Chapter 32

March 1995

Harry stared up to the fortress which rose into the sky in front of him. He felt how an icy shiver seized him. In one of the many cells of Askaban Voldemort was being held prisoner. Over a half year had passed now since the fateful day had changed everything. The memory rose in him and he allowed it, made no attempt trying to suppress it. It was finally time to meet his past.

It had been at the beach as Caro had come to him and had handed him the newspaper. She hadn't said a word, had only looked at him but the expression in her grey eyes had been enough to cause him to emerge from the depths of his indifference. He had stared at the newspaper and the big headline which had hit him in the eye, had shaken him up. As he had read the executions of the Dark Lord and his closest confidents should take place in a few days, he had gazed at the ocean and had asked himself how it should go in.

The last months he had swayed between helpless fury, hate and self-pity and finally he had realized that it couldn't do on like this and that it wasn't a solution to run away from his past and everything what had happened in the last years. To realize this fact had been so much easier however as to put his decision to face his past into action. But he finally had to find an answer to his question which continuously haunted him since then. Why had his adoptive father not blocked his curse? He had just stood there and had not even undertaken the smallest attempt to ward his curse off.

Why? Involuntarily Harry pulled his cloak tighter around himself. He was still not quite sure which feelings he had for his adoptive father. Since he had abducted the children and had murdered Charlotte any affection for him had been extinguished. But why Harry asked himself had he then prevented Alastor Moody from killing his adoptive father? Harry sighed. It wouldn't bring anything to stand here outside as long as possible.

Taking a deep breath, he transformed. The beautiful, gold shimmering phoenix spread out his wings and flew skywards. After some searching he found the right cell, flew through the tiny window and landed on the ground. Hardly Harry had changed back, as he staggered and stumbled against the cold wall. He heard his mother screaming his name, saw how Charlotte was hit by the blinding green light. Harry's magic flared up and the effects of the Dementors which guarded the prison, lessened. Trembling gasping for air, Harry guarded the cell against the power of the Dementors. His eyes fell on the figure who lay curled up on the wooden bed and he was shocked. Did he come too late? He stepped forwards and stopped suddenly as the eyes of the prisoner slowly opened and riveted on him.

"Harry," he croaked with hoarse voice.

"You came."

A smile passed over his emaciated face.

"At each breath I've wished you would come."

Harry stared at his adoptive father and conflicting feelings raged in him. It hit him to the core to see the once so powerful and frightening wizard so frail.

"Why?" he asked more forcefully as he had intended

It was silent for a very long time and Harry already thought his adoptive father hadn't heard him as his voice rang out.

„ You are my grandson," the former Dark Lord said suddenly.

Harry jerked his head up.

"Your necklace. I had the other half," he added.

Still unbelievingly staring, only a hoarse,

"What?" came over Harry's lips.

The red eyes which watched him took on a nearly loving expression.

"At the moment I saw that you were wearing the necklace I knew it," he said.

A wistful smile appeared on his face.

"It was October as I met her. By the shores of the lake we see each other for the first time. She was a year younger than me and in Gryffindor while I was in Slytherin. That was surely the reason why we hadn't seen each other before. She had beautiful red-golden hair and eyes in the colour of amber; eyes which sparkled all the time.

For the first time in my life I was happy. If I was together with her I forget my hate, my ambition to become the most powerful wizard. Miraculously she returned my love. One day we created the necklaces – originally there were two identical stones – provided them with protection charms and sealed our love in them."

Voldemort broke up.

"What…what happened then?" Harry asked, not sure, if he really wanted to know it.

"The summer holiday tore us apart. I wrote her letters but she did not answer even one of them. She also didn't come back to school. I was beside myself; the teachers told me that she would go to another school. All the years I thought she had betrayed me. I hated her, the only person who had ever meant something to me.

But I had time, much time, in the last months to remember and to realize that she would have never done such a thing. She must have expected my child then. I don't know why she never told me and she never wrote back to me. But at this Halloween I unknowingly killed my daughter and almost you as well."

Cough let him become silent. After a while he continued,

"Cathy was also surrounded by this golden light, at least if she was angry, desperate or beside herself of fear. Her golden light was however far stronger than yours. Some said she was descended from elves – this would be at least an explanation – but if this fit with the truth…"

Harry leaned against the cold wall. He did not doubt a word he just had heard. As soon as he had found out the name of the girl he knew that it was the truth. Cathy, he thought, now he knew why this girl had reminded him so much of his mother. If he had known that the Dark Lord was his grandfather, would he then have acted otherwise? Would he then have escaped as well? Slowly he slid down and remained sitting on the ground, he draw his knees to himself. His thoughts revolved around what he just had heard. He buried his head in his arms. He didn't know why but the unexpected revelation had shocked him. In his early childhood he had believed that the Dark Lord was his father, and then he had found out that he had killed his real parents and now he discovered that he was his grandfather.

"So that's why you didn't block my curse…" he said softly.

But did it play a role who he was? His identity didn't change his past; he couldn't change it as much he would have loved it. Did it change the present time and would it influence his future? Why should it do this? Harry thought, I am still the same person after all. I am Harry Potter and nothing will change this. Harry's thoughts wandered back to the past and while he remembered his desperate struggling to reach a decision on which side he stood, he realized that he always had only seen the sides of his parents and Dumbledore and of his grandfather but what if both sides were wrong?

Might his grandfather had started this war, might the reasons for Dumbledore and the Order had been once 'good' why they fought and might they had only defended themselves in the beginning, in the end both sides had murdered and tortured. Whatever had happened, he would have always fought against one side. If the Halloween Night had never happened fourteen years ago, he would have learned to hate the Dark Side and some day he had be at war with Voldemort and his followers. Perhaps he would even have faced Caro and Draco one day. Harry shuddered as he imagined this. In the future only his convictions would be the deciding factor, he would comply with what he would think was right and never would he allow him being told again what he should do or what he should think.

As Harry lifted his head, he felt a strange confidence. Harry thought back to the Speaking Hat. Yes, it had been right, he had finally decided on one side, for his own. Accepting his past, his feeling of guilt seemed to become lighter as well.

"So you've kidnapped the children to bring me to come back to Areeton Castle?" he asked finally.

"I've suspected that you have fled to Hogwarts. There weren't many possibilities after all. Severus has confirmed my suspicion then and I began to think what I could do. To attack Hogwarts was impossible and moreover would have been completely useless, so only Severus was left. As I found out that he had been Dumbledore's spy for so many years, I actually wanted to kill him but then I realized that he was the key with which I could bring you back.

As I realized your aversion against killing and torturing I began to think how I could bring you to obeying me despite of it. In one of my old books I found a potion which combined with a curse would be far stronger than the Imperius-Curse and after some time the cursed person would lose his memory and would be subject to the will of his master. I let him brew the potion in my presence and the completion dragged of course on for a longer period of time.

It took a while as well until the effects set in and Severus lost his memory. As the time had finally come where Severus obeyed me unquestioningly and not even Dumbledore would have been able to find a Dark charm, I could put my plan into action. Sure, I didn't know if you would really come but the probability was high. I had nothing to lose after all. My worry was that Dmbledore, this fool, would find a way to hold you back or would even lock you inside the castle so that you wouldn't come."

Harry inclined his head.

"Would you also have done it if you had known that I wasn't in Hogwarts anymore?"

"Yes, Harry I think even then I wouldn't have given up my plan."

"You really would have done this to me, wouldn't you?" Harry asked suddenly.

His grandfather was silent for a long time but finally he answered,

"Yes, I would have and I would have lost you then. It was good that you escaped."

Harry shuddered as he thought of Severus and decided that he would read that book of which his grandfather had spoken as soon as possible. Perhaps he would find a way in there how to help Severus Snape. A dry cough jolted Harry out of his thought and he knew that he couldn't let his grandfather here; despite all what the Dark Lord had done and had wanted to do to him. Harry knew that he would never forgive himself if his grandfather was executed. Even if it was a risk, Harry thought, not knowing if he would be capable of preventing his grandfather from seizing power a second time, should he try it contrary to all expectation. But one question he still wanted to have answered.

"Why did you start the war?" he asked.

„I grew up in an orphanage, Harry. I won't tell you what I had to endure there. It was the hell; that must be enough for you. As I came to Hogwarts it was a entire different world to me. I was fascinated of magic and vowed to me that I would become the most powerful wizard one day. Never again I wanted to be so helpless, to have the feeling of being on someone's mercy and never again I wanted to be humiliated and I wanted to take revenge. The heads of the orphanage were among the first I later killed. I've never learned to handle other people, Harry and so I stayed alone in Hogwarts until I met Cathy. I loved her. She was the first person who ever meant something to me. As she disappeared and I believed that she had betray me, there I only had my hate, my loneliness and my revenge left. I began to imagine how it would be to rule the world and I looked for followers which would obey me and so one thing led to another."

Harry went to him, kneeled don in the ground and reached fort he cold hand. The red eyes stared at him intensively and to Harry's greatest surprise he saw tears in them.

"Harry, forgive me," he whispered.

Harry felt how pity rose in him. But against the pictures which forced themselves on him involuntarily he was powerless. He remembered Charlotte, his parents who he had never got to know, Lizzie and Jamie, Nell and he swallowed.

"I'll try," he said.

The hand of his grandfather squeezed his.

"Thank you."

The red eyes slid to his necklace and a thoughtful expression entered the red eyes.

"You must have had it with you somehow. It must have protected you as I tried then to kill you. That would be indeed an explanation why you survived the Killing Curse, " he croaked, stretched out one hand and touched the black, slightly shimmering, stone which hung around Harry's neck.

"The stones shone once in a bright warm golden colour. He must have changed its colour as the Killing Curse hit you," he said and was seized by another coughing fit.

"That may be so. Come, I'll bring you away from here," Harry said and helped his grandfather to sit up. With difficulty he heaved him up. While flinging one arm around his grandfather who hardly could stand on his feet, Harry brought the cell's door to disappear with the other hand. Hardly had they left the cell, a Dementor floated towards them. Harry resorted to Dark Magic and destroyed him. He was however aware of the fact that he didn't have much time. They had to leave the prison as soon as possible but before he had still to take care of something.

The black-haired girl knocked at the door and shouted,

"Harry, dinner is ready."

Since Caro didn't receive any answer, she pressed down the door handle. The door opened and Caro saw that the room was empty. Strange, where Harry could be? Shaking her head, she headed back to the kitchen. Arriving there, she said,

"Harry isn't in his room."

Draco looked up and shrugged his shoulders.

"So what?"

While turning again to his fried potatoes, Caro sat down and reached slowly for her glass. Taking a sip of her pumpkin juice she sighed. Since the day in Arreton Castle, she wondered what she could do to ease up the situation but so far she hadn't found any solution. Harry seemed to be incapable of finding out of his suppressed, apathetically depression and didn't care in the slightest that Draco was nearly losing his mind because of his fear for his parents.

She was worried as well for her mother and for Draco's mother who had so often taken care of her as she had been little. Although she had never had a particularly warm relationship with her mother, she missed her and under no circumstances did she want her to be executed. She is still my mother, after all, Caro thought.

Looking at Harry's empty chair, she asked whether his disappearance had something to do with the fact that she had shown him today's newspaper in which had been reported with large headline that the executions of the Dark Lord and his highest-ranking followers would take place very soon. Furious that it didn't seem to bother Harry, she had marched to the beach and hurled the newspaper at him. Suddenly Draco put down his fork and said,

"We've to go to Askaban."

Caro stared at him.

„How? Do you want perhaps to climb up the walls as a squirrel?"

Draco cast a venomous glance at Caro, stood up abruptly so that the chair scraped over the floor and stormed out. Helpless fury boiled in his veins. If he would have only known a way how to get inside the fortress of Askaban, he would have freed his parents long ago. And Harry, who was able to change into a phoenix and thus would be able to pass the wards which surrounded Askaban, refused to help him for months, only stared at him with those emerald eyes.

It was enough, the last half year he had tried over and over again to bring Harry to help him freeing his parents, had said that Harry would simultaneously save his adoptive father but he could have spoken with a wall just as well, he thought bitterly. Draco came to a halt. He hadn't wanted to believe it, had thought that Harry would help him and had never given up hope but now he admitted that Harry purely and simply left him in the lurch. He crossed the hall and went to one of the large arched-shaped windows. Mostly disappointed he made a decision: he would leave Terley and would return to the estate of his parents. He should have done this long ago and shouldn't have waited that Harry would help him. Draco just wanted to turn as a movement caught his attention. He held his breath as he recognized the people who walked up the broad path which led to the castle.

Harry felt how the wind dropped as he passed the magically wards from Hogwarts, landed on the ground and changed back. Looking up to the tremendous castle, he remained staying undecidedly for a moment. The time where he had lived here seemed so far away. His eyes wandered up to the battlements and lingered there. Remembering how he had stood there with Ginny. If she had forgotten him or did she still thought of him? She had written but he had never been able to bring himself to answer her. Finally they had decreased more and more. Harry couldn't explain it himself why he had behaved in such a way but it was too late for regretting it.

His hand slid into one of his pocket where he found the letter he had received in the morning from Dumbledore with the urgent request to come immediately to Hogwarts.

Sighing he ran a hand over his forehead. Still he was plagued by a fierce headache. As he had freed his grandfather, Draco's parents and Bella yesterday he hadn't thought of Askaban being surrounded by a powerful ward, in front of which they had been standing soon afterwards and which had deterred Draco from freeing his parents so far.

‚You'll manage it. Do it just the same way you did as you broke the curses on your windows then. But use only a little part of your magic. And use this spell.', his grandfather had said, had leaned forwards him and had whispered a word to him.

Harry had managed to annul a part of the ward but he could have done without that headache. At least he hadn't fainted, he thought.

Harry glanced up to the castle's portal. Of the prospect to having to run trough the whole castle he wasn't so fond. First of all he wanted to speak with Dumbledore. Changing back into his phoenix he flew up to Albus' office and knocked with his beak against the window. Shortly later it was opened and bald Harry had taken on his human form again and faced Albus Dumbledore. The old wizard stepped to his desk and set down.

„Nice that you've come," he said and indicated him to take a seat as well.

Albus regarded him and while speaking he didn't let him, out of his sight.

"Voldemort, the Malfoys and Bellatrix Lestange aren't anymore in Askaban. You don't have something to do with this by chance?"

Although his voice was rather quite, Harry heard a dangerous undertone. Indifferently resisting Albus' searching look, he answered,

"He is my grandfather." Albus blinked.

"Tom Riddle is my grandfather," Harry added and told Dumbledore everything he had found out the previous day.

As Harry had finished, Albus was left speechless. A condition he hadn't very often experienced so fat in his life. He just couldn't believe it. Lily should have been Riddle's daughter? The pretty kindest woman he had loved like a daughter? He already wanted to reject this possibility as impossible as a memory rose in him. Harry had spoken of a Cathy. Catherine of Dunbarry. She had been his student. A quite, inconspicuously girl, so completely different as Lily with her bright sparkling eyes who had stood everywhere in the centre of attention, not because she had been out for it by all means but just because she had basically charmed everyone with her cheerful exuberant nature, but Lily had had Catherine's red-golden curls and suddenly he sat straight up as he remembered a long ago occurrence. Late at night he had returned to Hogwarts and had gone past the library.

He had heard noises and as he had entered the library whose door had been ajar, he had heard laughing which had come from the Forbidden Section. His presence hadn't been unnoticed however, the dim light had gone out suddenly and whoever had been there had ran away and before Albus had been able to reach the second exit, the two nightly loafers had been nowhere to be seen. It had been Lily's laugh and strangely.

Albus thought, he had always associated it with her but to this time Lily hadn't even been born. He remembered as well the nurse who had told him then from mysterious faints and a few weeks later with shocked expression about a girl that expected a child. Her father had taken her from school as Dippet wo had been headmaster at those times, had informed him of this. Tom Riddle had asked after the girl and now Albus realized that he had changed in the following weeks. Albus shook his head. Why hadn't he paid more attention to those events then?

"If that was all?"

Harry's voice jolted him out of his memories. Albus shook his head and collected his thoughts.

"Harry, Voldemort must be returned to Askaban…"

Harry stood up however and looked at him with cold eyes.

"No, I won't bring him back and you will not tell the Ministry that he is in Terley, nor that I freed him out of prison or that he is my grandfather. He has paid for his deeds. You don't need to worry that he will ever try to seize power again. I'll take care of it."

"Why should I keep my knowledge a secret from the Ministry?"

"Because you want that I return to Hogwarts, because you want to prevent by all means that I'll become a dark wizard and because you want to settle your debt which you feel towards me and my parents."

Albus flinched slightly.

"What are you getting at?"

"That you blame yourself that my parents were murdered. You knew that there was a spy, don't you? Peter has told me and later did Sirius and Remus. You knew it and nevertheless you did nothing to prevent the catastrophe. Why? Why did you not give any member Veritaserum?

Albis looked haggard and tired.

"I'm sorry, Harry. I'm so sorry. I didn't want to believe that there was a spy, not in my Order. Furthermore there were only hints. Even Severus didn't know anything."

"What does it matter if they are only hints?" Harry wanted to know angrily

"Would you have believed it if anyone had told you that your friends would be it? If anyone had told you that your friends would betray you, would you have believed it?"

"No, of course not," Harry said and the anger disappeared from his eyes.

"If you knew what the future would bring, you wouldn't make any mistakes. I didn't know it and you and your parent had to pay for it."

The blue eyes looked at him pleadingly,

"Forgive me Harry and above all forgive me for believing you're guilty for committing the murders."

Harry's voice turned to stone.

"Peter told you that it was him, didn't he?"

Albus nodded.

„Well, he wasn't it. I've done it."

Dumbledore sat up abruptly and shook his head.

"No…."

Harry laughed shallowly.

„You don't know that to think of me, do you? On which side I might be? I didn't want it. It was an accident. As he attacked us I lost control over my magic and the book-shelve collapsed over him. Peter killed Ginny's brother."

Sitting down again, Harry sighed,

„It would be rather presumptuous from me not to forgive you, wouldn't it? I've made enough mistakes after all and…."

Harry broke up and stared at Albus,

"Did Mr. Fale have family?"

"Yes, his wife and two children."

Lowering his gaze to the table, Harry swallowed. To take up his past would be more difficult as he had thought.

For a while they were silent. Then Albus leaned backwards and nodded,

„Al right then, Harry. I'll maintain silence. Even if I disagree and think that Voldemort and the parents of your friends have deserved their executions.

But you will return to Hogwarts, won't you?"

"Yes."

"Then you should know that you are famous, at least as Harry Black. So don't be surprised when you return. The interest you'll wake will be much greater than last time."

"But don't they know…"

"Everything what happened in the archives of the Order is only known to the Inner Circle and the Weasley Family. We covered it up so that a few members of the Order which went to Arreton Castle as well and were a bit more gossipy than others knew you only as Harry Black. The newspapers heard from it and although everything was rather confusing and no one actually knew further details, all the presumptions grew out into wild speculations."

Harry nodded.

"That's all I really needed.

Rising, he shook Albus' hand and felt how the dislike he had felt then disappeared into thin air. He said goodbye and after he had promised he would soon return to Hogwarts, he stepped out into the corridor.

Lucius Malfoy stared shocked at his son. His son returned his gaze indifferently.

"Harry is his grandson. Furthermore you owe it to him that you aren't sitting anymore in Askaban. It's over, Dad. The Dark Lord and his Death Eaters don't exist any longer."

Lucius gazed after his son, shook unbelievingly his head and sank heavily into his armchair. What Draco had just told him, couldn't be true. But his mind said him that his son had indeed spoken the truth. Lucius looked down at his hands. Now everything became clearer to him, just as the reaction of his master as Harry had rescued them out of Askaban.

But Lucius didn't understand it. How could it have come so far? He remembered the day where he had found the children in the park and he had toyed with the thought of killing the boy with the emerald eyes. He should have really done it, he thought grimly. Then it would have never come so far. In the future he would have to hide in his castleotherwise that wretched Order would bring him once more to Askaban. As his son had gone long ago, Lucius stood up determined. He had to speak with his master and had to persuade him that everything wasn't lost yet.

Sirius stared blankly out of the window, while it was raging inside of him. How on earth had Voldemort been able to escape from Askaban? As he had heard the news yesterday, he had literally frozen. The imagination that this bastard who had murdered Charlotte was free was unbearable for him. Sirius wanted that he suffered, suffered as much as he did.

"Sirius, now sit down finally. Otherwise your tee will get cold," Remus said and put the newspaper down he had just read.

Sirius sank into his chair and reached for his cup of tea.

"What do they write?"

"They still did not find any trace of him, neither of Bellatrix Lestrange and the Malfoys." Remus replied and frowned. He was worried. Should Voldemort succeeded in seizing power a second time, war would again break out. Remus shuddered as he imagined this.

"Harry and the others must have helped them."

Remus looked up. This thought had already crossed his mind as well but he hadn't said it yet. While taking a sip of his tea, he studied his friend. In the last months he had worried greatly about Sirius. Desperate and nearly insane with grief Sirius had tried everything to find as many former followers of the Dark Lord and bring them to Askaban as possible. He had hardly returned to Hogwarts and Emily had been at a loss as what to do so that she had taken Jamie to them in the end.

"I have to find them," Sirius said and a feverish glow appeared in his eyes as he put down his cup with rattling sound and stood up.

„Sirius, you don't even know if Harry had something to do with it!" Remus exclaimed and jumped up. Somehow he had to talk Sirius out of this mad idea. Who knows what his friend would do. Before he could however do something, there was a timid knock at the door. The second time was more firmly.

"Come in, "Sirius called.

The door opened and Remus closed his eyes for a moment. It was Harry. Nearly at the same instant Sirius stood in front of his godson and demanded to know,

"Where is Voldemort? Where did you bring him?"

Harry did a step backwards and his face became hard and cold.

"That no one needs to know. I've come…"

"That no one needs to know? Did you lose your mind? He is answerable for the murders of thousands of people! Does this even matter to you? He has killed your parents! And Charlotte! Does this mean nothing to you!"

The emerald eyes flickered.

"It does mean a lot to me. And I'm sorry Sirius, that Charlotte…"

Harry broke up and after a moment he continued:

"But Voldemort has paid for his deeds and…"

"Paid? Don't make me laugh. He must back to Akaban and you will say me now where he is!"

As Harry didn't answer Sirius stepped nearer.

"Say it finally! Is he in Terley? It's after all your fault that this happened!"

"My fault?"

"Yes, if you hadn't sneaked into the archives and escaped all this wouldn't have happened!" Sirius screamed.

"If you had become the Secret-Keeper of my parents all this would not have happened either!" Harry hurled back.

Sirius turned as white as a sheet. For one moment time seemed to be standing still. Then Sirius walked with unsteady steps past Harry and through the door he silently opened.

"Sirius," Harry said and wanted to follow him.

"No, Harry, let him be. He will calm down again." Remus stopped him and led him to one of the armchairs. Handing him a cup of tea, which he had quickly conjure up, he sat across of Harry. Harry sipped at his tea and shook his head..

"I didn't want to say this. I just wanted to say him how sorry I am. And now everything went wrong."

"It wasn't your fault, Harry, you couldn't have prevented it. As far as Sirius is concerned, let him time, Harry. He loved Charlotte more than anything else in the world."

"I know," Harry said nearly inaudible.

For a while they sat in silence. Then Remus leaned forwards.

"Why Harry? Why did you free Voldemort? Do you want to be responsible for a second war? He has murdered so many people. He must…"

Harry' head jerked up.

"And the Order did kill no one? Who then killed Caro's father? She found the files. It could have been Sirius. And you did as well murder people, didn't you? Furthermore…."

Suddenly the emerald eyes looked at him with such intensity that Remus averted his gaze. As Harry told him shortly afterwards what had taken place in Albus' office and yesterday in Askaban, there Remus didn't want to believe it and without a warning he realized that Harry saw Voldemort in a complete different light than he did and that he knew as well other characteristics of the once so powerful wizard. Remus shook his head. How complicated everything was.

But Harry was right. It couldn't be denied that their side as well had murdered and had despite everything become guilty, too.

Although he still was very much sceptical if Voldemort wouldn't again try to seize power, he knew that it would be pointless to try to persuade Harry.

"There won't be a second war, Remus. I'll promise it," Harry said seriously and Remus wanted to believe it, but wasn't really able to do so. Setting a lighter tone, he finally said,

"So you will be returning to Hogwarts?"

A few days after Harry had fetched his grandfather out of prison, they stood on the little graveyard and for the first time Harry saw they graves of his parents and while his grandfather was mourning for his long lost love not very far away, Harry wondered if his mother had known who her real parents had been. He had found out that Cathy hadn't survived Lily's birth and he assumed that Cathy's family had brought his mother then to the Evans, who had brought her up. But those questions would surely remain unanswered forever.

Harry looked over to his grandfather. He had said to Dumbeldore and Remus that the Dark Lord had paid for his deeds and it was true, Harry thought. Yesterday he had given his grandfather the photo he had found in the Chamber of Secrets. His grandfather had looked at him, but without seeing him, it had been as if he had been somewhere very far away

'Do you know how it feels knowing that you've murdered your own daughter? That you didn't try any attempt to help the woman you love?'

Then his grandfather had walked down to the beach and it had taken very long until he had returned.

Harry touched the black shimmering stone of his necklace and pulled his cloak tighter around him while seeing that it had begun snowing.

He asked himself what would have happened if Cathy's father hadn't taken his daughter home. Would the war have never happened and would he have grown up with his parents and his grandparents then? Harry didn't know it but for one moment he gave himself over to his dreams.