Special Thanks: Andrea, a.k.a. HeartoftheDragon, you're feedback is always awesome. Thanks a million times over for putting up with me!
A.N.- Okay, I figured enough people asked about Tori that'd I'd explain a bit here. First of all, Tori and Draco are JUST FRIENDS! Very close friends, but just friends. She's a year older than Harry and Draco, meaning she just graduated while they're about to go into seventh year. More of her history is revealed later in the story… next chapter, I think. Chapter 5Harry awoke slowly, blinking his tired eyes at the bright sunlight streaming through the window. He reveled in the feeling of the warm arms wrapped around him and the body against his. Suddenly, doing what she did best, Tori shattered the peace. "Wakey, wakey, lazy people! Laying-in-bed time is officially over," she chirped.
While Draco growled quietly behind him, Harry simply closed his eyes again and snuggled deeper into the other boy's arms. The arms tightened around him, and both boys were perfectly content to completely ignore Tori's chatter. The redhead, however, was not accepting that situation. She leaned over Draco and quietly whispered to him. He growled again but with less conviction. "Damn, you're right."
"Well, you don't have to sound so happy about it," she huffed playfully. "Just make sure you get your bums up, okay?" She dropped light kisses on both Harry's and Draco's foreheads then walked out of the room.
Draco lay still for a few more seconds then ran a hand softly up Harry's arm. "Harry? Are you awake?" The dark-haired boy made a non-committal noise in his throat but otherwise ignored the world. Draco smiled and gently poked Harry's side. "Come on, Harry. We need to get up. Tori made some big plans for today, and it's quite possible she'll become homicidal if we mess them up."
"Mmm… why big plans?" Harry asked, his voice laced with sleep.
Draco groaned, pulled his arms away, and sat up. "Sorry, no questions allowed. You'll have to get out of bed and see." Rolling over, Harry looked up the blond with a pleading expression. "Oh, don't look at me like that," Draco laughed. "If you get yourself up and dressed, you'll find out soon enough."
Eventually, both boys were out of bed and dressed for the day. Harry still wasn't talking much, but Draco didn't push that subject. It wasn't until they reached the kitchen that the spark that made Harry uniquely Harry really came to life. A shout of "Happy birthday, Harry!" from Tori and her parents lit up the emerald eyes.
Those same eyes took in the sight of the kitchen. Red and gold streamers hung from the ceiling; the Slytherins in Tori and Draco had obviously been forcefully shoved aside for the day. Presents were piled high on the table, right behind a large, chocolate-icinged cake with 'Happy 17th Harry!' scrawled across in obviously magicked lettering.
Harry stared at the scene incredulously, at a complete loss for words. He stood for so long, the four others in the room began to get worried. Then, he spoke. "You… you did all this for me?"
"Well of course we did, Harry," Tori replied, absolutely beaming. "You couldn't have actually thought we'd let this day go by unnoticed, did you?" Harry didn't say anything, but the look on his face showed that that was exactly what he'd been expecting.
"And this isn't the end of it, either," Draco chimed in before the situation could get any more tense. "The Weasleys and Granger will be here later for a party. Plus, hopefully, a surprise guest or two if everything works out the way it's supposed to."
"This council will now hear from Tristina and Rylan, our Realm and Border Watch."
The two mentioned walked to the center of the circle and faced the surrounding figures. Tristina was the first to speak. "The two Chosen are moving faster than we originally Saw, but that's certainly not a bad thing. On the other hand, their Dark Lord is also moving faster. He has made strong allies on both sides of the Border."
Which means we have traitors in our Realm," Rylan interjected. "Our Crosser is with the Chosen, so we need not worry about that. They'll be well taken care of. I believe, however, that we should designate another Crosser to infiltrate the Dark Lord's ranks. He certainly warrants keeping an eye on his every action."
Agitated whispers broke throughout the Council. Half the voices were all for the motion; a select few stayed neutral, but the rest were wondering if it was worth the risks. Tristina, well known for her general disagreement with Rylan's every idea and opinion, actually defended the plan. "I must agree with Rylan. While the Dark Lord is able to operate in our Realm, we must be able to watch him directly. We cannot accurately See him from this side of the Border."
Silence had settled while she was talking, and the Council Lord stared at the two Watchers for a long moment. "You two are Young, but you are strong. And you are correct that this Realm is in immediate danger while the Dark Lord has contacts in our Realm but we have none in his. Rylan and Tristina, you are now officially Crossers, in charge of being assimilated into these self-proclaimed Death Eaters and reporting to the Council as needed. Perhaps you could look in on our other Crosser while there."
The two Watchers-turned-Crossers nodded, half-bowed, and walked from the circle. Many things needed to be carefully prepared before they were ready for the journey into the Mortal Realm, and time was decidedly short. Tristina cast a sidelong glance at Rylan as they walked. "You do realize we'll have to fortify the Border once we Cross, right? That's never been attempted by two Sofye before."
"I know that, Tris. We've been together for so long, though, that we might as well be a single mind with two bodies. If anyone can do this, it's us." Rylan smiled confidently and slung an arm around her shoulders. Tristina simply scowled at Rylan's ever-present optimism while he laughed. "Don't worry, Tris. We'll be fine."
The Weasleys began arriving, some by Floo and others by apparating, around noon. Not a single redhead was missing from the groups. A few minutes later, Hermione Flooed in. During the greetings, Harry pushed down tears that had appeared with the thought of all the planning and effort that had gone into arranging the party. "You really didn't have to do all this for me."
Tori stared at him, glaring with frustration. "You say that almost as if you don't deserve it, but anyone else would." All action in the house stopped at the forceful tone in Tori's voice, and they all waited for Harry's response.
Harry, anxious under all the eyes, glared just as fiercely at Tori. "I never said that, and I don't understand what you're trying to accomplish by implying that's what I meant." Despite the anger heating the situation, Harry's demeanor remained cool and collected. His eyes were the only indication he was actually just as angry.
"Of course you didn't say that, Harry, but it always seems to be what you mean. Dio caro! Why can't you just accept that people want to do nice things for you?" At this point, Draco stepped forward in an effort to get between the two fighters. A warning glare from Harry, telling him to just stay out of it, immediately made him back off again.
"I accepted that a long time ago, but you weren't exactly around then. Stop trying to force all these psychological problems on me! While we're on the subject of acceptance, you might as well accept the fact that I'm not going to break. I'm not some carefully spun glass figurine that will shatter if touched just wrong. You should try remembering that before trying to 'help' me any more." Harry stalked out of the house, not caring where he was going as long as he got away.
The thirteen people left in the house could only stare at each other in shock at the outburst and rapid departure. Hermione was actually the first to break out of the stupor, physically shaking her head and glancing at the door Harry had just exited. "I'm going after him." With a somewhat softened glare at Tori, she dashed out of the house in an attempt to catch up to Harry. Draco stared after her, wishing he'd been the first to think of that.
Hermione had reacted quickly enough that Harry was hardly to the end of the street when she caught him. She said nothing, choosing instead to walk beside him wherever he was going. If he was going to talk at all, Harry would be the one to initiate it.
Finally, Harry dropped abruptly to the ground and waited for Hermione to get settled beside him before speaking. "Why do they do that? Why do they just assume that I have all these problems, that I need fixing in some way? I'm fine, 'Mione. Sure, I have nightmares sometimes, but I hardly even think about those. After they're over, that's it. They're over. I have learned how to cope with things just fine by myself, whether they believe that or not."
She drew him into a hug, and he rested his head on her shoulder. "We all just worry about you sometimes, Harry. You've been through things that no 16-wait, sorry, 17-year old should have to go through. Hell, if you hadn't sworn me to secrecy, I would have told someone about those bloody relatives of yours a long time ago."
Harry opened his mouth to protest, but Hermione continued before he had the opportunity. "I know you can handle things. I know you have a way of dealing that not only gets you through it but also makes you stronger. I don't what your secret is, exactly, but I'll let you do whatever it is you have to do. Some people just don't accept that as easily. The people in that house care about you, —Well, Malfoy's kind of hard to believe, but everyone else does. —and they just want to make sure you're okay."
"Then why, when they see that I'm fine, do they insist that I'm just hiding it? Is there some kind of feeling I give off that makes people think I'm putting on a happy act?" Instead of answering, Hermione just pulled Harry in tighter, reassuring him through actions that couldn't be put into words.
A.N.2- Hehe, is that what I think it is? Are we getting a plot?! *laughs* Anywayz, next chapter previews: We find out a bit more about Tori, and we have a first kiss! Interested? Then review!! *innocent smile*