CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE: Being The Boy Who Lived

The old Lupin summer home turned out to be a rather large, two story house, that had not lost much of its original luster over the years without use. Lupin had explained that his parents, who had died almost a decade earlier, used a lot of preservement charms on it, so that the air would not grow stale during the eight months out of the year it was abandoned. Other than a fresh coat of paint and a good dusting, there was little else that needed to be done to make it look like a decent place to live.

Moody had previously swept through the premises, checking for anything out of the ordinary, and finding only a boggart in the upstairs wardrobe for his efforts. That didn't stop the Auror from doing another walk through the moment they arrived.

Surprisingly, Moody, Tonks, and Mrs. Weasley barely stayed long enough to see them settled in. The trio interpreted that to mean only one thing: there was something going on and they did not want to involve them in it. When Moody had been far enough out of earshot, Hermione had said in a hushed voice to Ron and Harry, that having them remain at the summer house served two purposes – not only was it supposedly safer, but they would no longer be able to overhear anything to do with the Order. As angry as Ron appeared at seemingly being shoved out of the way, she knew he was not nearly as upset as Harry was.

When the others had departed, Lupin took them through a tour of the house. He made the mistake of showing them the small library first, which Hermione began poking her nose through all the different books, before Ron finally managed to drag her away. Lupin told them he didn't really have any friends during the summer months when he was away from school, so he spent a lot of his time reading. The upstairs had four bedrooms, and their belongings were already placed in a different room.

The most impressive part was the front and back yards. Barrier charms that had been set up over twenty years previous still stood strong and would create the illusion to outsiders that there was no one in the yard even if there was. Dumbledore had actually been the one to set them up when Lupin had started at Hogwarts. It was a way to ensure complete privacy, even when the nearest home was about a mile away. None of them asked what the small, metal shed in the back had been for.

After the tour, Lupin left them to their own devices. Not surprisingly, Harry retreated outside to the back porch, and Hermione thought it best if she and Ron not follow after him. It wasn't hard to sense that he wanted to be alone. He seemed to have retreated back to the brooding and aloft state he had been in when they had brought him to Grimmauld Place near the end of last summer. They gave him his space, deciding to go upstairs and unpack.

It took Hermione considerably less time to unpack then it normally would. She still only had her travel bag and backpack that she had brought with her from Luxembourg. It was still hard to believe only a week had passed since she had run away from home. It felt like much longer then that. Mrs. Weasley had told her that her father had been contacted and informed of her safety, but she had heard no news of him since then. She found it highly unlikely he would let her remain there, and wondered what had been done on her behalf to allow her to stay.

She wandered down the hall to check on Ron. He was supposedly unpacking as well, but knowing him he would probably just leave everything in his trunk, just taking out things as he needed them. The door to his room was partway open, so she peered inside.

Ron was standing there, clad only in a pair of jeans, and rather obviously struggling to throw a jumper over his head. She tried unsuccessfully to stifle a laugh, and it gave her presence away.

Ron stopped his stuggles to glower at her. "You shouldn't laugh at the weak."

"I wasn't laughing," she said, rather unconvincingly.

"Then you were giggling. That's even worse."

"Maybe I'm just trying to even the score between us a little," she teased. "Though I'm fairly certain you've laughed at me more times than I have you."

Ron pretended he didn't hear that last part, but his ears reddened all the same. He resumed trying to pull his jumper over his head, wincing slightly as he did so.

"Do you want a hand?" Hermione asked, seeing his discomfort. There was still a large bandage wrapped around the wound on his side, but at that moment she didn't want to dwell on why the Healers had not been able to do more to heal it.

"Not if you're going to tease," he grumbled.

"Oh, Ron…" This time she managed to conceal a smile as she walked towards him. Ron really could be quite sensitive at times. Something she had only come to notice in the last year.

She took the jumper from him, only to find that she couldn't move. They had not been close like this, just the two of them in months. The night she had showed up at Grimmauld Place didn't count. She had been half asleep from a sleeping drought at the time. It seemed as though Ron was having the same problem as well. His blue eyes were intense and he looked almost nervous. It was then she had her answer. She had been fretting while away in Luxembourg that all that time apart would make them both realize they had made a mistake. That they had let their hormones get the better of them and their friendship would be irrevocably damaged because of it. But as Ron's lips descended on her own, she had never been happier to be wrong.

The jumper fell forgotten to the floor, as she laced her fingers behind Ron's neck, deepening the kiss, which was becoming more frantic and desperate with each passing moment. They fell back onto his bed, and Ron broke the kiss to grimace in pain.

"Sorry. Are you okay?" She asked, straddling his lap.

"Yeah, never better," he said, leaning up to kiss her, but she used her palms to gently push him back down onto his pillow.

"The door's open," she said to him.

"So?" He waggled his eyebrows suggestively at her.

She rolled her eyes in response. "I don't really fancy Professor Lupin seeing us, since it would undoubtedly lead to certain ground rules being set. And Harry may have accepted the idea of us together, but I don't think he wants to walk in on us together."

It was his turn to roll his eyes, but he reached for his wand that lay on the nightstand, biting back a grimace of pain. He pointed it at the door and it closed the instant he said the spell.

He dropped the wand back on the nightstand, saying, "You're too rational," before rolling them over, so that he was on top now. She opened her mouth to protest, but he silenced her by covering her lips with his own.

His hands rested on her waist, while he kissed his way down her neck. She arched her neck to give him better access. He let his hands roam up her back now, underneath her shirt. She pushed herself into him, and he found it extremely difficult to stay in control. They had already talked about this, and Hermione had said she wanted to wait – and he completely respected that. Though it was made that much more difficult by the fact that they had not been together like this in months. He did not want her to think him some hormone-crazed prat, even if that's what he was, and she would find that out if he continued for much longer. So he did the absolute last thing he wanted to do, and pushed himself off of her.

"What is it?" She asked, slightly confused.

"You know my locking charms aren't that great," he lied lamely. "Anyone could walk in here." He saw her mildly hurt expression, before she quickly covered it up. It took every ounce of self-control he possessed not to go back over to his bed. So he wouldn't give in, he rummaged around inside his trunk and picked out a simple button-up shirt to throw on. At least when they got back to Hogwarts there probably wouldn't be as many opportunities to be alone. On the other hand, it might even be worse with all the Prefect duties they attended to together.

"Ron?"

"Hmm?" He said absently, taking extraordinary effort in fixing the buttons on his shirt.

"What's going on?"

She was bound to keep prodding until he told her something, but he was saved from having to give any kind of response when muffled shouts could be heard on the other side of his door. It seemed to distract Hermione as she got off his bed and opened the door. It was coming from downstairs – and it sounded distinctly like Harry's voice. She couldn't make out exactly what he was saying yet, but one thing was for certain – he was extremely angry.

She made for the stairs to discover what was going on, and Ron was following right behind her, doing up the last of the buttons on his shirt.

Harry came back inside after only a short time had passed. He just needed some air to help clear his head. Now it was time to dive back into it all again. He came across Lupin sitting in the study, pouring over a handful of parchments spread out over the desk. He took a long drink from his mug, looking up as he heard Harry approach.

"You want to know if I got your test results," Lupin stated knowingly.

Harry nodded, taking a seat in one of the nearby armchairs.

Lupin shuffled together the papers he had been reading and put them away in the top drawer of the desk. "They were as Dumbledore and I suspected," he said, giving his full attention to Harry. "The results show your brain waves are well above the average human, but not nearly as high as an individual with full telekinetic or telepathic powers."

"So what does this mean?" Harry asked carefully.

Lupin looked thoughtful. "I don't think you have to worry about becoming a full-fledged telekinetic or telepath. And even though Voldemort has mastered Legilimency, I doubt you would ever experience that same power. However, you may begin to exhibit signs of an empath. Voldemort can read minds at times, but what he's strongest at is reading emotions and feelings. For Voldemort it's an asset, but I can see how it would be extremely distracting for you until you've learned to block it out.

"As you've inherited these abilities from Voldemort, I think it's more imperative than ever that you continue with Occlumency. There is no better way for you to learn how to control your own mind, as well as stop you from looking into others. I've been doing a bit of research and I could give you some additional mind exercises to practice, but I think it would be best if Professor Snape went back to teaching you."

"But you're just as good as Sn – Professor Snape," Harry protested. "And I don't end up passed out on the floor nearly as much."

"Harry, I completely understand your reluctance to work under Severus," said Lupin, sympathetically, "but you've exceeded the point where I believe I'm capable of teaching you. I don't think I should have been teaching you Occlumency in the first place. It was selfish on my part to go to Dumbledore and ask him to let me teach you when Professor Snape is one of the most powerful wizards when it comes to matters of the mind."

"I don't care that he's the best," Harry said, leaning forward, hands on knees. "I want you teach me. Professor, your ten times a better wizard then Snape is."

"I'm sorry, Harry, but I've already made my decision. I can't put you at risk like that, especially now with your new powers. There is nothing more important than preventing Voldemort from seeing into your mind, especially if he were to learn what you can do. The results would be far more disastrous than simply planting images in your mind while you're asleep."

Harry stood up, feeling quite angry. Everyone was always so busy trying to protect him, no one ever bothered to consider what he wanted. Lupin had always been different from the other adults in that respect, but even that had changed now.

"Harry, there's one more matter we need to discuss," Lupin said, stopping him from leaving.

Harry faced him, wondering what else Lupin had to say that could possibly ruin his night even more.

"It's about your going back to Hogwarts," he started.

"When is that going to happen? Hermione and I still have that hearing – "

"You're not going back, Harry," Lupin stated.

Harry stared at him with a complete look of bewilderment. He fought the urge to shout. "What do you mean I'm not going back?"

Lupin looked down at his hands, clearly dreading this conversation. "Hogwarts isn't safe for you anymore. There are very few Aurors not under investigation by Moody and they can't be spared to watch the school. Harry, Voldemort is going to want revenge for what happened. Lucius Malfoy was one of his closest and most loyal followers. He may not know how he died, but he'll know you had something to do with it."

"So what better way to protect me then hide me away like he did at the Dursley's for ten years," he said, his voice rising considerably.

"Harry, Dumbledore has good reason for wanting to protect you."

"Am I just supposed to sit around here all day, while everyone else gets to live their life? While Ron and Hermione get to go back to Hogwarts and forget all about me?" He shouted. "Sometimes I think I would have been better off with the Dursley's. At least there no one bothered to put up a fuss about me."

It made Lupin's heart ache to know that he was taking away one of the few things Harry had left, but he didn't have a choice. Dumbledore had made his decision clear. "Dumbledore didn't want to make this choice, Harry, but it was the one he had to make given the situation. He's had to make a lot of decisions over the years he hasn't liked in order to keep you safe."

"But I'm the one who has to live with it," Harry said, his voice bitter. "He thinks he's protecting me but all he's doing is making my life worse. He was so busy protecting me it cost Sirius his life!"

"Hey, what's going on?" A new voice voice asked.

He and Lupin both turned, seeing Ron and Hermione standing in the hallway, looking confused as to what all the shouting was about.

Harry didn't bother answering. He made for the doorway.

"Harry, we need to – "

Lupin's voice stopped there and there was a scream from Hermione as the mug on his desk exploded into tiny pieces that landed everywhere. Harry didn't stick around after that. He charged out of the room and out the back door. The only reason he didn't slam it shut behind him was because he was afraid he would break that too.

As the grandfather clock in the study continued to tick closer to eleven o'clock, the closer Ron got to giving up on his mountainous pile of homework. He tried not to ask for Hermione's help too often, for she was even more buried in it, having missed all those weeks of school. She had been working furiously at it during most of the week, whether it be at St. Mungo's, at Grimmauld Place, and now in the study of the Lupin summer home.

"It's been hours," he said, dropping his quill. "We should check on Harry."

She stopped writing and looked at him. "You're just trying to avoid doing homework," she said in a knowing voice.

"Well, that too," he said, flashing her a wicked grin, "but I still think it would be a good idea if we checked on him."

Rather than argue, Hermione closed her Ancient Runes text, saying, "I think you're right. It feels strange anyways, sitting here doing schoolwork when Harry can't even go back to Hogwarts."

Ron felt the same way. School would definitely not be the same without Harry there. He hated the thought of leaving their friend all alone. He had wracked his brain for ways Harry would be allowed to go back, but as Hermione had carefully pointed out Dumbledore had made the decision, and no one in the Order would overrule him, with good reason. If they wanted Harry to be able to return to school, they would have to talk to Dumbledore themselves.

They left the house through the sliding back door, which led them out to the back porch. The small lanterns that hung on hooks near the gutter provided the only illumination. Harry was sitting hunched over on the steps. He gave no indication that he heard someone come outside. In fact he didn't speak at all until they sat on either side of him.

"All packed and ready to go back to Hogwarts?" He said, his tone harsh.

Instead of answering, Hermione said, "we'll talk to Dumbledore, Harry. There must be some way to make him change his mind."

"He left me with the Dursley's for ten years, so I don't think he's much for rethinking decisions."

"There's only four months left anyways," said Ron in an attempt to cheer him up. "Then there's the whole summer to figure this out."

"There's nothing to figure out, Ron," he said, standing up. "It's safer for everyone if I stay here."

"Did Professor Lupin say that?" Hermione asked.

"He didn't have to. I'm the one Voldemort's after, and if I'm not around anyone, then no one else has to get hurt."

"Harry, you don't really believe that do, you?" Hermione questioned. "Voldemort may be after you, but he won't stop there. He plans on destroying everything in the wizarding world that opposes him.

"And what the hell am I supposed to do?"

"You really are in a self-pitying mood, aren't you?" She snapped at him. "You're going to do what you've done all along – fight for and protect the people you care about. And don't feed me some rubbish about being trapped here. There's still a lot you can do. You could even talk to Lupin about joining the Order."

"Hey, I – "

Hermione sent Ron a piercing look, and he fell silent. It was Harry's spirits she was trying to get up. He needed something to hope for.

"Snape's going to start teaching me Occlumency again," Harry said after a moment.

"How come?" Ron asked.

"The day you were released from St. Mungo's I had some tests done to see if I had any sort of telekinetic or other mind abilities, and it looks like I do," he said to them. "Lupin thinks Snape is the best person to teach me because Occlumency will help me control my abilities, so what happened earlier won't happen again."

"Er, you can't, um, read minds, can you?" Ron asked anxiously. If Harry could read his mind he would probably kill him for all the thoughts he had about Hermione going around in his head most of the time – and he wouldn't waste time looking for his wand to do it.

"No, I'm nowhere near that powerful. Lupin thinks the most I'll be able to do is read strong feelings and maybe project images in people's minds. But I can't do any of that yet," he added, seeing the looks of apprehension cross his friends faces. "My training with Snape is supposed to keep me from losing control over it." He didn't want to answer any more of their questions, because he already had many himself, with very few answers. "I think I'm going to bed," he announced suddenly.

He stopped just in front of the sliding doors, and it looked for a moment like he was going to say something, but then changed his mind and walked inside.

"It could have been worse. At least he didn't make all the lanterns shatter."

"Ron, that's not funny," she said with a glare. "I bet he feels horrible because he can't control his abilities yet. Not to mention he probably feels like we're abandoning him."

"We're not!" Ron cried. "It's not like we have a choice."

"I know that, and Harry knows that too, but it's hard for him not to see things that way." Hermione said to him. "Try looking at this from his perspective. What would either one of us think in the same situation?"

Ron's face turned into a frustrated expression, but it wasn't directed at Hermione. It was directed at everyone and everything that continued to wreck their lives. He had just got Hermione back and now he was being forced to leave his other best friend behind.

It was almost noon when Hermione ventured upstairs to Harry's room the next morning. Ron had come down about an hour earlier, and it did not seem likely Harry would follow anytime soon. Hermione didn't think it was a good idea to leave him shut up in his room all day because it would only serve to further corroborate his theory that he was being left behind and alone. He needed to know that they weren't just going to carry on with their lives and forget about him.

She had come up with the plan that she would go up and bring him the post, and then after about fifteen minutes would go back downstairs. That way it wouldn't seem like she was pressuring him into talking.

If she hadn't known for sure that Harry was upstairs, she would have sworn he had sat right across from her at breakfast, for Lupin was in a sullen mood and said very little. It was clear he didn't want to pull Harry out of Hogwarts, but was simply following orders. Hermione felt sorry for her old professor. Lupin was a good man, who was very obviously torn between duty and his desire to see Harry happy. She hoped Harry would see that too. Lupin was just the messenger, but had nothing to do with why Harry wasn't being allowed to return. Of course she couldn't say any of that to him. Harry would have to come to that realization on his own.

She knocked twice on his door and after patiently waiting for a response, but receiving none, said, "I know you're not sleeping, Harry." She paused, then said, "I'm coming in. I've got the post and there's something in it for you."

There came a rather dejected 'fine', and then she allowed herself to walk in.

He was sitting on his unmade bed, with his back against the wall and his knees up near his chest.

She handed him an envelope with the official Ministry of Magic seal on it. "I got one too," she said, as he read through the letter.

Dear Mr. Potter,

Following the incident on the day of March the 2nd, you are hereby ordered to appear in front of a Ministry appointed panel tomorrow morning at nine o'clock. The Ministry will decide if you are guilty of breaking the decree of underage wizardry for the third time, as well as the severity of performing a sacrificial spell.

Have a good day,

Sincerely,

Mafalda Hopkirk

Improper Use of Magic Office

Ministry of Magic

"That doesn't give us much time, does it?" He said, when he was done reading.

"The Ministry is in a sort of tangled mess right now," she told him. She handed him a copy of the Daily Prophet, where splashed across the front-page was the headline New Minister of Magic Expected Soon. Below there was a picture of a very disgruntled looking Cornelius Fudge.

"What's the article say?" He asked her. He up to reading anything the wizarding paper had to say, since his name had been splayed across the front cover for days now.

"Fudge has all but stepped down from his position as minister. The high council of the Ministry of Magic is asking for his resignation. It's only a matter of time before someone else is voted in. The whole fiasco with the Aurors was the last straw. No one trusts him anymore. Short of stopping Voldemort himself, nothing will get him back in the public's good graces."

"Is Ron's dad still being considered a candidate?" Harry asked.

She nodded. "He's one of a few on a very short list. Once a new minister is voted in, Fudge will have no choice but to relinquish power. They're supposed to unveil the official list of candidates by tomorrow."

Harry wanted to know how long it would take to elect a new minister once the candidates were announced, but the answer would probably result in an in-depth explanation, resulting in an even bigger headache then he already had. Instead he asked, "If we're found guilty, what will happen?"

"Expulsion, for one," she said, shifting uncomfortably, "but that will probably only happen if they find us guilty of the using the sacrificial spell."

"How can they not?"

"I haven't exactly figured that out yet," she admitted, "but there must be some sort of a defense we can come up with," she said in a determined voice. "I'm not too worried about underage magic charges because it was in self-defense, and everyone knows we were put in that situation because the Ministry's own Aurors endangered your life in the first place. We may have a much harder time convincing them of why we were performing a healing spell using magic stronger then most people can handle."

Harry wasn't really worried for himself. If the worse that could happen was expulsion, then it really wouldn't affect him, would it? On the other hand, Hermione's future could be riding on the outcome of their hearing. Though she tried not to sound too concerned, he knew she was probably extremely worried. That's why he asked if she wanted help with coming up with a defense. She looked extremely grateful for the help. He didn't have the heart to dampen her spirits by saying how slim the chances were of them finding something they could use in less than a day's time. They were in way over the heads, but it wasn't like the odds being stacked against them had ever stopped them before.