The Wizarding War

DISCLAIMER: THE SONG LYRICS DO NOT BELONG TO ME ONLY ONES YOU HAVEN'T HEARD OF DO. J.K ROWLINGS CHARACTERS DON'T BELONG TO ME EITHER BUT MY OCS DO.

Prologue

'catch me as i fall
say you're here and it's all over now
speaking to the atmosphere
no one's here and i fall into myself
this truth drives me into madness
i know i can stop the pain if i will it all away. . .'

It was September the first and the trio along with the Weasley crew were on Platform 9¾. The summer had gone reasonably well except for Harry's decision to tell his friends the Prophecy. Their reactions had been that of shock, questioning, and even more shock while at the same time he'd had to deal with his Godfather's death. There were still things he'd left out. Like what Dumbledore had told him about Kreacher and some of Sirius' past. The events still haunted Harry even as he laughed and talked with his best friends. What made this significant for Harry though was that he was a wizard, and these events had taken place at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry that he'd been attending for six years.

It had been enough of a shock, six years ago to learn that he was a wizard from the school's Game Keeper Hagrid. The Dursleys, the family Harry had been living with after his parents death had never told him, but they'd ended up letting him go through lack of choice. From then on Harry was treated more like dirt then ever before, but, while he was famous at school it made it even harder for him to live on without feeling hard done by. On his first year it had been a remarkable achievement for him to wrestle the Philosopher's Stone from the most evil wizard of the century, Lord Voldermort who he had supposedly vanquished years before. The next year he'd fought Lord Voldermort's memory in the Chamber of Secrets when a diary had taken control of Ron's little sister, Ginny Weasley. Harry had stabbed the diary resulting in the destruction of the memory, only recently have killed the basilisk plaguing the castle. In his third year he'd met Sirius who he had originally thought was out to kill him, but later learned of Peter who had been the Potter's secret keeper and betrayed his parents. Sirius had only wanted revenge on Peter, but Harry had stopped Sirius from killing Peter only so he could rejoin Voldermort and have Sirius rescued through a time-turner to go on the run once again. In Harry's fourth year however, things had just gotten worse for Harry and his friends alike. Harry had had to face his worst year ever with the Triwizard Tournament, girls, and then being magicked using a Portkey to witness Voldermort's terrifying rebirth. This lead to the events in his fifth year of Sirius' death and the Prophecy being told.

Harry looked at both of his friends and wondered how the previous year had affected them. Whether their lives would have been any different had Harry not entered their lives? Would Harry have survived all these years without them? It didn't make sense. Harry, the wizard who had once vaporised the most evil wizard in the world was facing his own life with a bleak face. Surely there could be more out there? Maybe happiness still remained. No matter what anyone said, Harry couldn't stop caring about his friends.

They got on the train and Hermione was surprisingly hailed by Lavender and Parvati with a new Gryffindor Harry had seen on previous occasions. Shrugging it off, Harry went with Ron and found a compartment with him. They were soon joined by Neville Longbottom, one of the people who had been in the Department of Mysteries with Harry and Ron last year—Neville had been among Harry's friends and the Order of the Phoenix who had seen Sirius fall behind the veil. Into death itself. Neville didn't yet know the Prophecy; Harry planned to tell Neville when they were at Hogwarts and not crowded around by other students at the school. Things hardly stayed secret there for long and the gossip chains were highly advanced.

'Hey Neville,' Harry said, 'you been reading the Prophet?'

'Yeah. It says the Death Eaters broke out of Azkaban, the Dementors going with them and the rest of the criminals that had been put in there—they've all joined Voldermort apparently,' Neville told them dryly, 'Grandma was horrible when that article came out.'

'Yeah. I expect she said 'all Neville's hard work gone to waste!' Ron said trying to imitate Neville's Grandmother as a joke. Neville knew it was and smiled.

'Something like that. She'd never been so proud of me before, said my magical abilities might just surpass my father's,' Neville paused, 'in due time.'

'Hey Harry, are you gonna restart the DA?' Ron asked carefully watching for Harry's reaction.

'I dunno, I mean, last year I got Dumbledore into so much trouble because of it,' Harry replied as the trio slid into a compartment. Neville quickly closed the compartment door and took a seat with Harry and Ron.

'Yeah but Dumbledore's forgiven you,' Neville told Harry, 'that's obvious. Otherwise he would've probably not spoken to you or summat.'

'Dumbledore only doesn't speak to me if he's got a very good reason to believe otherwise,' Harry told Neville calmly, then recounted the Prophecy to him with some difficulty, and what Dumbledore had told him about the vision and the discussion that had followed before and afterwards like he had meant to.

'So Dumbledore thought—,'

'Wow, looky here it's the Pot, Weasel and Longbottom!' The familiar drawl of Draco Malfoy said standing in their compartment door.

'Oooh, Malfoy!' Harry said delightedly, 'I heard your father broke out of Azkaban. Was he getting a bit depressed, being locked up with those scary Dementors?'

'My father has nothing to do with you Potter,' Malfoy snarled, 'and I will make sure you pay for putting him in Azkaban. You and Dumbledore both.'

'Wow, Malfoy, did you realise nobody cares anymore?' Harry said tartly, 'there is so much about you that nobody likes. Like that attitude for example, without that, I'm sure you'll probably get some real friends! Only, they probably secretly won't like you and . . .'

'You're dead Potter,' Malfoy snarled raising his wand.

'Oh wait! You already have friends that secretly don't like you!' Harry said sounding gleeful, 'so it's not really a challenge for you then is it?'

'Reducto!' Malfoy shouted at Harry. Harry immediately went into the defensive position.

'Protego!' Harry bellowed, using the Shield Charm. It immediately reflected the Reductor Curse to Malfoy who ducked, letting the spell hit a nearby table. In turn, the table shattered into pieces.

'Reparo!' Hermione shouted, pointing her wand then stared angrily at Harry and Malfoy, 'I thought you had more decency than that Harry,' Hermione shrieked, 'Provoking him! I dislike Malfoy as much as the next person but for you to act as bad as he does—,'

'I think I know just what the right punishment for these boys will be Miss Granger,' a voice said from behind Hermione causing her to whip around and goggle at the new arrival, 'is detentions. I shall personally escort them to Professor Dumbledore's office. Malfoy will testify against them I'm afraid.'

'Sir, now really, do you think sending me to Professor Dumbledore will achieve anything?' Harry asked innocently, 'I'm his favourite student after all.'

'I will pick you insolent fools up before the sorting to personally take you to Professor McGonagall's office,' growled Snape angrily, swishing his cloak and exiting the compartment.

Suddenly a girl appeared behind Malfoy, she had long brown hair and hazel brown eyes. She shoved Malfoy aside and Harry could see clearly that she too was a Slytherin. What was this? Harry wondered, pick on Harry day or visit Harry as though he's in a zoo day?

'Malfoy why don't you find something more productive to do? The rest of us are getting bored with your rivalry of Potter,' she drawled, 'it takes up so much of your time. Instead, why don't you help out with say—cleaning the Common Room with the House Elves?'

'Listen you bitch, I don't take orders from you,' Malfoy snarled, 'so unless you're prepared to face consequences my father will have lined up than—,'

'Your fathers not going to do anything to me Malfoy,' she snapped, 'so you'd better get used to the idea that power has suddenly titled in my direction.'

'Hey who are you anyway?' Harry asked interested, he liked the way this girl talked to Malfoy. In fact, even though she was a Slytherin Harry sort of liked her, a feeling he'd only felt for Cho Chang the previous year. He remembered the major bust up he'd had with her—always crying over Cedric Diggory. It had to get annoying.

'Cinnabar,' the girl told him laughingly, 'Cinnabar Mills.'

Ron, who was sitting next to Harry, raised his eyebrows. He was getting some seriously bad vibes from the girl which he could see that Harry had totally fallen for. This one could be as bad as Malfoy or maybe even worse. What Ron couldn't figure out was why Harry was behaving like such a prick lately. He'd been all right at the Burrow, sullen and silent. He'd only began behaving like this when the Hogwarts letters had arrived for their books. Suddenly all cheerful and perfect. Really annoying everyone and even managing to get on Fred and George's nerves and hardly anyone annoyed them and lived to tell the tale. Ron looked over at Hermione who in turn shrugged. They'd work it out later Ron supposed. Ron watched as Cinnabar directed Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle out of the compartment. What Ron missed was the fact that Cinnabar had winked at Harry.

Harry meanwhile had decided he liked Cinnabar quite a lot more than he was willing to let his friends know. Also, he was hoping to have a perfectly normal year at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry. Just like other young witches and wizards. So there would be no poking his nose in where it didn't belong this year. Well, he hoped so anyway. Then Ginny spoke up.

"We're almost at the Hogesmade Station guys!" Ginny announced, "We'd better change into our robes."

With that announcement the girls left to change elsewhere while the guys changed in their compartment. Soon the train came to a complete halt The boys rejoined with Ginny and Hermione outside. Surprisingly Luna was with them, her dottiness still evident. Harry rolled his eyes when he saw her outfit. She was wearing long string earrings and had a seriously weird hair ornament in her hair. She had the Quibbler in her hands and seemed quite content.

"Hey Harry!" Luna said happily rushing up to the lot of them.

"Hi Luna," Harry said rolling his eyes then looked at Ron. Harry was feeling a little off hand but he waved anyway seeing as she had helped him in the Department of Mysteries and she had well earned his respect. Her dottiness had helped on most occasions the previous year. Not that Harry was going to admit it of course. He looked over at Ron to see what his reaction was to Luna's arrival. Ron just shrugged and said the same thing that Harry had.

Later, Harry, Ron, Hermione and Neville were sat at the Gryffindor table just after the Sorting had finished. They had plenty of new students and quite a few exchange students in their year level. These exchange students though looked like they were newbies at the whole magic thing which Harry himself considered strange. Then again maybe the new students thought everything that happened in England was strange. Harry looked across the Great Hall at Cinnabar who had made herself quite at home amongst the Slytherin students. He watched her chattering away to Pansy and the other girls in rather a trance. Well he was, because Ron had just punched him in the shoulder for some reason.

"Who're we staring at today?" Ron asked cocking his head to the side in curiosity.

"Hmm…. No comment," Harry supplied busying himself with his food.

"No comment? Where the hell did you learn that slang?" Ron asked widening his eyes in shock.

"It's a muggle thing," Harry said simply, "you wouldn't get it."

"It means that he won't tell you who he's staring at because he's not allowed to right Harry?" Hermione said as though Ron were dumb, which he was right at that particular moment.

"More like I don't want to tell him who I'm staring at," Harry said as what sounded like an afterthought, "besides, without Fred and George here, how on Earth are we gonna cause trouble?"

"We'll manage somehow. Hermione and I aren't prefects anymore so we don't have to be totally law abiding," Ron said happily, "mind you, not that we were law abiding anyways. Hey, pass that chicken leg, it looks lonely."

Hermione passed Ron the chicken leg looking disgusted. She then looked over at the new first years that of course, looked nervous.

"I do feel sorry for those poor first years, they always get such a raw deal. Oh, there's Nearly Headless Nick, nearly missed the feast he did," Hermione said speaking really fast. Ron just looked at her weirdly.

"Uh Hermione? Repeat that slowly," Ron said still looking at her strangely.

"Oh sorry. It's just that I spent the summer in New Zealand with a couple of my relatives. They were very happy to take me in. They speak really fast compared with us," Hermione explained, "and they have so much culture there, and speak two languages. It's quite amazing actually. I spent a couple of days on a Marae with my Aunt—she's fantastically nice. She's got all these children younger than me. They all seem to be doing well there."

"Marae? What's that?" Harry asked suddenly interested.

"I think it's a Maori version of a house or something, you know the like, a gathering place to get together," Hermione said not really concentrating, "although all it did was rain mostly while I was there."

"Attention students!" Dumbledore called out across the student body, "I expect now that your stomachs are full and you are all drowsy and ready for bed. But there are a few announcements I am required to make before you all go and retire yourselves to your bedrooms. Qudditch of course is still on to the delight of most've you. However, throughout the year we will be having talent quests, non-uniform days where you can wear your regular clothing to your classes, and a few sports days where you'll be introduced to muggle sports and different types of wizarding sports. Also, the Forbidden Forest is strictly forbidden. A notice I have had to pass every year because of the actions of a few of our older students. As well, if anyone wants to see the list of banned objects you will have to look at Mr Filch's door where the list has been stuck."

With that done, the students all filed out of the Great Hall and the Sixth Year Gryffindors made their way up to their dormitories following the shortcuts they'd learnt on their previous years at the schools while the First Years had to take the long way round. When Harry and Ron reached their dormitories, they practically fell into their beds and slept the whole night through.

AUTHORS NOTES: I'm redoing this story so I don't give away the whole plot line like I did in the last version of it. So this is version two. The exchange students of course will play a pretty big role in the near future.