Okay, next chapter is up. I want to thank all of my reviewers and I am so
glad that everyone seemed to like, or at least they didn't hate, the
Percy/Oliver part in this story. I got a little bored and added some
romance because it's not going to happen between Harry and Draco for a
while, but please stay tuned as it is bound to happen eventually.
Also, the polling is still going on, and I believe my results are as
follows:
It's a tie for SS/RL and SB/RL
And Ari/Sirius have two.
So it looks like, in order to make the most people happy, I will have the pairings for SS/RL and Sirius/Ari. If you don't like these, then you should be voting to change it! If you do like the pairings, review anyway because it will make me happy!
Hermione waited in front of the fireplace fore several minutes before Oliver and Percy floo-ed in one after the other. Three guesses what they were doing, a nasty little voice in Hermione's head said, and the first two don't count.
Well, said the sweeter voice in her mind, why would they do it in public?
When no answer came, she felt a slight victory in her mind war.
"Hermione, have you been waiting the whole time?" Percy asked in surprise. Hermione eyes him strangely, thinking little time had passed. She glanced at her watch and noticed they had been gone for nearly twenty minutes. Oh.
"Yeah, but it didn't seem like that long." They all headed up the stairs with Hermione leading the way this time. She smiled and pretended she didn't notice when they began holding hands when there was no one around. When they reached the crowded hallway, the two separated. Hermione found the replacement doctor walking around and quickly inquired how Harry was. After learning he was still asleep, the three of them left to go to the waiting room.
"Oliver!" The twins shouted in surprise as they saw their ex-Quidditch captain walk into the room. She saw Snape, who must have gotten back already, curl his lip in disgust of being surrounded by yet another Gryffindor.
"What are you doing here?" Fred asked.
"I was just walking around Diagon Alley and ran into these two." Oliver said with a smile.
"So, Oliver, dear." Mrs. Weasley started but was interrupted by a scream from down the hallway.
"Son of a bitch!" Hermione saw a girl who looked like Allie but was dressed differently storm down the hallway with her wand held out and a determined look on her face.
"Now, Andy." Randolph started.
"I also ran into those two as well." Oliver mumbled.
"I am just so pissed at that bastard. Just wait till I get my hands on him."
Allie came onto the scene with an air of apathy. "What would you do if you did?" She drawled.
"I'd rip off his dick and shove it so far up his ass that he would be fucking himself and wouldn't have to use someone else! Which is exactly what I'm going to do if Randolph would kindly pull off the restraint charm."
"No way. You're just going to get yourself killed." Her brother said with a shake of his head.
Andrea turned to look at him sadly. "She was twelve years old, Randolph. Twelve. She felt only pain and hatred as he made her bleed and then he killed her." Her voice was calm and as cold of ice. "I'm going to make sure he doesn't do it again as long as I live."
"Which won't be very long if you go now." He pulled his sister close and embraced her. "You can do so much good with your life but this isn't something you're supposed to do; I can feel it in my bones." Andrea was about to burst into tears and she bit her lip hard enough to draw blood.
"Andrea, I've never seen you like this. What's gotten into you?" Allie said, grabbing her twin's hand and lacing it with her own.
"I just want it to stop." She said so quietly that only her siblings and Hermione who was sitting close enough could hear her. "Please, make it stop." She finally broke down and slumped to the floor with her brother and sister surrounding her. "I don't want to see anymore. I don't want it." She pleaded and Randolph pulled her up and carried her back into her room. Allie stooped low and grabbed her sister's wand before following the sobs down the hallway.
"What was that?" Sirius asked.
Albus looked grave for a second before answering. "Some gifts are not always beneficial to the receiver and that is an example of a most taxing gift." They all sat in silence for a moment before the twins turned back to Oliver in an attempt to liven the atmosphere.
"So, Oliver, congratulations on being put in the game last week." George said from his chess game with Ron. Hermione could tell which twin it was because Fred couldn't play chess to save his life.
"Thanks George." Oliver beamed. He obviously could tell the twins apart as well.
"I didn't know you were put in the game." Percy whispered, looking a little hurt. Oliver shot him a concerned look before being distracted by Charlie.
"It was amazing. You must have blocked like 40 shots in less than an hour and a half!" Charlie said.
Percy excused himself and walked down the corridor. Oliver made like he was going to go after him but Hermione pushed him down in his seat and went after Percy.
She found him sitting on a hospital gurney swinging his legs like a lost child. "Are you all right, Percy?" He looked up, startled.
"Oh, Hermione." He sighed.
"Call me Herm. Your brothers do." He gave her a sad smile.
"Okay. You may call me Perce if you'd like. My brothers do." She smiled at the intended mocking of her last sentence.
"So does your lover." She smiled as his eyes widened almost comically. His mouth began opening and closing as he looked for the right words. "I saw you guys making out behind a bookcase." Hermione giggled as Percy blushed. "Is it getting hard between you guys?"
Percy nodded sadly. "It was so much easier at school." Now Hermione sputtered.
"At school? How long have you guys been together?"
"Three and a half years."
"What about Penelope?"
He sighed and leaned against the wall that the gurney was against. "We dated for a couple months. I think I was trying to convince myself that I wasn't gay and that I didn't find him attractive and that it really was just a coincidence that I happened to take showers the same time that he did." Hermione laughed. "I guess I was just trying to figure a few things out.
"Did you?" Hermione prodded.
"It was kind of hard with exams coming up, school work, prefect duties and then balancing a girlfriend and my growing attraction to my dorm mate and best friend."
"What happened?" This story was better than those sleazy paperbacks with the half naked men and scantily clad women on the cover that her dorm mates kept hidden under their beds.
"Well, Oliver knew he was gay before I did and was always more comfortable with it. I think he picked up on my desire for him because one night when I was working late in the library, he came in from Quidditch practice, grabbed my hand and threw me into the mechanics division over in the muggle section. He pushed me against a wall and kissed me. More like molested me." Hermione laughed again and Percy smiled at her.
"I'm guessing you allowed yourself to be molested?" She added slyly.
"Until the early hours of the morning." They both laughed at this. "Anyway, I finally got back to my dorm with Oliver and fell asleep. Luckily it was Saturday so I still had a day before I had to face everyone. So I locked myself up in the Prefects lounge until Penelope found me and asked me what I was doing. I told her my dilemma about my sexuality. So she kissed me and I felt nothing. No sparks or passion like I did with Oliver. With her it felt wrong, awkward. With him, we just fit. So we broke up."
"But you and Penelope were still dating in seventh year." Hermione pointed out.
"True, but it was just a front. Penelope is one of my best friends now and also is my relationship counselor, which is why I was writing so many letters to her that summer."
"What about now?" His smile began to fade and he looked worried.
"It isn't always easy for us; he's gone at Quidditch practice and I work long hours at my job. It also doesn't help that I haven't told my parents about us."
This is what had confused Hermione before. "Why not?"
Percy paused for a moment. "I don't know what to tell them. He was on the Quidditch team with my brothers and Harry, Ron used to speak to him every Saturday about game tactics. Not to mention the fact that Oliver's parents and my father work at the Ministry together and our mothers are both in some garden club. Ginny had a crush on him, for goodness sakes!" He ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "I have imagined it a hundred times, what it would be like. 'Hey everybody. Oliver and I.yes George, I do mean your ex-Quidditch captain.I'm sure he's fine Fred.. No Ron, I don't believe he knows the Cannons. Anyway, what I'm trying to tell you is that.Mom, I'm sure the lavender she's growing is turning out well.Oliver and I are.Dad, you can talk to his parents in the morning.yes, I understand that you are working on something very important with them.Hey.Everybody.. Shut up!' Then there will be silence throughout the whole house and I will be so upset that I'll yell 'I'm fucking Oliver!' and then I'll realize what I've said and run to my room. Chaos will break out and they'll all try to break into my room. Fred and George will slap me on the back in congratulations, Mum will wonder what I mean exactly and father will owl in sick because he is too embarrassed to face the Woods at work." When he finished, he looked to Hermione who was laughing so hard that she nearly fell off the gurney.
"Oh my. I can only imagine. Let me be there when this happens." She said as she calmed down. "But why did you get upset it there?" She said, pointing to the waiting room.
"I don't know. I guess I'm just frustrated that he won't tell me things about his job. Like I said, we only spend a few days together and that's usually when Oliver likes to talk about the exciting stuff, face to face, but then when he's here, we don't end up talking so nothing gets said. Plus it's the fact that I can't spend time with him now. I've waited two months to see him in person for more than just a few hours and now he's in there. With my parents." Percy sighed again before watching Hermione jump to her feet.
"I think we should go back. I'm sure Oliver has been panicking since you ran off. He wanted to come here but I thought it would be better if I came." Percy gave an affirmative nod. "But just a word of advice: tell your parents. They'll understand and it will help your relationship with Oliver."
"You're right. I'm just being childish. Let's go and pray I don't blurt something crude out in front of my mother." They walked back and saw everyone still sitting where they were before. As Hermione predicted, Oliver was tense and throwing surreptitious glances in the direction that Percy had gone. When he caught sight of the redhead, he gave an unsure smile and was rewarded with a more confident one. Percy squeezed into the seat next to Oliver and secretly stealthily held his hand between their bodies.
"Geez, Perce, what was that all about?" Fred asked, startling Oliver and Percy from their brief staring contest.
"Oh." He blushed slightly and stumbled over his next words in an attempt to make up a lie. "I-I thought I had forgotten something." His mother raised an eyebrow at the flimsy attempt.
"Yes." Hermione said, not taking her eyes off Percy. "He gave me something to watch and I forgot I had it."
"Which is why you went after him." Oliver said confidently.
"You're so smart to figure that out, Oliver." Ginny said dreamily, earning twin eye rolls from Fred and George, a blush by Oliver and two carefully concealed giggles from Percy and Hermione.
***********
Draco watched as the siblings dragged their sister back to her bed and force-fed her a sleeping draught. He hadn't remembered exactly why she had gotten up and stormed off but he could guess the reason and unfortunately for her, it was a common occurrence. The goblet that Andrea had left was still steaming on his tray and Draco quickly threw it back, grimacing at the taste before laying down for a dreamless rest.
When he awoke the next day in the afternoon, he noticed that Andrea had left already. Rather than try and find her, Draco decided to head back to his room and shower. He crept past everyone in the waiting room who were, thankfully, asleep. Once in his room he showered and prepared to change clothes except that he realized that he had none here. Sighing, he gathered his towel and stalked out of the room in an attempt to find some clean pajamas from the hospital. In the midst of his stalking, he nearly missed his trunk and practically toppled over it in an ungraceful sprawl.
He let out a soft hiss as he rubbed his palms that had saved him from fall and smiled at the thought of one of the siblings or Snape retrieving his trunk. Then he smiled wider for actually having clothes.
It seemed that the siblings were always taking care of him, and Draco admitted that he was glad they were. Like Andrea had said in the waiting room to Harry.
His heart rate sped up a little at the name but surmised that it was because he called his enemy by his first name. Draco had to admit that that slip-up was occurring more and more frequently and he didn't particularly seem too keen to fix it. Ignoring that thought, he returned his mind to the siblings who had nearly adopted him.
Because he retained memory from an early age, Draco could recall the lonely years when his parents barely allowed him to have contact with anyone other than them, the elves or the ghosts. However, talking to the elves was rare and at four years old, the ghosts scared him, especially One-Hand Carson, a petty thief who had been caught at the Manor and then had his hand cut off and was strangled on the front lawn. That specific spirit roamed around the halls brandishing a bloodied wrist and hollering at all of the inhabitants. At least he had until Lucius Malfoy caught the ghost mercilessly spooking his hysteric four-year-old son. Since then, the deceased thief was forced to prey on unsuspecting villagers who approached the mansion's walls.
Draco inwardly smiled as he pulled on a pair of blue jeans. His father was always doing things like that for him. Or he had until the year before Hogwarts. That year the young Malfoy heir was taught how to act in a cold detached manner, for in the future, his father had said, it was better to have people follow you in fear than in faith. Faith only stretched so far and most wizards would do most anything to live if that privilege of life was threatened. He remembered when he was seven and more than anything, he wanted to have a friend to play with, not the tutors who came almost everyday.
Father had been firm about friends, Draco mused while drying his hair. That day almost eight years ago popped up in his mind. A younger Draco had been sitting on the floor mimicking his father writing out important documents. Lucius had smiled at his son fondly but dropped that sign of amusement when Draco asked if he could have someone over to play with.
'No, my young dragon, for friends are only enemies who have not yet turned on you.'
And that was it. It was a wonder how he was allowed to keep his supposed 'cousins' around with that attitude. Now that he had the chance to think about it, his father always was a suspicious man, himself in general and of other people. Now his mother.
Draco fingered his neck gingerly and proceeded to pull on a gray sweater. Narcissa Malfoy was always composed. Never surprised or frightened on the outside. She made a perfect wife: good breeding, attractive, mild mannered and independently wealthy. Earlier this summer he remembered his mother was eating lunch with him when Voldemort strolled in waving his wand and talking about some killing in the newspaper. The Dark Lord then grabbed a roll that was sitting on her plate and took a bite while continuing to walk around the table. And there his mother was, completely unfazed. She simply looked up and tsked at the guest.
'Really, Tom, use a plate.'
Use a plate! His mother had just scolded one of the most powerful wizards of their time and Voldemort even had the decency to look abashed. Never had Draco felt so much respect for his mother for he doubted whether even his father could get away with reprimanding him and calling him by his first name. Then again, Voldemort always liked his mother.
'Thought of her as a pet, more like it.' Draco thought bitterly, shuddering in remembrance of the event that landed him here, where Voldemort was sitting in his parlor chair stroking his mother's head that had a vacant look in her eyes and was mewling like a docile kitten. A kitten that had claws. The blonde boy sighed and brushed his teeth using a spell; it wasn't like the ministry could detect it here where there was so much magic floating around.
He glanced at his reflection, glad for once that this mirror didn't talk. He had definitely lost weight, making his figure even slimmer but the lack of sun seemed not to affect him, as he was pale all year round. His hair hung loosely to his chin, un-gelled because of the absence of the substance in his trunk, which was probably Andrea or Allie's doing seeing how they hated the slicked-back look. He scanned the neck of his sweater and was relieved to find that the high neck hid the incision that was the reason he was in St. Mungo's.
The Slytherin strode out of the bathroom and pulled on a pair of dragon hide boots before grabbing a bag of money and stepping out into the hallway. He waved cheekily to the nurses who swooned slightly as he added a bit of veela force to it. Briefly he thought that using that charm wasn't such a good idea in a hospital but he was on a mission to find coffee and their would be no holds barred until he found the beverage.
He found a coffee machine in the far corner of the waiting room, of course at that time he had no idea where he was or who else was in the room.
"Hallelujah!" He cried as he stepped up to the machine and hugged it tightly. "How have I survived without you machine of miracles, brewer of brown beverages, carrier of caffeine.?" He then proceeded to place his knuts in the change slot and receive his coffee.
"Machine of Miracles, Malfoy?" Said a familiar voice from the doorway. Draco turned around and spotted Harry Potter leaning against the doorframe with a slight smirk on his face. The Slytherin just managed to contain his shock look before retorting.
"Working on your alliteration, Potter?"
"No, it seemed like you were, though." Draco flushed slightly and glared at Harry who just laughed.
"I really needed the coffee." He sniffed indignantly.
"Its just coffee." Harry scoffed and secretly smiled when Draco's eyes widened.
"Just coffee? Sacrilege Potter. Half the world needs this to survive."
"That's right, what would we do without the, in Draco's case, addictive drug, that stunts people's growth. Which is also in Draco's case." Both boys turned back towards the doorway where Andrea stood smiling at their interaction.
Draco's eyes narrowed. "What are you implying?" Andrea went up to Draco and stood almost flush against him and everyone could see that the top of the blonde's head only reached eye level with her. At Harry's laugh, he shot them both dirty looks. "Oh bugger off, Andrea. You're at least a year older." He then turned to the side, preparing to leave, when he noticed a whole waiting room of people staring at him. Draco then used some colorful language that made Harry raise an eyebrow.
"Did not know that was actually possible." Harry murmured to the hospital aid that giggled at Draco's language.
"Mr. Potter and Mr. Malfoy." Dumbledore said happily. "I'm relieved to find you both up and in good humor."
"Yes, we were deeply worried." Snape said, though it was directed more to Draco than to Harry.
"Harry!" Harry turned to face Ron and Hermione who were both running to greet him. "Are you okay? It's good to see you lucid again!" Ron said as he thumped him on the back.
"Lucid?" He looked around at his family and friends and noticed them all smiling. "What did I do?" Andrea burst out laughing and Ron inched away from her, not remembering that she was the good twin.
"Why are you laughing? You weren't there." Hermione frowned at the girl. She couldn't explain it, but there was something about this girl that was off. Her outburst last night proved it, though oddly enough, she seemed to have recovered.
She straightened up and grinned at the female Gryffindor. "I have eyes all over this place. Believe me, I know what happened." With that, she turned to Draco who had been surveying the scene with interest. "And you, Drake, what are you doing up?"
"Relax. I'm fine and not in danger of dying." He glared at her and prepared to sit down and nurse his cup of coffee while the others stood around and talked. He swallowed a large gulp but proceeded to spit it out when his throat felt like it was on fire. He slumped in the chair and gasped for breath and tried to assuage the pain in his throat.
"Fool." Andrea muttered with distaste and she grabbed a potion from a belt that she wore around her waist. It must have been new because Harry didn't remember seeing it before. "Take this. Swirl it around in your mouth six times before swallowing." Draco did as told and closed his eyes in concentration. Andrea grabbed a syringe that was in a pouch on her belt and quickly filled it with a light green potion. On the Slytherin's six swirl he began to swallow when his cousin stabbed him in his upper arm with the needle. He barely managed to contain his potion in his mouth. "Ow! Bitch!" He nursed his arm and stormed off.
"It's your own fault." She shrugged at Harry. "What am I going to do with that boy...hmm...his bed does have those wonderful restraints. Bye Harry, dear!" She flounced off after Draco and Harry felt slight pity for him.
"That family is bizarre." Hermione stated.
"And slightly evil." Ron continued in a dazed look.
"They seem okay to me." Harry wanted to say but was cut off by two people talking rapidly coming from behind him. The Gryffindor pressed himself up against the wall and smiled slightly as the two people, Joe and his fiancée Caitlin, stopped and turned around once they noticed they passed Harry.
"Harry!" Joe cried and began to spoke animatedly. "We've got theories. Tons! I stayed up all night thinking and researching."
"I can vouch for that." Caitlin said in a dry voice.
"Gee, I can't contain my excitement. Let's go before I burst." Harry said sarcastically and gestured for the couple to lead the way. This was also a way to keep his powers under wraps from his family and friends. He didn't need a new variable complicating their lives.
"That's the spirit!" Joe enthused, ignoring his patient's tone. To Harry, Joe reminded him of Oliver Wood right before a game. He led Harry down the hallway and a third of the Gryffindor trio wave back to the other two thirds.
When they reached the end of the hall, Harry was almost pushed into the room. He had a helmet place on his head and Joe began a rapid one way dialogue with Harry about all the equipment. It seemed like it was a room of clairvoyance, established by witches and wizards with physic gifts. There were machines in all corners surrounded by stacks of tarot cards, crystal balls and other tools.
"Okay, this will gauge your telepathic level." 'This', as it turned out, was a three-pronged metal helmet with a prong on each side ending at his temples and one coming up in front stopping in the middle of his forehead. [Think X-Men the Movie.]
"Are you ready, Harry?" Caitlin asked quietly. At his nod, she pulled a lever and the couple stood back to watch it work. To the viewer, it seemed like the machine was shooting volts of purple energy over his head. To Harry, it felt like it was emptying his mind and clearing it of all the clutter. It was a singular sensation that resulted in no pain, something Harry was grateful for. When it ended, the energy bolts retracted and Harry opened his eyes having no idea how long he had been under the machine.
It wasn't brief because Joe had moved from in front of him to his side and was now going over parchments that were writing their own words. Caitlin gently eased him out of the chair he was in and removed the helmet before guiding them both over to the doctor.
"Look, Cait, it's amazing. He rates high and it's only been a day." He pushed the papers under her nose and began to check out Harry. "How are you feeling?"
"Fine. What does the test say?" Harry said as he tried to read the papers but only noticed weird symbols.
"Well, the scale was based on 1-12, in two divisions: the first and the second. So technically, there are 24 divisions in where could fall. A twelve ranks higher than one and the first division is stronger than the second. You rank." He skimmed over the papers again and pointed out what he was talking about. "Here. First division, level 7. Over time, your gifts will grow; you might end up ranking at a ten. I doubt you'd go much higher than that as there are only thirty-two others who rank higher than a ten who are alive today."
"How much do telepaths normally grow?" Harry said as he studied the papers Caitlin had passed to him.
"Varies." Caitlin picked up. "One witch once went from Second Division, level four to First Division, level three. However, most, especially those who rank high in the beginning, only go up about two or three levels." She fiddled around with the machine for a moment or two and Joe leaned back against the wall in deep thought.
After a moments pause, Harry broke the silence. "Now what?"
"Well, we could play guinea pig some more." Joe said devilishly and smiled at the look of fear on his patients face. "Or you could go back to your room and rest or talk to the people in the waiting room."
"I'm thinking the waiting room sounds good." He said as he pulled himself off the chair and headed to the door. "Are you guys coming?" Joe nodded and stretched out a hand for Caitlin who grabbed it and swung it as they walked out the door with Harry walking behind them.
'So, I'm a telepath.' Harry thought as he walked slowly behind them. It didn't seem like such a shock in the daytime, especially after having last night to process all of it. Last year had been rough, but it seemed that at the end of every year, he learned something new about himself, the enigma that was Harry Potter. He snorted to himself as he thought this for enigma was just another word for riddle and by blood that's what he was.
Now wasn't the time for humor, however. Self-depreciating jokes were always more amusing at night anyways. Now he had to figure out what to do. Harry supposed he could try and contact a higher-level telepath and try to receive training or advice from them. Or Dumbledore, maybe. The man did seem to have a knack for knowing things that were unsaid so it was quite possible that the Headmaster might have telepathic skills, though Harry doubted it.
All too soon, before he had though of a game plan, they were all back in the room. It seemed that he must have been standing there for a while because his doctor and his fiancée had moved across the room and were talking to Lupin. Harry snapped himself out of his thoughts and ran to sit by Hermione and Ron, sandwiching himself between the two.
"Hello my Gryffindor companions." Harry said lightly.
"Harry!" Hermione squealed as she hugged her friend, as did Ron, resulting in a large group hug.
"How sweet." Fred said.
"Where's Creevey when you need him?" George said while thumping Harry on the back and returning to their positions on the floor and their game of Exploding Snap.
"Hello Fred and George. How's the pranking business?" Harry asked with mirth dancing in his eyes.
"Brilliant!" George grinned.
Fred picked up, as one of them normally did when their twin spoke. "Some well-to-do invested in us."
"Whoever it was probably wasn't right in the head." Percy mumbled from his seat with Oliver.
"Too right. Or he's a sadist who wishes to see the whole world suffer at the hands of your brothers." Oliver replied flashing a grin at the twins who looked slightly put off.
"Ollie! Our tricks aren't harmful!" Fred cried.
"Your second year. Great Hall, think Snape." Oliver replied pointedly.
Both twins gave a mischievous smile. "That was a good year."
"Oliver! What are you doing here?" Harry said, pleasantly surprised. He then saw how close his ex-captain was sitting next to Percy and understood. "Oh. Right."
Percy looked flabbergasted. "How did you know?"
Mimicking Oliver, Harry replied. "My third year. After the Cup, think Quidditch shed." Percy flushed and Oliver merely looked amused.
"That was a good sh-" He trailed off suggestively and at his boyfriend's look added, "-ed." At the twins' odd look he continued. "What? I happen to like fine craftsmanship."
"Do you feel like we're missing something?" George said to Fred.
"I feel like it. Come on, Perce, spill." Charlie said, sitting down and joining the conversation.
Looking at Oliver nervously, he was met with blue eyes full of assurance. He took a deep breath and turned to face his three brothers. "Well, the truth is-"
Percy stopped when he saw Draco rush in from the opposite way he left about an hour earlier.
He scanned the room anxiously and found Harry's face before clambering over bodies and standing in front of the Trio. "Potter, hate to ask a favor, but could you please hide me for a bit?" Harry gave him a skeptical look.
"Why?" He asked, slightly unsure and heavily amused.
"I'll tell you in a moment." He looked around panicked before Harry began to believe him and moved his legs so the Slytherin could hide under the rows of chairs. Hermione looked surprised at his willingness to crawl under hospital furniture but didn't say a word. The next moment, Randolph walked in again, seemingly intent on searching for someone; most likely it was Draco.
"Has anyone seen a bleached blonde midget with an addiction to coffee and squeals like a girl when upset?" Ron barely managed to contain his laughter as Harry nudged him to be quiet while he lied smoothly.
"Nope, not since he left an hour ago."
Snape picked up. "Why did you want to see him?"
"Well, Sev," Ron double-took on the first name basis between these two strangers (in Ron's eyes). "It appears that-" But he was cut off as Andrea entered with Allie, their arms linked and they were both marching in step.
"Forget why we need him."
"Yeah. He's under Harry's legs." Andrea gestured to where Harry was sitting.
"How did you know that?" Hermione asked in surprise.
"Like I said, eyes everywhere." She rolled her eyes and both girls snickered as Randolph pulled Draco out and swung him over his shoulders. "See, little cousin, you can't hide from-Oh!" Her sentence finished with a moan as her legs gave her, pulling Allie down with her.
"Andy? Are you okay?" Her sister asked gently. She just closed her eyes in reply and continued resting on the floor, clutching her head. Her twin sister grabbed her hand and both sat on the ground for a moment.
Harry watched in amazement as Randolph gently dropped Draco and grabbed her other hand and began sitting with his two siblings. It was then that Harry felt a buzz of noise swell up in his head like it had last night.
"Oh, no. Not now!" Harry thought as he tried to push out his telepath abilities that were phasing in again. "Bullocks." Was his last thought before he got sucked into someone's mind. He closed his eyes and when he opened them, he was standing in front of a cottage with three other people who were looking through the window.
Getting a closer look, only one was, Andrea, as Allie and Randolph had their eyes closed as if they were sleeping. Harry glanced at the window and his eyes widened as he watched an elderly wizard get hit with the Killing Curse before crumpling on the floor with two other bodies.
"Oh my God." He whispered but that slight noise attracted Andrea's attention.
"Harry? What are you doing here?" She asked in confusion.
*******
Okay, as for what to do about Sirius, I'm thinking of keeping him alive. I didn't like that he died and if Harry can be with Draco, then gosh darn it, Sirius can still be alive. So basically for every event in OoTP that I didn't like, I will put someone else in his or her place. Like Percy. He's one of my favorites but I just wanted to smack him. Oh well, that's all. Keep reading and reviewing and sorry this was so late but me and my beta were having some conflicts about my story because somehow half of the chapter disappeared, right in the middle and it took us days to figure out why they started and ended in the same place but were completely different lengths.
It's a tie for SS/RL and SB/RL
And Ari/Sirius have two.
So it looks like, in order to make the most people happy, I will have the pairings for SS/RL and Sirius/Ari. If you don't like these, then you should be voting to change it! If you do like the pairings, review anyway because it will make me happy!
Hermione waited in front of the fireplace fore several minutes before Oliver and Percy floo-ed in one after the other. Three guesses what they were doing, a nasty little voice in Hermione's head said, and the first two don't count.
Well, said the sweeter voice in her mind, why would they do it in public?
When no answer came, she felt a slight victory in her mind war.
"Hermione, have you been waiting the whole time?" Percy asked in surprise. Hermione eyes him strangely, thinking little time had passed. She glanced at her watch and noticed they had been gone for nearly twenty minutes. Oh.
"Yeah, but it didn't seem like that long." They all headed up the stairs with Hermione leading the way this time. She smiled and pretended she didn't notice when they began holding hands when there was no one around. When they reached the crowded hallway, the two separated. Hermione found the replacement doctor walking around and quickly inquired how Harry was. After learning he was still asleep, the three of them left to go to the waiting room.
"Oliver!" The twins shouted in surprise as they saw their ex-Quidditch captain walk into the room. She saw Snape, who must have gotten back already, curl his lip in disgust of being surrounded by yet another Gryffindor.
"What are you doing here?" Fred asked.
"I was just walking around Diagon Alley and ran into these two." Oliver said with a smile.
"So, Oliver, dear." Mrs. Weasley started but was interrupted by a scream from down the hallway.
"Son of a bitch!" Hermione saw a girl who looked like Allie but was dressed differently storm down the hallway with her wand held out and a determined look on her face.
"Now, Andy." Randolph started.
"I also ran into those two as well." Oliver mumbled.
"I am just so pissed at that bastard. Just wait till I get my hands on him."
Allie came onto the scene with an air of apathy. "What would you do if you did?" She drawled.
"I'd rip off his dick and shove it so far up his ass that he would be fucking himself and wouldn't have to use someone else! Which is exactly what I'm going to do if Randolph would kindly pull off the restraint charm."
"No way. You're just going to get yourself killed." Her brother said with a shake of his head.
Andrea turned to look at him sadly. "She was twelve years old, Randolph. Twelve. She felt only pain and hatred as he made her bleed and then he killed her." Her voice was calm and as cold of ice. "I'm going to make sure he doesn't do it again as long as I live."
"Which won't be very long if you go now." He pulled his sister close and embraced her. "You can do so much good with your life but this isn't something you're supposed to do; I can feel it in my bones." Andrea was about to burst into tears and she bit her lip hard enough to draw blood.
"Andrea, I've never seen you like this. What's gotten into you?" Allie said, grabbing her twin's hand and lacing it with her own.
"I just want it to stop." She said so quietly that only her siblings and Hermione who was sitting close enough could hear her. "Please, make it stop." She finally broke down and slumped to the floor with her brother and sister surrounding her. "I don't want to see anymore. I don't want it." She pleaded and Randolph pulled her up and carried her back into her room. Allie stooped low and grabbed her sister's wand before following the sobs down the hallway.
"What was that?" Sirius asked.
Albus looked grave for a second before answering. "Some gifts are not always beneficial to the receiver and that is an example of a most taxing gift." They all sat in silence for a moment before the twins turned back to Oliver in an attempt to liven the atmosphere.
"So, Oliver, congratulations on being put in the game last week." George said from his chess game with Ron. Hermione could tell which twin it was because Fred couldn't play chess to save his life.
"Thanks George." Oliver beamed. He obviously could tell the twins apart as well.
"I didn't know you were put in the game." Percy whispered, looking a little hurt. Oliver shot him a concerned look before being distracted by Charlie.
"It was amazing. You must have blocked like 40 shots in less than an hour and a half!" Charlie said.
Percy excused himself and walked down the corridor. Oliver made like he was going to go after him but Hermione pushed him down in his seat and went after Percy.
She found him sitting on a hospital gurney swinging his legs like a lost child. "Are you all right, Percy?" He looked up, startled.
"Oh, Hermione." He sighed.
"Call me Herm. Your brothers do." He gave her a sad smile.
"Okay. You may call me Perce if you'd like. My brothers do." She smiled at the intended mocking of her last sentence.
"So does your lover." She smiled as his eyes widened almost comically. His mouth began opening and closing as he looked for the right words. "I saw you guys making out behind a bookcase." Hermione giggled as Percy blushed. "Is it getting hard between you guys?"
Percy nodded sadly. "It was so much easier at school." Now Hermione sputtered.
"At school? How long have you guys been together?"
"Three and a half years."
"What about Penelope?"
He sighed and leaned against the wall that the gurney was against. "We dated for a couple months. I think I was trying to convince myself that I wasn't gay and that I didn't find him attractive and that it really was just a coincidence that I happened to take showers the same time that he did." Hermione laughed. "I guess I was just trying to figure a few things out.
"Did you?" Hermione prodded.
"It was kind of hard with exams coming up, school work, prefect duties and then balancing a girlfriend and my growing attraction to my dorm mate and best friend."
"What happened?" This story was better than those sleazy paperbacks with the half naked men and scantily clad women on the cover that her dorm mates kept hidden under their beds.
"Well, Oliver knew he was gay before I did and was always more comfortable with it. I think he picked up on my desire for him because one night when I was working late in the library, he came in from Quidditch practice, grabbed my hand and threw me into the mechanics division over in the muggle section. He pushed me against a wall and kissed me. More like molested me." Hermione laughed again and Percy smiled at her.
"I'm guessing you allowed yourself to be molested?" She added slyly.
"Until the early hours of the morning." They both laughed at this. "Anyway, I finally got back to my dorm with Oliver and fell asleep. Luckily it was Saturday so I still had a day before I had to face everyone. So I locked myself up in the Prefects lounge until Penelope found me and asked me what I was doing. I told her my dilemma about my sexuality. So she kissed me and I felt nothing. No sparks or passion like I did with Oliver. With her it felt wrong, awkward. With him, we just fit. So we broke up."
"But you and Penelope were still dating in seventh year." Hermione pointed out.
"True, but it was just a front. Penelope is one of my best friends now and also is my relationship counselor, which is why I was writing so many letters to her that summer."
"What about now?" His smile began to fade and he looked worried.
"It isn't always easy for us; he's gone at Quidditch practice and I work long hours at my job. It also doesn't help that I haven't told my parents about us."
This is what had confused Hermione before. "Why not?"
Percy paused for a moment. "I don't know what to tell them. He was on the Quidditch team with my brothers and Harry, Ron used to speak to him every Saturday about game tactics. Not to mention the fact that Oliver's parents and my father work at the Ministry together and our mothers are both in some garden club. Ginny had a crush on him, for goodness sakes!" He ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "I have imagined it a hundred times, what it would be like. 'Hey everybody. Oliver and I.yes George, I do mean your ex-Quidditch captain.I'm sure he's fine Fred.. No Ron, I don't believe he knows the Cannons. Anyway, what I'm trying to tell you is that.Mom, I'm sure the lavender she's growing is turning out well.Oliver and I are.Dad, you can talk to his parents in the morning.yes, I understand that you are working on something very important with them.Hey.Everybody.. Shut up!' Then there will be silence throughout the whole house and I will be so upset that I'll yell 'I'm fucking Oliver!' and then I'll realize what I've said and run to my room. Chaos will break out and they'll all try to break into my room. Fred and George will slap me on the back in congratulations, Mum will wonder what I mean exactly and father will owl in sick because he is too embarrassed to face the Woods at work." When he finished, he looked to Hermione who was laughing so hard that she nearly fell off the gurney.
"Oh my. I can only imagine. Let me be there when this happens." She said as she calmed down. "But why did you get upset it there?" She said, pointing to the waiting room.
"I don't know. I guess I'm just frustrated that he won't tell me things about his job. Like I said, we only spend a few days together and that's usually when Oliver likes to talk about the exciting stuff, face to face, but then when he's here, we don't end up talking so nothing gets said. Plus it's the fact that I can't spend time with him now. I've waited two months to see him in person for more than just a few hours and now he's in there. With my parents." Percy sighed again before watching Hermione jump to her feet.
"I think we should go back. I'm sure Oliver has been panicking since you ran off. He wanted to come here but I thought it would be better if I came." Percy gave an affirmative nod. "But just a word of advice: tell your parents. They'll understand and it will help your relationship with Oliver."
"You're right. I'm just being childish. Let's go and pray I don't blurt something crude out in front of my mother." They walked back and saw everyone still sitting where they were before. As Hermione predicted, Oliver was tense and throwing surreptitious glances in the direction that Percy had gone. When he caught sight of the redhead, he gave an unsure smile and was rewarded with a more confident one. Percy squeezed into the seat next to Oliver and secretly stealthily held his hand between their bodies.
"Geez, Perce, what was that all about?" Fred asked, startling Oliver and Percy from their brief staring contest.
"Oh." He blushed slightly and stumbled over his next words in an attempt to make up a lie. "I-I thought I had forgotten something." His mother raised an eyebrow at the flimsy attempt.
"Yes." Hermione said, not taking her eyes off Percy. "He gave me something to watch and I forgot I had it."
"Which is why you went after him." Oliver said confidently.
"You're so smart to figure that out, Oliver." Ginny said dreamily, earning twin eye rolls from Fred and George, a blush by Oliver and two carefully concealed giggles from Percy and Hermione.
***********
Draco watched as the siblings dragged their sister back to her bed and force-fed her a sleeping draught. He hadn't remembered exactly why she had gotten up and stormed off but he could guess the reason and unfortunately for her, it was a common occurrence. The goblet that Andrea had left was still steaming on his tray and Draco quickly threw it back, grimacing at the taste before laying down for a dreamless rest.
When he awoke the next day in the afternoon, he noticed that Andrea had left already. Rather than try and find her, Draco decided to head back to his room and shower. He crept past everyone in the waiting room who were, thankfully, asleep. Once in his room he showered and prepared to change clothes except that he realized that he had none here. Sighing, he gathered his towel and stalked out of the room in an attempt to find some clean pajamas from the hospital. In the midst of his stalking, he nearly missed his trunk and practically toppled over it in an ungraceful sprawl.
He let out a soft hiss as he rubbed his palms that had saved him from fall and smiled at the thought of one of the siblings or Snape retrieving his trunk. Then he smiled wider for actually having clothes.
It seemed that the siblings were always taking care of him, and Draco admitted that he was glad they were. Like Andrea had said in the waiting room to Harry.
His heart rate sped up a little at the name but surmised that it was because he called his enemy by his first name. Draco had to admit that that slip-up was occurring more and more frequently and he didn't particularly seem too keen to fix it. Ignoring that thought, he returned his mind to the siblings who had nearly adopted him.
Because he retained memory from an early age, Draco could recall the lonely years when his parents barely allowed him to have contact with anyone other than them, the elves or the ghosts. However, talking to the elves was rare and at four years old, the ghosts scared him, especially One-Hand Carson, a petty thief who had been caught at the Manor and then had his hand cut off and was strangled on the front lawn. That specific spirit roamed around the halls brandishing a bloodied wrist and hollering at all of the inhabitants. At least he had until Lucius Malfoy caught the ghost mercilessly spooking his hysteric four-year-old son. Since then, the deceased thief was forced to prey on unsuspecting villagers who approached the mansion's walls.
Draco inwardly smiled as he pulled on a pair of blue jeans. His father was always doing things like that for him. Or he had until the year before Hogwarts. That year the young Malfoy heir was taught how to act in a cold detached manner, for in the future, his father had said, it was better to have people follow you in fear than in faith. Faith only stretched so far and most wizards would do most anything to live if that privilege of life was threatened. He remembered when he was seven and more than anything, he wanted to have a friend to play with, not the tutors who came almost everyday.
Father had been firm about friends, Draco mused while drying his hair. That day almost eight years ago popped up in his mind. A younger Draco had been sitting on the floor mimicking his father writing out important documents. Lucius had smiled at his son fondly but dropped that sign of amusement when Draco asked if he could have someone over to play with.
'No, my young dragon, for friends are only enemies who have not yet turned on you.'
And that was it. It was a wonder how he was allowed to keep his supposed 'cousins' around with that attitude. Now that he had the chance to think about it, his father always was a suspicious man, himself in general and of other people. Now his mother.
Draco fingered his neck gingerly and proceeded to pull on a gray sweater. Narcissa Malfoy was always composed. Never surprised or frightened on the outside. She made a perfect wife: good breeding, attractive, mild mannered and independently wealthy. Earlier this summer he remembered his mother was eating lunch with him when Voldemort strolled in waving his wand and talking about some killing in the newspaper. The Dark Lord then grabbed a roll that was sitting on her plate and took a bite while continuing to walk around the table. And there his mother was, completely unfazed. She simply looked up and tsked at the guest.
'Really, Tom, use a plate.'
Use a plate! His mother had just scolded one of the most powerful wizards of their time and Voldemort even had the decency to look abashed. Never had Draco felt so much respect for his mother for he doubted whether even his father could get away with reprimanding him and calling him by his first name. Then again, Voldemort always liked his mother.
'Thought of her as a pet, more like it.' Draco thought bitterly, shuddering in remembrance of the event that landed him here, where Voldemort was sitting in his parlor chair stroking his mother's head that had a vacant look in her eyes and was mewling like a docile kitten. A kitten that had claws. The blonde boy sighed and brushed his teeth using a spell; it wasn't like the ministry could detect it here where there was so much magic floating around.
He glanced at his reflection, glad for once that this mirror didn't talk. He had definitely lost weight, making his figure even slimmer but the lack of sun seemed not to affect him, as he was pale all year round. His hair hung loosely to his chin, un-gelled because of the absence of the substance in his trunk, which was probably Andrea or Allie's doing seeing how they hated the slicked-back look. He scanned the neck of his sweater and was relieved to find that the high neck hid the incision that was the reason he was in St. Mungo's.
The Slytherin strode out of the bathroom and pulled on a pair of dragon hide boots before grabbing a bag of money and stepping out into the hallway. He waved cheekily to the nurses who swooned slightly as he added a bit of veela force to it. Briefly he thought that using that charm wasn't such a good idea in a hospital but he was on a mission to find coffee and their would be no holds barred until he found the beverage.
He found a coffee machine in the far corner of the waiting room, of course at that time he had no idea where he was or who else was in the room.
"Hallelujah!" He cried as he stepped up to the machine and hugged it tightly. "How have I survived without you machine of miracles, brewer of brown beverages, carrier of caffeine.?" He then proceeded to place his knuts in the change slot and receive his coffee.
"Machine of Miracles, Malfoy?" Said a familiar voice from the doorway. Draco turned around and spotted Harry Potter leaning against the doorframe with a slight smirk on his face. The Slytherin just managed to contain his shock look before retorting.
"Working on your alliteration, Potter?"
"No, it seemed like you were, though." Draco flushed slightly and glared at Harry who just laughed.
"I really needed the coffee." He sniffed indignantly.
"Its just coffee." Harry scoffed and secretly smiled when Draco's eyes widened.
"Just coffee? Sacrilege Potter. Half the world needs this to survive."
"That's right, what would we do without the, in Draco's case, addictive drug, that stunts people's growth. Which is also in Draco's case." Both boys turned back towards the doorway where Andrea stood smiling at their interaction.
Draco's eyes narrowed. "What are you implying?" Andrea went up to Draco and stood almost flush against him and everyone could see that the top of the blonde's head only reached eye level with her. At Harry's laugh, he shot them both dirty looks. "Oh bugger off, Andrea. You're at least a year older." He then turned to the side, preparing to leave, when he noticed a whole waiting room of people staring at him. Draco then used some colorful language that made Harry raise an eyebrow.
"Did not know that was actually possible." Harry murmured to the hospital aid that giggled at Draco's language.
"Mr. Potter and Mr. Malfoy." Dumbledore said happily. "I'm relieved to find you both up and in good humor."
"Yes, we were deeply worried." Snape said, though it was directed more to Draco than to Harry.
"Harry!" Harry turned to face Ron and Hermione who were both running to greet him. "Are you okay? It's good to see you lucid again!" Ron said as he thumped him on the back.
"Lucid?" He looked around at his family and friends and noticed them all smiling. "What did I do?" Andrea burst out laughing and Ron inched away from her, not remembering that she was the good twin.
"Why are you laughing? You weren't there." Hermione frowned at the girl. She couldn't explain it, but there was something about this girl that was off. Her outburst last night proved it, though oddly enough, she seemed to have recovered.
She straightened up and grinned at the female Gryffindor. "I have eyes all over this place. Believe me, I know what happened." With that, she turned to Draco who had been surveying the scene with interest. "And you, Drake, what are you doing up?"
"Relax. I'm fine and not in danger of dying." He glared at her and prepared to sit down and nurse his cup of coffee while the others stood around and talked. He swallowed a large gulp but proceeded to spit it out when his throat felt like it was on fire. He slumped in the chair and gasped for breath and tried to assuage the pain in his throat.
"Fool." Andrea muttered with distaste and she grabbed a potion from a belt that she wore around her waist. It must have been new because Harry didn't remember seeing it before. "Take this. Swirl it around in your mouth six times before swallowing." Draco did as told and closed his eyes in concentration. Andrea grabbed a syringe that was in a pouch on her belt and quickly filled it with a light green potion. On the Slytherin's six swirl he began to swallow when his cousin stabbed him in his upper arm with the needle. He barely managed to contain his potion in his mouth. "Ow! Bitch!" He nursed his arm and stormed off.
"It's your own fault." She shrugged at Harry. "What am I going to do with that boy...hmm...his bed does have those wonderful restraints. Bye Harry, dear!" She flounced off after Draco and Harry felt slight pity for him.
"That family is bizarre." Hermione stated.
"And slightly evil." Ron continued in a dazed look.
"They seem okay to me." Harry wanted to say but was cut off by two people talking rapidly coming from behind him. The Gryffindor pressed himself up against the wall and smiled slightly as the two people, Joe and his fiancée Caitlin, stopped and turned around once they noticed they passed Harry.
"Harry!" Joe cried and began to spoke animatedly. "We've got theories. Tons! I stayed up all night thinking and researching."
"I can vouch for that." Caitlin said in a dry voice.
"Gee, I can't contain my excitement. Let's go before I burst." Harry said sarcastically and gestured for the couple to lead the way. This was also a way to keep his powers under wraps from his family and friends. He didn't need a new variable complicating their lives.
"That's the spirit!" Joe enthused, ignoring his patient's tone. To Harry, Joe reminded him of Oliver Wood right before a game. He led Harry down the hallway and a third of the Gryffindor trio wave back to the other two thirds.
When they reached the end of the hall, Harry was almost pushed into the room. He had a helmet place on his head and Joe began a rapid one way dialogue with Harry about all the equipment. It seemed like it was a room of clairvoyance, established by witches and wizards with physic gifts. There were machines in all corners surrounded by stacks of tarot cards, crystal balls and other tools.
"Okay, this will gauge your telepathic level." 'This', as it turned out, was a three-pronged metal helmet with a prong on each side ending at his temples and one coming up in front stopping in the middle of his forehead. [Think X-Men the Movie.]
"Are you ready, Harry?" Caitlin asked quietly. At his nod, she pulled a lever and the couple stood back to watch it work. To the viewer, it seemed like the machine was shooting volts of purple energy over his head. To Harry, it felt like it was emptying his mind and clearing it of all the clutter. It was a singular sensation that resulted in no pain, something Harry was grateful for. When it ended, the energy bolts retracted and Harry opened his eyes having no idea how long he had been under the machine.
It wasn't brief because Joe had moved from in front of him to his side and was now going over parchments that were writing their own words. Caitlin gently eased him out of the chair he was in and removed the helmet before guiding them both over to the doctor.
"Look, Cait, it's amazing. He rates high and it's only been a day." He pushed the papers under her nose and began to check out Harry. "How are you feeling?"
"Fine. What does the test say?" Harry said as he tried to read the papers but only noticed weird symbols.
"Well, the scale was based on 1-12, in two divisions: the first and the second. So technically, there are 24 divisions in where could fall. A twelve ranks higher than one and the first division is stronger than the second. You rank." He skimmed over the papers again and pointed out what he was talking about. "Here. First division, level 7. Over time, your gifts will grow; you might end up ranking at a ten. I doubt you'd go much higher than that as there are only thirty-two others who rank higher than a ten who are alive today."
"How much do telepaths normally grow?" Harry said as he studied the papers Caitlin had passed to him.
"Varies." Caitlin picked up. "One witch once went from Second Division, level four to First Division, level three. However, most, especially those who rank high in the beginning, only go up about two or three levels." She fiddled around with the machine for a moment or two and Joe leaned back against the wall in deep thought.
After a moments pause, Harry broke the silence. "Now what?"
"Well, we could play guinea pig some more." Joe said devilishly and smiled at the look of fear on his patients face. "Or you could go back to your room and rest or talk to the people in the waiting room."
"I'm thinking the waiting room sounds good." He said as he pulled himself off the chair and headed to the door. "Are you guys coming?" Joe nodded and stretched out a hand for Caitlin who grabbed it and swung it as they walked out the door with Harry walking behind them.
'So, I'm a telepath.' Harry thought as he walked slowly behind them. It didn't seem like such a shock in the daytime, especially after having last night to process all of it. Last year had been rough, but it seemed that at the end of every year, he learned something new about himself, the enigma that was Harry Potter. He snorted to himself as he thought this for enigma was just another word for riddle and by blood that's what he was.
Now wasn't the time for humor, however. Self-depreciating jokes were always more amusing at night anyways. Now he had to figure out what to do. Harry supposed he could try and contact a higher-level telepath and try to receive training or advice from them. Or Dumbledore, maybe. The man did seem to have a knack for knowing things that were unsaid so it was quite possible that the Headmaster might have telepathic skills, though Harry doubted it.
All too soon, before he had though of a game plan, they were all back in the room. It seemed that he must have been standing there for a while because his doctor and his fiancée had moved across the room and were talking to Lupin. Harry snapped himself out of his thoughts and ran to sit by Hermione and Ron, sandwiching himself between the two.
"Hello my Gryffindor companions." Harry said lightly.
"Harry!" Hermione squealed as she hugged her friend, as did Ron, resulting in a large group hug.
"How sweet." Fred said.
"Where's Creevey when you need him?" George said while thumping Harry on the back and returning to their positions on the floor and their game of Exploding Snap.
"Hello Fred and George. How's the pranking business?" Harry asked with mirth dancing in his eyes.
"Brilliant!" George grinned.
Fred picked up, as one of them normally did when their twin spoke. "Some well-to-do invested in us."
"Whoever it was probably wasn't right in the head." Percy mumbled from his seat with Oliver.
"Too right. Or he's a sadist who wishes to see the whole world suffer at the hands of your brothers." Oliver replied flashing a grin at the twins who looked slightly put off.
"Ollie! Our tricks aren't harmful!" Fred cried.
"Your second year. Great Hall, think Snape." Oliver replied pointedly.
Both twins gave a mischievous smile. "That was a good year."
"Oliver! What are you doing here?" Harry said, pleasantly surprised. He then saw how close his ex-captain was sitting next to Percy and understood. "Oh. Right."
Percy looked flabbergasted. "How did you know?"
Mimicking Oliver, Harry replied. "My third year. After the Cup, think Quidditch shed." Percy flushed and Oliver merely looked amused.
"That was a good sh-" He trailed off suggestively and at his boyfriend's look added, "-ed." At the twins' odd look he continued. "What? I happen to like fine craftsmanship."
"Do you feel like we're missing something?" George said to Fred.
"I feel like it. Come on, Perce, spill." Charlie said, sitting down and joining the conversation.
Looking at Oliver nervously, he was met with blue eyes full of assurance. He took a deep breath and turned to face his three brothers. "Well, the truth is-"
Percy stopped when he saw Draco rush in from the opposite way he left about an hour earlier.
He scanned the room anxiously and found Harry's face before clambering over bodies and standing in front of the Trio. "Potter, hate to ask a favor, but could you please hide me for a bit?" Harry gave him a skeptical look.
"Why?" He asked, slightly unsure and heavily amused.
"I'll tell you in a moment." He looked around panicked before Harry began to believe him and moved his legs so the Slytherin could hide under the rows of chairs. Hermione looked surprised at his willingness to crawl under hospital furniture but didn't say a word. The next moment, Randolph walked in again, seemingly intent on searching for someone; most likely it was Draco.
"Has anyone seen a bleached blonde midget with an addiction to coffee and squeals like a girl when upset?" Ron barely managed to contain his laughter as Harry nudged him to be quiet while he lied smoothly.
"Nope, not since he left an hour ago."
Snape picked up. "Why did you want to see him?"
"Well, Sev," Ron double-took on the first name basis between these two strangers (in Ron's eyes). "It appears that-" But he was cut off as Andrea entered with Allie, their arms linked and they were both marching in step.
"Forget why we need him."
"Yeah. He's under Harry's legs." Andrea gestured to where Harry was sitting.
"How did you know that?" Hermione asked in surprise.
"Like I said, eyes everywhere." She rolled her eyes and both girls snickered as Randolph pulled Draco out and swung him over his shoulders. "See, little cousin, you can't hide from-Oh!" Her sentence finished with a moan as her legs gave her, pulling Allie down with her.
"Andy? Are you okay?" Her sister asked gently. She just closed her eyes in reply and continued resting on the floor, clutching her head. Her twin sister grabbed her hand and both sat on the ground for a moment.
Harry watched in amazement as Randolph gently dropped Draco and grabbed her other hand and began sitting with his two siblings. It was then that Harry felt a buzz of noise swell up in his head like it had last night.
"Oh, no. Not now!" Harry thought as he tried to push out his telepath abilities that were phasing in again. "Bullocks." Was his last thought before he got sucked into someone's mind. He closed his eyes and when he opened them, he was standing in front of a cottage with three other people who were looking through the window.
Getting a closer look, only one was, Andrea, as Allie and Randolph had their eyes closed as if they were sleeping. Harry glanced at the window and his eyes widened as he watched an elderly wizard get hit with the Killing Curse before crumpling on the floor with two other bodies.
"Oh my God." He whispered but that slight noise attracted Andrea's attention.
"Harry? What are you doing here?" She asked in confusion.
*******
Okay, as for what to do about Sirius, I'm thinking of keeping him alive. I didn't like that he died and if Harry can be with Draco, then gosh darn it, Sirius can still be alive. So basically for every event in OoTP that I didn't like, I will put someone else in his or her place. Like Percy. He's one of my favorites but I just wanted to smack him. Oh well, that's all. Keep reading and reviewing and sorry this was so late but me and my beta were having some conflicts about my story because somehow half of the chapter disappeared, right in the middle and it took us days to figure out why they started and ended in the same place but were completely different lengths.