[Author's Note: Part I is mostly Dumbledore bashing - with his thoughts on the matter. It is more of a prologue and review of the timeline than anything else. Part I is entirely from Albus Dumbledore's perspective – the rest of the story features Harry, Hermione, Sirius, Lord Voldemort, and others.]
Part I – Alienating Albus
(**Summer Break following the Triwizard Tournament**)
Hogwarts, Headmasters Office
The Boy-Who-Lived Legally Kidnapped!? That was the bold, flashing, size 72 font, headline racing across the top of the Daily Prophet for Tuesday, August 1st. Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore felt a twinge of unease upon first seeing it, then he masterfully smothered the feeling with occlumency logic. That couldn't be right.
One: Tom and his marked followers could not penetrate the blood wards he had erected at the boy's home. He knew this for a fact – he had had Severus test this in the past. Therefore Tom, nor his followers, would be able to kidnap Harry Potter from his aunt's residence at Privet Drive.
Two: In order to legally kidnap the boy, one would have to go through the Ministry's bureaucracy to claim Harry Potter's guardianship – No one had done this. He would have been notified immediately by his sources there if someone had filed the first piece of parchment work toward that end.
Three: None of the monitoring devices on his desk, keyed to Harry, were showing any signs of danger. In fact, they showed the boy to be the safest and happiest Albus could ever recall.
Ergo, the thought that the boy had been kidnapped was preposterous. The Boy-Who-Lived had not been kidnapped.
What were they playing at? What was Cornelius… or more likely, Tom, planning?
The political mouthpiece of the Ministry (officially known as the Daily Prophet) had been publishing articles aimed at discrediting him and flaming Harry all summer. This was just one more slanderous, fictitious, propaganda fueled piece full of hot air. Just another one of those articles.
Harry was fine. He was. And the boy was happy.
A small dab of worry began to form in the back of the old wizard's mind. Like the feeling that you have when you know you forgot something, but for the life of you, you cannot figure out what it was. It would either come to him or not, he couldn't force himself to recall what he had forgotten…
The important thing was that the Boy-Who-Lived had not been kidnapped.
Albus told himself that this was just Tom jockeying for position, feeding the chaos, and trying to start a panic. The darkness thrived and grew in times of discontent.
The Pureblood faction, publicly headed by Lucius Malfoy, was undoubtably exerting its influence on Minister Fudge. Cornelius, as always, wouldn't have a clue he was being played. The man was a buffoon, anyone with a bag of gold or a half silver tongue could get him to dance. (That was how he got into office – everyone was convinced they could 'guide' him. The problem was that Lucius had more gold than Midas, and the pompous man was a very generous benefactor. As a result, Lucius tended to direct the Minister's dance card more often than not, even more than Albus.)
Or Tom could be leaning directly on the Daily Prophet, the journalist or editor perhaps? With 99 percent of the population fearing to even utter his name, his fake name (even after it was believed he had been dead and gone for over a decade), it wasn't hard to issue threats. Especially not now that he was back in a corporal body.
Perhaps Tom was using his Slytherin cunning, unmatched by any save himself, to manipulate the masses? With Tom's intelligence it was impossible to predict exactly what his strategy was. He would need to debrief Severus again. Perhaps his trusted potions master would be able to ferret out what was going on. It was imperative, for the good of Britain, that he be prepared to counter Tom's every move.
Albus paused, and thought hard…
It was possible that Tom was trying to decipher the sequence of events triggered by his attempt to end the Potter line the night he killed James and Lily, the night he first lost his body.
But even if these so called 'investigative journalists' managed to, or were directed to, uncover and expose what Albus had done with the one-year-old boy-who-lived, they wouldn't be able to legally go after him for kidnapping. Smear campaign: yes. But he had carefully dotted all his i's and crossed all his legal t's. Being Chief Warlock at the time, with Tom recently defanged, it hadn't been hard to bend the Wizengamot to his will. Even the 'imperious victims' needed to appear redeemed, so had been quick to fall in line when it came to his decisions on the boy.
Chief Warlock Albus Dumbledore had been able to quickly and covertly erect an information embargo around young Harry Potter, doing what he could to completely isolate the boy from the magical world. Tailored owl redirect wards stopped all of the boy's mail. An unplottable location prevented most unwanted magical visitors (stupid thing was apparently weak to air location and animagus. Damn Sirius and Arthur with his flying car). And carefully constructed blood wards ingeniously siphoned the boys magic, blocked Tom, and appeared to act as a last line of defense against the magical world.
To the outside world, Albus appeared to be taking upon the tragic burden of being the orphaned boy's magical guardian, his protector. But unknown to Harry, the man was erecting prison walls around the boy to keep unwanted influences away from him.
The weapon had to be carefully primed.
Chief Warlock Albus Dumbledore had used Ministry Degree to seal the Potter wills. Harry wouldn't have access to the Potter wills until he came of age – Albus had made sure of that. And Albus had made damn sure no mention of the wills was ever made in the boys presence. A few obliviates and compulsion charms had been necessary, but for the greater good, no one needed to bother bringing this to the boy's attention now. Especially not now that Tom had a corporal body again.
The end game was in sight.
The fulfillment of the prophecy took priority over everything else. Only then could Tom be truly defeated. Only then could Albus begin work to redeem all those lost souls swayed by Tom's honeyed words. But first, first Harry Potter must play his prophesied part, his part choreographed and willed by fate herself, carefully helped along by Albus Dumbledore.
Hopefully this blasted article would never find its way to the boy's hand. The owl ward was still in place, but it had never been keyed to stop Daily Prophet delivery owls requested by the boy himself. Albus had never considered it …and now it was too late.
Curse Rita Skeeter. The boy had been blissfully unaware of the wizarding news system until Rita directed her unwanted attention on him and young Miss Granger this past year… Now blocking the Daily Prophet delivery owl would be too suspicious. Miss Granger would be sure to notice and draw attention to the fact.
Still, Miss Granger was a great boon to the Headmaster. She was essentially a Ravenclaw dressed in red trimmed robes. This meant that the young girl, completely trusted by the boy, took everything she read as the gospel truth – and the girl read a lot. Being Headmaster, he had the privilege of handpicking what books were available or restricted in the Hogwarts library. It wasn't hard to make sure that every easily obtainable book painted a very flattering picture of himself. They made Albus Dumbledore and his slightly exaggerated accomplishments larger than life. Albus Dumbledore was a hero to the girl, someone to look up to, to worship. Young Miss Granger, while noticeably lacking in the social dynamic, was slavishly subservient to those in positions of authority, i.e., him. This was a very good thing for Albus. It allowed him to easily manipulate the girl.
Miss Granger had unknowingly played her part in helping Albus engineer three separate confrontations between Harry and Tom in just four short years while at Hogwarts.
Sadly, none of the confrontations had fulfilled the prophecy. The boy was ridiculously lucky.
Still, with Miss Granger's natural inclination to defer to him, a short word before her departure back to the muggle world, and he was sure she would not be informing Harry of this article, or anything else this summer.
The article.
It was best to read it now so he could do damage control if necessary, or prepare arguments he could use later. Albus Dumbledore was no dummy, knowledge was power, and he was very powerful – if he did say so himself.
To the article.
Below the bold font title was an open letter. That was odd…
To Whom It May Concern (and all you other nosy people),
The small dab of worry in the back of Albus Dumbledore's mind began to grow and condense. 'All you other nosy people' – that didn't sound like the jargon for a typical political soundbite. That almost sounded like…
With the safety of Heir Potter being my sole concern, I, Sirius Black,
Crap! This could be worse than he imagined.
Lord Black to the Ancient and Noble House of Black,
No.
acting as Regent to the Ancient and Noble House of Potter,
Hippogriff crap on toast! There were no living adult members of House Potter, so the man's godfather status to the de facto Heir automatically qualified him for the position – no parchment work necessary!
He, Albus Dumbledore, had messed up.
do formally withdraw Heir Potter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry,
Shit.
effective immediately.
Shit-shit!
This could not be happening, not now. That mangy dog was going to ruin everything!
No. Wait. Think.
This was Sirius Black. Escaped Azkaban prisoner Sirius Black. No matter what fancy titles the mutt claimed, or actually had, he was still a widely acknowledged mass murderer, a wanted man. Sirius's written word would hold no weight in court. Officially Harry was still his charge. The boy could not be withdrawn from Hogwarts on the whim of a mentally unstable jailbird.
Sirius Black would not stand in the way of fate, or Albus Dumbledore's plans, Albus wouldn't let him.
Now what would he need to fix?
To the Hogwarts Board of Governors and the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, I call upon you to do your job.
There was no need for that. Their job was to do as he directed them, no more and no less. He, Albus Dumbledore, knew best.
This does not mean pursuing me with a Dementor's kiss for choosing to end my Azkaban vacation early, despite having the room booked for the foreseeable future.
We will see about that my boy, we will see.
I call upon the D.M.L.E. to investigate how I came to be unlawfully imprisoned in Azkaban for over a decade. The judicial process was NOT followed! I was NOT given a Wizengamot trial within 13 weeks. I was NOT given a trial at all! I was transferred immediately to Azkaban where I was illegally incarcerated in the HIGH security wing, never given a chance to prove my innocence.
Damn Black. That was uncharacteristically cunning. Trial transcripts could be redacted, but the trials themselves and the persons tried were a matter of public record. There would be no sweeping this under the rug now.
As Head of the Ancient and Noble House of Black, I, Sirius Black, Lord Black, demand justice and restitution for the crimes perpetrated against House Black. Houses Fudge, Crouch, Bones, Pettigrew, Malfoy, Cuffe, and Dumbledore are formally served notice.
Really? The boy dared serve him notice, it was laughable.
I take grievance with your past actions against me, and your continuing actions to defame my character in script and pursue my death through corrupt legal channels. These are grounds for declaration of a blood feud.
This is your one and only chance to step back and do what is right. I will tolerate NO more.
With a sinking heart Dumbledore realized Sirius Black, the escaped prisoner of Azkaban, had just incidentally did more damage to his reputation than Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge and Daily Prophet Chief editor Barnabas Cuffe had in the past month – and they had been trying to smear him.
Do your job, as I am attempting to do mine as Regent to House Potter.
No. Not necessary Sirius, not necessary at all.
It has been brought to my attention that Heir Potter's education and safety has been less than advertised by Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Unbelievable. Sirius dared beseech the noble name of Hogwarts. This argument wouldn't have a legal leg to stand on, everyone knew Hogwarts was the premier school of magic. Heck a 4th year Hogwarts student had just won the Triwizard tournament.
(Albus conveniently ignored the safety accusation.)
Heir Potter's treatment by his peers and Hogwarts instructors has been significantly substandard for a person of his esteemed station.
Okay. The man may have a point. But the boy was a deliberate exception.
The derogatory behavior Heir Potter has been forced to endure, and the actions he has had to take just to survive four years in that prestigious, bigoted school, are completely unacceptable.
No, it was necessary to shape and test the character of the boy, to try to fulfill the prophecy! Sirius just didn't know about the prophecy; he could never be trusted with the prophecy. There was no way of predicting how Sirius would react, and Albus Dumbledore was unwilling to share the information and take any chances. Nobody knew but him, and it was best that way.
Four years at Hogwarts, and four times the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor (a different person each year) has tried to kill the Heir to House Potter. There will not be another murder attempt on my watch!
Was Sirius aware that Dolores Umbridge was set to take the post this upcoming school year?
I call upon the Department of Magical Law Enforcement to investigate these events Heir Potter has personally experienced while at Hogwarts:
Uh-oh. This could be an issue.
In first year, Heir Potter was magically, mentally, and physically assaulted by Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor Quirinus Quirrell. Professor Quirrell attempted to kill Heir Potter on no less than three occasions during the school year. THREE!
True. But good luck proving it.
Professor Quirrell made his first known attempt upon Heir Potters life on October 31st, when a fully grown mountain troll was released within the confines of the school during the Halloween Feast.
Okay, it was hard to refute the troll, short of obliviating every student and staff member present during that time. But this was not a targeted attack upon the boy – the boy went looking for it! If the boy had followed his commands, he would have been safe in his Gryffindor common room.
It would be easy to refute this assassination attempt.
Heir Potter ended up being forced to confront the brute in a bathroom in order to help save a trapped 1st year female student.
Okay, that didn't look particularly good, especially as Hogwarts hadn't bothered to inform the D.M.L.E. of the rogue troll incident, Albus preferring to keep it all in-house and hush-hush. But he could handle this.
Professor Quirrell made another obvious attempt upon Heir Potters life less than two weeks later during the Gryffindor-Slytherin Quidditch match, where Heir Potter's broom was cursed. Did any adult present attempt to rescue Heir Potter from the cursed broom or suspend play? No, they didn't. The attendees, including most of Hogwarts staff, just sat there and watched the murder attempt upon Heir Potter's life. Completely unacceptable!
Again, this didn't paint a good image of Albus and Hogwarts. Damn Black. And curse Harry, who would have thought the boy would open up to anyone. Albus thought he had conditioned that out of the boy by this point, the Triwizard Tournament being the final test to seal that. It appeared that he was painfully mistaken.
Later, in that same school year, Heir Potter, Heir Malfoy, Heir Longbottom, and a young first year female student were all assigned detention in the Forbidden Forest by Deputy Headmistress Minerva McGonagall. First years deliberately sent into the Forbidden Forest!
Dumbledore winced. He had forgotten about that. Not one of his brighter moments, but it had led to a Harry-Tom meeting. Shame the centaur had broken it up.
Worse, it was after dark, to search for what was actively KILLING unicorns! Heir Potter was abandoned in the Forbidden Forest by a fleeing Heir Malfoy. Heir Potter was left to face what was killing the unicorns by himself! Thankfully the centaur Firenze stepped in and rescued him from the danger he had been irresponsibly placed in by Hogwarts Deputy Headmistress.
Minerva was not going to be happy about this. She would be the one taking the hit for that one, even if he was the one to suggest it. Her sterling reputation could easily weather that storm, but she would not be happy.
Professor Quirrell's last attempt upon Heir Potter's life happened near the end of the school year. The Professor made an attempt to steal the Philosopher's stone (which was hidden at Hogwarts by Headmaster Dumbledore at the time) and was foiled by Heir Potter and his friends. The confrontation between Heir Potter and Professor Quirrell resulted in a deadly duel where Heir Potter's magical protections killed the possessed professor. Heir Potter had to spend significant time in the Hospital Wing to recover from the encounter.
An unreported death, that would go over great. Great job Black. He was going to make himself a dog skin fur coat.
At least there was no mention that Tom was the one possessing Quirinus.
Also during first year, Heir Potter and others had two potentially deadly encounters with a large three-headed dog within Hogwarts castle. This dangerous creature had been purposefully placed within the school by Keeper of Keys and Grounds, Rubeus Hagrid, on the orders of Albus Dumbledore, to guard the Philosopher's Stone.
Dumbledore cringed. Hagrid wasn't exactly subtle, and if questioned about Fluffy he wouldn't lie. The stupid half-giant was ridiculously resistant to memory charms too… If questioned, Hagrid's response would be something along the lines of: 'Headmaster Dumbledore said…'
The Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures would not be satisfied with that reasoning, not with the entire country's magical population between the ages of 11 and 17 housed within that same castle.
Also, there was a baby dragon hatched and housed within Hogwarts grounds that year.
What?!
That was news to him. Curse that big oaf! Only Hagrid would be so stupid as to hatch a baby dragon!
During Heir Potter's first year at Hogwarts, and all the years since, Potions Professor Severus Snape has acted in a decidedly unprofessional and derogatory manner towards Heir Potter, Heir Longbottom, and numerous others. The Potions Professor, unprovoked, did verbally berate Heir Potter in his very first Potions class for no apparent reason. This harsh harassment has not ceased or waned since.
All necessary to condition the boy. Severus was doing a marvelous job. And the greatest thing was Albus didn't even need to instruct Severus to do it. It was all for the greater good, and Albus was monitoring the situation from afar. He could step in and 'save' the boy should it become necessary.
The Head of Slytherin House often vanishes Heir Potters potions before they can be completed or turned in, resulting in very questionable Potion marks.
The boys school marks were of no consequence, it was unlikely he would survive to graduate.
Reporting this biasedness to Minerva McGonagall, the Deputy Headmistress and Head of Gryffindor House, has done nothing. Abundant complaints, by different students, in different houses, over different years, and the Deputy Headmistress still absolutely refuses to reign in the blatantly unfair, unprofessional Potions Professor.
Oh, he hadn't foreseen Sirius turning his ire upon Minerva. He supposed Minerva was a weaker target than himself…
This is clear evidence that two of the Hogwarts Heads of House are unfit for their prestigious positions. One Head is regularly picking on, bullying students he is supposed to be educating, the other is unwilling to fulfill her job description and do what is best for the children that have been entrusted to her care.
Minerva would be in quite the tizzy over this. Sirius better hope he never crossed paths with his former Head of House after saying she was unfit for said duty; Minerva would use his carcass for a scratching post.
In all this one has to wonder what the esteemed Headmaster was doing?
Seriously? Only trying to save the world from Tom.
To answer that question, you'd have to ask Albus Dumbledore yourself. Complaints filed against his 'trusted' Potions Professor are many, yet they have all been brushed off like used Floo Powder.
Sirius, Sirius… The young man's heart might be in the right place, wanting to take care of his godson, but his brain clearly wasn't functioning. Painting him, Albus Dumbledore, in a bad light now could be catastrophic in their war against Tom. He was needed at Hogwarts, and to a larger extent in the magical world. He was the Leader of the Light. Only he had the compassion and forgiveness in his heart to lead those astray back to the light – after Tom and the prophecy were dealt with.
In Heir Potter's second year at Hogwarts, Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor Gilderoy Lockhart did physically and magically assault Heir Potter. Professor Lockhart did deliberately vanish all the bones in Heir Potter's arm after a quidditch match – resulting in Heir Potter enduring a very painful stay in the Hospital Wing to undergo traumatic Skele-Gro treatment.
Professor Lockhart also, later in the school year, attempted to magically assault Heir Potter with an obliviation spell, while vocally confessing to planning on abandoning the Heir to House Potter, and another young pureblood student, in a deadly situation in the Chamber of Secrets. Thankfully the obliviation spell backfired due to a damaged wand.
Ha! Gilderoy was a vegetable. The D.M.L.E. would have a tough time proving those accusations. Well not the bone vanishing bit, that was witnessed by most of the Hogwarts quidditch stadium. But very few others knew where the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets was, and even if they did, only Harry and Tom could open it. The deadly situation was mere speculation, he had made sure of that.
As to Gilderoy… it was tragic, truly tragic. But the young man's mind was completely lost now. It was sad to lose his cheerful presence, but you couldn't win them all. Hopefully the young man's sacrifice and charm would serve him well on his next great adventure. Albus would see to it that he had another bag of lemon drops delivered to St. Mungo's.
During Heir Potter's second year at Hogwarts a Basilisk was let loose in the school numerous times.
Damn. He was really hoping that snake would not be mentioned.
While the class 5X creature miraculously did not kill any students with its deadly gaze, it did petrify more than a few. Yet neither the D.M.L.E. nor the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures bothered to step in and deal with the creature.
Double damn. Two reasons for that: Him, and him. Two more strikes, but it had been imperative that it remain an internal affair at the time, so that another Harry-Tom confrontation could be set up.
The only actions taken by the Ministry were to put the Keeper of Keys and Grounds at the time, Rubeus Hagrid, in Azkaban to 'appear to be doing something'.
Yep, trust Cornelius to always jump to act first for his own benefit and consider the ramifications for his actions second… if at all. He had been like that as a student as well.
The Ministry of Magic did not bother to investigate the attacks. Nor did the Board of Governors, or Headmaster, see fit to close the school for safety concerns.
Okay, that looked bad. And he could only blame himself. But a confrontation with memory Tom could have fulfilled the prophecy, it had not, but it could have.
Instead, Heir Potter was forced to resolve the Basilisk situation himself. Had Deputy Headmistress McGonagall bothered to listen to her students concerns, Heir Potter likely wouldn't have had to confront the deadly creature by himself in order to save a young pureblood 1st year female students life. Heir Potter wouldn't have needed Phoenix Tears to survive a Basilisk bite!
Dumbledore was stroking his beard and slowly shaking his head. Minerva was taking another hit. Sirius was a dead man walking.
In his third year, Heir Potter was attacked no less than three times by Dementors that were supposed to be there for his protection.
Absolutely NOT Albus' fault. No way was he taking the hit for that.
The Ministry protections provided to ensure the students safety from me (innocent, illegally incarcerated me) – well they did more harm than good. Making the students recall their worst memories every time they passed a Dementor was a cruel and unnecessary measure. After all, I did escape from Azkaban prison, which was brimming with the foul creatures. Why did the Ministry think Dementors would work against me at Hogwarts?
Why indeed? Albus himself hadn't argued though. Having young Harry recall his worst memories was good conditioning for the boy. Plus with the way it played out, he had been able to gain certain concessions from Cornelius for the Triwizard Tournament.
In his third year, Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor Remus Lupin, a werewolf, did transform during a full moon, in the near vicinity of Heir Potter and other students. Potions Professor Severus Snape had failed (perhaps deliberately?) to provide Professor Lupin with his Wolfsbane Potion in a timely manner, and this did put Heir Potter and other students in deadly danger.
Trust Sirius to try to lay the blame on Severus. The boys both refused to let old schoolboy grudges die. He was positive that the events that led to Remus transforming and losing control were merely an unfortunate coincidence. Severus should have thought to bring the Wolfsbane potion with him to the Shrieking Shack, but he hadn't. He was sure this hadn't been a deliberate malicious action, just a human one. Everyone makes mistakes.
In Heir Potter's fourth year, the Azkaban escapee, Bartemius Crouch, Jr., son of Bartemius Crouch Senior did impersonate the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor Alastor Moody for the entire school year.
His mistake.
But in his own defense, Alastor was always paranoid and suspicious, his behavior was always sporadic.
Still, Albus should have caught the imposter. If he had of just made a little more time for his old friend… In retrospect – they never did get together during the school year to reminisce. Now he knew why, young Bartemius had avoided being alone in his presence when it wouldn't look outright suspicious. He even cunningly sat in corners to avoid sitting next to him at most meals and staff meetings.
During his time impersonating Alastor Moody, the marked Death Eater, Bartemius Crouch, Jr., under the guise of 'teaching', did subject students to the Unforgivable Curses. This included attempting to put Heir Potter, and ALL other Heirs in his class, under the Imperious curse!
Sweat began to bead Albus's forehead. He would be catching hell for that.
Regent Longbottom came to mind. She especially would be on the war path. She would be all for mounting his head on a pike. The old bird was on the Board of Governors too. Shit!
Crouch, Jr. also confounded the Goblet of Fire, entering Heir Potter into the deadly Triwizard Tournament. When the 1st and 2nd Tournament Tasks failed to kill Heir Potter, the Death Eater sabotaged the Triwizard Cup to act as a portkey to kidnap Heir Potter at the conclusion of the third task. Heir Potter and Heir Diggory both got caught in the trap and placed in a deadly confrontation with their kidnappers. Sadly Heir Diggory did not survive the encounter. Heir Potter, suffering from the aftereffects of Cruciatus curse exposure, valiantly managed to escape with Cedric's body.
Still no specific mention of Tom in the article…
This resulted in yet another stay for Heir Potter in the Hogwarts Hospital Wing.
It was the boys own fault he was in the Hospital Wing every year. If he would just let Tom kill him.
Luckily Poppy was one of the best Healers Albus knew, and more importantly, she was completely loyal to him. If he said the malnutrition and foul soul magic situation the boy was suffering from was being handled, she didn't question him.
That was the last straw. Heir Potter will not be returning to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for another potentially hazardous school year riddled with Hospital stays.
The boy must come back, he must fulfill his destiny. The prophecy would be fulfilled. Albus couldn't see fate letting the boy go astray like this. Something would force the boy to stay.
I strongly urge all other parents and guardians to think carefully before sending their children back to Hogwarts this fall. There are other magical schools out there.
Really? He was the only one Tom had ever feared. Their wards were safest wherever he was. Of course, Cornelius was still refusing to acknowledge the fact that Tom was back…
North America and Australia both have English speaking Magical Institutions. Places of learning that in all likelihood host safer environments, with livelier, less narrow-minded Professors.
Well, that was just low. Hogwarts and Professor Binns was good enough for Sirius and his friends. And Tom had been at large during those school days as well.
Heir Potter and I have already left the shores of Great Britain.
Wait. WHAT!?
Sirius was lying, he had to be lying.
We strongly urge our friends, and all other sane people, to consider doing this as well.
-Sincerely,
Sirius Black, Illegally Incarcerated Innocent Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Black, Regent to the Ancient and Noble House of Potter
Albus Dumbledore wadded the Daily Prophet up in his old, wrinkly hands. Then in a rare display of temper, drew his wand and incinerated it right there on his desk. Some of the parchment work scattered around his desk did not survive the intense flames. And his desk itself would be marred with scorch marks.
It didn't matter, it was all inconsequential.
All that mattered was the prophecy.
Only Harry could vanquish the Dark Lord. And only the Dark Lord could end Harry.
Albus stared at the monitoring devices on his desk mournfully, they showed young Harry to be the safest and happiest Albus could ever recall. That simply would not do.
Unfortunately, he was in a stalemate until one ended the other. Until then, both were protected by fate. But prophecy had a way of ensuring its own fulfillment. Magic worked in mysterious ways, and Albus was sure it would reel the boy back to Britain in good time. If it took a little help from him, for the Greater Good, he was willing to do it.
End of Part I
– C. Wall 5
The next chapter will be from Harry's point of view.
Disclaimer: I do not in any way own Harry Potter. No copyright infringement is intended. I thank J.K. Rowling for kindly not kicking me, or the other fanfiction writers, out of her sandbox. I am not manufacturing any sand dollars from this work.
This story is a product of my time and effort. If you do not like it - that is okay. You are not being forced to read it. But if you don't like my story, please, just move on. (Check out my favorites - there are some real masterpieces there.) Hateful reviews or messages are not appreciated. Constructive criticism or suggestions are okay, but please, keep it respectful.
Positive reviews make my day. If you like my story, please let me know. A simple follow, thumbs up, or favorite will help fuel the next chapter.