Author's Note: Hee-hee...I wonder if anyone noticed that both Harry and Billy are raven-haired....Anyway, I'm really sorry for the s-word here. I've been trying to avoid using that as a curse word and use 'damn' instead but I don't think it's enough anymore so I hope I'm not terribly offending anyone by using that. Here's the continuation and I hope you would all remember to review. Enjoy :-)

Chapter 13 - Memory loss is not always a bad thing...

...It's not fair...It's dishonorable...' thought Draco wildly as he and Harry ran around the corner to escape the aggressive death-eaters who were relentlessly chasing them. Then, as if he just realized what his confused mind had concocted, he was deeply appalled at himself. How hypocritical of him! Since when did he think of fairness anyway? Who was he to even equate himself with that noble word? i'But there's no sense of victory in defeating a helpless man...'/i He tried to rationalize. i'When Potter regains his memory, then we could continue hating each other in peace...or is it in war? Damn! My mind's such a mess.../i

"STUPEFY!" yelled one of their assailants and a blazing red beam zinged past them.

"IMPEDIMENTA!!!" Draco countered as he dragged his painfully oblivious companion to one side. He was already sweating profusely from the effort of attacking and defending at the same time. It was one thing to duel someone who play by the rules like Potter and his sidekicks but fighting evil death-eaters was an entirely different thing.

"PETRIFICUS TOTALUS!" cursed another one and this time, Harry was not fortunate enough to dodge the spell.

'Shit! Just what I need -- for Potter's luck to run out...now...of all times!' Draco groaned inwardly as Harry or whatever his new name was became instantly paralyzed before falling face first on the ground. 'Ouch!' Reluctantly, he turned to face their attackers while trying to rack his numb brain for a way out.

The death-eaters stared at him in shock.

"Malfoy, what the hell are you doing? Get your damn ass off here!"

"Go tell father I've made a mistake! He's just an ordinary boy. Can't go hexing muggles now...You don't want to alert the aurors now, do you?" Draco retorted quickly, careful to inject a hint of the usual Malfoy arrogance in his tone to make his claim more convincing.

One of the attackers swiftly inspected the boy and upon seeing the unmistakeable lightning bolt, he sneered at Draco. "Tut-tut! Telling lies now, Malfoy? What would your beloved father say...?"

"I'm telling you, I've made a mistake!" Draco struggled to keep his voice normal. "Why would Potter hang around with me and without his wand, too? How foolish do you think he is?"

Jeric was listening to the exchange with mounting perplexity. He couldn't make heads or tails of what they were talking about. He kept hearing the word 'Potter' that he assumed had something to do with him but he couldn't for the life of him figure out what was its relevance in this ridiculous charade. And to top it all, he also couldn't comprehend why, all of a sudden, he became instantly paralyzed. He tried to glance at Draco but he couldn't move his head either.

"What's going on here, Draco?" he asked the blond-haired boy but he did not hear the response for the air became suddenly filled with shrieks of pain. "Shit! What's happening?!?" he yelled almost hysterically. He couldn't see what was going on but from the sounds of terrified screams and cruel laughter, he knew that it was far from a picnic. Draco was obviously being subjected to some kind of a thoroughly agonizing torture but why? His head was reeling from all the horrifying images that kept on flashing on his mind.

"You little traitor!" Jeric heard one man exclaimed sharply followed by something that sounded like 'crucio' but the screams were noticeably lighter now. Either Draco was already too numb to feel the pain or maybe he was .....

"Y-you'll pay f-for this...Incendio" he heard Draco utter imperceptively before he heard an explosion. He was not entirely sure but the noise and foul odor resembled that of several firecrackers thrown and lit simultaneously. "F-finite I-incantatem. Get the hell out of here, Pot-Jeric!" From the sound of his muffled voice, Jeric knew things have already gone from bad to worse...

"Can't move..." Jeric uttered hopelessly.

"I a-already lifted the s-spell...go now...while they're still distracted..." the voice sounded fainter than before.

If possible, Jeric became even more confused...Spell? What the heck did he mean by that? But he didn't ask. Instead, he quickly got up and was surprised to see four cloaked figure lying on the ground...choking but not unconscious. He looked for Draco and found him still writhing in pain. He lifted the semi-conscious boy without hesitation and started to walk.

"I won't leave you here." he declared simply to the pale-faced boy while attempting to quicken his pace.

Realizing the futility of an argument, Draco just nodded weakly and told Jeric to hide behind the bushes. There, he threw the invisibility to cover both of them. His father would, of course, be outrageously livid when he got wind of this but maybe he wouldn't need to pay the price...

"Christ! Who are those and why are they chasing us?" whispered Harry, his breathing irregular from the exertion.

"Shh...t-those are d-death-eaters and correction, they are only after you not us." Draco replied as he tried to see where the enemies were headed.

"What the hell are death-eaters?" pressed Harry through clenched teeth as he struggled to keep his heartbeat normal.

"Potter?!?" exclaimed Draco in exasperation. "Haven't I told you that I'm going to tell you later....read my lips okay? L-A-T-E-R..."

Harry promptly shut his mouth then. He figured that they must really be in a delicate situation or his companion won't be this prickly. He wondered, though, why he got this strange impression that the boy knew him beforehand. And 'Potter'? He heard that name too many times to be coincidental...Was he really a 'Potter'? Who was Potter anyway? One thing was for sure, whoever he was, he did not want to be him. 'I must have led a very dangerous life...and now I'm glad I lost my memory....' he thought grimly and wished that it would stay forever that on, we need to go to your place before those idiots could call for reinforcements." said Draco after recovering some of his strength. He noticed that the death-eaters have gone but he knew they would be back soon. "Whatever happens, don't get off the cloak. It will make us invisible...." Harry's eyes widened in astonishment and opened his mouth as if to ask something but Draco cut him off quickly. "...and ask me later...when we're safe. All right?" Draco sighed with relief when Harry nodded albeit reluctantly.

The two quickly scrambled out of the thorny bushes and went on their way. Draco ensured that the cloak safely concealed them while Harry led the way. When they reached the place, Draco was relieved to sense that no force fields was about to blast him off like what happened to their Potions Master. All he saw was an ordinary door on an ordinary muggle house. Perhaps the spell only worked for uninvited guests.

As they stepped inside the house, they immediately heard people talking in hushed and worried tones. Instead of removing the cloak, both decided to observe for a while.

"Where do you reckon should we look first?" asked the girl wearily.

"Just walk around the neighborhood. He can't have walked that far."

"Let's split into two groups. That way, we can find him faster."

Jeric hastily removed the cloak before the group could go. He may abhor the two visitors but he definitely didn't want them to encounter those death-something while looking for him. For all he knew, they could just be lurking in the shadows outside. He was not that vengeful.

"I'm here. No need to go." he said, his dry tone clearly indicating his disgust at the visitors' unwanted presence. He was even more pissed when the two immediately pointed their wands at his new friend. "Hey! What the hell are you doing? Poke his nose with that stick?"

"You're with Malfoy? What the hell are you doing with that snake?" asked the redhead angrily, not lowering his wand at all but the girl whispered something that seemed to alleviate his temper a bit.

"Watch your tongue! If I remember correctly, you are the snake not him!" Jeric retorted sharply. The girl's display of affection towards his traitorous bestfriend added fuel to the already raging fire.

"So that's how it is, eh? You're blowing us off for that git? Fine...to hell with you!" The red-head then tried to storm out of the house but Draco promptly held his arm to stop him from going.

"GET YOUR DIRTY HANDS OFF ME!!!" yelled the boy in a fit of rage. He was not that narrow-minded. He could understand that Harry hated him now due to a slight misconception but he simply couldn't accept the fact that his bestfriend was suddenly in good terms with the Slytherin menace. It was intolerable!

"If you're in the mood for a death-eater attack then, by all means, go ahead and face them...I'm not going to stop you twice." said Draco evenly, then gave an involuntary wince of pain that he was unable to mask in time.

"Y-you were attacked?" The boy's tone suddenly changed from anger to genuine concern.

"Yes, and Draco saved me from them." Jeric replied, confused at the worry he noticed in the redhead's eyes. He was even more disconcerted when his alleged girlfriend ran forward and embraced him tightly. 'Oh, my! This feels so right...' he thought as he savored the mind-boggling sensation that a simple hug had given him. He temporarily forgot that he was supposed to hate her.

"Oh, Harry. Are you all right?" the girl asked, her soft hands caressing his cheeks gently.

Jeric was immediately brought down to earth and turned rigid at the mention of the 'name'. He extricated himself from her clasp. "My name is Jeric." he stated coldly, ignoring the hurt look that crossed her lovely features.

Billy, Chuck and Matt who had previously opted to observe first and not participate in the antagonistic exchange, suddenly stood up in alarm and pointed their wands on the wall that separated the living room and the dining area. Everyone stared in awe as a thin layer parted to reveal what looked like a narrow aquarium without its usual contents. Instead, a glittery substance that resembled the house's structure was found inside. There were seven blue dots within the structure while twenty red dots appeared outside.

"Damn! We're surrounded!" Matt muttered coarsely under his breath.

"Don't worry, they can't get inside as long as we don't let in..." said Billy calmly to ease the worry in the younger ones faces.

"...Unfortunately, we can't get out either." said Chuck remorsefully.

The group studied the red dots surrounding the miniature replica of the house. The dots were not moving so they found it safe to assume that the death-eaters were just waiting for them or Harry, in particular, to come out.

"They couldn't see this house so they just had to spread out and hope to get lucky..." commented Billy as he removed his eyes from the detector and went with Chuck and Matt to prepare some snacks and coffee to keep them awake through the night. Sleep would have been preferable but not in their current situation.

"So what do we do now?" asked Jeric after he got tired of staring at unmoving red dots too.

"What we could have done eons ago if you had only stayed to listen..." replied Ron dryly. "Please don't argue. We need to straighten some things out. First, I am Ron, your bestfriend and she is Hermione, your other bestfriend. None of us are on any relationship with each other aside from being bestfriends...yet." A mischievous smile unexpectedly escaped his lips. Jeric noticed this and raised an eyebrow in question. "Chuck only assumed the worst when he saw our reaction during our first visit...We were surprised that's all...no other reason."

"What do you mean by 'yet'?" asked Jeric curiously. Now that the matter had been cleared up, he was more inclined to accept the idea that the red head was indeed his closest friend.

"It's for me to know and for you to find out..." Ron replied mysteriously. It was a shame that Harry was looking his way that he did not notice the blush that had crept onto Hermione's cheeks. Ron's eyes suddenly fell on the blond-haired boy. His expression darkened. "So what about that bastard?"

"Who? Draco? What has he done to you?" asked Jeric in surprise. He wondered why his two bestfriends disliked the blond-haired boy immensely. Draco seemed nice enough.

"Not only to us, mate...to all of us...His father is one of the death-eaters who almost killed us last year." replied Hermione tonelessly, eyeing the boy with so much contempt that he could have died right there and then and no one could have cared less.

"WHAT?!?" Jeric almost fell off his chair at the startling revelation. Draco was that bad?!? Wait, no! Draco's father, not him, was that bad...He stared hard at the boy's pale pleading face but he could not recall anything evil that the boy had done to him. All that came into his mind was the fact that the boy had saved his life a while ago..."Let's give him a chance." he said to his bestfriends.

Draco smiled gratefully before his feet wobbled from the after effect of the curse.

"Draco!" Jeric rushed to support him before he collapsed on the floor.

"What happened to him?" asked Hermione quickly.

"I...I don't know... I can't see him but it must have been painful...He was screaming too much..." replied Jeric while racking his brain for any valuable information.

"Did you hear anything?" asked Ron curiously while assisting Jeric in hoisting the wobbly boy to the nearest sofa.

"Yeah....I think one of the men said something like 'cru...' "

"CRUCIO?!?" asked the two with incredulous faces. "The death-eaters used the cruciatus curse on him?!?" They repeated as if they couldn't believe what they were hearing.

"I think so..Do you know what that was?" Jeric asked, puzzled by their peculiar behavior but he never got to find out since Hermione quickly ran to the kitchen to ask help from the three older wizards while Ron appeared too dumbfounded to say anything remotely sensible.

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At the Castle

Professor Albus Dumbledore was at his office and was calmly contemplating on what muggle sweets should he try next after the amazing M&M's. He had bought a wide variety of sweets during his last visit to the muggle world and so far, none had reached the status of the famous 'lemon drop' in his eccentric taste yet but he was willing to experiment. Maybe he should ask for some suggestions from the muggle-borns in the school...but no, trial and error was more exciting.

He was about to pop a delectable looking choco-candy into his mouth when a haggard-looking Potions Master came marching inside. Sighing heavily, he cleared his table and mentally prepared himself. Judging from the professor's disheveled appearance, it couldn't be good.

"Severus, care for a lemon drop?" the headmaster offered after the man had made himself somewhat comfortable.

"Professor Dumbledore, we have a problem..." said Snape, still a little breathless in his haste.

"Calm down, Severus. It couldn't be that bad..." stated the headmaster with an irritating serenity that was gradually getting on Snape's already battered nerves.

"It is..."

"More problem than what we have now?"

"Yes, apparently Potter has lost his memory..."

"Merlin! How did it happen?" asked the Headmaster, nearly dropping the beloved lemon drop in his shock.

"Some fool obliviated him by accident..." came the blunt reply.

"Don't worry, Severus, the charm is probably reversible. Have you tried?"

"That's the other problem, Professor, as usual, the foolish boy ran off to only Merlin-knows-where and...." The potions master stopped his ranting as he felt a familiar tingling on his left arm where the dark mark was located. He quickly clutched his arm and cringed in pain. "Darn! Professor, I've got to go...the dark lord is calling..."

"Wait...How can I find the band's house?" asked the Headmaster, suddenly alert and deeply perturbed by the news.

"It's on #27 Little Wimbleton Drive but you won't find it. The house is protected and only those invited by the residents or at least their trusted visitors could enter. I'll take you when I return." The potions master was practically writhing in pain. That was how the dark lord summoned his servants. The longer the delay in the servant's arrival, the more excruciating the pain was...'Merlin, why now?'

The Headmaster noticed his dilemma and hurriedly dismissed him. "You may go now, Severus. I don't want you to be punished more than the usual. Just be careful..." With that, the potions master swept out of the room and went on his way.

Professor Dumbledore followed Snape's departure with worried eyes...not just for the professor but also for the young saviour. He had a suspicion that the summoning have something to do with Harry. The boy's general location must have been discovered and death-eaters could now be stalking the place, waiting for him to come out...if he had already went home, that is...otherwise, he would be in deeper trouble than before...

Professor Dumbledore swiftly sent an owl to the Order's Headquarters. He just hoped that the house's protection was strong enough to hold the enemies off at least for a few more hours...

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Fortunately, the three older wizards had a stock of strengthening and pain-reducing potionss somewhere in one of their hidden cupboards. Within minutes, Draco was already feeling better though still weak and unable to support his own weight.

While waiting for the Headmaster and the Potions Master to arrive, the band decided to pass the time by jamming and the visitors just watched their practice session with awe especially Draco who couldn't believe that Harry would find solace in that simple muggle instrument. He wondered vaguely if he could join them in case his father would be mad enough to disown him.

The limited audience clapped enthusiastically after the last song.

"Hey, you're really good you know that?" commented Hermione and the band blushed a little at her praise.

"Thanks..." said Chuck.

"Whoa! You could be famous someday..." It was Ron who suddenly found himself enthralled with the pounding of the cylindrical objects in front of Matt. It certainly seemed to be an effective way to ease one's tension. He wondered if he could persuade Matt to let him touch it sometime...

Billy had a faraway look in his eyes as he replied. "But we don't want to be famous...We're just doing it because it's a good cover."

At that comment, even Jeric was surprised. "What do you mean? I thought that's what any band would want..."

"Any band...yes, but not our band. As I've said..." Billy's voice trailed off at the warning glances from Matt and Chuck. Hermione noticed the exchange and urged Billy to go on. "...it's just a good cover while we're looking for someone...and now it's not that important anymore. We've found the person we're looking for."

"Who?" Hermione asked with more than the usual curiousity. In fact, if one would listen closely, one would notice a hint of distrust in her voice.

"Maybe we'll tell you when the time is right..." Billy replied vaguely.

"Well, then for our peace of mind, please tell us this one thing at least -- Is your intention with this certain individual good or bad?" pressed Hermione through thin lips. As smart as she was, she already had an inkling of who Billy was referring to.

This time it was Chuck who answered her query. "We don't want anything bad to happen to err-- that certain individual. We just need his help to open a particular item but there are some things that we don't have any control about."

"Like what?" asked Ron sharply, picking on Hermione's line of thought.

"Look...this is not really the time for --- shit!!!" Billy stopped and immediately all of them had their wands out with the exception of Draco who was still too tired to even sit up properly and Jeric who was not even entirely aware of the enormity of the situation.

The house vibrated vigorously and all of them braced themselves for anything that might happen next. Their attention was focused on the fast approaching red dots. They felt the walls shudder as it repelled the hexes sent its way. Then, just when they were psyching themselves up for an attack, a number of blue dots suddenly appeared from nowhere and drove the red dots away.

Then the door opened.

"Professor Dumbledore!"

"Thank goodness, no one was badly hurt!"

"Draco, what are you doing here?"

"Professor Lupin!"

Billy, Chuck and Matt watched the scene with growing trepidation. These people would surely take Harry away and they would not be able to stop them without divulging their secret.

"Harry?!?"

Jeric tensed again when he heard the 'name'. Why are those sick and strangely-clothed people so adamant on referring to him that way? "Who are you?" he asked rather rudely than he had intended.

"Don't worry, child. We've come to take you to a safer place now." said a bespectacled old man with white beard almost reaching his waist.

Jeric shuddered with rage. The nerve of this people! How dare they barge in like this and threaten to take him somewhere without even properly identifying themselves. A greasy-haired man with black eyes that seemed to stare right to his soul whispered something to the old man. He saw the old man's eyes widened with comprehension before giving him an apologetic smile.

"Dear me! How could I have forgotten? Please allow me to reintroduce ourselves. This black-haired man is Professor Severus Snape, Potions Professor. This is Professor Remus Lupin, newly reinstated Defense Professor, the other man is Kingsley Shacklebolt, the lady with the pink bubblegum hair is Nymphadora and I am Professor Albus Dumbledore, the Headmaster of the school you go to.." The old man also gave a knowing smile to the original band members who were now squirming under his penetrating gaze. It seemed like the old man was reaching for their souls and analyzing their depths but they dared not look away. They had no evil intentions to hide. They just needed the help of the boy-who-lived.

"I'm not going anywhere with you! My place is here and my name is Jeric!" Jeric exclaimed. He still couldn't recall anything from his past but from what had happened mere minutes ago, he did not want to be that person anymore. He was far better off away from all of it....

Billy hastily stepped forward. "We are most pleased to make your acquaintance, sir, but I believe it would be more beneficial for all of us if Ha-Jeric could stay with us at least until he regained his memory."

"I don't have any desire to regain my memory." stated a moody Jeric through clenched teeth.

The greasy-haired man glared at him before turning to Billy. "And what, might I inquire, is your hidden agenda in delaying the boy's stay here?" he asked suspiciously.

All eyes were turned on Billy now. There was no other way but to tell the truth and hope for the best. He sighed heavily and summoned a small package from a hidden compartment underneath the floor. From there, he unearthed a yellowish parchment and a thin notebook with the images of a stag, a werefolf, a dog, and a rat swirling on its red and gold velvet cover. "We just need his help to open this."

"Holy cow! How on earth did that fall on your hands?" exclaimed a flabbergasted Lupin upon seeing the bizarrely familiar item.

Flustered by the reaction of the usually reserved professor, everyone scrambled to get a closer look at the intriguing manuscript. There, printed in an elaborate design were the words.....THE MARAUDERS' JOURNAL.

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Author's Note: Ohhhh, the plot thickens...and I'm soooo bad for ending it here ...tsk..tsk...tsk...anyway, please review :-)