may miss out.
-Anonymous
Well, this is strange, he thought. He decided to go to 3 Maynard Avenue to see what the so-called "surprise" was. But there was a small problem. Where was he? Where is Maynard Avenue? He tried standing, but it was very awkward. After a few minutes, he regained his balance. He surveyed the area around him. He saw that there were no forms of life whatsoever (besides himself and the owl, of course) and he was in a mysterious, dark alleyway. It was strangely ominous. The owl started flying away. Harry desperately tried to stop the owl when he said, "Wait! Come back!" The owl ignored him and kept flying. Harry ran after the owl past abandoned wizard shops and bent lamp posts when he came across a crooked sign that said, "Maynard Avenue." Instantly, he ignored the owl, which was flying in the opposite direction and he continued down Maynard Avenue.
This street didn't look any better. There were still abandoned shops and no signs of life. Surely this must be a dream, he thought. He knew that there were supposed to be many people buying things and doing daily activities around here. His mind was filled with questions. Why am I here? He thought anxiously. How did I get here? Where is everybody? Suddenly, he remembered the note he received. "Come quickly, or you may miss out," it said. He started running down the street, frantically looking for the number 3. Maybe the "surprise" will answer some of my current questions.
That's when he spotted it. The number 3. In front of him, he saw a forsaken old brick building, with broken windows and shabby-looking apartments. It looked just like the rest of the buildings on the street, except that there was something about the building that Harry just didn't like. Something dreadful…
Harry began to re-think his decision about entering the place. Yet, it would annoy him very much if he didn't find out what the surprise was. It reminded him of a bad memory, only a memory that he couldn't remember. He finally talked himself into entering the building. A memory that you can't remember? You don't make sense. He told himself. The building looks abandoned. It probably has been abandoned for years. If anything is even in there that is unpleasant, you've got your wand with you.
He slowly marched up the cracked stone driveway and placed his hand on the gold doorknob. A gold doorknob is very odd, especially in a slum town like this, he thought. He pushed open the door. Inside of the building, there was dust everywhere. Harry coughed a few times before looking around. He saw very old crooked pictures hanging on the walls and gaping holes in the floor. As he walked around different apartments, he saw old, dusty, modern-looking furniture. Some surprise, he thought. Right after he thought that, he heard a scream coming from one of the upstairs apartments, seeming to mock his thoughts.
Harry quickly rushed upstairs to find the source of the screaming. He continued to follow the noise until he reached a closed wooden door with another gold doorknob. In fact, gold doorknobs were on all of the doors in the house. He pushed the door ajar to find Draco Malfoy tied with ropes all around his body that were constricting as a source of punishment. He looked over to see three dementors pointing wands at him and making the constricting motions. Draco continued to scream because of the coiling ropes around him. His flesh turned pinkish as a reaction to the ropes. As much as Harry loved his enemy to scream, he felt this punishment was unnecessary, even for Draco Malfoy.
"Stop it!" he yelled
The dementors turned to face him. Since their attention was focused mainly on Harry, the ropes loosened enough for Draco to stop screaming and say, "Harry Potter? You're alive? But how? Everyone thought you died!" In response to this, two dementors came towards Harry, hoping to give him the kiss of death. The other dementor regained grip on Malfoy's ropes. Once again, he was helpless and screaming.
As the dementors closed in on Harry, he fell to the cold ground. Gee, this feels familiar, he thought. Then he remembered that he needed to use his patronus to destroy the dementors. However, he couldn't think of happy thoughts. He couldn't remember much of anything before that annoying owl woke him up. He felt his body going numb as the dementors leaned closer to him. He could sense their presence of the undead as he tried to gain control of happiness. He began to feel depressed and like nothing good would ever happen to him. Grim thoughts returned to him. His loved ones had mysteriously disappeared. His life is meaningless. Why should he be "blessed" with this so-called "gift of life" when he was born with only the wish to die? Nothing can be as bad as this amount of emotional pain, not even death. By this time, he gave up all hope. He wanted the dementors to kiss him. He wished to be a part of them. He desired to fall into oblivion, where nothing mattered anymore. It was much easier than fighting. Much easier than living…
Suddenly, he remembered his friends. They made him happy. He needed to find them. He needed to know what was going on and why all of these shops and apartments were abandoned. He couldn't just lay here and watch the dementors destroy his existence. He thought of his friends at 'Ogwats, his mother and father who died, and oddly enough, the thought of saving Draco.
"Expecto Patronus!" he shouted as a silver stag emerged from the tip of his wand. All three of the dementors were defeated and they vanished. The ropes on Malfoy became looser. Harry stood up and walked over to him. He took the remaining ropes off of him. Now that he could see Draco clearer, he saw that he got taller and even more good-looking than he was before…not that he noticed or anything.
"Potter, I still loathe you with a passion," Malfoy said bitterly.
"I just saved your life! The least you could do is say 'thank you!'"
"I could have handled it myself."
"I heard you screaming from all the way downstairs. Don't even lie like that, Malfoy."
"Thanks I guess…," Draco mumbled under his breath. "But don't expect me to bow down to you and say 'Thank you slave master!' like I had to do for the past two years!"
"What?" Harry asked while startled. "Why would you have to do that?"
"Because the dementors stole my wand and made me their own personal slave, not like it's any of your business."
"But the dementors couldn't have done that! They don't have any authority. The Ministry of Magic controls them."
"Potter, that was two years ago. Where the hell have you been?"
"Um…I'm not sure actually."
"Well get with the program, loser. Hey, why are you still around anyway? Everyone thinks you're dead!"
"What? Why?" Harry asked confusedly.
"Well, because you mysteriously vanished for two years. Duh."
"Didn't anyone bother to look for me?"
"Yes, but you were nowhere in sight. Although I don't see why anyone would want to look for you of all people."
"Go to hell, Malfoy!"
"I don't need to. The world has gone awry ever since your
disappearance so it's like an amateur version of hell."
"What do you mean?"
"Don't you know anything? The Dark Lord has taken over much of the wizard world ever since one of his worst enemies has vanished. Pretty soon, he's going to take over the muggle world as well. And from there, who knows what else can happen."
"Wow." Harry was shocked from the news he had just taken in. He had to think for a few seconds before asking, "Well then why are all of the buildings around here empty?"
"Can't you figure that out by yourself? I'm tired of talking to you."
"Please? I saved your life. The least you could do is explain a few things to me."
"Fine!" Draco yelled. "But only if you stop annoying me." After Harry nodded his head in approval, Draco said, "Most of the people who used to live in these houses have joined the Dark Lord in his quest of taking over the world. He promised those who joined his side all of the riches in the world and extreme power. It's a load of crap, if you ask me. Others have fled to safe houses. They have powerful magical spells on them so the Dark Lord will have difficulty entering them. I feel that they're as good as gone though. He gained a lot of power in the last two years. I can't help but admire the guy. And before you can ask, the answer is no, I don't know where the safe houses are."
"I wasn't going to ask that. How can you admire such an evil git like Voldemort?!"
Draco didn't flinch at the name. Instead he sounded confident when he said, "Potter, you forget I'm in Slytherin."
"That isn't anything to be proud of!"
"In your opinion. And seriously, nobody cares about that."
Harry's blood started to boil. He replied with a mere "Grr" as he crossed his arms. Who did he think he was anyway? I saved his life! The least thing he could do is be grateful.
"What do you plan to do now, Potter? Tell me your plot of saving the world once again. After all, I do need a laugh."
"Shut up, Malfoy. How am I supposed to think clearly with this sudden rush of information?"
There was no reply from Draco. Then Harry thought of a brilliant idea. "Which way is 'Ogwats? Maybe Dumbledore will know what to do!"
"No, that won't work. Dumbledore left 'Ogwats right after the first attacks. He left no trace of where he went. That coward…"
"Don't say that about Dumbledore! He has to have a plan! He always does."
"Not this time. This time, there's no one to save you," Malfoy said with his familiar evil sneer.
"Cut it out Malfoy. There's no one to save you either. We must work together to save each other and fight until the end!"
"Your enthusiasm is revolting. I can't be bothered with saving the world."
"You either have to help me, side with Voldemort, or die. Which do you choose?"
"Fine I'll help you, but only if I become famous in the end…and if there are a lot of sexy people congratulating me." (A/N: Notice I didn't make him say "sexy girls" *wink wink*.)
"Whatever. That's so typical of you to only want to save the world for your own benefit."
"I know," Draco said with a false laugh.
"I think we should go to "Ogwats and see what is left of it. We may even find some people to join us against the Dark Lord."
"There you go, Potter. Always taking charge of things. Fine. We can do that, but only because I don't feel like thinking of a brilliant plan."
"Yeah, sure Malfoy."
Together they left the apartment building and they were on their way to 'Ogwats. Harry was lucky that Draco had a sense of direction and knowledge of where they were. Harry realized that the sky was getting darker by the minute. They traveled out of the dark alleys and into a more peaceful clearing. It was an area with green grass and happy forest animals scurrying about. It seemed to contradict the situation. The pair came to an abrupt halt.
"Why did we just stop in the middle of nowhere?" Harry asked anxiously.
"I haven't slept in days. You can't expect me to save the world with no sleep, can you?"
"But at this minute, people can be in danger! We have to help rescue them!"
"First of all, we don't have to do anything. I'm tired, so I'm going to sleep."
"Fine," Harry replied with a hint of irritation.
Draco used his arms as a pillow and fell asleep quickly. Harry watched him, since there was nothing better to do and he couldn't fall asleep with all of the new information he just learned. There was just too much on his mind right now. Harry couldn't help but notice how innocent Draco looked while sleeping. It's the opposite of the real Malfoy, he thought. Or at least, it's the opposite of the Malfoy that I know. Maybe I don't really know him that well after all. With these thoughts, he fell asleep.