Bugfix 4th August

Added the allusion I wanted to make with the little *. Also, I wrote a blog today about this fic over at tumblr. The Username is unbalancedautumn. Stupid name I know, but my fave combinations were already taken...

A.N.: Sorry for making you wait guys, some of the scenes were the hardest thing I ever had to write about. I really don't like seeing people in pain….

Oh, and if someone wants to Beta my work: Please. I really don't have the time to search dozens of beta profiles to find one that may fit only to find out I never get a reply….

Destiny Islands, shortly after Sora's disappearance

King Mickey was the first to reach the two teens after running with top speed to reach the source of the screams, his senses still on high alert after their battle against Xehanort. A few minutes before Riku had suddenly ran off, a look of panic on his face. Mickey had then sent out his senses to try and see if some Heartless had arrived, as unlikely as that was. He didn't sense any though, so Mickey relaxed a bit. A bit later though a scream, no, two screams reached his sensitive ears, yelling the name name of their friend Sora. Mickey blanched. Without looking back he took off in the direction Riku had just taken, leaving the rest of their friends behind in confusion.

Once Mickey arrived at the scene out of breath, he immediately asked Kairi and Riku what happened. Mickey could clearly see however that something was really wrong. Neither had reacted to his words, Riku lay on the sand on his belly, his right arm outstretched, and Kairi was was just as unmoving. Both were staring straight ahead, where a third set of footprints in the sand in front of the group abruptly ended.

Dread filled Mickey "Guys….what happened?"

Kairi turned around to look at him then, puffy red eyes still spilling tears down her face.

"Sora….he disappeared. H-he said something about fading, that he wanted to say goodbye…."

After saying that Kairi broke out in sobs again while sinking to her knees.

Riku had meanwhile stood up, but he lacked his usual grace. Almost woodenly he stumbled over to Kairi. As Riku touched Kairi's shoulder in a rare gesture of comfort, Kairi turned around and dragged Riku down to the sand by his shirt, desperately clinging to him as if she feared Riku would be the next to disappear on her.

Hesitantly, and ever so slowly Riku embraced her, tucking her into his chest.

With despair written very clearly on his face he looked to Mickey, who flinched at the raw emotions on his protege's face.

"Mickey….what now?"

Sighing, and really feeling his age for once, Mickey sighed.

"I don't know Riku. I just don't….."

Looking sadly towards the dying sun, Mickey wondered if things would ever be alright again.

Thousands of miles away, Madam Pomfrey tried to diagnose her new patient.

It was really quite vexing, because most of her spells tended to either go straight through him or come back with confusing results. The only things she could tell for certain was that her patient was male, just out of his teens and body-less. How that hadn't killed him instantly Madam Pomfrey didn't know, the only guess she could make was that his heart had something to with it. It was glowing in various shades of pink and red, pulsating with an inner light. The other thing she could gauge was his dangerously low magic level. So low in fact that the young man's "body" was in danger of destabilizing soon.

Madam Pomfrey pondered that for a moment. Her normal treatment would have included a pepper-up potion and at least three magic replenishing potions. That only worked if a potion could be ingested in the first place however. When she looked at Fawkes, the bird shook his head as if to say he wasn't able to help either. Looking at the phoenix however brought Madam Pomfrey's attention to wondering why Fawkes had brought the young man here in the first place. Surely St. Mungo's would have been the better choice. Because even after Madam Pomfrey had completed her mediwitch training back in the 50's and then the experience of treating entire generations of Hogwarts students after their accidents and experiments - that was it. She was completely out of her depths this time and really wanted to have the boy looked at by professional healers – only to stop short. There were reasons she couldn't to do so. Going on a hunch that the boy didn't have anyone to look after him at the moment, she had no way to reach some of his relatives to inform them of incoming medical bills. Because they would have - magical healing cost money too, and if you had an ailment the healers didn't have a potion or spell for - you'd pay for research time too, not to mention it would probably take time, time the boy on the bed didn't really have in abundance...Madam Pomfrey sighed.

That was the moment the doors to the Hospital Wing opened and admitted the Headmaster, derailing the nurse from her musings.

The old man looked just as stumped at the odd sight as his colleague had been - phoenix, light ball and what seemed like a colourful ghost. Whatever ghost this was however couldn't be evil though, because phoenixes didn't want to stay in the presence of someone who was. Which still didn't answer the question however just why said ghost was here. With that line of thought Professor Dumbledore asked Madam Pomfrey if she had any more news than him.

"Poppy, what happened here? And who is that ghost?"

Said nurse hesitated before answering.

"It may sound strange Headmaster, but that's not a ghost. He's still alive, although barely. He's corporeal for now, but I don't think he'll last much longer if his magic levels continue to drop, because they're all that keep him from fading away. And I don't even know how to treat him, because most of my spells simply go through him, and potions wouldn't work for the same reasons either."; finished Madam Pomfrey with a sigh.

Professor Dumbledore stroked his beard for a while, thinking it through. Something inside of him told him to help the boy, with that same feeling also giving the impression an adventurous time would soon come. Knowing his guts almost never led him wrong he decided to help.

"Well, St. Mungo's' is out then for the same reasons. But...how about we try THAT room? It may be just the thing to give that boy a chance of survival."

Madam Pomfrey needed to think for a moment to get just which room the Headmaster meant, but then she had to agree, if reluctantly.

"It could work Albus, but are you sure? You know how unpredictable that place is!"

"That may be, but I think it's worth a try."

That said, Professor Dumbledore conjured a stretcher beneath the boy with a muttered spell and set it afloat with a second one. A Look in the direction of Fawkes only told him that his old companion seemed to feign being asleep, with the ball of light nesting on the bird's head. He didn't really blame them for refusing to join him. Chuckling, the old man decided to go alone. With a smile to the mediwitch he set off to the doors, the stretcher silently floating behind him. Off to a room that was perhaps the most heavily guarded place in the entire castle.

While the teachers got told some vague details and the Heads of Houses a bit more, only the Headmaster and the medical Staff ever got told about the details: Simply put, it was the room where the magic of the Ley lines sprang up from the earth, powering up the various wards and everything that made Hogwarts the amazing castle that it was today.

The Staff or even the students could find it by chance or just by being the right kind of curious, but there were heavy wards and safeguards in place to hinder anyone but those that were keyed into it. There were numerous intent wards, an older version of the notice-me-not-charm, and last but not least the spell that made anyone who wasn't found worthy or simply had no business there forget just what the room was. In hindsight the explorers would only remember stumbling upon a classroom long out of use, nearly as soon as they stepped into the corridor again. It was that last enchantment that had thankfully hindered Voldemort from finding out those last secrets and turning Hogwarts into a School for the Dark Arts back in the late 70's.

This and more ran through the Headmaster's mind as he came near the room. A few stairs before the entrance however the old man could hear the echoing steps coming from another direction leading towards the Slytherin dungeons. They revealed Professor Snape, resident Potions Master of Hogwarts.

Calling out to the younger man Professor Dumbledore halted until he came in sight. Professor Dumbledore mustered the Potions Master with an uncommonly grave look. Coming to a decision, he decided to take the risk. Motioning behind him, he gestured to the floating stretcher just as Professor Snape joined him. "Aah, Severus. Care to join me for a moment? I need to provide a new student some help."

Eyeing the being on the stretcher with curiosity and no small amount of wariness, Professor Snape nodded. Despite having some doubts on the "student" being alive, his intrigue had been tickled. What was going on here? Why was the person on the stretcher that translucent? Just then the Headmaster spoke to him again, interrupting his train of thoughts.

"Well, then come on. Time is of essence here."

The younger man nodded. And so they set off again, to a part of the dungeons that was mostly disused in present times. It wasn't warded off, per Se, because here and then people went here in search of privacy, but to most of the residents these parts were just full of spare classrooms and the odd potions lab.

Which just struck Professor Snape a little odd, because why head down here while the castle had a fully stocked Hospital Ward?

It only was a short time later till the two teachers came to a heavy black door that was located in a dead-end. The trek down to it had been silent, but now Professor Dumbledore addressed him again.

"Severus, could you please take over lifting the stretcher? I need to unlock the wards."

Nodding, Professor Snape murmured the spell to levitate it just as the older man withdrew his own magic from it.

That done, Professor Dumbledore fished out an ornate key adorned with a little heart from one of his many robe pockets. Without another word he opened the lock, and entered the pitch black room behind it. That activated it's light source, ancient looking blue crystal torches one by one. They bathed the room in a light shade of blue. With that a most curious sight met the two men:

Stemming from a grated off hole in the floor located in the room's centre seven trenches filled with a colourful mist went to different tunnels that led deeper into the castle.* Beside them, smaller trenches spread out into several directions before eventually vanishing into small cracks in the walls.

Professor Dumbledore went to a small pool that was fed by one of the bigger side arms. Here the old man set down the stretcher and turned to his colleague.

Said man had gazed around the room for a long moment, with a lot of questions on his mind, and couldn't quite contain his curiosity any more. So he chose to ask outright.

"Headmaster, what is this room?"

The old man positively beamed at him.

"This, my dear boy, is the Heart room of Hogwarts!"

Spreading his arms dramatically, the old man gestured around.

Without ado, he turned around and drew his wand. His expression had turned serious all of a sudden. Looking back to Professor Snape he admitted a warning.

"Stay back for a bit, Severus. The magic in this room is a bit….temperamental."

So the younger man moved back to the wall near the entrance to watch the spectacle. Which he was sure it was going to be, if he listened to the rumours this room generated amongst the staff that was in the know.

In that time Professor Dumbledore had moved the stretcher to the little pool and vanished the stretcher, letting the gestalt float down into the strange pool. Immediately he began chanting a long sentence in Latin.

The effect was astounding. Something deep below them it began to rumble, and the powerful magic Professor Snape had felt until now increased tenfold. Tendrils of magic reached for the gestalt, gently lifting it into the air. They wrapped around it and a bubble of magic formed around the gestalt, and finally the magic levels in the air dropped down a little again.

Professor Dumbledore turned around to his colleague again and tucked away his wand.

"Let's go Severus, we've done all we can do for the boy for now. Whether he survives or not is the choice of Magic."

Still wondering just what had happened here the Potions Professor made to go out of the door, not wanting to stay long

in a room he had heard from the rumours to be in possession of a life of it's own.

And almost as if the magic had heard his thoughts two tendrils shot out and zapped the two men. Which turned out to be transfiguration spells. Professor Dumbledore suddenly sported a very big blue afro, his beard turning a shocking pink and braiding itself. Whilst Professor Snape's hair was neon green and stood on end as if the man had stuck a fork into a power outlet.

Tugging a strand of hair in front of his face, Professor Snape sighed. Still, looking at the Headmaster wearing the same resigned expression, something like a smile twitched at his lips.

A.N.: FINALLY done….especially the last half of this chapter was like chewing on old bubblegum: Once tasty, but not getting better when you chew longer than necessary….

When researching for this fic I stumbled upon an old post by a NaNoWriMo writer. And I gotta say this, I'm very much a pantser rather than a planner. Most of my story ideas get saved as little snippets. Useful but not all that speedy.

*: Think Hades' Cavern in KH 2. That creepy river/mist flowing down the tunnels.

Well, until next time, dear Readers. Love that a few of you stayed behind. It keeps me writing ^_^ 3