A/n: I'm back! (Dancey dancey!) A good explanation as to where I've been is at the end of chapter 3 in my other story, Love Me Back Together! I hope I haven't lost all you guys, I'd just melt and die and be bipolar.

Heaven and Hell: Battle for the Jewel of Earth

Chapter two: Return to Hogwarts.


The Order of the Phoenix was having a conference in the Great Hall that evening. It seemed as if the Deatheater activity was raising from an attack once a month to almost 3 attacks a week. For once, Albus was glad Minister Fudge was an idiot and left the attacks out of the Daily Prophet.

" What are we suppose to do, Albus?" Severus asked. " Avery came to me two days ago, talking about the Dark Lord having been reborn." At this little bit of information, everyone in the room gasped.

" You can't be serious, Severus. How is that possible?" Flitwick inquired, after climbing back into the chair he had just fallen out of.

" He didn't give me any details. He only told me to be at the old apparating site. From there we'd portkey to an undisclosed location." He said.

" It could be a trap set for you." Lupin said worriedly. " They could have found out about your switching sides from Wormtail." He said, spitting the name out. None of them knew that Ron's rat had been Wormtail and because of that, he could have been sneaking around anywhere, finding out things that they really wouldn't want him to know. After the incident Sirius was reinstated to the Order after many explanations and convincing.

" That could be a possibility." Albus said. " I don't want you risking it."

" But Albus--"

" You are like a son to me Severus, a son and a wonderful colleague. I don't want to see you dead at such a young age."

" I am hardly young." Snape said, glaring slightly. Dumbledore's eyes twinkled.

" But to me you are still the same troubled teenager."

" Albus as much as I'd love to listen to all about you and Snape's Father-son relationship, I think there are more important tasks at hand." Sirius said irritably. " We still have to figure out what to do with these Deatheater and then there's the issue of Harry." When he had found out about Dante taking his godson off to who knows where, he had been furious. He never trusted that man, not with his life and definitely not with his godsons. Dante was too strange for him; he was unfriendly with everyone but Lily (And sometimes James) and disappeared for months at a time. Sirius made sure he never hung around when Dante was with the Potter family, he'd probably end up cursing the man to oblivion.

" You have a point Sirius." Albus said, nodding a little. " Now--" A few people jumped while some pulled out their wands when the Great Hall's doors were nearly thrown open.

" Dante?" Remus whispered in recognition. He looked over the man who had barely changed since he last saw him. His hair was a bit longer and he wasn't as pale. His outfit was different and the sword was a new addition.

" Whoa . . .is it my birthday or something?" Dante drawled. Albus motioned for the Order to lower their wands and relax.

" Dante, we weren't expecting you and Harry until tomorrow. Did something happen?" He asked worriedly. He may have been an old man who some thought senile but he did notice the tears in the trench coat and who could miss the blood in the man's white hair?

" Yeah, a couple of blood lions is what." Several people gasped loudly. " We're okay though. I dealt with them." He smirked.

" Where's my godson?" Sirius demanded, standing from his seat. He stalked over to the slightly taller man and glared. Dante raised an amused eyebrow. The sound of running footsteps reached their ears.

' Dante didn't I tell you to wait for me?' Harry thought to the man, running into the Great Hall. Dante turned to him.

" Sorry, Har. I was just following my ears." He said. That was when Harry noticed everyone else in the hall. He stopped, halfway hiding behind Dante, and looked at everyone. He noticed Remus, Professor McGonagall, Professor Flitwick, the Headmaster, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Sirius and about 10 or 15 other people he didn't know.

Sirius clenched his fists. He would really like to know why his 14-year-old godson was wearing nothing but a long, bloodstained white shirt and a pair of boxers. Harry watched the angry look on his Godfather's face and couldn't help but wonder what he did now.

" Black, will you stop glaring like that?" Dante asked, frowning. He could feel the bit of fear coming off of Harry. He didn't like it. Sirius stopped glaring but not because Dante told him to. It was because of the wide-eyed look he was getting from Harry. Harry hadn't been afraid of him that day in the shack so why was he afraid now?

" Harry, are you okay?" Sirius asked, concerned. Harry nodded, stepping out from behind the tall half demon a bit.

" He needs to get to the infirmary though, I did what I could for him." Dante told them.

" What do you mean, those nasty beasts didn't get to him, did they?" McGonagall asked, appalled. She had never seen a Blood lion in person, only in books and that was enough to make her gag.

" Which ones? The Dursley's or the Blood Lions?" He said darkly. Harry felt his face heat up. It was bad enough that Dante knew how helpless he was against muggles. He didn't need everyone else knowing.

" What do you mean, the Dursley's?" Snape demanded. Harry mentally groaned once he spotted Snape, almost hidden since he was still sitting in his seat. This was the last thing he needed. Why did Snape of all people have to be there?

" What, Dumbledore didn't share the letter I sent?" Dante asked. Snape frowned. He managed to convince himself that Dante had been lying.

" Oh, I always knew those muggles were no good! Putting bars on Harry's windows, not feeding him . . ." Mrs. Weasley rambled. Dante ignored her and the other muttering people. Harry had told him about the bars and he didn't really expect anything less from the Dursley's. After all, they made him live in a cupboard until he was 11.

" Alright then, This meeting is put on hold until tomorrow night." All of the people Harry didn't know left some saying goodbye to him and wishing him well. Soon the only people left in the room were Hogwarts professors, Sirius and Remus. " Let's get you to the infirmary, Hm?" Dumbledore said kindly.


Remus, Sirius, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, McGonagall, Snape, The Headmaster, Madame Pompfrey, and Dante were all crowded around his bed in the infirmary. He felt small, like a chicken egg amongst dragons. Dumbledore was talking with Pompfrey while Mrs. Weasley refused to stop asking about how he was and whether he needed anything. If he could talk, he probably would have told her to shut up from lack of patience.

" Harry, why won't you say anything?" She finally asked, worriedly, gaining the attention of the others. Dante stopped glaring at Black for a moment to look down at her. He was standing on Harry's other side while she was sitting next to Harry across from him.

" Because he can't." Dante told her. She looked surprise.

" Wh--what happened?" She sputtered.

" I didn't put the Dursley's in hell for nothin'." He smirked. Almost everyone looked appalled by this, except the three who had actually seen the Dursley's and had gotten his letter.

" Is this true Albus?" Minerva asked.

" Yes, my dear. It is." He said, not sounding quite as disappointed or angry as she expected. " It seems as if the Dursley's were abusing Harry." His twinkle dimmed and nearly went out.

" WHAT?" Sirius bellowed, face turning red in his anger. Harry squeaked and jumped nearly a foot off the bed.

" Black if you don't calm the fuck down, I'll throw you out the window." Dante growled dangerously, blue eyes turning to a glowing fire in his anger. Sirius, once again, stopped upon noticing the look on his Godson's face.

" Albus, what did they do that would cause him the use of his voice?" McGonagall asked. Poppy, who had been trying to treat Potter, piped up.

" I would be able to find out if you people would kindly move away from Mr. Potter." She said, glowering at them. They all moved back and watched as she scanned over Harry who was looking at Dante pleadingly.

' This is a nightmare!' Harry thought to Dante. The half-demon smirked. ' And not funny either.' Harry glared.

" What are you smirking at?" Sirius said suspiciously. Dante lazily turned his eyes to him.

" Just something your godson said." He said airily.

" That seems to be a little impossible as Mr. Potter is currently unable to speak." Snape sneered.

" Who said it had anything to do with vocal chords, Snape?" He raised a thin white eyebrow.

" Are you saying you and Harry can speak telepathically?" Remus asked, surprised. Dante nodded. He and the werewolf had no problems with each other. Unlike Black, who was a blind Gryffindor, and Snape, who was an untrusting git. Remus understood him almost as much as Lily did. It was something he kept well hidden. The werewolf knew about the connection he, Lily, and James had. He understood it and he accepted it. Maybe it was because of his Lycanthropy or maybe it was the fact that Remus was just that intelligent and trusting.

" We've had this connection since he was about a year old. You have no idea how annoying it is to have baby babble in your head." He said irritably. Harry blushed in embarrassment.

" If you could hear him, how come you didn't save Lily and James on that Halloween?" Sirius asked accusingly. Dante knew this question would pop up sooner or later. After all, no one trusted a demon, half or not, even if they didn't know he was one. A wizard could sense non-human blood but that didn't mean they knew what that person was exactly.

" Take in mind that Harry was only a year old, he couldn't communicate with me when I was all the way in America. It's too far away. " He told them. It was the slight truth. He did go to America and from there he went to Vedli Haven. " Lily wasn't telepathic and James probably didn't have enough time to use his to contact me. Even if he could, there would have been nothing I could do."

" I'm sure an almighty vampire could have done something." Sirius spat. Dante snorted.

" Vampire? Where the hell did you get that from?" He almost felt like laughing. He couldn't believe Black had spend so much of his time trying to figure him out and only came up with a false conclusion.

" Then what are you?" Minerva asked.

" I'm half demon." Dante said. Everyone but Dumbledore, Pompfrey, Remus and Harry gasped in either horror or shock.

" And you let him in here?" Sirius exclaimed, turning furious eyes on Dumbledore.

" Sirius, you need to understand that Dante has not and will not cause any harm to anyone in this school. He isn't exactly a gentle soul," Harry grinned at that, earning a light glare from the man. " But he isn't evil."

" They are bloodthirsty creatures who only enjoy killing." He spat. " You don't call that evil?"

" Hey, I'm only half bloodthirsty creature." Dante smirked. Sirius growled and made a move towards the half-demon. The Headmaster pressed a gentle hand against Sirius' chest to keep him from moving.

" My dear boy, this is no time for fighting and this is no time for prejudices. I know for a fact that Dante has never harmed a human being that didn't deserve it. I think you'll agree with him and me when we say that the Dursley's deserved what they got."

" What does he do for a living if he isn't killing off humans and eating their flesh?" Sirius said, slightly calmer. Harry wrinkled his nose at what his godfather said; trying to ignore Madame Pompfrey who was prodding at his partially healed wound.

' That's sick.' Harry said before Madame Pompfrey shoved a goblet of dreamless-sleep in his hands.

' Tell me about it.' Dante muttered in his head.

" I'm a demon hunter." He said." I track them, fight them, and kill them. Then go home with a wad of money in my pocket." He told them.

" Still a money grubbing bastard I see." Severus said silkily.

" Yeah? And?" Snape scowled at him.

" Gentlemen, if you would please lower your voices?" Pompfrey said, finally finished checking Harry who she had just given a dreamless-sleeping potion.

" How are his injuries, Poppy?" Remus asked.

" Mr. . . .uh, Dante has done one heck of a job in fixing him up." She said, smiling slightly. " I cleaned him up a bit and healed his bruises. I did the best I could with that gash from the Blood Lion. It was already partially healed, thanks to Dante, but there's nothing I can do about the scar it will leave." She said.

" That's just fine, Poppy. All that matters is that he is alive." Albus said softly. She nodded in agreement.

" About his throat . . ." She started. " It seems as if he were strangled numerous times." Most of everyone in the room looked sick at this. " It's healing nicely but I'd like him to continue using that Telepathy as much as possible. I don't want him wearing down on his already fragile throat. It could damage it further so no yelling and no talking for long periods of times. It would do well if one of you would tell him that when he awakens." Dumbledore nodded and sighed a bit.

" I think it is time we leave Mr. Potter to rest. I believe we too need to catch up on some much needed rest." Dumbledore said, turning and leaving the infirmary.


Harry woke up to the sun beaming through the window. He groaned at the bright light and turned away, intent on getting some more sleep. However, his sleep was interrupted by the sound of someone's laughter. He opened an eye and gave a one eyed glare to whoever it was who was laughing.

" Good morning, sunshine." Dante grinned.

'Good morning? Wake me up tomorrow and it might be good.' Harry said crankily, closing his eye again. Dante snorted.

" Sorry, kid but you have to get up. That old fool wants to speak with you and then you're going to get some breakfast. After that, I'm taking you to Diagon Alley to get your school supplies. Maybe you can meet up with those friends of yours." Harry perked up at this. He had almost forgotten all about Ron and Hermione. They hadn't exactly written to him since his birthday and when they did, they were always talking about each other. Harry was a little put down because of this but he had known that they liked each other, he could almost smell it on them and was happy for them if they got together.

' Fine, then just let me get dressed, okay?' Harry yawned, sitting up.

Harry hopped out of the infirmary bed and grabbed his clean clothes from Dante and headed towards the bathroom.

" Hey, Harry, is it a little breezy in here or what?" Harry blinked and turned back towards Dante with confusion.

' Huh?'

" Close your gown." Harry meeped and hurriedly closed the thing before scampering off to the bathroom. Dante chuckled. ' Cute . . .'


Harry, still blushing in embarrassment, walked out of the bathroom, freshly showered. He was dressed in a white t-shirt with a big black star on it and black jeans that actually fit him. He even had a new pair of white sneakers. Harry walked up to Dante who was stretching slightly, looking just as refreshed as himself, dressed in his usual outfit, only free of blood and tears. He noticed Harry's reddened cheeks and smirked.

" Be glad it was only me looking at your ass and not Snape." He said. Harry blushed even more at the thought of Snape looking at his arse. Harry glared up at Dante.

' And what, exactly, did you think you were doing, looking at my butt?' Dante blinked; surprised that he actually let that slip.

" Nevermind that, we got to go see your headmaster." Dante said, walking away. Harry pouted but followed the older man. " Oh yeah, " Dante said, once in the hallway. " Madame Pompfrey said you are allowed to speak," Harry's eyes lit up at the prospect of actually speaking. He hated being so quiet, especially at night. He used to speak to himself in whispers, just voicing his thoughts, so that he wouldn't feel so lonely at the Dursley's. " But you can't speak excessively or yell at all. It would damage your voice permanently."

" I . . .should thank her." Harry said aloud. His voice was hoarse from disuse but he was glad he could at least make a sound now.

" Hm . . .Yeah." Dante said as they came upon the Gargoyle that led to the Headmaster's office. " Snickers." Dante said. The Gargoyle leaped aside and they rode the spiraling staircases upwards.

' How does he even know about Snickers?' Harry wondered to himself.

When they entered the Headmasters office, the old wizard was the only one in there, seemingly talking to Fawkes who was currently perched on his desk. He looked up when they entered and smiled.

" Good morning gentlemen." He said as they seated themselves in the cushioned chairs in front of his desk. Fawkes trilled happily and moved back to his perch where he proceeded to stare at Harry.

" Good morning, Headmaster." Harry said softly. The old man's eyes twinkled brightly just as a tray of food appeared.

" It's good to see you are on your way to getting better, Harry." Dumbledore said kindly. " I took it upon myself to bring us some breakfast while we speak." He told them. " Now . . ."


About an hour later the two of them left the office, both not entirely happy about what was said. Dante was particularly angry because the Headmaster told him that the only way he would allow him to stay at Hogwarts was if he became the schools, you could say, body guard. Dante had no interests what-so-ever in protecting the school or it's inhabitants. The only one he intended to ever protect was Harry. He promised to protect Harry even before the boy was born. He had no ties to Hogwarts; the only reason why he knew Lily and hung around Hogwarts was because he knew her mother and her mother had asked him to protect her.

Harry wasn't happy because he was forbidden to play Quidditch and go on Hogsmeade weekends, in fact, he was down right pissed. He couldn't believe the audacity of that man.

" Hey, just think of it this way," Dante said suddenly, as they walked down the hall. " You get to spend more time with me and I get to teach you some, ah, useful methods of defending yourself." Dante told him.

' Really?' Harry looked up at him with interest. Dante nodded.

' To hell with all that Light magic, dark magic crap. I'm gonna teach you whatever is good for defending yourself against demons, dragons, Deatheater, and anything that will try to harm you.' He said telepathically.

' Thanks Dante.' Harry smiled gratefully.

" No problem kid."


Diagon Alley was packed with the regulars and students doing some last minute school shopping. Harry was starting to worry about being separated from Dante. The flow of people was already jostling them so Harry wasn't surprised when Dante grabbed his small hand and gently led him to the stores he needed to go to. He was sure that most kids his age would be embarrassed to have an adult holding their hand but not him. He liked the feel of Dante's battle worn hand, gripping his.

" I think this is the last place." Dante muttered. All Harry needed now was new school robes and dress robes for the festive balls Dumbledore had told him about. He already had every day clothes, thanks to Dante. " This place looks safe enough . . .I'm going to leave you for two minutes. I need to hurry back over to the Apothecary. Do you think you'll be fine?" Dante asked. Harry rolled his eyes.

' I'm not a little kid, Dante. I think I'll be fine.' Dante snorted but left anyway.

" Ah, Good evening Mr. Potter!" Said a cheery woman. " Come, let's get you fitted, I'm sure you're here for the same reason as every other student." Harry stood on the stool while his measurements were magically taken. After they were done, Madame Malkin tsked, frowning at his measurements. " It seems as if you've gotten smaller since the last time I saw you." She said thoughtfully. She didn't read anymore into it and instead, after getting his school robes ready, came back with a multitude of colors and fabrics for his dress robes.

For the next 10 minutes, Harry tried on almost every color of robe under the sun. Finally they both agreed on emerald green robes with gold stitching and embroidery. He got black robes of a fine silk material lined in silver, more green of a different fabric and even some white robes. Harry paid her and turned to go find Dante who should have been back by now.

He walked out the door and looked around the busy streets for any sign of the tall man. Harry frowned when he couldn't spot him. He should have been back a while ago. Harry thinking that Dante had gotten distracted by something or someone continued walking down the street in search of him. His search was pretty futile being that most people were taller than he would ever be.

After a while, he began to think that leaving the shop was a bad idea. It was still pretty crowded outside and even if he found Dante, he'd probably never reach him. Harry sighed inaudibly and turned around to head back to Madame Malkin's to wait for Dante. However, he found his way blocked by a broad expanse of chest. He slowly looked up into the man's face and his fear slowly melted away.

' Dante, don't ever scare me like that again!' Harry whined. Dante smirked slightly.

" You're lucky it was only me and not someone else." Dante told him, gently grabbing him by the hand again. " You should have stayed at Madame Malkin's." They headed back to the Leaky Cauldron.

" I know." Harry said almost inaudibly. " Sorry . . ."

" Hey, you're only h—" Dante coughed a little. " So do you have anything else you need?" He asked. Harry gave him a puzzled look but shook his head. " Good. I'm tired of being around all of these—"

" Harry!" Harry jumped a little but turned around and smiled. Hermione and Ron ran up to him, big smiles plastered on their faces and, not to Harry's surprise, holding each other's hands. Hermione hadn't really changed. She still had the frizzy, flyaway hair, and she was still shorter than Harry was but only by a half an inch. She was filling out nicely though and Harry had a feeling that Ron would be beating the boys off of her with a stick.

Ron himself was still growing. He was only three or four inches shorter than Dante was. He was beginning to gain some muscle too, looking a lot like his brothers, Fred and George.

" How have you been?" Hermione asked, pulling him into a tight hug, practically forcing him to let go of Dante's hand. Harry tensed a bit before returning her hug.

" I've been . . .okay." Harry said, coughing a little. They pulled away from each other.

" Okay?" She repeated with concern.

" I'll tell you about it later." She barely heard him.

" Is there something wrong with your voice?" She asked.

" I hate to break up your reunion, Har, but we should be getting back. You can tell them about this later." Dante said. That was when the two finally noticed the white-haired figure standing behind Harry.

" Who are you?" Ron asked suspiciously. It wasn't everyday you saw your best friend hanging around with some strange man.

" Dante." The half demon told them. He gently took Harry's hand again and led him towards the Leaky Cauldron. Harry waved back at them apologetically. They waved as well, finding it strange that the man was holding Harry's hand.

" I'm sure he'll explain later." Hermione said slowly.

" He better." Ron frowned.


It was finally September 1st and Headmaster Dumbledore was in the middle of his speech. Harry sighed, bored, tired and hungry. He didn't get much sleep last night. He was too busy worrying over how to explain his summer to his friends. Hermione who gave him a stern glare jolted him from his thoughts. He rolled his eyes slightly and went back to listening to Dumbledore.

" . . .Defense Against the Dark Arts, is Professor Lucia." The students and professors clapped politely for the new teacher, some boys wolf whistling in appreciation. She was a 5'7 woman with darkly tanned skin. Her red hair was twisted in a big ponytail and hung over her shoulder, some of her hair, covering one of her eyes. Her one visible, yellow eye showed warmth and wisdom. She was dressed in tight dragon-hide pants, calf high dragon-hide boots and a white, sleeveless shirt with a white, open cloak over it.

After she sat down, Dumbledore allowed them to eat their dinners and soon, the Hall was loud with laughter and conversation. Harry was probably the only person not talking and this was unusual.

" Why aren't you talking, Harry?" Hermione asked from beside him. He looked up at her and motioned for her to come closer.

" I'll tell you and Ron later." He rasped. Hermione nodded.

" You should get that checked out, Harry. You sound terrible." She told him sympathetically. Harry only sighed.

After the welcoming feast, Harry led his friends to Dante's own little apartment in the dungeons. Harry figured it would be easier to tell them everything if Dante was there to help. Knowing his friends, they'd probably interrupt every few seconds and they'd be there all night.

Dante's apartment was tastefully done in dark red and black. The black leather couches were centered around the dark wooded coffee table in front of the fireplace. The carpeting was dark red and went around the whole main room. There were several doors that Harry knew led to the kitchen, a guestroom, and Dante's bedroom, which also had the bathroom.

" Why'd you take us down here?" Hermione said, looking around curiously. She wandered over to the bookcases that were situated in the far corner. A desk also sat against the same wall, several papers strewn about it.

" Yes, Har. Why did you bring them here?" Dante said, coming from the kitchen area, dressed in torn blue jeans and a sleeveless black shirt.

" It's you." Ron said without thinking. Dante raised an eyebrow.

" They want to know about this summer." Harry said quietly. Dante nodded in understanding.

" Well, sit, get comfortable." He told them. " Anybody want something to drink?" They shook their heads." Too bad, Harry, you need some tea." Dante said. He went back into the kitchen and came out with a hot cup of mint tea.

" Thanks." Harry said, gratefully taking the cup and sipping it every now and then.

" So . . .what happened this summer?" Hermione asked, shifting nervously. Dante was sitting on the couch opposite of the trio, looking as if he were trying to see through her head.

For a good two hours, Dante and Harry told them about the summer and Dante's past with him and his mother. When they were told about what the Dursley's had done, they went into a rage. If it weren't for the calming tea Dante made them drink, they probably would have gone all the way to Surrey just to show them a thing or two . . .or three. Dante didn't bother telling them that he had already taken care of them.

" But you're okay now, right?" Ron asked, concernedly. Harry, whose head had been bowed most of the time, nodded.

" My throats still healing." He said. " Still hurts to speak though . . ." He coughed a little and drank the rest of his second cup of tea.

" You shouldn't speak then, you might make it permanent, or something." Ron told him.

" Yeah, I told him that the other day." Dante said.

" But how will he function in class?" Hermione asked.

" His throat's out of order, not his hands." Dante snorted. She blushed in embarrassment.

" Hey, uh, Mr.—" Dante cut her off.

" Please, just call me Dante. Mr. Is for old, cranky men." He grimaced. Harry rolled his eyes.

" Okay . . .Dante, is the only reason why you're here to protect Harry? Because, Headmaster Dumbledore didn't introduce you to the school . . ." She asked.

" I wish it was." He grumbled. " That old fool, told me I had to become the school's Guardian if I wanted to stay." He said. " I could care less about this decrepit old building and half the people in it." He said. Hermione seemed to be insulted and Ron looked a little red in the face. " I made a promise to his parents that I would protect him, no one else. I've got enough crap to deal with and I don't need a school full of whiny teenagers on top of it . . .not that you're crap, Harry." Dante said. Harry waved it off.

" Hn. Well, I suppose we should be heading to the common room now." Hermione said stiffly. Harry could tell that she was miffed. Dante nodded.

" See ya later, kid." Dante said, winking. Harry threw him a questioning look but didn't say anything.


Harry had a relatively decent sleep. His scar burned slightly but it wasn't anything for him to be concerned about. After showering and dressing, he and Ron met Hermione downstairs where they proceeded to breakfast.

" Is Headmaster Dumbledore going to ever announce Dante?" Hermione asked once they settled down at the Gryffindor table and began to eat.

" Probably not . . .it's safer this way." He said softly. Hermione nodded in understanding. Of course Dumbledore wouldn't announce the school guard. That way, none of the Deatheater's children could pass on information. There was one thing she was confused about, though.

" Harry . . .why does the school need Dante anyway? He never told us that." Harry was about to reply when he noticed Seamus trying to eavesdrop on their conversation.

" I'll tell you later." He said.

" Hey, Harry!" Fred called from a couple of seats down. Harry looked up from the toast he was about to bite into. " There's a Quidditch meeting during lunch, be there!" Harry sighed and nodded. He'd tell them he was off the team then. Doing it now would just cause a lot of ruckus.

By the time he was able to eat a bit of breakfast, it was already time for their first class. After their schedules were handed out, they headed out. Harry checked his and frowned. He no longer had Divination. In its place was training with Dante. He had that class on everyday of the week but Sunday.

" What the hell is training?" Ron asked, peeking at his schedule. " I don't have that . . ." Harry shrugged.

" Come on, we'll be late for Transfiguration."


By the time lunch came around, Harry was sporting a killer headache. Most of his teachers didn't make him talk too much but they couldn't ignore him. He was surprised that Snape hadn't constantly asked him questions just to spite him. Instead, the Potion's Master practically ignored him. It might have had something to do with the fact that they had Potion's with the Ravenclaw's for once or maybe Snape pitied him.

' He better not.' Harry thought to himself. ' The last thing I need is pity.' He frowned.

" Is everything okay, Har?" He looked up and noticed that he had been standing in front of the doors to the Great Hall. Ron was giving him weird looks.

" Yeah, sorry." He coughed a bit and smiled. That was when he remembered he had to be at the Quidditch meeting. " I have to be at the Quidditch meeting." He said and ran off. The team was meeting in the common room and it looked like they had already started by the time he walked in.

" There you are! Sit down, mate." George said, scooting over on the couch. Harry smiled a little and plopped down next to the sixth year. After they passed out a couple of snacks they began the meeting.

" Well, first things first, we need a new Captain and Keeper." Katie said from her perch on the arm of the couch.

" Yeah, I know a few people who'd like to be Keeper." Angelina said. " I've seen them work. They're pretty good." Katie nodded.

" We'll hold tryout's on Saturday. I'll make the announcement later. Now for the Captain—"

" Who says Katie should do it?" Fred exclaimed. Everyone chorused their 'I do's', startling her. " The vote is unanimous, Miss Bell. What say you?" She grinned.

" I say you better be prepared because I'm going to be worse than Oliver was." She smirked. The Weasley twins groaned.

" Um . . .you guys." Harry said, finally finding the time to speak.

" Yeah, Har. What's up?" He shifted nervously under their gazes.

" You're going to have to . . .er, find another seeker as well . . ." He said.

" Aw, Katie won't be that bad, Harry! No need to quit on us!" Angelina joked. Harry smiled sadly.

" I'm serious. Dumbledore doesn't want me on the team anymore . . .for safety reasons." He said grimly. There was a chorus of loud protests from the whole team about this and he winced. It was only making his headache worse. Fred noticed this and calmed everyone down. Soon it was quiet again. " I'm sorry, guys." Harry said sadly. " I really want to stay but Dumbledore's convinced that I'd be safer off the team and here during Hogsmeade weekends."

" That's just cruel." George said.

" Well . . .I guess we'll have to get a new seeker. I mean, unless we can get Dumbledore to change his

mind . . . ." Katie said. " I'd hate to lose you, Har. You're the best damn seeker I've ever seen." There were

murmurs of agreement.

" Thanks Katie." Harry said, smiling. " I don't know if the headmaster will change his mind but just in case

he doesn't, still hold seeker try-outs. I can probably train them or something."

" That sounds good to me." Angelina said, nodding.

" Great! Then we'll hold tryouts on Sunday." Katie said enthusiastically. She wouldn't let something like

Harry being taken off the team bring her spirits down, no matter how much it sucked. " Is that fine with

Everyone?" She asked. No one complained.


His last class of the day was training with Dante. It took him a while to find the room he was to report to, especially since it was down a hall he had never been down before. After asking a few of the paintings he found the room and was stunned when he opened the door. The room was at least three times the size of a regular Hogwarts room, probably magically resized. The walls were adorned with various weaponry and splatters of glowing white light that illuminated the room efficiently. The floor was cushioned as he walked over it, like it was one giant firm mattress. Dante was sitting in the middle of the floor, polishing his most treasured sword, Rebellion. It lay in all of its magnificence, on his lap, shining eerily. Dante looked up as the door shut behind him and grinned. He threw the cloth down and stood, swinging his sword up to rest on his shoulder.

" Took your good ol' time, eh?" He asked.

' I couldn't find the room.' Harry admitted. ' It would have been nice if someone was more specific about where this room was at.' Harry thought, glaring slightly. Dante rolled his eyes.

" Anyway, for the next month or so, I'll be teaching you how to wield a sword." He told him. " By the time November comes around, you'll have nearly mastered your sword type. Of course, you'll be no where near as skilled as me but I believe you'll be just as quick a learner as your mother was."

" In case you don't remember, I'm not exactly in peak physically condition." Harry said softly. Dante's grin fell and he became serious once more.

" No matter how true that is, it won't hold you back much. Like I said, by the time November comes around, you'll have mastered what you need to." Dante said reassuringly.

' I'll hold you too that.' Harry grinned.


A/N: I would say I am on a roll with this updating thing but I might jinx myself. OO. so I'm just going to be glad I finally got the second chapter of this up and hope you all enjoyed it. Please review! I'll try to stay true to this new and yet familiar thing called updating. (innocently blinks)