Premature Exit
Disclaimer: I still don't own Harry Potter.
A/N: Thanks, reviewers Shadow of the black abyss, MachiavellianOrange, Marikili68 and Amrawo. Wow, chapter nine, I can't believe I've actually got here…wow.
Chapter 9
Harry's parents left the following morning. He hugged each of them in turn and then watched as they slowly disappeared into the dark surroundings. The light, along with the fabulously unreal world that they had created vanished as they did, and Harry was left with Sirius in the strangest plane imaginable. He had been beginning to forget about the plane before he had met his parents, he had, at least, forgotten how dark it was; now all he could do was squint into the darkness. He remembered the oddly unpleasant clouds swirling around his feet and wondered why he had never found the time to ask his parents about it. But he had never really found the time to say any of the things he had wondered over the years as an orphan; he only remembered them now. Harry bit his lip, knowing that when they returned anything he wanted to say would be temporarily blown out of his head and would probably only return when he was in a place where they could never be answered.
He had never asked, for instance, about what he clearly remembered in Snape's pensieve. The one time Snape had made Harry feel remotely sorry for him. Harry had not been able to ask these things, but it still seemed all he'd done over the past few days was ask questions. Surely even his parents must have been getting tired of him.
He sat down, the only sounds were Sirius' and his own breathing, it felt strange to put his hand in the misty substance by his feet. Sort of…he couldn't describe it. Now there was nothing more he could do, gradually he began to think back on his life since he entered the veil.
It had definitely been weird. Sometimes everything had seemed so real and other times less than. Cedric had been just as Harry remembered him; he could clearly see Cedric waving goodbye before he returned back to the spiritual plane, where he said he had family. And then Harry remembered Cho, living a tiresomely sad life that Harry could never hope to understand so deeply. Harry remembered Cedric's words as he bidded him farewell.
"Harry, could you do me a favour if you ever get back?" he'd asked. Still feeling guilty about the loss of Cedric's life, Harry had agreed without hearing it. "Could you…could you tell Cho Chang that I love her and ask her, for me, to move on with her life?"
Now Harry dreaded the moment he would have to speak to Cho. He had an image in his head about what saying this might do to her -possibly, she would thank Harry for everything and maybe leave school and never come back. More likely she would burst into tears and use Harry's shoulder like it was made from tissues for a half-hour before Harry managed to get away. Harry wondered if Cedric could watch Cho from the spiritual plane, he had known that his parents had been unable to watch him so he guessed that this was unlikely. Still Harry asked.
"Can you see Cho, or something?" he had said, immediately feeling embarrassed, because if Cedric had then he would have also seen that kiss under the mistletoe the Christmas before. Cedric replied with a grave smile and shook his head.
"But I know Cho," he'd replied, and then he'd said goodbye and left, leaving Harry to think to herself at least someone could understand that girl.
Once Cedric had left Harry had his first conversation with his parents, it had flowed kind of naturally, and Harry was glad that his parents were very easy going people and fun to be around. Sirius had helped lighten the tension on that first conversation, but it had gone very well. He remembered watching in fascination as his parents used their own magic to create the world he had found himself living so comfortably in. He remembered clearly all the conversations they had before everything had gone, he knew the conversation about the prophecy off by heart due to thinking about it far too often. And he remembered feeling like he'd never get out, and the excitement that came with finding out there could be a chance. The immediate drop of happiness when he realised what this would mean, the previous night with his mother and father…Lily's face with tears streaking down it…the word 'sorry', he had heard that word too much from people he had not needed to hear it from. But all of that had disappeared before his eyes, and Harry could not help questioning himself if any of it…any of the bizarre happenings that involved him meeting his parents so prematurely…had really happened. Now they were gone, Harry could not help it. He hoped they would return soon to help Sirius and him out of this plane they were in.
"Er…Sirius?" Harry asked quietly, Sirius' silhouette moved slightly as if startled, "when do you think they'll come back?"
Sirius seemed to shrug and then think this was not a suitable answer because he spoke as well.
"I don't know any more than you do, Harry, possibly less…" he said. Harry didn't know if he should say anymore. He was now faced with the agonisingly long wait until his parents returned. There was no evidence pointing to them even arriving today, or what Harry figured would be today, he had not had a watch since his fourth year at Hogwarts but had the strangest suspicion it wouldn't work in this plane anyway. Harry sighed audibly and sank down so that he was sitting in the mist. He had not experienced this before and it felt very unnatural, he hoped very much that he would have a reason to move soon.
Harry took to counting his fingers repeatedly for Merlin only knows how many hours. He had noticed that he had a papercut on one of his fingers and no recollection of how it had happened. Sirius had suggested half-heartedly that Harry charm his hands so this game could be slightly more interesting once. Harry ignored him - although he had to admit counting his fingers was very predictable, he felt he might as well had been reciting his ten times table. He was on his one thousandth, nine hundredth and thirty-seven when he finished counting and realised he must have gone wrong. He vaguely wondered when and how he could possibly mess up counting. He began to start again from one thousand nine hundred when he was distracted by a sudden light energy swirling, almost playfully, around him. He might have laughed but he had temporarily lost that ability due to the less than exciting past hours.
The lighted energies Harry knew were people; he realised quickly that there was only two and his parents had probably not managed to achieve what they'd hoped. They both grew larger until they gained the form of the two people who had left what now seemed so long ago. Luckily, it was like their bodies lit up the darkness and Harry was finally able to see properly again. Lily stumbled when her feet hit the ground (or the mist, to be more precise.) She angrily tucked a lock of red hair behind her ears.
"Damn," she muttered, "every time."
Harry looked at them both trying not to look to expectant and hopeful. He already knew Merlin was not with them so they'd obviously been unsuccessful, but why had they returned?
"Whats up, Prongs?" Sirius had asked interestedly. Clearly he had guessed too that they were not back with good news.
"We found Merlin," James said, he sounded rather tired, an aspect of his voice Harry had never heard before.
"-And we pleaded with him, you see, he doesn't believe that you should be returned to the material plane because otherwise every spirit would want to do it," Lily said, now over her momentary anger at stumbling slightly.
"But he knows a way for us to leave?" asked Harry hopefully, trying to make something good out of everything he was hearing.
"I bet he does," said James looking triumphant. Lily tutted.
"James! You can't go giving them false hope! But we did speak to Merlin and he did say he'd analyse the situation before seeing us, I believe the ball is in our court due to the prophecy and everything," she said.
"Ball is in our court?" Sirius spluttered, looking highly curious.
"Muggle terminology, my friend, didn't you ever pay attention in muggle studies?" James replied, sounding amused.
"No, actually I didn't, I was busy wondering why the heck I took the class in the first place."
"Eliza Goodwin, I believe," Lily said conversationally, she was trying single-handedly to try and create a better atmosphere and hardly paying attention.
"Ah, yes," Sirius replied reminiscently, "I think Lils might need some help there, Prongs."
Harry could hardly see the point in this conversation and wondered how they had got from Merlin onto the subject of muggle studies. James looked to see a cross Lily and immediately started helping her, he drew out his wand and muttered something whilst Sirius smirked. Harry watched the very unreal world that he hadn't seen for several hours unravel in front of him; this had all been very interesting the first time but was now starting to get rather dull.
"So, what is happening?" asked Harry somewhat abruptly, he had not quite understood what everything before had meant and wanted an actual answer.
"Actually, Lily what is happening?" James asked, clearly trying not to sound too stupid. Sirius muttered something that sounded suspiciously like "and you told me off not paying attention."
Lily glared at James. Harry raised an eyebrow interestedly.
"Honestly…" she began, before turning to Harry and changing her direction of speech, "I think Merlin is busy at the moment, but he said he's come soon, although I must admit I don't know how soon -"
She was cut off but it took a second before the reason became apparent. Then she smiled broadly, James was also grinning but Sirius looked merely confused, in what had to be an expression mirroring Harry's.
Harry looked at Sirius to try and ask "what the heck?" but when he turned to face him he did not find Sirius.
He was looking at the midriff of someone very, very tall. Harry tilted his head back to be able to see the man's face, he was not as tall as Hagrid but certainly taller than Harry had been expecting. But what had he been expecting? Harry could see the creases in his face that told him that this being was extremely old, but still the eyes shining out were gleaming. He looked somewhat familiar but Harry couldn't place this. He could not bring his eyes away even when he realised how rude he was being. The figures mouth opened and closed, only moments later did Harry make sense of the magically echoed voice.
"Good day, Harry Potter."
Hmm. Chapter nine…definitely didn't work out the way I'd planned for it to happen, mind you, none of this story has gone according to plan. I think I was going to originally write five chapters and then after about that many I thought perhaps ten, now it looks like it will be more. Well, this is certainly interesting me as much as (I hope) it's interesting you, please review and make my day :P
NOTE: I am going to Germany tomorrow (Sunday) on a school trip and I will not be back until Friday (16th), it is unlikely that I'll manage to get to an internet café in that period of time so I'll try and have and get the next chapter up on the sixteenth. I did really want to have written this before HBP, but I guess I can't change the way things have gone. It's quite amazing that as soon as I started writing this fic my school decided to bombard me with exams (that I thought I wasn't going to get) and homework. It is also rather interesting I spend my whole life bored and sad then I start this and I suddenly have a social life. Funny how the world works, eh?
Ok, so, I drifted off subject there so here's a recap. Next chapter will hopefully come the day before HBP, and then after that only Merlin knows how long the next chapter after that will take. You see, incidentally I am on another (family) holiday the day that HBP comes out and for a much longer period of time. If you want to keep updated on the situation, I suggest you view my blog. I'll add it to my biography.
