A/N: Welcome to the 4th instalment of the "Of..." Series. You may need to read the previous 3 in order to help you understand the undercurrents.

This is a rewrite of the chapters that I had already uploaded. I'm not quite as attached to this fic as I am to the others right now so I'm going to just replace everything that's here with the updated version, which is much better. Spin had originally edited these chapters but I've split them and added and such so this is all on me at this point.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognisable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended.

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Harry kicked the rock down the quiet country road alongside McGonagall Manor. The summer after Voldemort's return had been long and worrying but above all, boring. He'd spent countless hours alone; lying outside, staring up at the sky while he wondered what the rest of his family was doing.

For reasons he couldn't fathom, Ron and Hermione had not owled all summer. He'd expected at least a letter a week from Hermione. Maybe an update on the Quidditch scores from Ron. A birthday card from Hagrid.

But there had been nothing.

Minerva had been absent for days at a time, only returning for dinner now and then, and he'd not seen Albus since the Leaving Ceremony. Minerva, when she had joined him, had been quiet and brooding and they'd not really spoken much besides the odd good morning or good night. And so, he was left alone in the big manor, with only Kenna to keep him company. For some reason, since his return, Taran had refused to pay him any attention. It wasn't even like he didn't understand what was going on. Of course, he did.

Voldemort was back.

Harry knew that better than anyone. Every time he closed his eyes, he was plagued with nightmares about it. He saw Voldemort coming back to life at the foot of his bed. He saw Cedric dropping to the ground, then Hermione, then Ron, then Minerva. Wormtail snivelling at his master's feet. And every night, he felt the burning in his forehead, a painful and obvious reminder of that single inescapable fact.

What he didn't understand was the silence that had surrounded him since coming back to the Manor. Minerva had become extremely good at veiling her feelings from him through their bond. He could feel little bits seeping through her shields, like when she was incredibly happy or incredibly sad, or incredibly angry. But everything in between was emptiness. She wouldn't even tell him what she was doing while she wasn't home. It left him feeling empty.

There had been one night when he'd woken up in a sweat after his incessant nightmares. He'd sat up and immediately grabbed his chest as a stab of fear ran through him. But before he could react to it, it was gone. He'd knocked on Minerva's door, seeking comfort for the emptiness, but after no answer, he'd peered in and found the bed empty and unslept in. It was at that moment when he stood staring at his máthair's empty bed that he realised.

He was being excluded.

And he did not like that at all.

"Master Harry, would you like some tea?"

Harry shielded his eyes from the sun to look at Kenna, who had grown a little while he'd been away at Hogwarts. She looked older at least, but she was still small and rather shy.

"No thanks," he said glumly. "I'm fine."

"Mistress said to make sure you're eating," she said softly.

Apparently, Kenna had vastly different ideas about how to interact with Harry than Taran did. Taran had told her off more than once for being less than formal with him, but Harry encouraged her. He didn't really like the standoffishness that Taran offered him.

"Yeah, well, Mistress isn't here, is she?" he grumbled.

He got up and walked to the gates. He had watched from the doorway, back when they'd come home, as Minerva recited a string of Gàidhlig that he did not understand to strengthen the wards. Since then, however, Harry had discovered something she had not realised. They were of the same blood, no matter how that had come about, and so the wards now recognised him and allowed him to move through them.

Hence; he took himself outside the wards and out into the lane. The hedgerow was bursting with summer flowers and he rubbed his eyes while he walked. Kenna's worried calls to come back followed him but he paid her no mind. Despite the summer heat, Harry jammed his hands in his pockets and kept his head down. A Land Rover drove past him and he nodded but didn't wave. He didn't feel very friendly and he certainly didn't feel like chatting so he didn't get involved. In fact, he was feeling quite sorry for himself.

He stopped by a field where there was a young guy playing with a dog. Harry watched the boy working the dog, trying to round up sheep. It wasn't going well, but they seemed to be having fun. Aside from Hedwig, who didn't really 'play', Harry had never had a pet and he considered how it might have made him feel a little less lonely when he was younger. He snorted quietly as he tried to imagine Petunia allowing a puppy in the house before shaking clear of his thoughts and going back to watching the duo chase four sheep around the field. It wasn't what Harry considered fun, but it did catch his interest for a while and it wasn't long until the young lad noticed him and walked over with a friendly wave.

"Alright?" he asked, in lieu of greeting.

Harry just nodded, leaving the boy to shrug and whistle three times. The young sheepdog looked excited as it took off, running behind the sheep and trying to get them in the pen. The boy didn't say anything else, and Harry didn't offer either. It was nice just to have human company. Harry noticed a few things that the boy did and wondered how long it would have taken for him to learn how to do them. The whistling alone was more complicated than Harry had originally thought, and he found himself leaning to one side to see if the dog could get the sheep through that small gate.

But then, something made him frown.

He shivered.

It was a sunny day and he rubbed his arms to try and dispel the bizarre reaction. He shivered again, noticing the dog had stopped corralling the animals and was braced near the pen, growling with his hackles raised. The boy stopped then and turned around looking for the mysterious assailant even as he went pale himself.

"What -" The hedge beside died before his eyes as the temperature dropped and Harry suddenly realised what was happening. "No!" Harry whispered, looking up and around, willing himself to be wrong. "No!"

He wasn't.

He sprang into action before he could think about what he was seeing and vaulted the gate. He grabbed the boy and yanked him to his feet. They raced down the fence line to another gate. He threw open and sprinted, pulling the boy with him, until he saw a defensible position.

"Come on," he groaned, pulling the lad through a gap in the fence. He could see a small barn up ahead and he hoped there was nothing else inside it that would bear witness to what he was about to do.

The cold followed them, as did the ever-increasing sense of dread that he felt he might never escape from. He wished fleetingly for Minerva, but when she didn't appear, he assumed he was on his own. He threw the boy into the hay and spun around, brandishing his wand at the Dementor that flew in through the doors behind them.

"Expecto Patronum!" he screamed.

The familiar form of his father's Animagus flew out, racing towards the oncoming threat and dispatching it with a force that knocked the door from its hinges. Harry was so caught up in watching, he hadn't noticed the other one until the nameless boy groaned behind him.

He spun to see the Dementor reaching down to seal its gaping mouth over the boy's, attempting to rid him of his soul, and he redirected his Patronus towards it, nodding tiredly when it was finally dispatched also. It was only when the air began to warm again that the boy opened his eyes and looked around.

"Freak!" he said in a broad highland accent. "Ge' away! Dinna come near me!"

Harry sighed as the boy scrambled to his feet and ran off, calling for his dog as he did. He watched for a moment before he realised he needed to report this to someone. There had been not one, but two Dementors in the middle of the Scottish Highlands; a connection Harry could only assume was himself. He lay back in the hay for a moment and then thought better of it. If the Dementors knew where he was, he needed to get back home and inside the wards as soon as possible.

Still shaky from the Dementors' effects and the first major magical use since before school had ended, Harry trudged back to the manor, sighing when he once again found it empty.

"Master Harry?" Kenna called as he walked through the door. "Master has been gone for an hour, I'll make sandwiches."

"Don't bother Kenna," Harry sighed sadly. "I'll be in my room."

He climbed the stairs, trailing his hand over the wall as he walked the length of the first-floor landing, pausing for a moment at the doorway to Minerva's room. He sighed once more and leant against it tiredly. He wanted her home.

More than anything he just wanted to be useful. He wanted to be where the action was, he wanted to do something. He wanted to be where she was, away from the Manor that had become his prison. It was clear that she had a lot to deal with and he didn't want to be a burden to her but he was blind, deaf and dumb while he stayed here. He'd considered just running away, leaving the manor with a bag of clothes and some food, but he wasn't convinced that Kenna couldn't have found him and brought him home. Failing that, he tried often to make Minerva feel their bond, but every time he did, she gave him nothing in return. He'd never felt so alone, not even at the Dursleys'. He hadn't known what it felt like then.

There was something about knowing now, that would not leave him. That made him think there really was something wrong with him. He'd found that bond with Minerva. With his Máthair. And she'd closed it off to him after he'd got Cedric killed. His mind buzzed constantly with guilt and the thought that maybe his nightmares were right.

Perhaps it was his fault.

His dreams were vivid and terrifying as he got lost in a screaming vortex of terror. It wasn't until he woke up sweating that he even knew it was a dream. Brushing his fringe out of his eyes, he sighed as he fell back onto the bed, frowning as something crunched under his head. He picked up the slightly crumpled letter, his blood running cold as he noticed the Ministry seal. He nearly ripped the paper as he pulled it out of the envelope.

Dear Mr Potter,

We have received intelligence that you performed the Patronus Charm at twenty-three minutes past nine this evening in a Muggle-inhabited area and in the presence of a Muggle.

The severity of this breach of the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery has resulted in your expulsion from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Ministry representatives will be calling at your place of residence shortly to destroy your wand.

As you have already received an official warning for a previous offence under Section 13 of the International Confederation of Warlocks' Statute of Secrecy, we regret to inform you that your presence is required at a disciplinary hearing at the Ministry of Magic at 9 a.m. on the 12th of August.

Hoping you are well,

Yours sincerely,

Mafalda Hopkirk

Improper Use of Magic Office, Ministry of Magic

He dropped the letter and got shakily to his feet, unsure of what to do. In a move he hadn't needed since the bad days at the Dursley's, Harry dropped to the floor and slid under his bed, crying into the crook of his arms until he once again fell into an uneasy sleep.

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Old A/N: Good evening. I'd like to introduce you to the new story belonging in the Of Births, Deaths and Everything In Between series.

For those of you who haven't read 'Of Births and Deaths', 'Of New Lives, New Scars and Old Mischief Makers' and 'Of Mothers, Sons and Lovers' you will possibly need to read it. On the surface the story follows the novels as much as possible, but somewhere along the way we kind of deviated from cannon-ish. This is the fourth instalment (I bet you all thought I wasn't coming back didn't you!) of the series and we're now following the Order of the Phoenix book.

Any of you wondering what on earth took me so long…well, many things. I finished writing my novel, I had a hundred other things to do and lately my life has turned to chaos when my brother, his girlfriend AND their 10 month old moved in with us AND my grandmother has come to stay AND my mother has to move into my bedroom. Spare a thought for me lol

Anyway, as always, my utmost thanks to the best beta on earth Spin, who is just amazing at taking my musings and making them all presentable and readable.

I hope you all enjoy it, and make sure to leave a review and let me know what you think.