. A N D . T H E . S T A F F . O F . C Y B E L E .
SUMMARY:
Thantanos Quirrel escapes with the Book of Memories. Lord Voldemort resumes his reign of mass murder, spreading terror to Muggle and wizard alike.
During the first month of summer vacation, Harry frequently wakes up sweating, having relived the night of his parents' murder. Aunt Marge takes up residence at Privet Drive, fearing for her own life back at her old house. With nothing more than a talking staff to talk for half the summer, Harry crushes under pressure from the dream, Aunt Marge and everything else. He gets the insane idea of asking Cho Chang to stay with him at Privet Drive. She agrees. They laugh together when Dudley gets a letter from Hogwarts and nearly die together when two accidents nearly take the life of Oliver Wood and Cho herself. It all stays picture perfect after that until the death of someone close to Harry turns all eyes on him. Of course, through all of this, that dream, the Dursley dream, back at Privet Drive, stays engraved in his head.
FOREWARD:
Sequel to Harry Potter and the Book of Memories
CHAPTER INDEX
-1. Godric's Hollow
-2. Midnight Worry
-3. The Offer
-4. The Latent Wizard
-5. Cho's Arrival
-6. Preparations
-7. Vacation From Privet Drive
-8. Fire Quidditch
-9. The Legend Of The Scar
-10. Aunt Marge Finds Out
-11. The Truth Comes Out
-12. Muggles In Diagon Alley
-13. A Sorting Blunder
-14. Ask Hagrid
-15. The Theft
-16. A Letter From Sirius
-17. Comeuppance
-18. Cloak Stain
-19. Cursed With Worry
-20. The Explicatrix
-21. The Demiguise
-22. Shplowmp
-23. Beauxbatons And Durmstrang
-24. The Goblet Of Fire
-25. Test Of Moods
-26. The Weighing Of The Wands
-27. Peeves
-28. The First Task
-29. The First Test
-30. Getting A Clue
-31. One Peaceful Night
-32. The Hogsmeade Incident
-33. The Anger Spell
-34. A Rash Decision
-35. Animus Speculum
-36. Laurence Patrick Hayden
-37. The Hand Of Glory
-38. Losing Friends Again
-39. The Second Test
-40. The Mystery Girl Again
-41. The Second Task
-42. The Shovel And Grave Theory
-43. The Second Task
-44. The Worst Day
-45. Serious and For the Future
-46. The Trial
Not all chapters available. Those included have an asterisk ().
Update: November 21st, 2005:
Yes, I know it's been a long time. :( I really can't explain why it's taking so long, other than my perceived time for writing has drastically reduced, taken up by gaming. My desire to write hasn't changed, so it's not like I don't want to do it. Chapter 46 is well under way being written. This fic will get finished some day. I don't think it'll hit past chapter 50, so it is almost done. Chapter 46 and on will move very fast just because the story begins to unwind itself after all that's happened.
Update: July 18th, 2004:
I can't take it anymore; I've uploaded a large number of chapters. I've done this because I don't think I'll be modifying anything as I go on and I really, really hate to see people think I've left this fic for dead.
Update: January 3rd, 2004:
All right, sue me. After a long hiatus, there's another update. I'm sorry people, heh. I have from chapter 1 to 44 of an unknown number written but I'm just not uploading them for story continuity reasons. I am still determined to finish this series because the ending has to be known.
Update: June 8th, 2003:
There will be a 5th story in this series entitled Harry Potter and the Black Dream. The opening is already written. :) I had planned to finish Staff of Cybele before The Order of the Phoenix's release but that's not going to happen due to circumstances out of my control.
- - - R E A D T H I S - - -
WARNING: This story is being uploaded without being finished. This means the following: BY READING THIS YOU AGREE TO THE FACT THAT ENTIRE CHAPTERS MAY GET REMOVED/REPLACED/MODIFIED COMPLETELY. EVENTS MAY CHANGE ENTIRELY AND THE PLOT MAY EVEN BE ENTIRELY JUNKED. This may or may not happen but by reading this, you agree to severe changes to the story.
- - - R E A D T H I S - - -
Chapter 1: GODRIC'S HOLLOW
There stood on the beautiful street a lone house. Not many people who lived on this beautiful street, Tradus Street, knew that the inhabitants were... well, wizards. Still fewer knew what they were doing with the lights on in their bedroom at four in the morning. No, the two wizards living in number seven, Tradus Street, the Potters, had led a partially secret life, hiding their doings from the wizarding world as a whole. They didn't want... him... to find out, to know what they had discovered. They only did it because they couldn't stand it anymore. If they couldn't get rid of him, like so many wizards and witches wanted to, at the very least, they could say they tried. Only their closest friends knew they were doing something but they wouldn't say what... And so after a time, their friends gave up on ever finding out and forgot about it altogether.
They knew he would find out but they did try their best to keep it from him. It was their way, their way of saying to him, "We're putting you on a long vacation and we just hope you don't come back. Good riddance to bad rubbish."
The him that they continually spoke of was none other than Lord Voldemort, the most feared wizard of the age, though not the most powerful. No, the title of most powerful belonged to Albus Dumbledore, likely-to-be headmaster of Hogwarts School of Withcraft and Wizardry. The Potters, of course, didn't fear him, they just had an extra strong feeling of dislike aimed squarely at his heart -- if that beating thing in his chest could be called a heart...
Mr. Potter came from a long line of pureblood wizards. Each and every Potter, since even before the first century, was a witch or wizard, and very adept witches and wizards they were.
Mrs. Potter was an unlikely witch. Her family, from as far as she knew, were Muggles: not a drop of magical blood in them. Mrs. Potter's sister, one Petunia Evans, who married a man named Vernon Dursley, hated her sister dearly. According to Petunia, Mrs. Potter was a freak... but she was no freak, she was a loyal wife and an excellent mother. Petunia acted like she never had a sister, not knowing that her sisterhood -- and her motherhood -- would soon be tested.
This school though, this Hogwarts, was a quaint school, though certainly not little. At Hogwarts, they taught all who went there, if they had even the littlest bit of magic abiliy, the fascinating art of magic. Albus taught Transfiguration there for a time, before succeeding the previous headmaster, Armando Dippet.
Lily Evans and James Potter had met at Hogwarts and fallen in love since their first encounter. Lily had been helping her friend's friend, James, with his homework. Secretly, they had started to like each other but never voiced it to the other until their third year. Everyone knew -- both of them were popular with teacher and student alike and you just couldn't hide the fact that they both went red in the other's presence.
James had been doing other things and it kept him quite busy. One of his friends, one Remus J. Lupin was a werewolf. Remus never told James this, but James and Sirius Black, James' absolute best friend, had figured it out. Where was Remus going once a month? This part was a dead giveaway, James thought. James and Sirius, both being quite the adept little wizards, found it very easy to figure out.
James had since been trying to learn to become an Animagus. They reasoned that, while in an animal form, the werewolf form of Remus would be less inclined to hurt them. So for several years, James, Sirius and their other friend, Peter Pettigrew trained themselves in secrecy to become Animagi, wizards who could change into animals.
To the dismay of one student by the name of Severus Snape, James became a very good Quidditch Chaser, a sport which everyone in the wizarding world followed. Severus detested James and James knew this very well, though he didn't care much. It wasn't until Sirius had told Severus how to get to the place where Remus transforms into a werewolf in safety that James stepped in and saved Sirius' life. Had Severus gotten there, Remus would have killed him. Severus never forgave James, the boy whom he hated a lot, for saving his life and Severus would carry this grudge on James' son, for Severus would become a teacher at Hogwarts.
Lily had been practicing one of her own joys, the magic of healing. She was quick with a Charm, Summoning and Fidelius alike, and very adept at healing wounds. She so much enjoyed serving detention with Madam Poppy Pomfrey, the school nurse, that the headmaster had to find new ways to make students serve detention. The caretaker suggested hanging students by their ankles in the dungeons and Lily quickly stopped causing trouble.
Lily, James, Sirius, Peter and Remus roamed the halls of Hogwarts joyfully, not knowing that what would happen soon after the birth of James and Lily's son would tear the family apart but would also set peace throughout the entire wizarding world. But they didn't have time to worry about the future, they had to worry about now, for Lord Voldemort was gaining power steadily, terrorizing Muggle and wizard alike.
All through their years at Hogwarts, the likely to be married James and Lily had been strong to voice their loyalty to Albus Dumbledore, who was a wizard that Lord Voldemort feared and, unfortunately, the only one that he feared. Lord Voldemort knew when he met his match and if he was to become the strongest wizard to walk the planet, he would have to fight Albus some other day.
James and Lily married straight out of their seventh year at Hogwarts and Lily was more than happy to announce she was pregnant only months after leaving. At the time, they had been living as known wizards, not knowing that they would soon be attempting their own method of bringing Lord Voldemort down... or were they just keeping better quiet about it? No, the happy couple, both of age seventeen, were living in a different place before they had to go into hiding. Not Tradus Street but Alapert Lane, number sixteen Alapert Lane, in Little Whinging, Surrey. Lily lived near Petunia for a time but times grew troublesome as Lord Voldemort grew ever stronger.
Muggle after muggle and witch after wizard continued to disappear or be killed by Lord Voldemort and his followers, the Death Eaters. There was little to celebrate. Holidays were like a weekend because even Lord Voldemort needed to rest. One of the many problems with putting Lord Voldemort out of power was that he dabbled in magic himself. He tried to protect himself against mortality, a feat which only the famous alchemist and partner of Albus Dumbledore had achieved: Nicolas Flamel. Nicolas had created what the study of ancient alchemy was most interested in: the Philosopher's Stone. This stone, a ruby colored, small stone, could make the Elixir of Life, which makes it's drinker immortal and can also transform any metal into pure gold. Of course, Lord Voldemort had never had something so powerful but he sure wished he did.
Lord Voldemort was always the topic of discussion when topics were scarce, except they didn't call him Lord Voldemort. No, they didn't name him. Instead, he was referred to as "You-Know-Who" or "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named" for they feared He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named would be lurking around the corner, hiding in their midst, ready to find his next victim. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named did not even have a purpose, he did what he did for fun. Naturally, the Potters referred to him as Lord Voldemort until their dying day for they never feared him, they simply loathed him.
The Potters, on the thirty-first of July, 1980, had their beloved son. They named him Harry and he would be their most prized possession even against their magnificent, ancient, magical artifacts. But even as they continued their studies, they could no longer live in Little Whinging. They had spies and they knew that Lord Voldemort would soon find out what they had been doing and they had to hide. And besides the fact, Lord Voldemort wanted to find them for other reasons as well.
And so on the twenty-fourth of October, 1981, they moved to Godric's Hollow, named after Godric Gryffindor, one of the founders of Hogwarts and a very famous wizard indeed. Lily had performed the Fidelius Charm on that same night, a charm that keeps a secret hidden inside a person, that person being referred to as a Secret Keeper. The secret can never be revealed unless the Secret Keeper willingly gives it up. The secret that was to be kept was to be their location. Lord Voldemort could look into their house and see nothing but walls and lights.
The Potters wanted their best friend, Sirius Black, to be Secret Keeper but at the last moment, Sirius, who would give his own life to save the Potters, his best friends, insisted Peter be the Secret Keeper. No one but Peter, Sirius and the Potters knew about this change and tragically, no one but Peter knew that Peter had become a servant to Lord Voldemort. It was on Halloween that Peter had told Voldemort where the Potters were, breaking the Fidelius Charm and Lord Voldemort was free to find them...
"I'll be right there!" James called.
There had been a knock on their door. He walked quickly downstairs from his son's bedroom where he and Lily had just been tending to their son to the front door. James opened the door... and he nearly lost his voice.
"Good afternoon!" said the wizard standing in front of him.
Those cold, red eyes, the slits for nostrils and the black cloak. There was no mistaking the owner...
"Lily," James screamed immediately, "take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off --"
"So you think it's all in good fun?" said Lord Voldemort. "I just have a little business and then I must be going."
"No!" James screamed, pulling out his wand. "You leave us alone!"
"Such bravery, standing up to your Dark Lord!" taunted Lord Voldemort. "Move aside, fool," said Lord Voldemort impatiently, "I've got places to be."
Lord Voldemort put out a cold hand and shoved James aside but James was not afraid, there was fire in this wizard's eyes. He knew what Lord Voldemort wanted and he would not let the Dark wizard get it without a fight. James pulled out his wand, a tool he kept with him at all times.
"Stupefy!" cried James, pointing his only weapon at Lord Voldemort. The spell had no effect aside from pushing Lord Voldemort forward a few feet.
"Pitiful wizard," said Lord Voldemort softly.
In Lord Voldemort's stumbling movements, James had run around to Lord Voldemort's front, yelled "Fortitudinus," his own wand pointed at himself. His arms and legs suddenly grew more muscular and he simply punched the Dark Lord.
"Meddlesome fool," said Lord Voldemort, grabbing James' hand. He pulled out his own wand but didn't expect James to kick him in the stomach. James fell on the ground, reaching for his wand once again.
"Expelliarmus!" shouted James. Lord Voldemort's wand flew out of his hand, sending the Dark Lord crashing into a wall but this merely made him angry.
"Accio," he said lazily and his wand flew into his hand. "Avada Kedavra!" he then cried, pointing his wand at James.
There was a flash of green light, a scream of pain and James Potter was dead before he hit the floor. Lord Voldemort could hear the cries of Lily Potter at the top of the staircase. He continued his journey and went up the stairs.
"I'm coming, Lily!" shouted Voldemort as he followed her crying to the room where Harry lay. "Just give the boy to me and stay out of it!"
He turned a corner and standing in a room was Lily Potter, her baby son in her arms.
"Me! No, please, take me instead!" she pleaded.
"STAND ASIDE, GIRL!" roared Lord Voldemort. "OR YOU WILL DIE, TOO!"
"Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry!" she cried, covering up her precious son. She leaned over her son's bed, her back to the Dark Lord.
"Stand aside, you silly girl... stand aside, now..."
"Why him?" she cried pleadingly, tears leaking down her face. "Not Harry, please no, take me, kill me instead --"
"Fine, then," said Lord Voldemort impatiently. "Avada Kedavra!" he shouted, pointing his wand at Lily Potter. A jet of green light bursted from the tip of his wand and hit Lily Potter. She, too, died before she hit the ground.
Laying on the bed in front of Voldemort was the baby boy named Harry Potter.
"Such a long time," said Lord Voldemort, now rounding on the defenseless boy in front of him, "it's about time." He raised his wand, playing with the baby's hair and stopped, pointing it at the boy's forehead. "Avada Kedavra!" he shouted once more.
Another jet of green light shot out of his wand and filled the room but before it hit it's target, the seventeen year old Harry Potter woke up, startled, in a cold sweat, letting out a muffled shriek of fright.