Disclaimer: The one from the first chapter still stands for this chapter and every other chapter to come.
Author's Note:
First things first, this is a novel length story, as is there will be questions in these first few chapters that will not be answered until later on. There have been questions asked about powers and such, but I beg you to bear with me, they will eventually be answered and hopefully crosses fingers by the end of this story all questions would be seen to and all loose ends tied. Once in a while a question will come up that I had not thought of answering and then I will address it in a chapter or in Author's notes. Hence the reason why I thrive on your reviews, you point out things I would usually miss.
That being said, I have had an incredible run of bad luck when it comes to finding time. Uni exams are coming up and my future depends on it :-D I try not to write a bit and then come back and add on because then it doesn't flow right (like my last chapter shudders), and you get bits where it shouldn't, and then you have a temporary case of writers block....sigh. So right now I'm trying to get this 6th chapter out of the way, I've got a window of 2 hours in which to type it. Hope it does justice to your reviews.
On with the story.
Chapter Six
It was nearing two in the morning and all was still in Hogwarts (save for a few wandering ghosts and a rather nosy cat). On the fifth floor in the west wing of the castle, eyes opened with a start and Harry Potter sat up abruptly. Chest heaving with desperate intakes of air, and body drenched in perspiration he scanned the room wildly with his tearful green eyes.
Running his hands over his face, he pulled his knees up and buried his head in his hands. Trying to put a lid on his rampaging emotions he struggled to control his grief. Before long the tears had escaped and he was crying quietly. His mind flitted from one memory to another and it seemed that it didn't matter where he was in the universe; her death would always be with him.
Voldemort had sent him a message via their link, around this time in the morning, telling him to go down to the edges of Hogwarts to find his gift. He had panicked when he took out the marauders map, he had looked anxiously for her name, but he knew it was no use. He had run desperately towards the forest, in his fear he forgot all about the Invisibility cloak. He followed Tom's directions and found her. Dead. On the edges of the forest. Her body had been abused, raped and disfigured beyond recognition. She was covered in blood, clothes ripped and torn, her beautiful dark hair stained with a mixture of blood and semen. He had mourned her there, on the edge of the forest; let his grief overwhelm him for a few minutes before taking the most painful walk of his life towards the school.
They had been enemies long before they met, long before they were born or even conceived. Her parents were pledged to follow the dark, his to fight for the light. She had been born to follow in the footsteps of her pure-blooded mother. Marry well, they told her. Marry wealth, they said. Do not lower our standards, do not disgrace our name. She had followed the rules and her upbringing for fifteen years. Right up until she broke all the rules to save his life. No-one was there he had been in her mercy, she held his life under her wand. With one uttered word she could have ended it all and elevated herself to a higher hierarchy all in one go. But she had spared him, and later she became his ally with two whispered words.
Save Me
In the depths of his grief he could only damn himself for failing. Faintly in his subconscious he felt Hogwarts prod and pull out memories long buried, to comfort him.
"Thank you Harry....you shouldn't have...it's absolutely beautiful."
"Are you sure? Because if you don't like it...I can get you something else.."
"No...leave it...I love it.."
"I wish- I wish that we wouldn't have to sneak around like this you know? I wish I didn't have to love you in secret...you deserve be-"
"We've already been through this Harry....no-one can know. I wish it too, but it has to be. I refuse to lose you to save myself. There's no-one better then you, Harry...I couldn't feel this way for someone else, and I refuse to."
"Maybe one day....when this war is over? I'll come over and eat at your table.....I've always wondered what it would be like to sit across from Granger and Weasley...and then maybe you could return the favour and sit at my table...right next to Draco.."
"...I'd rather not, but if it means being with you then I'll bloody well suffer through it.."
"But it wouldn't be suffering anyway...having you beside me...I'd eat breakfast with a starving dragon..."
"Harry...I love you...I really do...this is the best birthday I've ever had. On my next one we could do something frivolous like...oh, I don't know...get pregnant?"
"(laugh)"
"I have to get back Harry...before any of the girls wake...and so do you. We can't have Gryffindor's golden boy be seen with a slytherin now can we? Your house would loose all reason for living and throw themselves out of your tower or something equally drastic like that.."
"That's why I love you, you know? You have a wicked sense of humour...I wish I could tell them...it would be nice to give you the honour of being the first slytherin to enter Gryffindor towers invited...might be a change from the cold dungeons..."
"...I'm sorry love...I know how much you wish Granger and Weasley could know...but...there's just too much at stake...I refuse to give that Megalomaniac leverage to hurt you...I'm sorry..."
"Stop it...you have nothing to feel sorry for...when it's all over we can tell them to our heart's content, by the weeks end they'll be sick of hearing it..."
"You have to go now, we've been here two hours already...I'll see you in the morning...I love you, remember that whatever I say in the morning doesn't mean a thing..."
"I love you too, and same for me...nothing I say mean's anything tomorrow morning."
Tortured mind calmed by memories long gone, Harry slowly drifted off to sleep, secured in an embrace of a woman long dead. It was a memory only he would know; they never got to tell anyone.
He was awoken from his dreamless sleep four hours later by a hard knock on the door.
"Harry?! Come on, open up the door would you? Let me in...I want to speak to you.." came the rather happy voice of one Hermione Granger.
Harry stumbled out of bed stubbing his toe as he went. Hopping and swearing all around the room, he grabbed his robe up off the dresser and hastily put it on before limping through to the living room and towards the door.
The brown-haired female's hands stilled in mid air as the door wrenched open and a scowling Harry, minus Glamour, looked at her in obvious irritation.
Rolling her eyes she pushed past him and waltzed into the room like she owned the place and then daintily sat herself down in an oversized chair, a rather old and tatty book in her lap.
Harry scowled again as he closed the door and limped back to throw himself in the sofa opposite her. He ignored her too bright smile and ignored her raised eyebrow and then tried hard to ignore her for the next five minutes.
He lasted two minutes before he could no longer ignore the irritating sound of her fingers tapping on the book and snapped out, "What do you want Granger?!"
Said female rolled her eyes again before replying. "Really Harry, one would think you weren't a morning person."
She ignored his glare and carried on speaking, "the reason why I'm here is because I wanted to know how the testing of your magic is going..."
Harry's countenance changed from irritated to awkward before she even had a chance to finish her sentence, glaring at him she asked the next question in a tone she only used when they left assignments till last minute.
"Harry! Please don't tell me you've forgotten?!"
At his nod she gave an outraged groan, and then got up to stand over him.
"You cannot just walk out there to face death eaters and such and not know what your magical limits are. Harry you told me yourself the first time we tested that your powers have changed....you might not be able to do something that you could easily have done before. You could easily off yourself during a duel by not knowing your limitations.
Please tell me you've at least done a full scan on yourself?"
At the negative shake of his head, she gave up on groaning and shrieked instead.
"No?! NO! That is it, we are going to do it right now...you've had five months. There's barely four weeks until Christmas. If we don't do it now, you're going to be too busy to do it at all. You have been extremely lucky that Voldemort has been rather busy trying to find out who you are that he has held back on his usual raids. I'll meet you in Albus' office in half an hour."
And with that, the whirlwind known as Hermione swept out of the room slamming the door closed behind her.
When she'd left, Harry ran a distracted hand through his hair and applied his glamour. He was tired from his early morning breakdown, and emotions that were still not settled had been stirred up again as he damned himself for forgetting to test his magic. He had been so busy and overwhelmed that he'd neglected an important rule, Know your magic. Rule number two of Moody's defence list, no less important then 'Constant Vigilance'. His guilt and his not forgotten grief provided Harry with a minor headache that could only grow as the day progressed; it was only eight in the morning after all.
"So let me get this straight? My magic has taken a backwards step and I'm no longer kick ass Harry? Bugger."
"Eloquent as always Harry," Hermione said sarcastically before reverting back to a more serious tone, "that was a close call; if you had gone out thinking that you could still control huge amounts of energy you could have fried yourself."
Harry smiled sheepishly and then put his right hand over his heart and left hand in the air.
"I, Harry James Potter, here now declare that I will always listen to Hermione Anne Granger if life is at risk and stupidity is running rampant."
Hermione giggled and Fawkes cooed from his perch, almost in agreement.
Harry glared at the Phoenix and then participated in his favourite Hobby, talking to a bird.
"No-one was talking to you, you cooking chicken...don't you squawk back at me- "
"Am I interrupting anything...important?" a soft voice cut in from the doorway.
Turning towards the doorway Harry saw a rather pretty girl with black hair and familiar grey eyes. He couldn't shake the feeling that he'd met her before and decided to voice the thought out loud.
"Have we met before?"
The young girl got a pensive look on her face as she looked him over and then shook her head and looked quickly at Hermione before looking back at him.
"I don't think so," she said, and then paused, "unless I walked past you or something, I've seen you around the school a lot though. With Ron and Mione. Umm...maybe you've seen me with my father?"
Smiling Hermione decided that introductions were in order, "Tina has Matty and Dan told you anything about what's been going on lately?"
When she nodded her head, Hermione asked her to explain what.
"Oh, just stuff about their brother, about how he's come from another Dimension. Don't worry I won't tell anyone," she looked hastily at Harry, "we have the same security spell on us as the Order members, only difference is that the older members can break it. But yeah, they said that Harry is loads better then...you know..." she trailed off.
Gaining encouragement from Harry's crooked smile and Hermione's understanding one she carried on, "I've wanted to meet him but Dad said I'm not allowed. Dan told me that Uncle James told them not to either but they never listened, and they're glad they didn't too...I wish I could meet him."
Harry who had saddened at the news that his father had not wanted him to meet his twin brothers looked at the young girl strangely, "Why wouldn't your father want you to meet me?"
It was Hermione who answered, by way of introduction.
"Because her father's best friends when James Potter. Tina, sweetheart, don't worry about going against your dad's wishes. Since you can't call an 'accidental meeting' a meeting per se," she shrugged at Harry's confused look, "Tina, I want you to meet one of my best friends, Harry James Potter, Harry this is Christina Ariel Black."
Harry's eyes widened in surprise (that he was meeting her) while Christina's brow furrowed in confusion, a moment later they found out why.
"But Dan and Matty told me that you looked like...you know...him," she whispered. "You don't look like...him."
Like the night of his first Order meeting, Harry shook his head and ran his hands through his hair. Dropping his hands to his sides he cocked his head and looked at her with raised brow.
The poor girls eyes had widened and her mouth had fallen open. "No way!" she screeched, "wicked! So you're their brother? Really? And you're really from another dimension? Did you really die? What's death like? So you killed you-know-who and !"
She smiled warmly at Harry and then walked the few metres between them to hug him. She then stood back and looked at him sadly, "I can understand everyone's reaction now. You really do look like him. Except for the Hair, and the scar. And you're a tad bit shorter I think...and you're probably bigger then he is. And you got different eyes though, his eyes So you're the reason why my cousins are so preoccupied? Figures."
Harry laughed and then did a once over on her, "you have your father's nose. And his chin, and his smile. And you got his eyes too. Weird, never thought that Sirius would ever have kid. Thought it was a joke until I finally met you"
Christina smirked, "neither did anyone else. But oh well, not everything runs according to the script. By the way, you can call me Tina, just like all my friends and family."
"Pleased to meet Tina, you can call me Harry," he answered almost formally before asking, "Did you want to talk to Professor Dumbledore?"
Tina shook her head, "No, I wanted to speak to Mione about something. But if your busy I can speak to you later," she said to the brown haired woman.
Hermione looked at Harry and then looked back at Tina, "No, we're actually finished, we were just figuring out something. Harry's going to sit up here and wait for Professor Dumbledore, so if you want I can meet you in the Library in ten minutes?"
Nodding her head, she turned back to Harry and hugged him again.
"It was nice meeting you...finally. I'll see you around o.k? See ya."
Once she had left the room and the Gargoyle had slammed shut, signalling that she had left the vicinity of the Headmaster's office, Harry asked her the question that he'd wanted to ask since he'd found out that Sirius had a daughter.
"So who's her mother?" he asked curiously.
Hermione sighed sadly and then sat down in Dumbledore's chair. "Tina's mum was a woman named Ariel Prewett, younger sister of Fabian and Gideon. Ravenclaw, same year as Sirius. She died when Tina was 10 years old. She was a healer and she frequently made House calls when her patients couldn't make it. She was with her patient when Death eater's attacked Port Chaienes, they barricaded all exits and then burnt the houses down. Everyone in that street burnt to death, those that had managed to escape were crucified to a burning building.
Nothing survived the fire, it was all ash. It hurts both Sirius and Tina that they didn't have a body to bury, It's also the reason why he hates Parricida so much, he was a seventh year but he was very close with the Malfoys, and chances are he knew about the attack before it happened and didn't let anyone know."
Sighing again, Hermione shook herself out of the funk she was in and looked hard at Harry.
"Please tell me you'll work on your magic? Meditation will help clear a few of the stress blocks you got up. Start practicing all your normal magical exercises. We can't expect that you'd go back to super power Harry, especially not without the Link, but even in you're state, you're still much more powerful then any of us. Work up your body's tolerance for large amounts of magic and then we'll go from there.
It might be a good idea Harry if you purchase a wand? Start from the basics. Get your magic focussed and then start leaving your wand behind. Honestly Harry, don't exhaust yourself out. You're just not normal enough that any treatment would work."
Getting up she pecked Harry on the cheek and then turned to go.
"I'll see you at dinner," trailed behind her as she went down the revolving staircase.
Deciding to take Hermione's advice to heart he set about going for a trip to Diagon Alley. It was then that he found he had hit one serious glitch in his plans. He had no money.
For the past five months he had been living off Albus Dumbledore, who gladly gave Hermione and Professor McGonagall access to his bank vault so as to purchase Harry clothes. He hadn't needed anything extra, and he loathed asking the Headmaster for money. So all in all, he was right out buggered.
It was this contemplative state that said Headmaster found him in when he came up to his office nearly half an hour later. Not wanting to interrupt his former student as he was doing some serious thinking, the old Wizard sat on the chair next to Fawkes perch and started to read the Daily Prophet.
A rather muffled exclamation of "What do I do" followed by a thump interrupted his reading a few minutes later, looking up he saw his child repeatedly bang his head against the table. Rather alarmed now at both the seriousness of the tone and his actions, he got up quickly and stopped the boy's head before he could bring it down a sixth time.
"Dear child, what is the meaning of this?" he asked concernedly.
Harry looked about at Dumbledore and foregoing answering with a usual 'nothing' he told the truth instead.
"I have no money," he said glumly.
The Professor gave a relieved smile reaching into his robes and bringing out a key. Harry being rather well acquainted with what a Gringotts key looked like interrupted him as he was in the process of handing it to him.
"No professor. I can't take your money. You've already done too much for me already," he said in a panicked tone, he hated being a burden to people.
Dumbledore just looked down at Harry over his half moon glasses with imperious blue eyes, minus the customary twinkle, watching Harry's thoughts as they flitted across his face.
"Harry James Potter," he said in his authorative I-defeated-Grindelwald tone, "You have never been a burden to me. You are the one person in the world that I long to provide for yet could never do so. I delight in looking out for you. Child, I have far too much wealth anyway," he carried on almost matter of fact, "it will do nothing while it just sits there. What is the use of having wealth if I cannot use it?"
Unfortunately for Dumbledore that reason just didn't convince him. So the next ten minutes were spent arguing reasons for and against (Harry) before finally, Dumbledore gave up and sending a note via house elf to McGonagall, marched Harry down to the Apparation point and together they apparated to the Leaky Cauldron.
Harry was momentarily silenced in his ongoing argument with the old Headmaster when the door to the Leaky Cauldron swung open and they stepped inside.
Silence enveloped the place as all eyes swung towards the most famous face in the Wizarding world. Tom the innkeeper, smiled toothlessly towards the old Sage and rushed forward to shake his hand.
"Welcome, Professor Dumbledore, Welcome. Can I get you something to drink? For you and your guest."
Dumbledore smiled warmly, eyes twinkling away, and declined the invitation, "My nephew and I have a lot of shopping to do, maybe next time my friend."
With that they swept out of the room. Rumours were already running rampantly through the inn concerning the Headmaster's 'nephew', and his whereabouts all this time.
Standing in front of the bricks, Dumbledore tapped out the sequence to open it up and then stepped through. Harry following behind looked around him as he went, eyes taking in the differences and similarities. The Alley wasn't as busy as he was used to, he wondered for a moment if the reason why was because each time he had visited was to shop for school equipment, but then dismissed it and reasoned the emptiness instead on the ongoing war.
Gringotts was still the same, but Dumbledore told him that the Ministry now had authority to seize and stop the accounts of those proven to be Death Eaters. It was the reason why it was becoming harder and harder to pin things on certain people as they all hid their allegiances very well.
Leaving Gringotts with his own key in hand and a bag full of galleons (Albus had promised Harry that he would never take money out of his own account to pay for him ever again.....so he had Gringotts create a separate account for him, which went around the promise very well), they headed straight towards Ollivanders.
Reaching the wand shop Harry noticed that nothing had changed, it was still the same purple cushion with the wand in the sign and the place still looked dusty and abandoned from the outside. Walking in Harry glanced around the shop remembering the place fondly, smiling slightly he gave a soft sigh.
"I haven't been in this place for years. Come to think of it, do you realise that I'm a 29 year old man in a 22 year old body? It should be 18 years since I last step foot in here, I was going to say 11 years but then it wasn't re- "
Harry's ramblings were cut off by the appearance of an eerie man with moon-like eyes.
"Good morning Mr Potter. Or are you?"
Dumbledore spoke up instead and while he explained to Mr Ollivander Harry's strange circumstances, the boy in question took a look around the shop. Walking along one shelf he was pleasantly surprised to find that he still remembered the exact shelf and place which Ollivander got his wand from. Stopping right in front of the shelf, curiosity got the best of him and shrugging his shoulders at the odds that his wand would still be here after all this time, he took down one of the black boxes to take a look.
Lifting the lid the rectangle box carefully (he didn't want to rob some poor kid of a wand that would have been an exact match) he looked inside, and almost dropped the box (and wand) in surprise.
He would recognise his wand....anywhere. Eleven inches, holly and phoenix feather. Reaching out a shaking hand he ran a finger down the wand almost in awe, he felt the magic under his fingertips and the warmth shoot up his fingers as his own innate magic recognised the wand. Grasping the wand around the handle he dropped the box and watched in amazement and fascination as the warmth intensified and the magic tingled in his fingers. Bringing the wand swishing down in an arc gold sparks came out of it, but this time so did a few white sparkles. He was broken out of his reverie by loud clapping and laughter.
"Oh well done, Mr Potter, well done."
Beckoning for him to come back, he took the wand out of Harry hand and looked at it.
"Hmmm," he said thoughfully, "a supple wand, good movement, great for duelling. Eleven inches, Holly and phoenix feather...how – "
"curious?" Harry finished for him, "let me guess, my wand is the brother wand to the one that gave me this scar? And that you regret ever selling the wand that did it. You expect great things from me because after all, he did great things, terrible but great..."
Mr Ollivander looked almost taken aback. He looked at Elderly wizard standing next to him who was struggling to contain his smile, and looked back at the young man in front of him.
"Albus has only just now told me a bit about your life, well, as much as you can fit in ten minutes. Am I to understand that in your world, You-know-who gave you that scar?" At Harry's nod he smiled sadly, "I am sorry then to say that yes, I do regret ever selling him that wand. Just like I have regretted it every time I hear of the horrible things he has done.
That scar might also be the reason why you received his wand and not anyone else or your other counterpart. An essence of him in you could mean finding a wand that is keyed into his magic, hence the phoenix feather. I trust you know that that feather belongs to the Headmaster's phoenix? Your opposite has a Mahogany wand, eleven and quarter inches, dragon heartstring. Brother wand to one Hornbeam wand, twelve inches, owned by Mr Malfoy. Elder.
I must expect great things from you Mr Potter. And with hope you will do what our own Mr Potter has failed to do in our world."
Ollivander then gave a small bow to both Harry and Dumbledore and turned around to leave.
"Wait," Harry said confused, "what about payment?"
He did not turn back but he did wave his hand, "do not worry about payment Mr Potter. You pay me every time you erase the destruction caused by the other wand. Good day."
When Harry started using his new purchase he found that his magic was stronger as it rushed out of his wand then ever before. He still had to say spells and incantations in parseltongue, but the energy needed to power a spell was notably less then the energy needed for wandless magic. Hermione was still looking for a reason, but Harry didn't really care, just as long as his magic worked, reason can go jump.
Of course now that Harry had a wand and he was pretty much settled, Dumbledore decided that it would be good for Harry to teach the duelling class, especially since Remus would be knocked out by a serious case of Werewolfness (both Dumbledore & Harry found this quip rather funny). So for the last three weeks of school before the Christmas breaks, Harry Potter was introduced to the school as Harry Dumbledore, Headmaster Dumbledore's nephew, and an Auror who'd just moved back from New Zealand.
Though he didn't have anything to compare it to, he thought that the duelling lesson went very well. For the last week's meeting he spent two hours drilling constant vigilance into the students and went through the top five lessons of Mad-eye Moody's 'Why I will not die, but you will' list. By the end of the lesson everything the students had been taught about bowing to the opponent and walking to acceptable distances went out the window.
"Death Eaters will not wait until you have bowed and walked the distance before attacking. In this time and this age, there are hardly any rules in duelling. The only rules are those that you need to stay alive, everything else be damned."
"But sir Professor Lupin said- "
"It doesn't matter what Professor Lupin said. What are you going to do," he asked the class, "tell the person that's attacking that their technique is all wrong? That Professor Lupin said to 'bow before a duel'? Your enemy will probably laugh at you before killing you on the spot. It may seem crass, it may seem unkind, but that is the reality of these situations. This class is more then a duelling class. I'm imparting on you wisdom that has kept me alive for a very long time. So unless you've survived a meeting with a bunch of death eaters then you can ignore me.
Who can tell me what is the most effective way to get yourself out of trouble, when it's just you and your enemies?"
"Use a spell!" shouted one very enthusiastic Hufflepuff.
"Good idea, but what happens if your wand is taken off you?"
"then your screwed" said the same Hufflepuff, still without losing her enthusiasm.
"Really? I don't think so, I would hope that you don't give up that easily...can anyone think of what you would do if your wand is taken off you?"
"Get it back!" shouted a Gryffindor.
"Great Idea Einstein, the last spell you can say is a 'scourgify' for the shit in your p- "
"Thank you very much for your input Mr Freye, 5 points from Ravenclaw."
"Tell them that they can take your wand if they give you a knife" laughter filled the room after this suggestion, so much so that a little tiny voice could barely be heard over the noise.
"Run..."
Harry held up his hand to stop everyone, once there was quiet he pointed to a little boy with large glasses and black hair, who reminded him forcibly of himself at that age.
"What did you say son?"
The little boy swallowed and looking fearful that he had so much attention on himself he looked down at his hands and said, "Run."
Harry smiled, ignoring the scoffing looks from the other students in the room he said loud and clear, "10 points to Hufflepuff."
"You want us to run?!" asked one incredulous Gryffindor, "You want us to show them how much a coward we are? No thanks."
Sighing heavily Harry looked at the Gryffindor who had spoken out he said, "Staying to face a dangerous mad man unarmed and who is 10 times more powerful then you because you don't want to look like a coward makes you an idiotic fool instead.
Running, is the best thing to do. In fact, don't call it running away, call it a strategic retreat. People cannot judge you for how you act in situations unless they too have been in that situation; no-one has the right to call you a coward unless they are given the chance to choose between staying and running.
I have been in many situations where I have had an opportunity to choose between fighting and running, and you know what? I chose to run. I decided that my life was worth much more then my pride, for my pride was worth nothing if I was dead.
Just because your house is known for its Courage does not mean you have to disregard using your brains. Pride can be your downfall or it can be something else entirely, it will be a courageous man who can turn their back on and enemy and run."
After that little lesson, Harry divided the club into two (much like he did the DA) and set them to work perfecting the disarming charm. When there was half an hour remaining until the end of the lesson he called two people up to have mock duel, and after imparting more lessons of wisdom, dismissed the class.
As he was picking up the rubbish on the floors and straightening up the room the little Hufflepuff boy who had answered his question, approached him and stood awkwardly trying to get up the courage to say whatever it was that he wanted to say. Finally Harry took pity on him and initiated conversation.
"You did very well in class to do...Zachary is it?" he said kindly.
Zachary nodded and then murmured 'thanks'. Clearing his throat he looked up at his teacher and said, "Y-you're a good teacher Mr Dumbledore. I w-was wondering though...ummm...you see..I'm not doing very well in defense...if you could help me...please?"
Harry smiled and nodded. "Sure thing, what year are you in Zachary?"
"Fifth year. You can call me Zach." He said in relief.
Harry hid his surprise and instead went about asking him his strengths and weaknesses. Finally after setting a meeting place and time Zach left the room, in much happier spirits then he entered.
As Harry was walking up to speak to his Headmaster, a ball of flames appeared just a few metres before him and Fawkes became visible.
"Geez boy, I could have cursed you into a wall. I was just coming up to visit Albus."
With a trill the Phoenix glided to hover right in front of Harry and stretched out a leg in which a letter was tied. Untying the parchment from the phoenix leg he unrolled it and read it as the phoenix glided to stop on, and read from Harry's shoulder.
Harry,
There is an emergency meeting tonight. By the time you get this letter we should have already started, I had it in mind to cut the Duelling club short but I did not wish to become the most unpopular headmaster since Phineus Nigellus.
I will see you there when you have finished.
AD
Groaning out loud, Harry cast a burning charm on the letter. Fawkes who had not gone anywhere started pecking at his Wand, and Harry who had never ever seen Fawkes do this before smiled at the phoenix and stroked him on the head.
"Yeah, your tail feather, ain't that nice?"
He then headed towards the Hogwarts gates and the apparition point, Fawkes comfortably sitting on his shoulder.
Making his way through the hallways and the password protected portraits, Harry and Fawkes got lost a few times. Fawkes had decided that he rather liked sitting on Harry's soldier and had hitched a ride with him. Harry found to his consternation that when the phoenix shut off his homing magic and sat as a passenger, he really did treat himself like a passenger and therefore had the worst sense of direction of the two of them. They eventually arrived at their location, it took twenty minutes more then it should have, and Harry was fully prepared to flame the penguin- sorry the phoenix on his shoulder.
Knocking on the door, it was opened on the other side by Hermione who screeched when she saw him and then hugged him. With a squawk Fawkes flew off Harry's shoulder, angry that he had been unbalanced, the brown-haired girl smiled apologetically at the bird before leading Harry in.
"Sorry I'm late, Albus," Harry said as he bent down to peck Mrs Weasley and Ginny on the cheek (it had become tradition). "Fawkes has the worst sense of direction ever," he finished as he sat down beside Molly.
Another angry squawk came from the phoenix as he flew past Harry and hit his head with a large wing. Resting on the back of the headmasters chair the golden brown eyes glared insultingly at the black haired man. A few members of the Order glad to have something to lighten the atmosphere, laughed at the display and it took a while before the meeting could resume, but once it did, the same tense atmosphere came back in force.
"Harry," Ron said gravely, "We received word that Voldemort is planning something for the next few days. They don't know the exact day, they were only told to clear their schedules."
"Hence the reason why we will 'clear our schedules' too," Dumbledore added on solemnly, "We will be vigilant. Moody? You know what to do my friend. I want to give ourselves enough of an opportunity to protect as many people as we can. Even if it is not needed. It is better to be over prepared then to be under prepared, and risk much more."
"We'll organise three groups. One group to look out for Diagon Alley, and another to look out for Hogsmeade. The third group I want stationed at Headquarters, should we need back up or should another area be attacked that will be your duty to look after."
Mad-eye Moody was in his element, dishing out orders and planning strategy. Harry sat back and watched with a smile as Ron helped out, arguing with Moody and the others on a few points, he hadn't seen Ron this talkative during an Order Meeting ever.
"What about you Harry? Where do you want to be?"
Harry was pulled out from his observations by Ron's question, with a start he realised that he had everyone's attention, and not showing any reaction answered Ron calmly.
"I want Hogwarts," he said softly.
The Prewett brothers sniggered and Sirius' eyebrows went up, "Hogwart's doesn't need protection. All those wards make it the safest place in the world. Not only that but it will be the Holidays, who on earth attacks an empty castle with no-one in it."
"A Dark Lord who sees said castle as the Light's stronghold? And if it's really the safest place on earth, then tell me, how is it that every single year I've been at Hogwarts it's been a constant battle to survive?" he said bitingly.
It was Hermione who calmed him down by putting her hand on his arm. "Harry calm down, they are right you know, this isn't our world, the castle is at its strongest."
Looking sadly at Hermione he shook his head in the negative. "No it's not Hermione, the wards were stronger back when I went to school. Even with all the threats, the wards were much stronger. The wards have weakened considerably and even Albus knows it. Why do you think I've been spending so much time with him walking the school?
Headmasters have such a strong connection with the wards and the castle. Believe it or not she's sentient in her own way. The greater a headmasters innate magic the greater the connection to the castle. I know I wasn't headmaster in this timeframe, in this world, but I was headmaster and that link and those memories still live on in me. Two people with an intimate link to the castle, gives her enough magic to strengthen her wards or rip it down if she senses that is what they want.
Tom Riddle was looked at as 'her' child, Hogwarts nurtured him and protected him. She gifted the same link to him as she gives to every Headmaster she approves of. She did the same to me, I had a link with Hogwarts long before I was made Headmaster.
It is the reason why the castle did not raise the alarm to Albus about Quirrell. She sensed Tom Riddle and moved to protect him, she only raised the alarm when forced to choose between protecting Tom Riddle or me. The new boy who looked at the castle as the only home he'd ever known, who associated every mothering feeling with her, much the same way as her former 'child'. She rushed to help me by making sure Professor Dumbledore's path to me was easy, but it was a close call.
Hogwarts will fall if I'm not in there, it may sound arrogant and unbelievable, but it's true. All this time, the only reason why she's never let her wards down is because of Albus, loyalty towards him. But if you were forced to choose between your child and your friend, just who would you choose? I don't think he realises that link yet. I don't think he sees just how much sway he holds over her.
She's been lowering her wards unconsciously for the past few decades, I guess in a way trying to entice him back home. Being in there, seeing my connection, sensing my feelings, it's given her a reason to fight. I can't see Hogwarts fall, and as much as you want to see the castle as a stronghold for the light it will always be a home first and foremost.
Voldemort will not join the attack. He will wait patiently until he's given a reason to be there. If he knew that all he'd need to do is find some way of getting me out of Hogwarts and then stand at the gates, so as to finally gain control of the castle he'd do it in jif. If she sensed Tom Riddle in Hogsmeade and I was all the way in Diagon Alley then you'd feel the fall of the wards a mile away.
Trust me. At least this way I'll be near to Hogsmeade if anyone should need my help."
A stunned silence met Harry's explanation, the sniggering had long gone and so was mocking looks. All thoughts of cowardice had fled from their minds as they considered how close they were to loosing Hogwarts. No-one could doubt his words since the Headmaster's silence all but agreed with Harry. For other's Harry's explanation on the Castle treating him like Tom Riddle brought with it deeper meanings. Lily had known that her son did not have a happy upbringing, but to such a point that the castle felt his desperation too? It saddened her enormously and she watched with an aching heart as Molly reached over and enveloped her son in a Hug, having come to the same conclusion as she.
Harry blushed at all the attention he was getting and mentally berated himself for becoming so worked up over Hogwarts, get a grip he told himself. Looking to the headmaster he saw pride and love in his eyes, rolling his eyes he ran a hand through his hair.
The meeting then progressed normally for the next two hours; all the plans were laid for surveillance of the two places most populated by wizards. Kinglsey agreed to prepare the Aurors without letting them know exactly what was going on, and all the parents going on patrol decided not to bring their children home for Christmas.
After his little rant, Harry had decided not to say anything else, so sat there quietly, ignoring his mother's rather concerned eyes. Unfortunately for Harry he had never been very good at sitting quietly in meetings, and there had never been a 'normal' meeting for him, so he eventually started having a rather one sided quiet conversation with Fawkes. It involved sharing Dumbledore's packet of lemon drops that the Headmaster did not know his phoenix had 'borrowed' from him and 'Would you rather die...' questions. The Order meeting ended for the both of them, when Fawkes had decided that he was far too bored and glided to land on Harry's shoulders.
They disappeared in a burst of flames leaving behind a rather shocked room full of people and a perplexed Headmaster who just noticed his empty lemon drop packet.
Emmeline Vance who had watched the young man throughout the meeting and was one of the multitude of people who found him a rather polite and nice young man decided to voice what everyone else was thinking at that moment.
"He's a tad bit......strange, isn't he?"
Appearing back in the Headmaster's office in a burst of flames, Harry turned around and scolded the phoenix, who turned tail and ignored him. Sighing tiredly he decided to retire for the night and made his way out of the room.
The castle had anticipated his return before he formed in the room welcomed him back with burst of 'feelings', Harry reciprocated the feelings and made his way up the staircases as they moved to give him a direct path to his room.
Just as he entered his room the castle started to give off feelings of concern and unease. Harry 'feeling' it checked the Wards and found them stable, checking the surrounding area he found everything as it should be this time of the night. He tried to project 'feelings' of comfort to Hogwarts and found that she was too overwhelmed with panic. Harry tried again to feel around the castle and found nothing, before going further out towards Hogsmeade.
With Alarm Harry found where the Castle's unease was coming from as there was a large concentration of Dark magic permitting from the area. Harry rushed out of the room knowing that the castle was never wrong in her assessments and rushed down the staircases towards the Headmaster's office. It felt like a long wait to get into the office but when he eventually did he grabbed floo powder off the mantel and threw it in the fire. Uttering the destination and then the password he stuck his head through the fire.
"Harry!" – Fred or George.
"Quickly!! No time, Hogsmeade under attack. I can't leave the castle at the moment, I don't know if Voldemort's there. Quickly!"
The last thing he saw before he pulled his head out of the fire was the stricken and distressed faces.
As he stumbled back from the fire he turned around and rushed down the Headmaster's stairs again, past the Gargoyle and towards McGonagall's quarters. Banging almost desperately on her door, she finally answered an irritated scowl on her face which quickly disappeared as he told her the reason. Shaking and worried she rushed about waking the teachers and securing the castle.
Wishing there was a faster way to get around the castle he rushed towards the second level on the other side of the castle to wake up Madame Pomfrey and prepare her for what he knew was going to be an influx of injured people.
Once that was done, he rushed back downstairs to the entry hall, scanning through Hogwarts as he went he found that the Dark Magic that had started to spread through Hogsmeade was now concentrated in the centre of the village. The Death Eaters had broken up into pairs most likely and had started terrorising the village house by house but had now met back together. A burst of fire and a trill greeted him as he reached his destination and Fawkes alighted to rest on his shoulders. Both watching the doors locking and the castle going into security mode.
Comfort and assurance flooded his link with the castle as she tried to calm him. Harry sent back a feeling of desperation and helplessness, he didn't like being stuck here while others hurt and the castle could understand it. Assurance came through his link, a promise to protect the students and professors, and a promise that she would not let anyone in, no matter whom.
Sending back a feeling of gratitude, Harry turned to the Scarlet and gold phoenix and asked for a favour. The phoenix cooed and trilled and they both disappeared in a flash of light to appear just outside of Hogsmeade.
James Potter ducked behind a house as a killing curse missed him and hit another death eater behind him. It was carnage, there were at least five dark marks floating in the air and innocent inhabitants of the village were running around screaming amongst their attackers.
His heart cried as he saw an innocent little child get hit with a killing curse as she wandered out in her fear. He saw Sirius duelling with another Death Eater and trying to dodge the curses of another at the same time, James ducked out and ran low and throwing himself behind a barrel he threw a very strong stunning charm towards one of the death eaters and then ran out to duel another.
A few severing charms and a blasting curse later, Sirius and James jogged along to help where they could. They unlocked houses which had been barricaded shut in preparation for burning, Sirius gritting his jaw in anger all the while.
Reaching the centre of the village where a majority of the fighting was concentrated he narrowly missed a dark curse as it whizzed past his left ear. He threw himself into helping out Hermione with her two death eaters whilst Sirius held off the other two.
"Ron, how many more?" he yelled over the din.
Ron peered slowly around the ruined house they were hiding behind and pulled his head back quickly to dodge a very dark severing charm. Looking at James with wide eyes he asked, "you want to look?"
James didn't answer because the pandemonium seemed to fade, and became almost a muted noise in the background. Looking at each other the quartet prepared there selves for whatever it was that was coming.
"Come on out daddy, come out and play," came the childlike voice.
The quartet froze and looked at each other, their blood running cold in their veins and hearts beating faster.
"Daddy? I'm scared of the dark Daddy. Can you hold me?" the high pitched voice came again.
Clenching his jaw, James remained silent and with a shake of his head he motioned for the rest of them to stay silent too.
"Daddy, if mummy wants to meet with me then you should to," the voice mocked.
Eyes widened in fear and wand hand shaking, James looked uncertainly at the other three, who were in a similar state. Indecisive as to what to do and feeling absolutely helpless they all remained silent.
"Do you want to play like that now James?" the voice had changed, it was now a cold sneering baritone. "I'm rather disappointed that my sire is a bloody coward, Mummy dearest, you married a coward."
There was silence which was interrupted by a slap and then a whimper that unmistakeably belonged to Lily Potter. A distressed groan wrenched from James throat as he moved to run out from behind the house, Sirius strong grip kept him in place as he tried to stop his friend from running to what would have been his death.
"Stay still James, they'll kill you..."
"Let me go....Sirius...."
Finally getting out of the grip he sped around the building, Sirius, Ron and Hermione following. What they saw made their hearts falter and fear pound into their brains.
Almost twenty death eaters surrounded Lily Potter in a semi-circle. Her left-eye was nearly swollen closed and her lip was bleeding. Dumbledore stood helplessly down the street with a few other Order members with him, the rest of the Order that had come with them were scattered around. None in the vantage point to help Lily.
"Glad you could come out to watch Father," the unmasked man just behind Lily said. "I was wondering where all the Gryffindor courage had gone too."
"Harry- " James started imploringly just to be cut off by the person who he was addressing.
"I thought you changed my name....what is it now....Dray?" the younger version of James asked one of his colleagues.
The fellow shrugged and then said scornfully, "Parricida...or some rather unimaginative name like that..."
"Yeah, that was it...." he looked back at James. "What do you want me to do to your Mudblood Whore Daddy?"
James took a step forward and stopped when Parricida pulled Lily's head back and put a very sharp knife up against her throat.
"Don't try it Father dear, if I feel threatened at all I'll send her to join the headless hunt," he mocked. "This knife is rather sharp, mind you this is it's virgin run.."
"What do you want Harry?" Dumbledore asked from his position, he'd moved a few metres up the street.
"That's not my name old man! That name is beneath me, a gift from a Mudblood bitch and her unworthy line," he sneered angrily.
"What do you want?" James asked desperately.
"Oh no no no daddy. You're not in a position to give me anything. I on the other hand can give you what you want," he said deridingly. "Get on your knees and beg Father, if you want her back that much, get on your knees."
Frantic and hopeless, James saw no hope and sank heavily to his knees. Closing his eyes against the onslaught of tears, he wrenched them open and looked into his wife's tearful ones and started begging for her life.
The Order Member's could only watch helplessly, they out numbered the Death eaters two to one but to attack would mean Lily's death and they couldn't do that to James. As long as she was alive, there was still hope, no matter far away it seemed. They could only watch as one of their most proud members begged for the life of his wife and watched as he was ridiculed and jeered by Death Eaters who he had pledged his life to capture and stop.
"STOP!" Parricida demanded angrily, jerking her head back hard and bringing the knife closer to her throat to stop James who had been ready to jump, he looked down at her disgustingly. "See what you've reduced him to...Mudblood? See what happens when you poison the bloodlines? You've disgraced us!"
A inconsolable cry of fear, hatred and grief was ripped from James throat as he watched powerlessly as the six inch knife swung down towards his wife's chest.
"NOOOOOOO..."
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
I am bloody sure that is long enough. If it's not enough, don't mean to be rude but go jump into a river :-D No, just kidding. Seriously, I am now going to go and study.
Just a small request, if you review, can you tell me if I'm going at too fast a pace? It should slow down from here on out but maybe I've screwed up somewhere?? Just review and let me know right?
This might be one of my last updates until my exams finish (in two weeks). Until then I hope this tides over.
If I've confused everyone with whatever occurs in this chapter then leave me a line and I'd try my best to answer it in my next update.
I've had a question as to whether this is going to have a ship. To be totally honest with you gallandro-83, I reckon that Harry needs to learn how to live with himself first, without all the issues of being chased by madmen and learning to appreciate himself for who he is before he could even attempt to love anyone in a relationship. I don't think happiness for Harry necessarily means a ship, so I'm going to step back from that, maybe I'll change my mind later on in the story, but for now Harry's loving himself. :-D As for that little part with the mysterious female, it'll be explained later on in the story, I don't know if I'll match Harry up with her or not (my indecisiveness on romance for this story), but if I do she'd be the most likely choice. And no, I'm not saying who she is for now. I reckon a few of you will eventually figure it out actually. As for your other questions, we'll just have to wait and see. Hopefully I've answered a few of them in this chapter, if not; you're going to have to wait :-D I'm either evil or totally clueless about my own fic.
Bugger it all, as much as I want to answer each and every person's review I just bloody can't. My finger's are tired, my brain is tired and I still have to find energy to read through a text book, which will be a challenge in itself since my eyes are sore from the computer screen. So here are my thanks to each person that reviewed:
Lady Phoenix Slytherin, Ravenbslack, Dixy, NonyMouse, Wolfawaken, Kaylee-Smith, jeff, NoAlias, gaul1, Lady Gallatea Ravenclaw, Huggiebear, mick, randllee, gallandro-83 and Larna Mandrea (you're another one of those evil people that like Harry to suffer :-D there's so many of you starts counting heads )
THANK YOU VERY MUCH!
I've decided that this fic is going to be more then 25 chapters. I'm def. sure that I won't be able to express my creative self snorts in less then 25 chappies.
Until next time then? If you want to read some good stories check out my favourite fics page, some of them you might have read, but there are others that I have just discovered and drooled all over wipes keyboard.
Stahchild & Ambrosia