Chapter 2-The Career Path
Resolved to tell someone as soon as he realized what he saw, Harry wrote down all he could remember of the dreams. Of course, if he went to Dumbledore he could put the memory in the Pensive and see it more clearly. Plus, Lupin might be able to tell more of the story. Before he could get all his thoughts and questions about the dreams recorded, he heard Uncle Vernon yell for him to come downstairs.
"Coming," Harry shouted.
Uncle Vernon's face, always at least red these days given his high blood pressure, showed the strain Uncle Vernon was suffering to avoid blowing up at Harry. "Yes?" Again just as before his uncle said nothing only handed Harry his post. This envelope twice the size of yesterday's was marked and sealed by the O.W.L. testing center. Harry ripped it open anxious for his results. Harry frowned at the print.
"Well, that school of yours throw you out yet?" snickered Uncle Vernon. Harry ignored him and ran up to his room.
O.W.L. Test Results for Harry James Potter
O Outstanding 11, 12
E Exceeds Expectations 9, 10
A Acceptable 7, 8
P Poor 5, 6
D Detestable 3, 4
T Terrible 0, 1, 2
Ancient Runes N/A N/A
Arithmacy N/AN/A
Care of Magical Creatures O 11/12
Defense Against the Dark Arts O 12/12
Divination A 7/12
Charms O 11/12
Herbology A 8/12
History of Magic P 6/12
Muggle Studies N/A N/A
PotionsA 8/12
Transfiguration E 9/12
Cumulative O.W.L.s E 9/12Your test results indicate a strong sense of practical magic and of your own abilities. You should consider teaching, treasure hunting, hands-on curse breaking, or ancient artifact testing. Unfortunately, you will not be able to continue in the programs to be an auror or healer.
Harry sighed, but thought angrily, I don't need to be trained for what I have to do anyway. Paid or not paid I have to kill Voldemort. He wondered how Ron and Hermione's scores turned out, but didn't want to tell them his news quite yet. What was he going to do now?
That evening Harry felt restless. Without a thought he ran from his room and out the front door. He ran and ran and just kept running. He wanted to do anything as long as he didn't think about his life as Harry Potter . . . anything, even if he had to fight off Dementors again. He ran for blocks and blocks to no destination. His aimless exercise calmed him until he willingly fell to the ground of someone's shrubs. Harry was dizzy with thoughts of Sirius. The pain of his godfather's death . . . disappearance or whatever, hit him like a well-aimed bludger.
Harry stared into the bush, trying hard not to breakdown. His face was hot with the emotions that had been stirring and brewing for the past few months. The tears began to fall, his body forcing the hurt out, protecting the mind from being destroyed. Harry broke out into sobs. His tears screamed with his thoughts . . No . . . no . . . no . . . why Sirius . . . why did I have to be so stupid . . . why . . . why . . . why. Looking through his sobs at the bush he focused his eyes realizing something familiar about the plant. As he began to reach for it, wiping away tears as he approached it, Harry heard someone laughing just a few feet away. Harry turned around and saw his cousin Dudley pointing at him and bellowing.
"What's the baby Potter crying about now? Do you want your mommy, baby?"
All the hurt and pain that exploded just moments before, switched over in an instant to pure outright hate. Harry didn't notice the intensity of the change, but Dudley did not look so cocky anymore. In fact, Dudley looked frozen with fear. In Harry's bitterness he began to raise his wand, and in a voice that would have beat Snape's worst scalding sarcasm, Harry taunted his cousin, "So Dudders, since when did you start following me around? Did you want more attacks from dementors? I can't save you all the time you know. Maybe I could help you find one right now to raise your spirits. Or have you forgotten last summer so soon?" Harry glared at Dudley with one eyebrow raised.
Harry's comments gave the desired effect. Dudley's pudgy red face paled to a white that rivaled the ghosts of Hogwarts. Dudley still frozen appeared to be remembering that moment near a year ago, when he and Harry stood in the alleyway on the way home and were attacked by Dementors. Dudley still believed his cousin had attacked him.
"So wh . . .at . . . what are you goi . . .ing to do about it?"
Harry almost laughed as he looked at his cousin. He felt power surge through his body as he looked into his cousin's eyes. Curiosity took over and Harry wanted to know what Dudley saw that night a year ago. What did Dudley remember? . . .
"So Dudders . . . you really think I did that to you a year ago . . . You're lucky you couldn't see what really did attack us. You really would have something to remember then." Harry put away his wand still looking dead eyed at his cousin. "So what did the Dementors make you remember poor, poor Dudikins? The year you got 37 presents instead of 38? The day you had to stop gorging yourself with cake and ice cream? Or maybe the day I came to school for the first time? What was it Dudders? What is you most fearful memory?"
Harry stared into his cousin's hazel eyes not waiting for an answer. Harry looked and searched for it wanting to know Dudley's biggest fear.
"I'm not . . . I'm not te. . . telling you!" Dudley burst still pale and frozen as death.
As Harry gazed the unexpected happened. Suddenly, Harry could feel himself searching his cousin's thoughts just as he did Snape's on the rare occasion in his Occulmency lessons. Harry saw his cousin being poked and teased in primary school . . . being picked last in gym class . . . Lightening crashed as a giant man with a grizzly beard pushed down a door and asked Dudley if he was Harry Potter . . . Dudley felt something grow from his behind . . . Dudley being diagnosed for surgery to remove the pig tail . . . Dudley poked and prodded, tested like a lab animal . . . Dudley's tongue choked him as a strange red-haired creature talked to him in tongues. . . Dudley ran from a boa constrictor chasing him at the zoo.
When Harry saw his cousin's fears, the anger and hate melted away to guilt. Harry looked away from Dudley and stared back at the bush, his face still sticky with tears. He glanced over to his cousin, bitterness overtaken by calm in his voice,
"Dudley, just go home will you?" But Dudley continued to stand frozen to the ground and now was pointing at the bush beside Harry. Dudley's eyes grew into egg-sized holes and he screamed at his cousin,
"Harry it's moving!" Harry turned to see a limb of what he realized was Devil's Snare wrap around his left leg and grab at his pants for his wand.
"Harry!" Dudley reacted in a way that would have made Harry proud had he not hated his cousin. If Dudley had been a wizard, he may just have been a Gryffindor like his cousin. A second Neville Longbottom perhaps. Dudley pulled at Harry and pounded on the plant that ensnared his cousin. Granted, he missed and occasionally hit Harry, but eventually his strong blows proved effective against the plant. Harry was free, wand and body completely in tact.
The shock and confusion of the moment took over Harry's thoughts, as he tried to stand up on the ground. Harry brushed off the dirt on his hands and drifted away from the plant. As Dudley approached him, Dudley asked Harry in a truly concerned voice,
"Harry are you alright?" Harry, in disbelief, reacted from his gut before he had a moment to clearly think,
"How dare you! I can take care of myself." Harry shoved his cousin to the ground and bolted. Again the running took over and Harry had to run, run as far away from his cousin as he could. He finally found himself on Ms. Figg's porch crying, and hyperventilating. As if on cue, Ms. Figg opened the door and pulled Harry inside. Ms. Figg's voice resembled Mrs. Weasley's fighting voice when in disagreement with the twins.
"HARRY POTTER, WHAT ON RHEA'S GREEN EARTH DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING? BY THE GODS YOU SILLLY BOY! Ms. Figg, with surprising strength, picked him up and near threw him into her sitting room.
"HAVEN'T YOU LEARNED BY NOW, BOY, THE DANGER YOU PUT YOURSELF IN EVERY TIME YOU LEAVE YOUR AUNT'S HOME? Harry stared at her in disbelief wondering why he had ever felt comforted by the older women. Annoyed Harry glared at her and tucked his arms inside each other.
"Who cares what you think anyway?" Harry retorted. Ms. Figg voice bellowed,
"I'LL TELL YOU WHO . . . ALBUS DUMBLEDORE AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX. YOU ARE GETTING TOO RECKLESS FOR YOUR OWN BRITCHES!" Ms. Figg paused for a moment and turned away. When she turned back to Harry her voice was calm and comforting. "Don't you even think to consider all those who care about you that are still with you? Instead of bolting every time you can't handle yourself, why don't you turn to us to help you?"
"BECAUSE THE ONLY ONE WHO EVER REALLY UNDERSTOOD IS DEAD, DAMN IT?" Harry's emotions boiled over in his voice. Harry got up to leave so he wouldn't have to face the old woman who had listened and talked to him during his summer imprisonment.
"Sit down, boy!" Ms. Figg's voice resonated with a sternness and strength Harry had previously only thought Dumbledore could accomplish. Harry sat down glaring at her. Snape would have been proud. Ms. Figg went to her kitchen and came back with a pot of tea. She poured a cup for Harry and herself. She patted her hair in an effort to calm herself and handed Harry his tea.
"So what happened, dear?" Harry sipped from his cup and continued to stare at Ms. Figg unwilling to tell her anything.
"Fine then. I'll just notify Albus that you are here. At least you didn't use you wand?" She looked at Harry with her eyebrows raised prodding him to tell her if that had been the case. Harry sunk into his chair guilt drowning his rage for the second time in a half hour. Ms. Figg took his actions for what they were and urgently asked, "Well, you didn't use your wand did you?"
"No," Harry said without certainty.
"If you had, we would already have received you expulsion notice. The ministry would be here to take your wand. What did happen Harry?" Harry stared at the floor confused at what had happened. He didn't truly knowHarry continued to stare at the floor while he sorted through his thoughts. If I had used magic even without a wand the Ministry would still be here wouldn't they? Of course, they would. So what happened then? How was I able to read Dudley's memories as if I cast Legillimens with my wand? It isn't possible. Even when I didn't use my wand the magic had been recorded. They knew about Aunt Marge, the snake at the zoo, and Dolby's floating cake, why not this?
"Well, let's have it." Ms. Figg said impatiently.
"I don't know what happened, really." Harry slowly thought about what the past hour had entailed and voiced his thoughts aloud to Ms. Figg. When he got to the part where he had read his cousin's mind, he tried to figure it out as he spoke.
"I looked in his eyes feeling nothing but hatred, then I was curious and wanted to know what Dudley had seen last year when the Dementors attacked us. I focused my emotions to and it happened. I scanned his memories and everything Dudley feared was in my mind. I was still in shock when the Devil's Snare grabbed me and then . . . Dudley saved my life." Harry looked down in disbelief. Guilt overtook him for the third time in an hour.
"And why or rather how did you end up on my doorstep?" Ms. Figg asked with compassion.
"I pushed Dudley down and started running again. I just . . . I just ended up here."
"Well, I am going to alert Dumbledore to what happened. Hmmm . . . who would have Devil's Snare but a wizard? Do you remember where the house was?"
"No. I have no idea. I was aimlessly running."
"Well, we'd better take you home then. Make sure your cousin is okay, and maybe ask him where the house was."
"Right. He's probably making up a story to get me in trouble again," Harry sulked, angrily.
Ms. Figg grabbed Harry's arm and dragged him out her door. Taking his arm in hers, she lead him down the road to the Dursleys' front door. Harry tried to pull away and start running again, but the more he struggled the tighter Ms. Figg's grip became.
Aunt Petunia answered the door. Harry looked up at his aunt, who had obviously been crying, as her face went from fear to the outrage Harry had come to know at least once a summer since he had started Hogwarts.
"You . . . you little abomination! You need to leave! I don't care what Dumbledore says! You are a danger to us all Harry Potter! Pack your things and go!"
"Fine. I don't want to be here anyway." Harry said coldly. "I didn't even do anything this time." Harry stormed out of Ms. Figg's arms and up to his room. He immediately started throwing his possessions into his trunk. Then, he realized he had no way to take it anywhere anyway. He let Hedwig out of her cage, put a note to the Weasley's on her leg, and told her to go to the Burrow and wait for him. Harry proceeded to pack a bag of food, clothes, and anything else he could fit inside it without using shrinking spells. Harry slung his bag over his shoulder and hurried back down the stairs. His Aunt Petunia and Ms. Figg were still standing in the doorway. The two women appeared to be in a rather heated argument, over him he supposed. Harry forced his way past them yelling that the rest of his stuff would have to wait until he could find a way to take it. Harry burst into the darkening evening his thoughts just as cloudy as the fogging sky. He made it to the road and concentrated on needing a ride. In no time at all the Knight Bus stopped and Stan swung open the purple door. Harry paid his fee hoping Stan wouldn't remember who he was. Of course, it was too much to hope.
"Harry! How's it going? Do you need anything extra?"
"No, thank you. I'll just take my bed thanks."
"Okay. Are you sure you should be going anywhere, especially alone? It's pretty dangerous I'd imagine for Harry Potter to be out alone at night."
"I'll be fine." Harry scowled and Stan didn't push the issue.
"Where are you headed?"
"Ottery, St. Catchpole," Harry said as calmly as he could.
In little less than an hour, Harry found himself in Ottery walking, trying to remember how to get to the Burrow from town. Finally, he resorted to checking a phone directory only to find that the Weasleys weren't listed or plotted on the map. Harry made his best guess, reluctant to use his wand's Point Me spell. Harry's gut told him when he saw red and green sparks flying in the air that he was heading in the correct direction. In a panic, Harry ran faster than ever toward the sparks in the sky. As he approached the Burrow, he slowed down and took out his wand. Harry's jaw dropped for a moment as he saw his second home bursting in flames and six hooded figures in silver masks laughing as they shot more sparks with their Incendio spells. Harry searched for any of his red-haired family. Behind him Fred Weasley threw a stone at Harry and it fell at Harry's feet. Harry whipped around almost shouting and giving away their position. He covered his mouth and slowly made his way over to Fred, who was hiding with his twin, George and Ginny. "Where's Ron and your mum?" Harry asked.