Darkest Before Dawn

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all related material are copyrighted to J. K. Rowling. The fic is on a "fan fiction" website for a reason, kiddies.

Summary: After a long disappearance over the summer, Harry returns to Hogwarts. Physically, at least.

I'd have to say this is the longest chapter yet. I like it, too, which is good. Well except for the moody beginning, which is there merely to explain the situation. Or so you think. I think Harry needs to get a good whack with a two-by-four or something to get his brain working.

Hermione's pretty touchy right now. She'll get even more interesting. I can't wait to see how she reacts to William Black, he's a riot. If you've ever read a Magus fic, you're going to know what's going on already. I dropped a few hints just in case you don't get it by the end of the chapter.

Also, be sure to go to some name-meaning site and find out what William means. That was just for kicks, really. Cute, right? There, you can't possibly not get it now.

Chapter 4

Magus, Student, Teacher

Harry squinted at the headmaster. "I'm a what?"

"A Magus, Harry. A wizard with unstoppable power." He put the quill down and stood up, walking toward the large window in the office. The midnight blue robes he wore absorbed light, while his beard seemed to glow with it. "I will have to find out how much you can already do, and work from there."

"Don't I get some kind of say in any of this?" Harry spluttered.

The headmaster turned around slightly. Harry felt himself being regarded less like a person and more like a display in a museum. "I will give you a choice right now, if you feel it necessary. Accept the help of the wizard world and learn to become a proper Magus. Refuse the help of the wizard world and be... banished. Incapacitated. Those who cannot handle their powers quickly find a way to burn themselves out."

Harry felt a little sickened by the last comment. Banishment from the only places he'd ever felt accepted, however tentatively at times, was a harsher punishment for him than he'd realized. Even through the summer, he knew he could return.

The elder wizard continued. "I know how you feel about the way I had always held back the truth from you. I am not holding back anything now. Becoming a fully-trained Magus will not be easy. In fact, with every day you will look upon the thought with more and more revulsion than you do now. For you, it will have to be rushed, so the training will be even more intense than normal. But in these dark times, this could be the turn of events that saves your life."

"There must be no doubt that I'm the one in the prophecy now," Harry said glumly.

"I have learned a great deal about the Magi, though I have heard that some traits vary from one to another. There are, however, some things that every Magi has in common: trying to think that you can perform the magic of a Magi will not be enough. You must put your very heart into it. In fact, what you did two months ago was likely not your first experience with your Magus powers." The headmaster's tone was grandfatherly, but it didn't make Harry feel any more in control. He nodded uncertainly.

A thought occurred to him. "Professor... how many other Magi are there out there beside me?"

The blue eyes behind the half-moon spectacles flashed with morning sun. "There have been none for over seven hundred years."

"Oh."

Dumbledore reached into one of the pockets of his robes and pulled out an intricate watch, with twelve hands. "Well, look at the time. I must be heading to my first class today. I couldn't fill the Defense Against the Dark Arts position this year, so I had to take it over myself. Of course, I may not need to continue that if I can find a suitable replacement..." He winked at Harry. However, Defense Against the Dark Arts only distressed him further.

The defense group, Harry thought suddenly, until I get out of this nightmare, I can't organize another meeting of it.

"Now Harry, there's a tower set up for you to stay in. It's quite roomy, you'll find. As I recall, most of your belongings disappeared along with you, so we cannot recover them, but I'm sure we can find a replacement for anything you're in desperate need of. The ones we did get back should be in there." Dumbledore picked up a piece of parchment and started to scribble a few things onto it. "I'm going to have to ask you not to leave that tower until we sort out a few of the messier issues of your Magus training. You can experiment if you'd like to, but make sure not to wear yourself out. Magic is very draining."

Harry nodded slowly. He still couldn't believe what was going on. His mind was elsewhere, back in the universe he understood.

"This will activate as soon as I leave the room." The headmaster pulled his wand out of a different pocket and tapped the paper lightly. "Portus."

As soon as the parchment was placed in Harry's hand, he crushed it inside a fist. While his expression stayed relatively blank, he could feel anger and fear burning away at his insides. Dumbledore strode across the room and left. Harry distinctly heard two words before the Portkey rushed him away in the usual violent flurry of sounds and colors.

"I'm sorry."

Hermione looked over her schedule for Monday again. Her first class was N.E.W.T.-level Potions. As usual, the Gryffindor sixth-years were paired with the Slytherin sixth-years. Stuffing the timetable into her bookbag, she hurried out of the Gryffindor Common room. The portrait of the Fat Lady swung shut behind her, the Fat Lady in question deep in conversation with several painted characters, and took no notice.

As she headed down a flight of stone stairs, she allowed her mind to wander. Despite whatever horrendous event happened during the summer, Harry hadn't forgotten how to laugh. Harry...

The summer had been very worrying for her. It all started one of the nights she'd been staying over at the Burrow. She'd woken up early, and had quietly descended the stairs, stopping when she heard the two Weasley parents talking in low voices. By their account, they suspected Harry of leaving on his own. At first they imagined he could have shown up at some of the usual places, but it had been a couple of days and there was not a sign of him. Hermione's heart fell when she heard that terrible news; she hadn't realized how much she'd grown attached to him as they grew up together. Now, at least, she was certain he was safe, and that was enough to soothe her nerves.

Luna was quite a mystery to Hermione still. Unlike anyone else Hermione had met, Luna had not batted so much as an eyelash when she figured out that Harry had been stowing away on the train. Hermione refused to divulge anything to the Ravenclaw, warning her that it was dangerous enough that either of them had discovered him.

The dungeons had always been a sinister part of the castle. Torches lit the way down a series of wet stone hallways, leading up to a thick, soundproof door that marked the entrance to Professor Snape's classroom. Potions class had always been low on Hermione's list of favorite classes.

She took a seat next to Ron, who'd arrived a few minutes ahead of her. He looked depressed about something, his tall and lanky form having a hard time curling up on the stool he was seated on. She had a pretty good guess of what it was, and put a hand on his shoulder. Her desire to tell him that Harry was there in the castle was strong, but Harry would never forgive her. She had to keep it secret.

Snape slammed the classroom door behind him, and strutted toward the front of the class. He couldn't conceal his smirk as he read down the attendance.

"Harry Potter? Ah, he does not appear to be with us any longer. What a pity."

Hermione gritted her teeth as she watched his quill scratch off the name as though it were nothing. She held her tongue, though. It was so difficult, but she knew he'd pay for the hell he was putting all of them through. It was only a matter of time.

Evening covered Hogwarts in a cover of darkness. Most of the students, occupied by dinner, wouldn't have seen the tall figure that sauntered through the castle. His dark eyes glimmered with silent laughter as he looked around. He had straight black hair that fell to his shoulders. The robes he wore were deeper and darker than midnight, twinkling with a couple of constellations that had been cleverly woven into the fabric. There were a few people in the castle who, if faced with him, would swear on their lives that Sirius Black had returned from the dead. Luckily, none were around.

Well, almost none.

As he walked on with his slow pace, a late student came barreling down one of the hallways and crashed into him. He threw himself against the wall and grabbed the back of her robes to break her fall. Books flew everywhere. She immediately dropped to the floor, her ears as red as tomatoes.

"Sorry sir, I didn't see you, sir! I just had to get to dinner because I'm late, I helped Professor Sprout water one of her more unruly plants and I–" The student's expression went from humiliation to horror. "SIRIUS?"

"Sirius Black? My, no! But he is a relative of mine." His laugh was wild but kind, and she began to feel a little better. The adult had squatted down and was helping pick up books. "I'm the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher."

"Oh... well that was um... I guess you're going to be my teacher, so I'll introduce myself." She gave a small smile. "My name's Ginny Weasley. And you?"

"Pleased to meet you, Ginny. I'm William Black."

Her embarrassment had returned at this point. The red flush crept from her ears to her freckled cheeks. He stood up again, holding some of the books, and offered her his hand. She grabbed it and pulled herself up, finding herself face with him for a brief moment. There was something about him that was strange, and before she could figure it out, the moment was gone. He was just another grown-up going on his way.

She thanked him again a couple of times as she gathered all the books up, then slipped around a corner and out of sight. He wore a mischievous grin as he watched her depart, then continued on. He did have to check in with the headmaster first, of course. Then he could prepare for his first class tomorrow – a mix of the four houses' sixth-years.

He could hardly wait.

Well, there you go. A real­­ cliffhanger. Now, don't forget to review. User input makes this worth it.

Up next... WILLIAM BLACK'S FIRST CLASS! Unfortunately I have to go somewhere without internet for about a week, when I come back I'll have the next chapter written and posted.