A/N:
"It's these weekends, gotta love 'em! At this rate, I'll be at Chapter 15 by the end of Easter Break!"
Wow, just like most politicians, I'm a frequent liar, and I'm too lazy to live up to my promises! Seriously, I was stuck at my dad's all break and didn't have access to the fic, and now it's that crappy time of year where I'm loaded down with school crap. Plus, my two original works, which I'll eventually get around to posting somewhere, have held me back a bit from writing this. But anyhow, finally, here's Chapter 6! I assure you that I'll write more often when summer rolls around!
Chapter 6
Explanations & Escapades
Much to Harry's liking, he was out of Number 12, Grimmauld Place, and the constant reminder of Sirius, and the week that followed at the Leaky Cauldron went much quickly.
He ran into several familiar faces during the week, including an encounter with Justin Finch-Fletchley at Weasley Wizard Wheezes, a meeting with Terry Boot outside of Quality Quidditch Supplies, and the gang ran into Susan Bones outside of Magical Menagerie (A/N: What's with all the store names beginning with the same letters?). Much to their displeasure, they also ran into Blaise Zabini near Gringotts, and the twins got a kick out of eavesdropping on Ernie and Hannah Abbott's "walk to the book store".
It was over a week later that Harry had his oddest dream yet. It was still a blur, but this time there was more than a red-robed man. He was still there, and somebody wearing dark blue ran up to him. Then, the two of them ran out of the room as the door was busted down by a large group, carrying torches and screaming, like the people in the Frankenstein movie he once watched through the Dursleys' window.
Harry awoke with a start when he felt someone tap his shoulder. Mrs. Weasley stood over him. "Harry, dear, Dumbledore's here to see you."
Mrs. Weasley led Harry to the girls' room. Luna and Ginny sat on a bed, while Hermione sat on a chair in the corner, and Ron and Neville sat on the other bed. "Please, Harry, sit down," Dumbledore suggested.
Slowly, Harry took a seat in another chair. He was glad to finally have a chance to speak with Dumbledore, he had 10 million questions to ask, but Dumbledore spoke first.
"I'm sure you all have many things to ask, but I need to say a few things beforehand. First, as you all will be heading off to school tomorrow, I must urge you not to run off on any adventures like you have in the past. Hogwarts is not completely safe, and if you take unnecessary risks, you might not be as lucky as you have been in the past.
"Secondly, I feel I need to remind you that outside of the circle of you 6, Ernie, the Hogwarts staff, and the Order members, do not trust anybody with anything vital. I'm sure that's easy to understand. Now, I'm sure you have a few things to ask?"
Harry had so many questions to ask, but Ron spoke first. "Is Snape really acting as a spy?"
"Yes," Dumbledore answered, "Professor Snape is working as a mole within the death eaters."
"Is that why Snape was with Malfoy in Flourish and Blotts last week?" Hermione asked.
"Yes, Professor Snape has had the unfortunate task of taking care of death eater children this summer. As much as it irritates him, I think it's good that he has the influence on the children, because the death eaters' children are even more dangerous perhaps than the death eaters themselves."
Luna then proposed a question that puzzled the whole group. "Are Harry's odd dreams related to mine?"
Harry opened his mouth to ask how Luna knew about Harry's dreams, but couldn't put it into words. Neville, Ginny, Hermione, and Ron all looked at Luna and Harry oddly. "I'm not sure, I haven't been able to speak with Harry about these dreams recently. However, as none of the things you've dreamed have come true, I would say no."
Dumbledore pulled a pocket watch out of his pocket and looked at it. "I'm afraid I must be going. The final thing I have to say is that I have a job for each of you when you return to school. Ron, as Gryffindor prefect, I would like you to keep a good eye on everyone in your house, to make sure no one is engaging in any odd activity. Hermione, since you enjoy reading, I was hoping you could make sure nothing odd happens in the library, as it's a common meeting place for students. Neville, when you get to school, can you speak with Professor Sprout? I have a project I'll need the two of you to work on together. Ginny, I want you to keep a close eye on the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Make sure he doesn't hold back from teaching you anything. Harry, as you have the legendary Marauder's Map, I would like you to keep an eye on all the school's secret passages and such. And finally, Luna, since she has taken a liking to you, could you keep tabs on Professor Trelawney. Come tell me if she says anything odd."
The group murmured positive replies, except Harry. As Dumbledore got up and left, he was only more confused than before. As he walked back to his room, he decided to begin his mission for Dumbledore. He pulled out the Marauder's Map and looked over Hogwarts. The only people there were Professor Sprout, who was out at the Greenhouses, Filch, the caretaker, who was on the 4th floor, along with Mrs. Norris, and Hagrid, who was at the quidditch pitch.
Harry went down to the parlor, to find the only people in the common room were a woman in the corner, drinking a cup of tee, Hermione, sitting, reading a book, and Luna and Ginny eating.
Harry sat down at the table with the 5th year girls. Ginny greeted him cheerfully, but Luna barley took a notice that he sat down.
"Where are the others?" Harry asked.
"Ron went off with Jack and Andrew," Ginny explained, "Ernie and Hannah went off somewhere as well, and I have no idea where Neville went. Want some food?"
"No thanks," Harry responded, "I'm not hungry."
"Confused by Dumbledore?" Luna suddenly asked.
"Yeah," Harry responded. Confused didn't really even come close, more like completely blown away, but Harry was certainly used to the feeling.
"Me too," she replied, "I wonder what Professor Sprout and Neville going to do?"
"Luna..." Harry said awkwardly, "How did you know about my dreams?"
Luna looked back at him peculiarly. "Well, how couldn't I know? Isn't that why we went on that big adventure to the Ministry in June?"
"Oh...yeah..."
Ginny raised an eyebrow. "You haven't been having weird dreams recently, have you?"
"No," Harry said quickly. He was almost positive Ginny knew he was lying, but she didn't say anything.
Later that day, Harry found himself wondering Diagon Alley, Ginny alongside him. The two of them had been having very similar weeks, bored, their friends being busy with other things, and they themselves having nothing to do. They weren't supposed to be wandering around by themselves, but Harry needed the walk.
"You know, this year'll be hard," Ginny pointed out, "With all the stuff that's going to happen, You-Know-Who's stronger than ever, Mum's worried sick about sending us back, but she knows we'll be safer with Dumbledore." She sounded a bit unsure of herself.
Harry sighed. "We'll be okay. I'm sorry. I drug you into this. It's my fault. I won't let anything happen to you. I promise."
"Thanks Harry, but it's not your fault. Whatever happens, happens. Even if I never met you, if you'd been sorted into Ravenclaw, I still would have joined the DA, I still would have fought alongside you at the Ministry."
"Well...thanks." There was a long pause as the two of them walked on. As the sun began to set, for the first time, Harry looked up. He and Ginny were in an empty alleyway, with nothing in it except for litter here and there. It certainly wasn't Diagon Alley.
Worried, Harry and Ginny began to check to store names for some sign of where they were, but could find none. They all had names like "Eric's Eccentrics" and "Rare and Exotic Magical Creatures". Harry came across a shop with a wooden sign hanging about it, reading "Flint's."
As much as Harry didn't expect the former Slytherin quidditch captain to help him and Ginny, it was better than nothing. As he tried to see through the dirty window in the door, he saw out of the corner of his eye, Ginny get knocked to the ground when a man in a large cloak bolted out of a shop door she was standing by. Harry ran towards her and the hooded man turned. He pulled out his wand to attack.
"Serpensortia!" he exclaimed as a snake began to form from the end of his wand. He remembered Malfoy using the same spell at the Dueling Club 4 years ago, but the snake Malfoy had conjured was nothing compared to the one that had emerged from the hooded figures wand as the man ran off. The snake was at the very least 12 feet long, a dark green color with eyes glaring at Harry. With a hiss and a waving of the tongue, the serpent leapt towards him.
Harry quickly pulled his wand from his pocket and jumped out of the way. Harry shot the first spell he could think of at the snake, but the flames that poured over it didn't seem to affect it.
The snake then looked as though it would leap to strike again, but instead it's tail snapped out and wrapped around Harry's leg, pulling him to the ground.
"Reducio!"
Suddenly, the snake shrunk down, to a point where it was barley large enough to wrap itself around Harry's leg though. He still managed to sink its fangs into his leg though, causing Harry to screech out in pain before Ginny ripped it off his leg.
Harry cursed, holding his leg. It wasn't too bad, and he was pretty sure there was no venom in it, but it hurt horribly.
The sun was nearly down now, and the storm clouds off in the distance were moving in quickly. Harry managed to take his hands off his leg and get up, as he and Ginny quickly looked around for any sign of help.
Next Chapter:
Chapter 7 The Disappearance
"It's these weekends, gotta love 'em! At this rate, I'll be at Chapter 15 by the end of Easter Break!"
Wow, just like most politicians, I'm a frequent liar, and I'm too lazy to live up to my promises! Seriously, I was stuck at my dad's all break and didn't have access to the fic, and now it's that crappy time of year where I'm loaded down with school crap. Plus, my two original works, which I'll eventually get around to posting somewhere, have held me back a bit from writing this. But anyhow, finally, here's Chapter 6! I assure you that I'll write more often when summer rolls around!
Chapter 6
Explanations & Escapades
Much to Harry's liking, he was out of Number 12, Grimmauld Place, and the constant reminder of Sirius, and the week that followed at the Leaky Cauldron went much quickly.
He ran into several familiar faces during the week, including an encounter with Justin Finch-Fletchley at Weasley Wizard Wheezes, a meeting with Terry Boot outside of Quality Quidditch Supplies, and the gang ran into Susan Bones outside of Magical Menagerie (A/N: What's with all the store names beginning with the same letters?). Much to their displeasure, they also ran into Blaise Zabini near Gringotts, and the twins got a kick out of eavesdropping on Ernie and Hannah Abbott's "walk to the book store".
It was over a week later that Harry had his oddest dream yet. It was still a blur, but this time there was more than a red-robed man. He was still there, and somebody wearing dark blue ran up to him. Then, the two of them ran out of the room as the door was busted down by a large group, carrying torches and screaming, like the people in the Frankenstein movie he once watched through the Dursleys' window.
Harry awoke with a start when he felt someone tap his shoulder. Mrs. Weasley stood over him. "Harry, dear, Dumbledore's here to see you."
Mrs. Weasley led Harry to the girls' room. Luna and Ginny sat on a bed, while Hermione sat on a chair in the corner, and Ron and Neville sat on the other bed. "Please, Harry, sit down," Dumbledore suggested.
Slowly, Harry took a seat in another chair. He was glad to finally have a chance to speak with Dumbledore, he had 10 million questions to ask, but Dumbledore spoke first.
"I'm sure you all have many things to ask, but I need to say a few things beforehand. First, as you all will be heading off to school tomorrow, I must urge you not to run off on any adventures like you have in the past. Hogwarts is not completely safe, and if you take unnecessary risks, you might not be as lucky as you have been in the past.
"Secondly, I feel I need to remind you that outside of the circle of you 6, Ernie, the Hogwarts staff, and the Order members, do not trust anybody with anything vital. I'm sure that's easy to understand. Now, I'm sure you have a few things to ask?"
Harry had so many questions to ask, but Ron spoke first. "Is Snape really acting as a spy?"
"Yes," Dumbledore answered, "Professor Snape is working as a mole within the death eaters."
"Is that why Snape was with Malfoy in Flourish and Blotts last week?" Hermione asked.
"Yes, Professor Snape has had the unfortunate task of taking care of death eater children this summer. As much as it irritates him, I think it's good that he has the influence on the children, because the death eaters' children are even more dangerous perhaps than the death eaters themselves."
Luna then proposed a question that puzzled the whole group. "Are Harry's odd dreams related to mine?"
Harry opened his mouth to ask how Luna knew about Harry's dreams, but couldn't put it into words. Neville, Ginny, Hermione, and Ron all looked at Luna and Harry oddly. "I'm not sure, I haven't been able to speak with Harry about these dreams recently. However, as none of the things you've dreamed have come true, I would say no."
Dumbledore pulled a pocket watch out of his pocket and looked at it. "I'm afraid I must be going. The final thing I have to say is that I have a job for each of you when you return to school. Ron, as Gryffindor prefect, I would like you to keep a good eye on everyone in your house, to make sure no one is engaging in any odd activity. Hermione, since you enjoy reading, I was hoping you could make sure nothing odd happens in the library, as it's a common meeting place for students. Neville, when you get to school, can you speak with Professor Sprout? I have a project I'll need the two of you to work on together. Ginny, I want you to keep a close eye on the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Make sure he doesn't hold back from teaching you anything. Harry, as you have the legendary Marauder's Map, I would like you to keep an eye on all the school's secret passages and such. And finally, Luna, since she has taken a liking to you, could you keep tabs on Professor Trelawney. Come tell me if she says anything odd."
The group murmured positive replies, except Harry. As Dumbledore got up and left, he was only more confused than before. As he walked back to his room, he decided to begin his mission for Dumbledore. He pulled out the Marauder's Map and looked over Hogwarts. The only people there were Professor Sprout, who was out at the Greenhouses, Filch, the caretaker, who was on the 4th floor, along with Mrs. Norris, and Hagrid, who was at the quidditch pitch.
Harry went down to the parlor, to find the only people in the common room were a woman in the corner, drinking a cup of tee, Hermione, sitting, reading a book, and Luna and Ginny eating.
Harry sat down at the table with the 5th year girls. Ginny greeted him cheerfully, but Luna barley took a notice that he sat down.
"Where are the others?" Harry asked.
"Ron went off with Jack and Andrew," Ginny explained, "Ernie and Hannah went off somewhere as well, and I have no idea where Neville went. Want some food?"
"No thanks," Harry responded, "I'm not hungry."
"Confused by Dumbledore?" Luna suddenly asked.
"Yeah," Harry responded. Confused didn't really even come close, more like completely blown away, but Harry was certainly used to the feeling.
"Me too," she replied, "I wonder what Professor Sprout and Neville going to do?"
"Luna..." Harry said awkwardly, "How did you know about my dreams?"
Luna looked back at him peculiarly. "Well, how couldn't I know? Isn't that why we went on that big adventure to the Ministry in June?"
"Oh...yeah..."
Ginny raised an eyebrow. "You haven't been having weird dreams recently, have you?"
"No," Harry said quickly. He was almost positive Ginny knew he was lying, but she didn't say anything.
Later that day, Harry found himself wondering Diagon Alley, Ginny alongside him. The two of them had been having very similar weeks, bored, their friends being busy with other things, and they themselves having nothing to do. They weren't supposed to be wandering around by themselves, but Harry needed the walk.
"You know, this year'll be hard," Ginny pointed out, "With all the stuff that's going to happen, You-Know-Who's stronger than ever, Mum's worried sick about sending us back, but she knows we'll be safer with Dumbledore." She sounded a bit unsure of herself.
Harry sighed. "We'll be okay. I'm sorry. I drug you into this. It's my fault. I won't let anything happen to you. I promise."
"Thanks Harry, but it's not your fault. Whatever happens, happens. Even if I never met you, if you'd been sorted into Ravenclaw, I still would have joined the DA, I still would have fought alongside you at the Ministry."
"Well...thanks." There was a long pause as the two of them walked on. As the sun began to set, for the first time, Harry looked up. He and Ginny were in an empty alleyway, with nothing in it except for litter here and there. It certainly wasn't Diagon Alley.
Worried, Harry and Ginny began to check to store names for some sign of where they were, but could find none. They all had names like "Eric's Eccentrics" and "Rare and Exotic Magical Creatures". Harry came across a shop with a wooden sign hanging about it, reading "Flint's."
As much as Harry didn't expect the former Slytherin quidditch captain to help him and Ginny, it was better than nothing. As he tried to see through the dirty window in the door, he saw out of the corner of his eye, Ginny get knocked to the ground when a man in a large cloak bolted out of a shop door she was standing by. Harry ran towards her and the hooded man turned. He pulled out his wand to attack.
"Serpensortia!" he exclaimed as a snake began to form from the end of his wand. He remembered Malfoy using the same spell at the Dueling Club 4 years ago, but the snake Malfoy had conjured was nothing compared to the one that had emerged from the hooded figures wand as the man ran off. The snake was at the very least 12 feet long, a dark green color with eyes glaring at Harry. With a hiss and a waving of the tongue, the serpent leapt towards him.
Harry quickly pulled his wand from his pocket and jumped out of the way. Harry shot the first spell he could think of at the snake, but the flames that poured over it didn't seem to affect it.
The snake then looked as though it would leap to strike again, but instead it's tail snapped out and wrapped around Harry's leg, pulling him to the ground.
"Reducio!"
Suddenly, the snake shrunk down, to a point where it was barley large enough to wrap itself around Harry's leg though. He still managed to sink its fangs into his leg though, causing Harry to screech out in pain before Ginny ripped it off his leg.
Harry cursed, holding his leg. It wasn't too bad, and he was pretty sure there was no venom in it, but it hurt horribly.
The sun was nearly down now, and the storm clouds off in the distance were moving in quickly. Harry managed to take his hands off his leg and get up, as he and Ginny quickly looked around for any sign of help.
Next Chapter:
Chapter 7 The Disappearance