The Lord of Stone Tower
A/N; This chapter, now that I have read it to myself is pretty confusing, it tends to take a random 'see all' type view in some places. I hope you can follow it.
This chapter is dedicated to my first reviewer of this story, as they were kind enough to point out in their review. Therefore this chapter is dedicated to Kraeg001.
Chapter 2; The Inner Circle and Hogwarts
Harry felt nothing but pain as he woke, he sighed at the thought of another day at the Dursley's. Damn Wizards, when were going to come for him. Where was the Headmaster?
/Where the hell is Albus Dumble---/
/Oh God/ he gasped as the memories returned to him. Dursley's beatings, his magic blowing apart the wall. The loss of his eyesight brought fresh tears to his eyes, and they burned over the remains of his eyes as the salty texture rolled over the dried blood and mess that had been his only link with his deceased mother.
Hearing Dumbledore's voice in the distance, his anger at his Uncle for threatening his loved mentor, even if a bit mislead lately he couldn't hold anything against the man.
Then all he could remember was the rest of his wall exploding, was it him again, did he do it? Then logic kicked in, no, the wall had been knocked in towards him. Several of the bricks had hit him. The latest pain in his side stood testament to that. His last memory was the face of a sneering Peter Pettigrew a.k.a. Wormtail.
/Where am I?/ he thought to himself. He could feel the cold and could imagine the small room or cell he was in. A chilly stone floor pressed into his back. He pushed his thoughts outwards to feel his surroundings, something that he had learnt to do in the dark of his room. Easy as it was when you couldn't move your body.
There, he could feel a slight draft from one direction, a door. He tried to listen outside the door, but there was nothing. Then he thought he heard the sound of wood hitting wood. A door closing? Maybe. Then the sound of footsteps, he tried to turn towards the door but stopped with a gasp as the pain in his ribs protested to the wiggle that he had managed.
The footsteps got closer, how many? He thought there were three, maybe four. Two really heavy, one graceful and one light. A boy he thought.
The door slammed open and the people stepped through. The two heavy ones moved to his sides and he heard the one nearest the door cast a levitating charm on him. He gasped with pain, as he was pulled into the air none too gently. A mobilicorpus quickly followed and he felt himself moving toward the man by the door. He tried to struggle and heard the sneer from near the door.
"Stupid Gryffindors, never know when to cut heir losses."
That and the two accompanying laughs told him that he should know his captives. They quickly left the room and headed down the corridor. The graceful steps were now about ten metres in front of him, the heavy ones had fallen behind. The boy's steps fell in to his right. Harry thought he heard the boy muttering to himself.
The stopped after about five minutes.
"Draco!" The one in front spoke sharply, "Watch him, I will go announce our presence to the inner circle."
It all clicked together, Lucius Malfoy and Goyle and Crabbe. Then the boy must be Draco. He renewed his attempt to break free of the bonds. He heard a larger door open then close. He heard Draco take a deep breathe beside him.
"Stop struggling you'll hurt yourself more. I will get you out." Harry was so shocked at the quiet words he stopped his struggles. "I promise, Harry." The use of his first name stunned him. Draco against Voldemort and his own father. He couldn't believe it.
"Draco?" He managed in a rough croak. "No, you'll only get yourself caught, go to Hogwarts, I can handle myself." That was exactly the opposite to how he felt but he couldn't risk hurting another person just to save himself. That was how Sirius had died.
"Hush Harry, I don't care much now anyway, my life ended when my father sold me to Voldemort." Harry was still trying to wonder what the other boy had meant when he felt a hand shove him sideways to the wall. He hit it and the levitating charm seemed to wear of with the sudden contact and his body fell to the floor.
He heard two 'stupefy's' from Draco and the sound of twin thuds as the over- sized trolls hit the floor. He heard the echoes of Draco's feet heading over to him but it was all blocked out by a shrill alarm that blasted through the room.
"Damn, I am sorry Harry, I didn't know they had a magic detection system on the Death Eaters." Harry managed a smile to his helper.
"Don't blame yourself, thank you anyway." He tried to reassure the boy. He heard the doors slam open behind Draco. "Draco run, leave please."
"Never Harry. I told you my life was over years ago."
"Crucio!" Harry was briefly shocked to hear the voice was Draco's fathers. Draco fell to the floor, for a brief time his screams filled the room before the curse was lifted. Some footsteps made their way to Harry, he tried to move but couldn't, he was kicked harshly in the stomach before he was lifted roughly. He lost consciousness as a hard hit made contact with his battered skull. Draco's fighting was the last he heard as he blacked out.
When he came to he felt another bodies heat next to him.
"Draco?" He whispered, a cold laughed echoed.
"He can't hear you Potter, I am afraid a 'stray' deafening curse hit him." Voldemort's voice filled him with dread. Laughter filled the hall as his inner circle obediently reacted to the use of words. He tried to move his arm but felt Draco brush at it with his own hand. "What is the use of a Death Eater who can't hear you orders?"
Another friend lost, he knew he could help. He could sense that Draco knew there was no help coming. Harry turned his hurting head to Voldemort. He was glad to hear the Death Eaters reaction to the use of Parsel Tongue.
He returned in Snake Speech. "Unfortunately," he continued in English, "That Muggle loving fool has invented a way to track the killing curse so other methods mush be used to kill these nuisances. Malfoy, kill them both, your son first, I want Potter to see what he causes before he too dies."
Malfoy moved to his heir and Harry felt Draco stiffen next to him. The sound of a blade as it was unsheathed. Harry was moved backwards by rough hands and heard Draco's gasp as the blade passed into his shoulder.
Malfoy barely paused even when he heard a growl from the Potter boy. He plunged the knife in. His son had always been too outspoken, it was only ever just time till he betrayed his father.
Draco stared at Harry as he felt the blade slice at his chest, blood oozed out of the wounds. He almost spoke out when something caught his eye on Harry's face. A clear patch on his bloodied cheek. Free from lacerations, no bruises. He could have sworn that there had been a cut there. Then again in front of his eyes, he saw the cut lip heal.
Harry could feel his anger building inside him, piecing him together again. He slumped to the ground at the pain of his ribs re-shifting to heal again. He was pulled to his feet. He lanced out with his mind against his immediate captor and was satisfied at the bloody crush as his body hit the far wall hitting a couple of the inner circle as it went. The hall went silent.
Power radiated off of Harry in flaming waves. He felt anger at the Ministry for not protecting him, letting Voldemort rise.
Crabbe stood with indecision, to go to his friend against the wall, or do as Voldemort ordered. He charged at the boy, but hit a solid wall of the power that shone around the boy. He slumped to the group, his heart shocked to a stop by the power.
Harry let the rage against his school for being his home but forcing him to stay at his aunt's house and being beaten. Anger against his mentor, Dumbledore for not being there for him.
"Malfoy finish off your heir! The rest of you kill that boy!" Voldemort ordered.
"Harry!" Draco yelled as he felt the dagger plunged into his chest and through his heart.
"Bastard!" Harry screamed at the Malfoy. He felt something strange inside of him. A pull to protect his home, his school, he pushed it aside, he was angry at Hogwarts, he couldn't care even it was destroyed. His magic reacted to the rage of his thought and some portion of him seemed to slide away.
He distractedly realised that the Dark Lord had vanished, but Malfoy Senior was still there. He could sense the magic of all the death eaters in the hall They seemed to be trying to decide whether to attack or not, a few braver ones tried a curse but it had no effect on the flames of power coming off the boy. Harry still didn't have his eyes, but his magic was more then a replacement. Draco, he distractedly noted, was dead. Killed by his own father.
/Damn Voldemort and this place!/
Across England, Voldemort hid in a cave as he assessed what had just happened, how did the boy get so powerful. Hogwarts was struck by its own defence storm, designed by it founders as it was under orders to do so. A Dark Castle on the Devon moors exploded in a ray of flames a mile high so hot that the very bricks melted.
Harry lay panting, his powers spent. He took the time to assess the situation. He felt Draco's body laying a metre away. His bones not completely healed he struggled to the limp body, the only thing within a mile not disintegrated by fire.
He felt that strange feeling again. Now with a more rational mind he connected it with Hogwarts. What happened? He stretched his mind along the link, and saw what he was doing, or more precisely what he thought he told Hogwarts to do to itself. He saw the lightning hitting the building and the group watching over it. He reached out to it to stop but couldn't see through the walls of lightning. He decided on another approach.
"Harry, stop---please."
He heard his mentor's words and it built in him, soothing his own pain. He focused on a lightning bolt and caught it as it streaked towards the main doors. It stopped and he willed the storm away through his connection to the clouds via the power bolt. He felt a connection to the school. Deep, complete. He felt his presence seem to envelope the area, bonding with everything in Hogwarts, learning all it's secrets both terrible and good.
Then the strength of the link was gone, he sensed that he could retrieve if need be, but to all purposes it was sleeping. He turned his mind inwards as he collapsed to the floor. The pain and the exhaustion finally overcoming him. He clung to the dead boy's body in a vain hope to bring back it's soul, another person he could add to the list of people who had died because of him. A voice entered his mind.
"Release your magic Harry, don't keep it shut up like you were in your life, let it free." A woman's voice, powerful, wise yet dark in nature.
"Harry do as she says," A voice he recognised, Draco, "Yeah it's me golden boy," it laughed, "let go of your magic, it will teach you things and heal you."
"What about Hogwarts?" Harry managed to croak, he felt guilty for causing the damage.
"You can fix me when you return young master." Harry would have yelped at the four unison voices of Hogwarts. He shrugged it off for later, but his mind settled on his other friends, this letting go seemed to him as a turning point in his life, he didn't want to lose them again like he did when he had been deserted at his relative's house.
"Do not fret for your friends at Hogwarts, she will always protect those inside her when she has bonded." Came a deep, shadowed voice, "I will protect them outside of Hogwarts."
The first voice returned. "Let it go Harry, I will talk to you soon, I will explain all and set you on your destiny."
With that he let go of the restraints he had barely realised he was holding and fell into darkness.
* * *
Thanks to;
SilverKnight7; Aye Sir! As you wish master!
Athenakitty; I hope I manage to answer all of your questions
Wytil; Put it this way, it may be a while before he has to answer to them again.
Thanks also to Kraeg001 and Gaul1, I look forward to everyone reviews.
A/N; This chapter, now that I have read it to myself is pretty confusing, it tends to take a random 'see all' type view in some places. I hope you can follow it.
This chapter is dedicated to my first reviewer of this story, as they were kind enough to point out in their review. Therefore this chapter is dedicated to Kraeg001.
Chapter 2; The Inner Circle and Hogwarts
Harry felt nothing but pain as he woke, he sighed at the thought of another day at the Dursley's. Damn Wizards, when were going to come for him. Where was the Headmaster?
/Where the hell is Albus Dumble---/
/Oh God/ he gasped as the memories returned to him. Dursley's beatings, his magic blowing apart the wall. The loss of his eyesight brought fresh tears to his eyes, and they burned over the remains of his eyes as the salty texture rolled over the dried blood and mess that had been his only link with his deceased mother.
Hearing Dumbledore's voice in the distance, his anger at his Uncle for threatening his loved mentor, even if a bit mislead lately he couldn't hold anything against the man.
Then all he could remember was the rest of his wall exploding, was it him again, did he do it? Then logic kicked in, no, the wall had been knocked in towards him. Several of the bricks had hit him. The latest pain in his side stood testament to that. His last memory was the face of a sneering Peter Pettigrew a.k.a. Wormtail.
/Where am I?/ he thought to himself. He could feel the cold and could imagine the small room or cell he was in. A chilly stone floor pressed into his back. He pushed his thoughts outwards to feel his surroundings, something that he had learnt to do in the dark of his room. Easy as it was when you couldn't move your body.
There, he could feel a slight draft from one direction, a door. He tried to listen outside the door, but there was nothing. Then he thought he heard the sound of wood hitting wood. A door closing? Maybe. Then the sound of footsteps, he tried to turn towards the door but stopped with a gasp as the pain in his ribs protested to the wiggle that he had managed.
The footsteps got closer, how many? He thought there were three, maybe four. Two really heavy, one graceful and one light. A boy he thought.
The door slammed open and the people stepped through. The two heavy ones moved to his sides and he heard the one nearest the door cast a levitating charm on him. He gasped with pain, as he was pulled into the air none too gently. A mobilicorpus quickly followed and he felt himself moving toward the man by the door. He tried to struggle and heard the sneer from near the door.
"Stupid Gryffindors, never know when to cut heir losses."
That and the two accompanying laughs told him that he should know his captives. They quickly left the room and headed down the corridor. The graceful steps were now about ten metres in front of him, the heavy ones had fallen behind. The boy's steps fell in to his right. Harry thought he heard the boy muttering to himself.
The stopped after about five minutes.
"Draco!" The one in front spoke sharply, "Watch him, I will go announce our presence to the inner circle."
It all clicked together, Lucius Malfoy and Goyle and Crabbe. Then the boy must be Draco. He renewed his attempt to break free of the bonds. He heard a larger door open then close. He heard Draco take a deep breathe beside him.
"Stop struggling you'll hurt yourself more. I will get you out." Harry was so shocked at the quiet words he stopped his struggles. "I promise, Harry." The use of his first name stunned him. Draco against Voldemort and his own father. He couldn't believe it.
"Draco?" He managed in a rough croak. "No, you'll only get yourself caught, go to Hogwarts, I can handle myself." That was exactly the opposite to how he felt but he couldn't risk hurting another person just to save himself. That was how Sirius had died.
"Hush Harry, I don't care much now anyway, my life ended when my father sold me to Voldemort." Harry was still trying to wonder what the other boy had meant when he felt a hand shove him sideways to the wall. He hit it and the levitating charm seemed to wear of with the sudden contact and his body fell to the floor.
He heard two 'stupefy's' from Draco and the sound of twin thuds as the over- sized trolls hit the floor. He heard the echoes of Draco's feet heading over to him but it was all blocked out by a shrill alarm that blasted through the room.
"Damn, I am sorry Harry, I didn't know they had a magic detection system on the Death Eaters." Harry managed a smile to his helper.
"Don't blame yourself, thank you anyway." He tried to reassure the boy. He heard the doors slam open behind Draco. "Draco run, leave please."
"Never Harry. I told you my life was over years ago."
"Crucio!" Harry was briefly shocked to hear the voice was Draco's fathers. Draco fell to the floor, for a brief time his screams filled the room before the curse was lifted. Some footsteps made their way to Harry, he tried to move but couldn't, he was kicked harshly in the stomach before he was lifted roughly. He lost consciousness as a hard hit made contact with his battered skull. Draco's fighting was the last he heard as he blacked out.
When he came to he felt another bodies heat next to him.
"Draco?" He whispered, a cold laughed echoed.
"He can't hear you Potter, I am afraid a 'stray' deafening curse hit him." Voldemort's voice filled him with dread. Laughter filled the hall as his inner circle obediently reacted to the use of words. He tried to move his arm but felt Draco brush at it with his own hand. "What is the use of a Death Eater who can't hear you orders?"
Another friend lost, he knew he could help. He could sense that Draco knew there was no help coming. Harry turned his hurting head to Voldemort. He was glad to hear the Death Eaters reaction to the use of Parsel Tongue.
He returned in Snake Speech. "Unfortunately," he continued in English, "That Muggle loving fool has invented a way to track the killing curse so other methods mush be used to kill these nuisances. Malfoy, kill them both, your son first, I want Potter to see what he causes before he too dies."
Malfoy moved to his heir and Harry felt Draco stiffen next to him. The sound of a blade as it was unsheathed. Harry was moved backwards by rough hands and heard Draco's gasp as the blade passed into his shoulder.
Malfoy barely paused even when he heard a growl from the Potter boy. He plunged the knife in. His son had always been too outspoken, it was only ever just time till he betrayed his father.
Draco stared at Harry as he felt the blade slice at his chest, blood oozed out of the wounds. He almost spoke out when something caught his eye on Harry's face. A clear patch on his bloodied cheek. Free from lacerations, no bruises. He could have sworn that there had been a cut there. Then again in front of his eyes, he saw the cut lip heal.
Harry could feel his anger building inside him, piecing him together again. He slumped to the ground at the pain of his ribs re-shifting to heal again. He was pulled to his feet. He lanced out with his mind against his immediate captor and was satisfied at the bloody crush as his body hit the far wall hitting a couple of the inner circle as it went. The hall went silent.
Power radiated off of Harry in flaming waves. He felt anger at the Ministry for not protecting him, letting Voldemort rise.
Crabbe stood with indecision, to go to his friend against the wall, or do as Voldemort ordered. He charged at the boy, but hit a solid wall of the power that shone around the boy. He slumped to the group, his heart shocked to a stop by the power.
Harry let the rage against his school for being his home but forcing him to stay at his aunt's house and being beaten. Anger against his mentor, Dumbledore for not being there for him.
"Malfoy finish off your heir! The rest of you kill that boy!" Voldemort ordered.
"Harry!" Draco yelled as he felt the dagger plunged into his chest and through his heart.
"Bastard!" Harry screamed at the Malfoy. He felt something strange inside of him. A pull to protect his home, his school, he pushed it aside, he was angry at Hogwarts, he couldn't care even it was destroyed. His magic reacted to the rage of his thought and some portion of him seemed to slide away.
He distractedly realised that the Dark Lord had vanished, but Malfoy Senior was still there. He could sense the magic of all the death eaters in the hall They seemed to be trying to decide whether to attack or not, a few braver ones tried a curse but it had no effect on the flames of power coming off the boy. Harry still didn't have his eyes, but his magic was more then a replacement. Draco, he distractedly noted, was dead. Killed by his own father.
/Damn Voldemort and this place!/
Across England, Voldemort hid in a cave as he assessed what had just happened, how did the boy get so powerful. Hogwarts was struck by its own defence storm, designed by it founders as it was under orders to do so. A Dark Castle on the Devon moors exploded in a ray of flames a mile high so hot that the very bricks melted.
Harry lay panting, his powers spent. He took the time to assess the situation. He felt Draco's body laying a metre away. His bones not completely healed he struggled to the limp body, the only thing within a mile not disintegrated by fire.
He felt that strange feeling again. Now with a more rational mind he connected it with Hogwarts. What happened? He stretched his mind along the link, and saw what he was doing, or more precisely what he thought he told Hogwarts to do to itself. He saw the lightning hitting the building and the group watching over it. He reached out to it to stop but couldn't see through the walls of lightning. He decided on another approach.
"Harry, stop---please."
He heard his mentor's words and it built in him, soothing his own pain. He focused on a lightning bolt and caught it as it streaked towards the main doors. It stopped and he willed the storm away through his connection to the clouds via the power bolt. He felt a connection to the school. Deep, complete. He felt his presence seem to envelope the area, bonding with everything in Hogwarts, learning all it's secrets both terrible and good.
Then the strength of the link was gone, he sensed that he could retrieve if need be, but to all purposes it was sleeping. He turned his mind inwards as he collapsed to the floor. The pain and the exhaustion finally overcoming him. He clung to the dead boy's body in a vain hope to bring back it's soul, another person he could add to the list of people who had died because of him. A voice entered his mind.
"Release your magic Harry, don't keep it shut up like you were in your life, let it free." A woman's voice, powerful, wise yet dark in nature.
"Harry do as she says," A voice he recognised, Draco, "Yeah it's me golden boy," it laughed, "let go of your magic, it will teach you things and heal you."
"What about Hogwarts?" Harry managed to croak, he felt guilty for causing the damage.
"You can fix me when you return young master." Harry would have yelped at the four unison voices of Hogwarts. He shrugged it off for later, but his mind settled on his other friends, this letting go seemed to him as a turning point in his life, he didn't want to lose them again like he did when he had been deserted at his relative's house.
"Do not fret for your friends at Hogwarts, she will always protect those inside her when she has bonded." Came a deep, shadowed voice, "I will protect them outside of Hogwarts."
The first voice returned. "Let it go Harry, I will talk to you soon, I will explain all and set you on your destiny."
With that he let go of the restraints he had barely realised he was holding and fell into darkness.
* * *
Thanks to;
SilverKnight7; Aye Sir! As you wish master!
Athenakitty; I hope I manage to answer all of your questions
Wytil; Put it this way, it may be a while before he has to answer to them again.
Thanks also to Kraeg001 and Gaul1, I look forward to everyone reviews.