Harry Potter and the Mind Mage
By James Milamber
Dedication: This chapter, and the rest of the story, is dedicated to Whimsical Firefly, because she's the only reason I'm still writing it, even if she's not completely aware of the fact. Now everyone go thank her by reading (and reviewing) her story Sirius' Choice, beta'ed by Yours Truly and correlating with Mind Mage.
The Forbidden Forest shot past beneath him; through the thick greenery he caught flashes of the odd creatures that lived within. Most notably were a group of centaurs, which stopped and watched him as he passed.
Then he was somewhere else, a small village he had never seen before. A complete lack of movement and lights gave it the feel of being abandoned. He flashed through the streets so fast the buildings were a blur, until with a jarring suddenness he stopped in front of a rundown warehouse. Just as suddenly, he was inside.
The cavernous interior was devoid of furnishing, filled only with deep shadows. A massive pentagram was etched into the stone floor, and candles floated at each of the five points. Seated in the centre, snakelike head bowed and eyes closed in concentration, was Lord Voldemort.
Suddenly he looked up, and his eyes flashed open. He hissed in annoyance, and a moment later a figure scurried out of the shadows near the wall.
'Master?' the figure said hesitantly. As he moved closer, the candlelight reflected off his silver hand.
'It is no good,' Voldemort said, turning his hate filled eyes on his servant. 'Dumbledore must suspect. We shall have to find another route.'
'As you say, Master,' Wormtail bowed his head.
'Of course it is as I say, fool,' Voldemort sneered. Wormtail flinched, dropping to his knees.
'Run, Potter,' Voldemort said without turning away from his cowering servant. 'Return to the old fool you place so much faith in. But know this, you cannot remain within the wards of Hogwarts forever – and when you finally emerge, I will be there waiting to greet you.' He smiled cruelly. 'Give my regards to the lovely Miss Weasley, would you? Tell her I'm so looking forward to our next meeting.'
'Now,' Voldemort raised his wand. 'I think you need a lesson in faith. Crucio!
Wormtail screamed. And, for the first time in many months, Harry sat bolt upright in bed and did the same.
'Neville, get off me…Harry!'
The curtains around Harry's bed were thrown open, and he found himself looking into the concerned eyes of Ron. Neville stood just behind, hanging onto Ron's arm for dear life. Seamus and Dean were both sitting up in bed, watching him curiously, and Alex was nowhere to be seen. Padfoot was sitting on the end of Harry's bed, watching him carefully.
Harry gulped in a deep breath to steady himself. His scar was throbbing painfully, but it was bearable.
'Another vision?' Ron asked quietly as Seamus and Dean made themselves scarce. 'I thought they were supposed to stop with…you know, you and Ginny.'
'I dunno,' Harry replied truthfully. 'This is the first I've had since we got back to Hogwarts, I don't…'
The rest of his sentence was cut off as the door was flung violently open and Ginny rushed in.
'Ron, Neville, out. Now,' she commanded, pointing imperiously at the door. Neville complied, slipping past her and out the door, but Ron stood his ground.
'Hang on, what right do you have to –'
'Ron, get the hell out of here before I hex you into next week,' Ginny glared threateningly at her brother.
'Just go, Ron,' Harry said when he again opened his mouth to retort. 'I'll meet you in the Common Room in a bit, okay?'
'Yeah, right,' Ron said reluctantly. 'See you then, I guess.' He frowned at Ginny as he left the room, followed by Padfoot. Ginny closed the door behind him.
'What's so important?' Harry asked, swinging his legs out of bed and sitting on the edge.
'What, aside from the fact that I know you just dreamed about Voldemort, and I dreamed it too? Not much,' Ginny said sarcastically.
'You…you saw it too?' Harry faltered. He had been hoping to shield her from it, especially the implicit threat in Voldemort's 'greetings' to her.
Ginny nodded. 'Apparently this bond we share is stronger than we'd thought.'
Harry let out an explosive breath as Ginny crossed the room to sit beside him on the bed. 'He's getting stronger,' he said quietly.
'I know,' Ginny said just as softly. 'I could feel it, too.'
Harry sighed in frustration. 'I thought we were supposed to be past this,' he said, wincing as his scar throbbed painfully.
Ginny looked at him speculatively. 'Professor Milton said that the thing blocking Tom was our relationship,' she mused. 'I wonder…' She trailed off, her eyes sparkling, then leaned in and kissed Harry. He was a little surprised, but quickly began to reciprocate, and as he did so he noticed the pain in his scar vanishing.
Finally Ginny pulled away, and one look at Harry's face confirmed her suspicions. 'Well, that answers that, then,' she said, walking to the table under the window and pouring a glassful of water.
'Answers what?' Harry asked as she returned and handed him the glass.
'Physical closeness can drive Him away,' she said matter-of-factly. She thought for a moment, as Harry raised the glass to his lips. 'I wonder if Dumbledore would let us have a private room?'
Harry, who had just started to drink, went into an extended coughing fit. Stifling her laughter, Ginny thumped him on the back until it subsided.
'Give us a what?' Harry croaked finally.
'A private room, silly,' Ginny grasped his hand firmly within her own. 'What, did you really think that after last night I'd let you out of my sight again? Oh no, Mister Potter, you're stuck with me. I'm not going to let Moldiwart have his way with you every night for the sake of a few school rules. If Dumbledore won't give us a room, then we'll just have to sleep in the common room, or I can sleep up here.'
Harry almost chocked again on that suggestion.
She touched his forehead gently, running the fingers of her free hand lightly around his scar.
'Your scar's bleeding,' she noted, showing him her fingers, which were spotted with blood.
'Yeah, it's done that before,' Harry, glad for the change in subject, reached up to touch it himself. 'It's not too bad, it'll stop soon.'
'Oh, Harry,' Ginny sighed, snuggling up against him. 'Why does it always have to be you?'
Harry laughed hollowly. 'Dunno, go ask Trelawney, she's the one that made the Prophesy in the first place.'
'Trelawney made it?' Ginny asked incredulously. 'That old fraud?'
'Yeah, at her job interview.' Harry had to smile at the look on Ginny's face. 'Long story – I'll tell you about it some time. But right now we'd better get moving before Ron has a fit.'
Ginny giggled. 'Nah, he's got Hermione to distract him, he's probably already forgotten about us.'
Harry chuckled. 'Still, best not to risk it,' he said. 'Go on down, I'll get dressed and meet you down there.'
Ginny nodded, kissing him briefly before she left. Harry quickly dressed, making sure his scar had stopped bleeding and wiping away the blood with a handkerchief, then hurried down to the common room.
He found Ron and Ginny waiting for him, both trying not to laugh as they stared at the fire. Curious as to what was so funny, Harry crept over to the lounges in front of the fireplace, and when he got there he had to cover his mouth to keep from laughing.
Alex and Isabelle were curled up together on the lounge, both looking rather rumpled. The latter had her head resting in the crook of the former's arm, which was wrapped protectively around her, and they both wore rather contented smiles in their sleep.
A bright flash drew Harry's attention to Cassie, who was holding a camera. 'Good blackmail material,' she grinned at Harry, indicating the camera as she took another shot of the couple on the couch.
'I guess this makes them official, then,' Ginny whispered in Harry's ear. He jumped slightly; he hadn't noticed her come up behind him.
'Yeah, I reckon so,' he smiled over his shoulder at her.
'Come on, let's give them some privacy,' she grabbed his arm and pulled him towards the portrait hole. The last thing Harry heard before he left the common room was a loud crash and Alex's voice swearing sulphurously.
In many ways, Hogwarts never ceased to surprise Harry. The faculty and students took recent events into their stride remarkably well, adjusting accordingly, and soon the attack on the school was old news, as was the arrival of Norbert. Indeed, it was difficult to believe that the school had ever been without a dragon protector, with the blasé way the student body referred to him.
'It's a bloody nightmare,' Charlie told Harry, Ginny and Ron that evening at dinner. He had joined them at the Gryffindor table, as opposed to his usual seat next to Hagrid at the Head table. Hermione and Cassie were in the library, and no one knew exactly where Alex and Isabelle were.
'There's Hagrid, for one,' Charlie continued, glancing towards the Head table where Hagrid was deep in conversation with Professor Sprout, leaning down so his head was nearly touching the tabletop so he could hear her over the noise in the Hall. 'He's convinced that Norbert's his "little darling", and of course he'd remember his "mummy".' Charlie shook his head as Harry, Ginny and Ron tried not to laugh. 'Honestly, I think he's gone totally mad, the way he carries on. 'Course, he wasn't too sane to begin with.'
Harry and Ron shared a wry look. They both remembered how many times Hagrid's obsession with vicious monsters had very nearly gotten them killed.
'Still,' Charlie went on, 'with Norbert here, I don't think the castle is in too much danger. Between him and the wards, I reckon we could hold off anything short of You-Know-Who himself, but that's what we've got Dumbledore for, I suppose.'
'Yeah,' Harry said cautiously. 'I suppose.'
Charlie looked at him piercingly. 'All right, out with it Harry. What aren't you telling me?'
Harry winced inwardly; evidently, Charlie was a little more perceptive than he looked. Ron and Ginny looked at Harry, waiting for him to decide how much to tell their older brother.
Finally Harry sighed. 'It's complicated,' was all he said.
Charlie cocked his head to the side. 'Complicated how?' Seeing the look on Harry's face he added, 'If you don't want to tell me, then don't. But since I'm going to be fairly crucial in the defence of Hogwarts should there be another attack, don't you think it might be prudent for me to know?'
'He's got a point, Harry,' Ginny said softly. 'You can trust Charlie.'
'That's not what I'm worried about,' Harry replied. He glanced briefly around the Hall, wondering for just a moment what it would be like to be one of them, with no cares aside from what mark they would get on next week's Transfiguration essay. He pulled himself up short; the attack on Hogwarts had proved once and for all that none of them were safe, and if he didn't do anything about it, they probably never would be.
'All right,' he said finally. 'But not here, somewhere private.'
'Room of Requirement?' Ron suggested. Harry nodded shortly, and the four stood and made their way from the Hall.
In the Entrance Hall, Charlie tapped Harry on the shoulder to slow him down. Ron and Ginny continued up the stairs, not noticing as Harry and Charlie fell further behind.
'Harry, I just wanted to say thanks for trusting me on this,' Charlie said in a low voice. 'I know it can't be easy for you, but I'm willing to help you in any way I can. We all are, you know – you're a part of the family, and if I'm reading things right between you and my baby sister, it might be more than just symbolic soon enough.' Harry blushed brightly, glancing down the corridor at the back of Ginny's head, and mumbled something incoherent. Charlie grinned at him, then his expression turned serious. 'Listen, I know Ron's probably already been through this with you, but if you hurt her, you will have a very long line of Weasley men waiting to do some very unpleasant things to you. Understood?'
'Of course,' Harry replied when he found his voice again. 'I'd never hurt her.'
'Good,' Charlie clapped him on the shoulder. 'I'll be the first to welcome you to the family then. Officially, that is,' he winked, and then strode off down the corridor after his siblings, leaving Harry to follow bemusedly.
'Right,' Charlie said briskly when they were settled in the Room of Requirement. 'What's this big secret then?'
Harry and Ron exchanged a long look. 'You remember last year, at the Department of Mysteries?'
'Well, I wasn't actually there, but it's not the sort of thing I'm going to forget in a hurry.'
'Well, it's about the Prophecy…'
A/N: I've decided I like Charlie enough to give him a bigger role in the story. So nya.
Review Responses:
Whispyraven: Contest? I'm intrigued, do tell! As for you character analysis, all I can say is GET THE BUGGERING HELL OUT OF MY HEAD! ;)
MsMissProngs: I didn't know you lived in Australia… ;p
RyougaZell: Cheers! RE: the death thing, there may be a few more character deaths before I'm through here…
Dark-PhoenixX1988: Meep! One update, coming up!
bogus7: Sorry, I do tend to get too caught up in my OC's. I'll try to put more of Rowling's characters in. After all, wouldn't have a story at all without them…
Marauder4eva: The holidays are an interesting question. We have a six week holiday as well, but as far as I can gather, Hogwarts has a three month holiday – I think from the start of June to the end of August. I could be wrong, of course, but I think Hogwarts finishes in May – if anyone actually knows the dates, please tell me and save me from making an idiot of myself!
katepotter13: Why is it that no one seems to get that reference? It refers to the second movie, when Harry uses Floo for the first time, and Mr and Mrs Weasley have a short discussion afterwards where they think he said "Diagonilly" instead of "Diagon Alley".
Evansk: Of course they're real words! Besides, it's not Americans I dislike, it's America. Big difference. Since I wouldn't have a story without Jamesie, it's nice to know he's coming across as a real person.
Merusa: Hope your computer screen has stopped it's flickering. If you want powerful James, you'll LOVE the final battle…of course, you may want to kill me afterwards. Mwahahahaha!
Frostedflake: Indeed it is, my friend, and you're the first person to catch the reference.
Mistress-Genari: Who said I actually wrote them? (queue dramatic music)
Elise: That's an interesting question, actually I haven't thought about that. Hmm…
brilliant-author16: The problem with that is I suck at writing R/H stuff. I can do H/G alright, but Ron's too spontaneous and Herm to not-spontaneous. That probably made no sense, but oh well, you get the idea.
GinnyPotter4eva: Longer, includes H/G…better? No kidnapping required!
Zesuit: Now that would be telling. Rest assured, it's coming, although probably not until the seventh book.
