Harry waved his hand, becoming fully visible to the entire room.
"You see, headmaster, I hate no one. None of you are worth my hate, just as I was not worthy of your trust and love all those years ago."
Sirius stood and tried to reach out to his godson. "Harry, please, please, forgive me.I didn't know, I swear it, If I had, I wouldn't of."
Harry jerked away. "Don't touch me!"
Sirius eyes filled with pain.
"Yes, Hurts, Doesn't it?" He hissed.
"Harry, I, please.I'm sorry"
Harry sighed and looked away. "So am I, Black. But it's a bit too late for that. That day, in the courtroom, do you remember what you said to me? Do you? Those words have haunted me for seven years. Out of all the betrayals, yours, beyond any doubt, hurt me the most. You, after being framed for your best friends murder yourself, you, that were a father to me, you, who spent 12 years in Azkaban for a crime that you did not commit, you, out of everyone, should have seen that it was possible that I was innocent."
Remus spoke up. "But, Harry.even if.you would have.there wouldn't have been anything that we could have done!"
Harry turned to face the werewolf. "That may be. But it would have been one less betrayal to haunt my dreams, and ring in my ears."
Remus, if it were possible, paled even more. But harry wasn't through.
"You too Lupin. Yours was right being Blacks. What was that you said? My parents would hate me. That I was no son of Lily and James Potter. You took my worst nightmare and used in against me. You, who I called one of my fathers, who said I was like a son to him."
He turned back to Dumbledoor. " I know what you want. And I will do it. I will fight this war, and defeat Voldemort, or die trying. Not for you though. Or any of my so called 'friends and family'. Ill do it for my parents. Who would have loved me unconditionally. For Ron." He looked at Hermione. "Who would have known me well enough not to blame me. For Cedric. Who stood by me, and even in death, did not blame me. For all those who have already died at Voldemorts hands. And for me. Because he took anything and everything that was good in my life and corrupted it."
Author Weasly stood up, tear tracks visible on his face. " I'm truly sorry Harry. You were one of us. We should have known that you would never have killed your best friend. For Rons sake, I hope that we can somehow make it up to you." Molly got up and stood by her husband. She looked at her sons' best friend. "Yes, somehow, we will repay you. For our son."
Harry looked at his dead best friends' parents. " I want no repayment. All I want, is for when this war is over, I want to be left alone."
Dumbledoore cleared his throat. "Harry, dear boy..I am truly sorry that I myself did not fight for your innocence. I have failed you as your headmaster, and as head of the Order."
Harry glared at his old headmaster. "Don't dear boy me. I was nothing more than a tool to you, easily thrown aside. The only reason you fought them giving me the Dementors' Kiss was because you know that I must defeat Voldemort."
"I-"
"No. I will work for you. I told you that. But I will never be the person I once was. I don't think I can ever trust you again. Ill win you your war, and that is all."
"That is all I can ask of you harry. I will always regret this."
Harry turned to the rest of the room. "I want you all to know I do not hate any one of you. No, I will probably never forgive you, but I hate noone. All I ask of you is that you leave me be. I don't need companionship, don't try. I don't need your sympathy, which does nothing. I don't need you. I don't need anyone. I don't want anyone."
Dumbledoore sighed. No, Harry did not hate anyone. He just didn't feel. The dead look in his eyes reminding the old headmaster of another forgotten boy, looking at him with the same emptiness, only out of pools of navy instead of emerald so many years ago. The emptiness in that one had left, only to be replaced with red hate. He could not let the same evil over come Harry. He had failed Tom Riddle, but he would be damned if the beautiful, broken boy in front of him would fall to the same fate.
Harry looked at the floor for a moment, then raised his head back up. "I take it you are not going to let me leave Hogwarts, correct?"
"That would be for the best Harry. The only ones who know of your being free and innocent are Voldemort and his followers, and of course the Order of the Phoenix. If the Ministry were to find you, they would merely through you back in Azkaban, and we have no proof of your innocence. No, we must keep you a secret."
"Oh, and Voldemort has agreed to keep this under wraps to has he?" Harry asked sarcastically, earning a snort from Draco and Severus, who in return got glares from the rest of the Order.
"No, I am afraid he is not one to be bargained with. We must hide you from him as well anyway. The best way would be to fake your death I suppose."
"And just how do you propose that we do that, oh wise one?"
Albus smiled. "Create a body."
Severus smirked. "I believe you'll have to make that a bit more clear for the rest of these dunderheads." Harry shot him a withering glare.
"Charming as ever."
"Well, I will just need a hair from your head.if you would?"
Harry just looked at him for a minute, contemplating how that would make a body. Severus rolled his eyes and reached over, yanking out Harry's hair. More than one piece. Several, in fact. Harry shot daggers.
"abscissa comas accingo circumfero aegrotus" Chanted Albus. The members of the Order, and Harry, watched, awed, as a soft white light twisted around one of Harry's hairs.* It steadily grew bigger and brighter, till noone could see a thing. Just as suddenly as it appeared, it was gone, leaving a replica of Harry in its place. The real Harry walked up to it, and gazed at his own face. He yelped when the fake him blinked.
"Harry. You can tell him what to do. You need to tell him that he is to appear tomorrow at noon in front of the Ministry. I will already be there. He is to try to curse anyone unlucky enough to be there. And I will proceed to try and stun him, but I won't let it take effect. He is to force me to have to kill him."
At this Hermione spoke up. "Your.your just going to.to..kill him?"
Harry glared. "oh. So u care about a piece of HAIR that looks like me, but u were willing to watch the real me get the Dementors Kiss." She returned her gaze to the floor.
Harry relayed the message, a rather squeamish feeling in his stomach. But then, who wouldn't find it a bit off to tell their hair that looked like them to go get itself killed?
"You see, headmaster, I hate no one. None of you are worth my hate, just as I was not worthy of your trust and love all those years ago."
Sirius stood and tried to reach out to his godson. "Harry, please, please, forgive me.I didn't know, I swear it, If I had, I wouldn't of."
Harry jerked away. "Don't touch me!"
Sirius eyes filled with pain.
"Yes, Hurts, Doesn't it?" He hissed.
"Harry, I, please.I'm sorry"
Harry sighed and looked away. "So am I, Black. But it's a bit too late for that. That day, in the courtroom, do you remember what you said to me? Do you? Those words have haunted me for seven years. Out of all the betrayals, yours, beyond any doubt, hurt me the most. You, after being framed for your best friends murder yourself, you, that were a father to me, you, who spent 12 years in Azkaban for a crime that you did not commit, you, out of everyone, should have seen that it was possible that I was innocent."
Remus spoke up. "But, Harry.even if.you would have.there wouldn't have been anything that we could have done!"
Harry turned to face the werewolf. "That may be. But it would have been one less betrayal to haunt my dreams, and ring in my ears."
Remus, if it were possible, paled even more. But harry wasn't through.
"You too Lupin. Yours was right being Blacks. What was that you said? My parents would hate me. That I was no son of Lily and James Potter. You took my worst nightmare and used in against me. You, who I called one of my fathers, who said I was like a son to him."
He turned back to Dumbledoor. " I know what you want. And I will do it. I will fight this war, and defeat Voldemort, or die trying. Not for you though. Or any of my so called 'friends and family'. Ill do it for my parents. Who would have loved me unconditionally. For Ron." He looked at Hermione. "Who would have known me well enough not to blame me. For Cedric. Who stood by me, and even in death, did not blame me. For all those who have already died at Voldemorts hands. And for me. Because he took anything and everything that was good in my life and corrupted it."
Author Weasly stood up, tear tracks visible on his face. " I'm truly sorry Harry. You were one of us. We should have known that you would never have killed your best friend. For Rons sake, I hope that we can somehow make it up to you." Molly got up and stood by her husband. She looked at her sons' best friend. "Yes, somehow, we will repay you. For our son."
Harry looked at his dead best friends' parents. " I want no repayment. All I want, is for when this war is over, I want to be left alone."
Dumbledoore cleared his throat. "Harry, dear boy..I am truly sorry that I myself did not fight for your innocence. I have failed you as your headmaster, and as head of the Order."
Harry glared at his old headmaster. "Don't dear boy me. I was nothing more than a tool to you, easily thrown aside. The only reason you fought them giving me the Dementors' Kiss was because you know that I must defeat Voldemort."
"I-"
"No. I will work for you. I told you that. But I will never be the person I once was. I don't think I can ever trust you again. Ill win you your war, and that is all."
"That is all I can ask of you harry. I will always regret this."
Harry turned to the rest of the room. "I want you all to know I do not hate any one of you. No, I will probably never forgive you, but I hate noone. All I ask of you is that you leave me be. I don't need companionship, don't try. I don't need your sympathy, which does nothing. I don't need you. I don't need anyone. I don't want anyone."
Dumbledoore sighed. No, Harry did not hate anyone. He just didn't feel. The dead look in his eyes reminding the old headmaster of another forgotten boy, looking at him with the same emptiness, only out of pools of navy instead of emerald so many years ago. The emptiness in that one had left, only to be replaced with red hate. He could not let the same evil over come Harry. He had failed Tom Riddle, but he would be damned if the beautiful, broken boy in front of him would fall to the same fate.
Harry looked at the floor for a moment, then raised his head back up. "I take it you are not going to let me leave Hogwarts, correct?"
"That would be for the best Harry. The only ones who know of your being free and innocent are Voldemort and his followers, and of course the Order of the Phoenix. If the Ministry were to find you, they would merely through you back in Azkaban, and we have no proof of your innocence. No, we must keep you a secret."
"Oh, and Voldemort has agreed to keep this under wraps to has he?" Harry asked sarcastically, earning a snort from Draco and Severus, who in return got glares from the rest of the Order.
"No, I am afraid he is not one to be bargained with. We must hide you from him as well anyway. The best way would be to fake your death I suppose."
"And just how do you propose that we do that, oh wise one?"
Albus smiled. "Create a body."
Severus smirked. "I believe you'll have to make that a bit more clear for the rest of these dunderheads." Harry shot him a withering glare.
"Charming as ever."
"Well, I will just need a hair from your head.if you would?"
Harry just looked at him for a minute, contemplating how that would make a body. Severus rolled his eyes and reached over, yanking out Harry's hair. More than one piece. Several, in fact. Harry shot daggers.
"abscissa comas accingo circumfero aegrotus" Chanted Albus. The members of the Order, and Harry, watched, awed, as a soft white light twisted around one of Harry's hairs.* It steadily grew bigger and brighter, till noone could see a thing. Just as suddenly as it appeared, it was gone, leaving a replica of Harry in its place. The real Harry walked up to it, and gazed at his own face. He yelped when the fake him blinked.
"Harry. You can tell him what to do. You need to tell him that he is to appear tomorrow at noon in front of the Ministry. I will already be there. He is to try to curse anyone unlucky enough to be there. And I will proceed to try and stun him, but I won't let it take effect. He is to force me to have to kill him."
At this Hermione spoke up. "Your.your just going to.to..kill him?"
Harry glared. "oh. So u care about a piece of HAIR that looks like me, but u were willing to watch the real me get the Dementors Kiss." She returned her gaze to the floor.
Harry relayed the message, a rather squeamish feeling in his stomach. But then, who wouldn't find it a bit off to tell their hair that looked like them to go get itself killed?