Back To Hogwarts
"Oh, C'MON! Lemme me see it!"
Harry jerked back again as Ginny leapt at his shirt," Cut it out! I mean it."
Ginny giggled and was finally able to pounce him and pin him to his chair. Her hands hastily fumbled for his shirt and lifted it up
"Whats going on here!?"
Harry looked over seeing Ron and George, his old brother, standing in the doorway to the parlor. He blushed furiously and tried to reclaim his shirt back from Ginny. She squealed and pointed down at Harry's lower abdomen.
"A-HA! I see part of it!" She exclaimed, seemingly not noticing Ron's outraged face or George's snickering.
Harry made a last attempt at snatching his shirt back, baffled at how she managed to rip it off him so fast, and instead crossed his arms over his chest and shifted his weight.
" Now, I ask again, WHAT is going on here?" Ron shouted, the edges of his ears turning bright red
"Oh, hush up Ron, I was just trying to see Harry's ..what do you call it?
"Tattoo," Harry filled in.
"Oh! You got 1! Let me see it!" George said walking over.
Harry blushed harder pushing George's hands off from trying to yank down his pants to see it better," OIY! Cut it out!"
Ron walked over as well," A tattoo? When'd you get a tattoo??"
Harry kept jerking himself out of reach from the prodding Weasleys, getting quite flustered at the whole thing. He now wished he had never mentioned it to Ginny in the 1st place." I got it last month in Prague."
"You went all the way to Prague to get a tattoo?!" Ron said incredulously.
Harry rubbed his biceps furrowing his brow," Course not..We were there already hunting down a Death-Eater called Freud, and I had about 3 hours to do nothing and I passed a tattoo parlor..so..."
Harry gasped as the waist of his pants was suddenly jerked downwards. Ginny giggled.
But now the tattoo was apparent. There, on the left side of Harry's pelvis, was a medium-sized lion. Not just any kind of lion, this one was magnificent. The artist obviously didn't lack any skill, for the lion was grand and meticulously detailed, down to the very last curl of the lip as its mouth gaped in mid-roar. Its body was reared up, almost readying to sink its claws and fangs into its prey. A maroon banner was scrolled over his back and trickled down its sides, displaying a bright gold 'H'.
"Wow," Ron breathed
"Didn't that hurt?" George asked.
Harry shrugged giving into defeat as Ginny reached out to poke the lion," After being tortured and losing about a handful of people, a needle weaving ink into your skin seems almost wimpy."
Ron slapped Ginny's hand away from Harry's skin and rose an eyebrow at her.
Harry smiled with a blush and snatched his shirt back, pulling it on
"What are all of you staring at?" Mrs.Weasley asked as she walked into the kitchen.
"Harry's tattoo," Ginny said simply as she walked over to her mother and helped bring out all the plates.
A TATTOO?! " She exclaimed." HARRY POTTER! Come here at ONCE!"
Harry blinked and felt his legs trudging towards Mrs.Weasley, though his brain kept screaming, RUN! RUN YOU FOOL!.
"Up," She barked, nodding to his shirt as her hands planted themselves on her hips
Harry grimaced as he lifted his shirt and scooted down his trousers, showing her the bold and brave lion etched into his skin
Her eyes widened as she hissed," That better wash off in water."
Harry squirmed beneath her glare. Never before had he been on the receiving end of her looks, and now that he was, he wished to god the tattoo would disappear so he could step out from under her eyes.
"I don't know WHAT you were thinking, Harry! Those Muggle things never come off! You'll be stuck with that bloody lion FOREVER!"
For some reason, Harry felt himself grow taller and rather angry at her for being angry at HIM. "Well, GOOD! I LIKE my lion and I'm not regretting that I got it either!"
Mrs.Weasley's eyes grew as she stepped forward," How DARE your raise your voice at me! All that traveling has forced all the manners out of you!"
"Well..Well..Maybe I don't WANT manners..Maybe I don't want anything but to be left ALONE!" And with that, he stormed out and back up to Sirius' bedroom. There, he flung himself onto the bed and didn't rise well into supper time.
//--------
A soft knock came from the trap door before it slowly lifted and flaming red hair peeked from the crack," Harry?"
Harry lay with his face down in the pillow, sheets strewn all about.
Ginny crept in and quietly set down a plate of food on the nightstand. Hesitating, Ginny walked over and sat down besides him. Gently, she smoothed back his hair and shivered at how silky and thick it felt.
Harry shifted his head and looked up at her with red,swollen eyes. Her heart ached
"Harry...For whatever its worth, I LOVED your tattoo and Mum doesn't know what she's talking about"
Harry sighed and looked down as Ginny's hand laid upon his, "Its not just the tattoo, Gin...Its,well..Its EVERYTHING. I didn't realize just how hard it would be to come back..."
Harry's eyes stung as he finally succumbed to four months worth of exhaustion and pain. Ginny wrapped him in her arms and let him sob into her shoulder.
"Oh, GOD, Harry.. I.. I only wish I could help you..." She mumbled as she buried her face in his hair. Being this close to Harry would've been an absolute dream to her about 3 years back. It still was in some ways, though the whole experience of his warm skin, fresh scent and soft hair was tainted by his pain.
He choked down a few sobs and pulled himself away wiping his face. Reaching down into his bag, he produced a small red box and handed it to her.
Her eyes glowed.
"Harry..You..You didn't have to!" She breathed as she took it.
He shrugged with a very faint smile," Had to keep my promise ,didn't i?"
"Yes,but..Oh, Harry! I can't believe you ACTUALLY got me a present from each city you visited!" She exclaimed as she opened the box.
He smiled a little more," It gave me something else to think about OTHER than Death-Eaters and Voldemort."
Ginny beamed as she pulled out the most beautiful snow globe she had ever seen. It was of the Eiffel Tower, standing straight and proud amongst the teeny tiny buildings below it. She shook it and watched as a flurry of snow started.
"I bewitched it so each time you shake it, it plays a different kind of weather. I even added in fireworks cause I know how much you like them," Harry said hoarsely.
Ginny squealed and threw her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly," Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! This is the BEST gift ever!"
She pecked his cheek and ran down to show her new gift off to the family and anyone else who would notice.
Harry laid back down and heaved a great sigh. Atleast he could make other people happy, even if he himself was more miserable than he'd ever been in his life. Now more than ever, he ached for Cienna...Just one more kiss, thats all...Just one last kiss..
//------
"C'mon, 'arry! We're going to be late!"
Harry shuffled his books under his arms and tore off after Ron. It was their 1st day back at Hogwarts and everything that could've gone wrong, did. He lost track of his textbooks, forgot his quill, misplaced his wand and got every single sympathetic look of the entire student body. Not to mention he got lost on the way to every single class so far and actually ended up losing his schedule all together.
Now, Harry and Ron were in the middle of sprinting up to the astronomy tower, after having a seriously bad run-in with Peeves' most recent prank of pouring slime and slugs atop his victims.
Harry plucked a slug from in-between his cloak and tossed it aside.
"Yanno considering how horribly lost we got all those other times.. this one isn't that bad." Ron commented as they ran up the stairs.
"Yeah, and MAYBE Professor Sinistra won't give us detention like everyone else," Harry added, panting.
"Do you remember the look on Snape's face? It was almost hilarious if it hadn't been for the lecture he gave us afterwards." Ron laughed as they scurried up the last flight of stairs
Harry saved his breath for the final stretch of hallway and burst into the classroom. Blushing, they hurried to their seats and gracefully accepted their detentions.
//--------
Harry sunk down into a chair, glancing around the barren library. It had to be almost three in the morning by now and he wasn't even halfway done with all the cleaning he had been assigned by Professor McGonagal to do. As punishment for being late to HER class, he had to dust and put away all the books in the library.
Harry arched his back and rubbed his sore eyes. He wished anything he could do all this by magic, but no. He HAD to do it Muggle style.
"Ha...Muggle style...sounds like a sex position," Harry muttered to himself as he absent mindedly wiped the table within the area he could reach
His mind tended to wander into topics such as these more than they used to. It was almost unnerving how much he had changed and didn't even realize it. With a great sigh, Harry slumped back letting some of his hair shift over his eyes.
"Getting a head start, Potter?"
Harry jumped and jerked his head to see Draco Malfoy leaning against the end of the table. Harry's nerves dropped back down, along with his heart rate, as Draco made his way towards him.
"God, what're you doing sneaking up on a guy like that? You 'bout gave me a heart-attack!"
Draco smirked and perched himself atop the table besides Harry's hand. Crossing his arms, Draco peered down at the ruffled brunette," I just can't help myself sometimes."
Harry scowled at him and leaned back, not liking the closeness of his hand to Draco's thigh. He had a semi-vulgar mind, but not THAT vulgar." So, what do you want? And what're you doing out of bed so late anyway?"
Draco yawned and shrugged. Only now did Harry realize Draco was clad in only some black silk shorts, a matching shirt and a dark green robe. Damn rich boy.
" I couldn't sleep, so, I decided to go for a walk when I saw a light on in here, and here I am."
Harry nodded a little standing up. He snatched the duster, paper towels and the Windex, getting back to work," Nightmares still?"
Draco's silence told Harry all he needed to know. Frowning, Harry turned to see Draco's face even more pale than it usually was. His normally sleek and porcelain features were now plastered with wrinkles from his frown, and his cool grey eyes held a terror in them.
"Drake?"
Draco lifted his eyes to Harry's, the pain in them even more apparent. Harry blinked as tears started to well in those cold eyes.
"God,Harry..I..I never got a chance to..to.." Draco stuttered before breaking into sobs. He covered his face with his bony hands and only now Harry noticed just how thin the Slytherin had gotten.
"To what?" Harry urged, turning from his work.
Draco choked and looked up at him miserably," It was my Father who set you up...I..I knew it was Granger from the start, but I never had the guts to actually tell you! God, Harry! I'm SO sorry!"
Harry felt as if he had gotten sucker punched,"W-what?"
"He told me last summer what Voldemort was planning and at 1st, I went along with it..Didn't say anything...But just because it didn't involve me and I could simply forget about it...But then my Mum died and you turned out to be SUCH a good guy and..And....My conscious ate away at me...I didn't mean to lie to you, Harry. HONESTLY, I didn't...I was just SO scared of what you'd think of me...Its just been an awfully long time since I've had REAL friends who truly cared for me and not whats in my pocket."
Harry blinked at the out pour. Never before had Draco revealed so much in so little time. So, he lied to him. Fine, he could accept that...He hoped
"I can only hope you find it in your heart to forgive me someday..." Draco mumbled before pushing himself from the table and walking off into the shadows.
Harry watched after him, still dizzy from his speech. He looked around, almost confused as what to do next.
"Forgive him."
Harry sighed ,closing his eyes," I know I should but..."
"But nothing...Everyone deserves a 2nd chance."
"He lied to me though..And about Hermonie..I could've saved her had I known."
"Could you have?"
"COURSE I could've...I think.."
"Stop worrying about your past. Whats done is done..Look to your future now...Its only what you make it."
Harry exhaled shakily, then gasped. He wasn't talking to himself just now. He jerked his head up and searched around him frantically. No...No, I DID hear someone..I'm not alone..
" 'ello? 'ELLO? Anybody there?"
Harry frowned as he saw nothing but huge books and towering bookshelves. An uncomfortable silence followed as he paused a few minutes longer just to make sure. With a shake of his head and a weak laugh, Harry went back to work.
"You've got to get a grip, Potter... You've gotten so paranoid that now you think the books are talking to you."
"Harry finished up his detention without further incident. Unbeknownst to him, a wispy figure disappeared behind a bookcase
"Oh, C'MON! Lemme me see it!"
Harry jerked back again as Ginny leapt at his shirt," Cut it out! I mean it."
Ginny giggled and was finally able to pounce him and pin him to his chair. Her hands hastily fumbled for his shirt and lifted it up
"Whats going on here!?"
Harry looked over seeing Ron and George, his old brother, standing in the doorway to the parlor. He blushed furiously and tried to reclaim his shirt back from Ginny. She squealed and pointed down at Harry's lower abdomen.
"A-HA! I see part of it!" She exclaimed, seemingly not noticing Ron's outraged face or George's snickering.
Harry made a last attempt at snatching his shirt back, baffled at how she managed to rip it off him so fast, and instead crossed his arms over his chest and shifted his weight.
" Now, I ask again, WHAT is going on here?" Ron shouted, the edges of his ears turning bright red
"Oh, hush up Ron, I was just trying to see Harry's ..what do you call it?
"Tattoo," Harry filled in.
"Oh! You got 1! Let me see it!" George said walking over.
Harry blushed harder pushing George's hands off from trying to yank down his pants to see it better," OIY! Cut it out!"
Ron walked over as well," A tattoo? When'd you get a tattoo??"
Harry kept jerking himself out of reach from the prodding Weasleys, getting quite flustered at the whole thing. He now wished he had never mentioned it to Ginny in the 1st place." I got it last month in Prague."
"You went all the way to Prague to get a tattoo?!" Ron said incredulously.
Harry rubbed his biceps furrowing his brow," Course not..We were there already hunting down a Death-Eater called Freud, and I had about 3 hours to do nothing and I passed a tattoo parlor..so..."
Harry gasped as the waist of his pants was suddenly jerked downwards. Ginny giggled.
But now the tattoo was apparent. There, on the left side of Harry's pelvis, was a medium-sized lion. Not just any kind of lion, this one was magnificent. The artist obviously didn't lack any skill, for the lion was grand and meticulously detailed, down to the very last curl of the lip as its mouth gaped in mid-roar. Its body was reared up, almost readying to sink its claws and fangs into its prey. A maroon banner was scrolled over his back and trickled down its sides, displaying a bright gold 'H'.
"Wow," Ron breathed
"Didn't that hurt?" George asked.
Harry shrugged giving into defeat as Ginny reached out to poke the lion," After being tortured and losing about a handful of people, a needle weaving ink into your skin seems almost wimpy."
Ron slapped Ginny's hand away from Harry's skin and rose an eyebrow at her.
Harry smiled with a blush and snatched his shirt back, pulling it on
"What are all of you staring at?" Mrs.Weasley asked as she walked into the kitchen.
"Harry's tattoo," Ginny said simply as she walked over to her mother and helped bring out all the plates.
A TATTOO?! " She exclaimed." HARRY POTTER! Come here at ONCE!"
Harry blinked and felt his legs trudging towards Mrs.Weasley, though his brain kept screaming, RUN! RUN YOU FOOL!.
"Up," She barked, nodding to his shirt as her hands planted themselves on her hips
Harry grimaced as he lifted his shirt and scooted down his trousers, showing her the bold and brave lion etched into his skin
Her eyes widened as she hissed," That better wash off in water."
Harry squirmed beneath her glare. Never before had he been on the receiving end of her looks, and now that he was, he wished to god the tattoo would disappear so he could step out from under her eyes.
"I don't know WHAT you were thinking, Harry! Those Muggle things never come off! You'll be stuck with that bloody lion FOREVER!"
For some reason, Harry felt himself grow taller and rather angry at her for being angry at HIM. "Well, GOOD! I LIKE my lion and I'm not regretting that I got it either!"
Mrs.Weasley's eyes grew as she stepped forward," How DARE your raise your voice at me! All that traveling has forced all the manners out of you!"
"Well..Well..Maybe I don't WANT manners..Maybe I don't want anything but to be left ALONE!" And with that, he stormed out and back up to Sirius' bedroom. There, he flung himself onto the bed and didn't rise well into supper time.
//--------
A soft knock came from the trap door before it slowly lifted and flaming red hair peeked from the crack," Harry?"
Harry lay with his face down in the pillow, sheets strewn all about.
Ginny crept in and quietly set down a plate of food on the nightstand. Hesitating, Ginny walked over and sat down besides him. Gently, she smoothed back his hair and shivered at how silky and thick it felt.
Harry shifted his head and looked up at her with red,swollen eyes. Her heart ached
"Harry...For whatever its worth, I LOVED your tattoo and Mum doesn't know what she's talking about"
Harry sighed and looked down as Ginny's hand laid upon his, "Its not just the tattoo, Gin...Its,well..Its EVERYTHING. I didn't realize just how hard it would be to come back..."
Harry's eyes stung as he finally succumbed to four months worth of exhaustion and pain. Ginny wrapped him in her arms and let him sob into her shoulder.
"Oh, GOD, Harry.. I.. I only wish I could help you..." She mumbled as she buried her face in his hair. Being this close to Harry would've been an absolute dream to her about 3 years back. It still was in some ways, though the whole experience of his warm skin, fresh scent and soft hair was tainted by his pain.
He choked down a few sobs and pulled himself away wiping his face. Reaching down into his bag, he produced a small red box and handed it to her.
Her eyes glowed.
"Harry..You..You didn't have to!" She breathed as she took it.
He shrugged with a very faint smile," Had to keep my promise ,didn't i?"
"Yes,but..Oh, Harry! I can't believe you ACTUALLY got me a present from each city you visited!" She exclaimed as she opened the box.
He smiled a little more," It gave me something else to think about OTHER than Death-Eaters and Voldemort."
Ginny beamed as she pulled out the most beautiful snow globe she had ever seen. It was of the Eiffel Tower, standing straight and proud amongst the teeny tiny buildings below it. She shook it and watched as a flurry of snow started.
"I bewitched it so each time you shake it, it plays a different kind of weather. I even added in fireworks cause I know how much you like them," Harry said hoarsely.
Ginny squealed and threw her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly," Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! This is the BEST gift ever!"
She pecked his cheek and ran down to show her new gift off to the family and anyone else who would notice.
Harry laid back down and heaved a great sigh. Atleast he could make other people happy, even if he himself was more miserable than he'd ever been in his life. Now more than ever, he ached for Cienna...Just one more kiss, thats all...Just one last kiss..
//------
"C'mon, 'arry! We're going to be late!"
Harry shuffled his books under his arms and tore off after Ron. It was their 1st day back at Hogwarts and everything that could've gone wrong, did. He lost track of his textbooks, forgot his quill, misplaced his wand and got every single sympathetic look of the entire student body. Not to mention he got lost on the way to every single class so far and actually ended up losing his schedule all together.
Now, Harry and Ron were in the middle of sprinting up to the astronomy tower, after having a seriously bad run-in with Peeves' most recent prank of pouring slime and slugs atop his victims.
Harry plucked a slug from in-between his cloak and tossed it aside.
"Yanno considering how horribly lost we got all those other times.. this one isn't that bad." Ron commented as they ran up the stairs.
"Yeah, and MAYBE Professor Sinistra won't give us detention like everyone else," Harry added, panting.
"Do you remember the look on Snape's face? It was almost hilarious if it hadn't been for the lecture he gave us afterwards." Ron laughed as they scurried up the last flight of stairs
Harry saved his breath for the final stretch of hallway and burst into the classroom. Blushing, they hurried to their seats and gracefully accepted their detentions.
//--------
Harry sunk down into a chair, glancing around the barren library. It had to be almost three in the morning by now and he wasn't even halfway done with all the cleaning he had been assigned by Professor McGonagal to do. As punishment for being late to HER class, he had to dust and put away all the books in the library.
Harry arched his back and rubbed his sore eyes. He wished anything he could do all this by magic, but no. He HAD to do it Muggle style.
"Ha...Muggle style...sounds like a sex position," Harry muttered to himself as he absent mindedly wiped the table within the area he could reach
His mind tended to wander into topics such as these more than they used to. It was almost unnerving how much he had changed and didn't even realize it. With a great sigh, Harry slumped back letting some of his hair shift over his eyes.
"Getting a head start, Potter?"
Harry jumped and jerked his head to see Draco Malfoy leaning against the end of the table. Harry's nerves dropped back down, along with his heart rate, as Draco made his way towards him.
"God, what're you doing sneaking up on a guy like that? You 'bout gave me a heart-attack!"
Draco smirked and perched himself atop the table besides Harry's hand. Crossing his arms, Draco peered down at the ruffled brunette," I just can't help myself sometimes."
Harry scowled at him and leaned back, not liking the closeness of his hand to Draco's thigh. He had a semi-vulgar mind, but not THAT vulgar." So, what do you want? And what're you doing out of bed so late anyway?"
Draco yawned and shrugged. Only now did Harry realize Draco was clad in only some black silk shorts, a matching shirt and a dark green robe. Damn rich boy.
" I couldn't sleep, so, I decided to go for a walk when I saw a light on in here, and here I am."
Harry nodded a little standing up. He snatched the duster, paper towels and the Windex, getting back to work," Nightmares still?"
Draco's silence told Harry all he needed to know. Frowning, Harry turned to see Draco's face even more pale than it usually was. His normally sleek and porcelain features were now plastered with wrinkles from his frown, and his cool grey eyes held a terror in them.
"Drake?"
Draco lifted his eyes to Harry's, the pain in them even more apparent. Harry blinked as tears started to well in those cold eyes.
"God,Harry..I..I never got a chance to..to.." Draco stuttered before breaking into sobs. He covered his face with his bony hands and only now Harry noticed just how thin the Slytherin had gotten.
"To what?" Harry urged, turning from his work.
Draco choked and looked up at him miserably," It was my Father who set you up...I..I knew it was Granger from the start, but I never had the guts to actually tell you! God, Harry! I'm SO sorry!"
Harry felt as if he had gotten sucker punched,"W-what?"
"He told me last summer what Voldemort was planning and at 1st, I went along with it..Didn't say anything...But just because it didn't involve me and I could simply forget about it...But then my Mum died and you turned out to be SUCH a good guy and..And....My conscious ate away at me...I didn't mean to lie to you, Harry. HONESTLY, I didn't...I was just SO scared of what you'd think of me...Its just been an awfully long time since I've had REAL friends who truly cared for me and not whats in my pocket."
Harry blinked at the out pour. Never before had Draco revealed so much in so little time. So, he lied to him. Fine, he could accept that...He hoped
"I can only hope you find it in your heart to forgive me someday..." Draco mumbled before pushing himself from the table and walking off into the shadows.
Harry watched after him, still dizzy from his speech. He looked around, almost confused as what to do next.
"Forgive him."
Harry sighed ,closing his eyes," I know I should but..."
"But nothing...Everyone deserves a 2nd chance."
"He lied to me though..And about Hermonie..I could've saved her had I known."
"Could you have?"
"COURSE I could've...I think.."
"Stop worrying about your past. Whats done is done..Look to your future now...Its only what you make it."
Harry exhaled shakily, then gasped. He wasn't talking to himself just now. He jerked his head up and searched around him frantically. No...No, I DID hear someone..I'm not alone..
" 'ello? 'ELLO? Anybody there?"
Harry frowned as he saw nothing but huge books and towering bookshelves. An uncomfortable silence followed as he paused a few minutes longer just to make sure. With a shake of his head and a weak laugh, Harry went back to work.
"You've got to get a grip, Potter... You've gotten so paranoid that now you think the books are talking to you."
"Harry finished up his detention without further incident. Unbeknownst to him, a wispy figure disappeared behind a bookcase