Chapter 2- Dreams and Departure

Harry was wrapped in a blanket of darkness. He felt his body searing with pain. He opened his mouth to scream but no sound came out. Then there was a light, a gleaming white light. Harry reached for it and held in his hand, a diamond. He stared at it. It felt cold in his sweating hands.

"You have what I need," a cold high pitched voice called from behind him. He felt his scar searing with pain.

Harry was pulled out of the dream. He was back in his room. Gasping for breath, sweat dripping from every inch of his body. The pain in his scar had vanished almost as quickly as he awoke. Hedwig was staring at him inquisitively. Across the room, the digital clock read 11:07.

'What was that all about,' Harry asked himself as he changed his clothes.

'What do you think it was about?' A little voice in the back of his head asked back.

'He needs something.' Harry answered the voice.

'Good,' the little voice replied, 'And what is it?'

"That thing," he said aloud.

Downstairs the house was empty. Uncle Vernon had left for work and Dudley was out 'having tea.' Aunt Petunia was in the garden, occasionally stretching her long neck over the fence to spy on the neighbors. Harry went into the cupboard and grabbed a Twinkie. He violently ripped off the wrapper, pretending it was Bellatrix Lestrange's head.

He had to tell somebody. After what happened last year Harry wasn't keeping dreams like these a secret anymore. But who to tell? He didn't think sending a letter to Ron would do any good. He needed to send it directly to someone of authority. He thought about sending it to Dumbledore but figured he was busy with other things. After going through all the members of the Order in his mind he decided on sending it to Remus Lupin. He had been childhood friends with Harry's father and Sirius. He would care; he might know what to do.

Upstairs he grabbed a piece of parchment and got ready to write. But all he could do was stare at the blank space for a while. How should he start?

Dear Professor Lupin,

'He's not your professor any more,' the little voice said to him.

Harry crumpled up the piece of parchment and grabbed a fresh one.

Dear Lupin,

'Eh, I guess so,' the little voice spoke again. Harry began to write:

I figured I should tell somebody about this so I might as well tell you. I had this dream last night. I don't know what was going on exactly but it was weird. I was in this really dark place and then there was this light, and I had a diamond in my hand. This voice behind me said I had something I needed. I know it was him, I just know it was. Well anyway, just thought you might want to know. Take care,

Harry

Harry reread his letter a couple of times, making sure he hadn't left out anything important. When he was satisfied enough, he poked Hedwig until she woke up, hooting softly. "Hedwig, do you think you can try and find Remus Lupin? He might be at Grimmauld Place. If he's not there, somebody there must know. Got it?" Hedwig hooted in approval. "Go as fast as you can, I don't know when I'm leaving for Grimmauld Place. But just in case I'm gone when you get back, you know where to find me." Hedwig nipped Harry's finger affectionately and flew off.

The next few days were long and dreary. Hedwig hadn't returned with a reply from Lupin and Pig hadn't brought back a letter from Ron. All Harry could do was hide up in his room, avoid the Dursley's and sleep. Dreaming of dark caves, bright lights, and death. Harry's life had taken a turn for the worse.

The air was musty and full of death. Harry was shivering on the ground, alone in the dark. At least, he thought he was alone. He could hear raspy breathing behind him, drawing nearer and nearer. His mind was throbbing with pain, his scar burning him like it never burned him before...

Harry was awoken by a tapping at his window. Hedwig had returned. Harry sprinted to the window and let her in. She dropped a letter at his feet as she flew to her cage:

Harry

Thank you for brining this to our attention. We, the members of the you-know-what have been suspecting some of you-know-who's plans and your letter has helped us greatly. Molly should be making some arrangements for you to come to you-know-where shortly. See you soon,

Remus

Almost immediately after Harry folded up the letter Pig came dashed through the open window, dropped a letter on Harry's head, and flew off.

"What the hell?" Harry said rather loudly. He unfolded the parchment Pig dropped on his head. Ron's handwriting was sloppier than usual.

Harry

Mum says we're gonna get you Monday evening. By the time you get this letter that would be soon so hurry up and pack your things! We'll be taking the Knight Bus and we'll be there around 6. See you (really) soon,

Ron

"Six?" He asked himself. He glanced over at the digital clock on his desk. "Quarter-past four?!" Harry looked around his messy room. Stuck at Privet Drive he didn't have the heart to clean it up. Almost everything on the floor needed to be packed. He grabbed everything he needed that his arms could carry and tossed it in a pile. Hedwig eyeing him curiously.

After about an hour of hard work, Harry's trunk was packed semi-neatly. In half an hour the Weasley's would arrive and take him to Grimmauld Place. A place he looked forward to arriving at so he could finally be with his friends. But a place he dreaded going to because of all the memories of Sirius. Harry was so busy thinking about all the stuff going on in his head he wasn't paying attention to the time. 5:30 already? He dashed downstairs to grab a quick dinner. He wondered how to break the news to the Dursley's. It had to be brief but accurate.

"I'm spending the rest of the summer with my friends," he said blankly, getting up from the table. Aunt Petunia looked terrified and averted her eyes, leaving Uncle Vernon to respond.

"That's...that's fine." Uncle Vernon stuttered. "When are they coming? When will you be back?" He sounded like Professor Quirrell.

"They should be here in a few minutes," Harry replied. "I'll be back next summer."

"Yeah, yeah. Fine then," Uncle Vernon muttered. "Get your things ready."

Harry went upstairs and double checked that all his necessary items were packed. He dragged his trunk and Hedwig's cage downstairs. The Knight Bus was already waiting for him. He brought his belongings out the door without looking back. The Dursley's still sitting in the kitchen.