Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, or any of the Potter-verse. Everything you recognise belongs to the magnificent Ms Rowling. I do, however own any characters you don't recognise.
A/N: I'm almost at the main point of the story! The visitor mentioned in the summary appears at the end of this chapter, so things are actually happening… kinda. This chapter is really just more introducing characters and stuff, and was actually one of the first things I wrote for the story.
Thanks everyone who reads, and extra thanks to everyone who reviews! You guys rock!
Fulfilling Prophecies
Chapter Four
October 27th 2000
"Come on, the guys are all inside. We can surprise them." Harry said, pulling Allie along behind him. They paused by the security guards at the door before entering the half dark club – Absolution. "If we're quick we can catch the guys before their first set."
"Well then, we better get going! We don't want to miss a chance to talk to them!" Allie spoke eagerly; her broad grin was infectious as she took over the lead. It really was obvious how much she liked Jayce, the lead singer of the band and Harry's good friend. Now if only Jayce will admit that he likes her back, thought Harry with a mischievous grin.
"You're keen, aren't you Allie?" He said jokingly as he followed her to the stage where he could see two members of the five person band known as Committed.
"Hey Lee, hey Chris!" Harry greeted his two friends cheerfully as he approached with Allie. She had been near hysterical when he had mentioned that he knew the band, she had practically begged him to introduce her. They were a favourite group of hers – despite the fact that they only played local gigs – although she had never seen them play when he had been filling in for a while, and she still didn't know that he had at one stage been the, temporary, lead singer of the band.
"Harry! Didn't know you were coming tonight – something about too much work was it?" said Lee, one of the guitarists and occasional singer – teasing Harry as usual. They all hassled him about his strong working habits – particularly since they didn't have any that weren't related to their music.
"Well, Lee, you know what they say," Harry replied with a dramatic sigh, "all work and no play makes Allie drive me insane." He received a punch in the arm for that, but he could see Allie trying not to grin beneath her mock-hurt look.
Harry had met the group the night he was celebrating the end of his training to reacquaint himself with muggle life. He had gone for a drink and had seen them playing. When they had seen him after their first set he was singing one of their songs to himself (an annoying and embarrassing habit, Harry thought to himself), and they offered to buy him a drink as they talked. It turned out they needed a temporary lead singer while Jayce went on a break. Harry had been reluctant at first – not because he was lacking confidence in his singing ability, but because he had always hated being in the spotlight, though he had become more confident with it in his later years at school. But after a couple of beers he agreed to do one song in their second set and let the audience decide.
Unfortunately for him they approved his performance, giving him a reasonable applause which was only dampened because of his lack of confidence. Harry had just been pleased that he hadn't been visibly shaking as he had done the first few times he had had to give a speech in front of a large crowd during the war. Despite his nerves and protestations, the group had given him the job as lead singer for the three months Jayce was away. He would have a month to practice with Jayce, and then he would be performing as a full band member. There was just under a month before the university term started, so he could spend a fair amount of time practicing until then, it would give him something to do.
Harry enjoyed the company of the band members, and still spent a lot of time with them, at practices, gigs, or just hanging out. He even wrote a few songs for them when inspiration struck. He still performed occasionally, when Jayce couldn't make it, or when they played one of his original songs for the first time. The group had become good friends, and the introduction of Allie had brought some much needed feminine perspective. She got along well with all of them, but particularly with Jayce. The two began to get closer, and it was obvious to everyone that they both fancied each other. But they were both stubborn and would seldom admit their feelings to the rest of the group, let alone the other.
"Hey, Harry, you gonna do a song with us tonight? We've been working on that song you wrote, and since it's ready for the public it would only be fair to let you have the first performance." Chris, the second guitarist, spoke with a pleading tone which made Harry laugh.
"Sure, Chris, why not. I'll do it, just because you asked." Chris was always able to get away with anything; at least he could when it came to the opposite sex. His mid-length sandy-blonde hair and blue eyes made him a crowd favourite. "Besides, it'll give Jayce a chance to keep Allie company." The three guys broke into equally mischievous grins as Allie rolled her eyes, a faint blush coming to her cheeks.
"Speaking of whom," Lee said as Jayce came out a back door, along with David, the band's drummer, and Rick, the pianist. "Look who showed up tonight Jayce," he said pointedly to the brown-haired lead singer, "and Harry's here too. He's agreed to do the new song so you can sit out with Allie for a little bit later on." Lee didn't lose his grin as he spoke, and in a manner very similar to Allie, Jayce just rolled his eyes before greeting Harry and Allie.
"Hey guys, haven't seen either of you for a while. It has been too long since you brought your heads out of your work and watched us play!" He gave a teasing smile as the two laughed.
Allie and Harry helped the band move around power cords, amps and all the other equipment that had been stacked to one side of the stage. When it was finally set up how they liked it, the two sat at the bar just off to the side of the stage talking while they could. Soon the club was getting quite busy, and the club manager got on stage to announce Committed.
They were a popular group on the local scene, so they got a very warm welcome from the growing crowd. Soon they were finishing up their fourth song when Lee took centre stage to speak to the crowd.
"Hey guys! How's it going?" He yelled through the mic, getting the attention of every person in the club. He was answered with enthusiastic screams and shouted answers. "Good to hear! Now, I know you all enjoy some of our more thoughtful songs as well as our usual stuff, so tonight we have a little treat for you." Lee was grinning, and looking at Harry who was giving Allie his jacket to look after, aware that he was getting an introduction. "Our occasional singer, Harry Evans, who most of our fans should know by now, wrote the lyrics to this next song, and so is going to sing it in public for the first time! Aren't you lucky?" The crowd cheered once again, most of them knew who Harry was, and his songs were well received as being a bit deeper than the band's usual repertoire. "So, let's get Harry up here to sing his song, Fated Lines!"
Harry jumped onto the stage to another enthusiastic applause; he gave Jayce a quick hand shake as the microphone was handed over. Watching as the brown-haired singer took the seat next to Allie; Harry smirked and thought, those two really are blind.
"Right, let's get this song started!" Harry said into the mic, nodding to David, the drummer, to start off the song. Harry closed his eyes, listening to the music – they always managed to convey the mood of his lyrics, usually thoughtful and just a little dark and moody. The drum solo was soon joined by the piano and a simple guitar rhythm before Harry began singing.
I feel like I'm stuck,
Living a life of fated paths.
No control over where my feet lead,
No control over where my heart beats,
No control over me.
Harry sang the words with emotion, thinking about the reason he had written the song. It, like many of his others, had been written about the things he had seen and felt in his life. His friends never knew what they were really about, but they were sufficiently impressed by them not to ask.
I move across the chessboard,
Manipulated unseen.
White against black against shades of grey,
It blurs before me.
I'm counting down till I'm free,
Of this life been fated me.
Will I ever be in control of my destiny?
It lies before me.
He was joined in the chorus by Lee. Harry could hear Rick playing the piano in the background, but was thinking only about the words he was singing, and the feelings and memories they brought back.
I feel like I'm stuck,
Living a life of fated paths.
No control over where my feet lead,
No control over where my heart beats,
No control over me.
Without the hope I perceive,
I walk alone.
Surrounded by shadows of shades of grey,
I'm feeling empty.
Walking down this winding road,
I'm lost without a guide.
Losing myself to the fated paths,
I'm feeling adrift.
I feel like I'm stuck,
Living a life of fated paths.
No control over where my feet lead,
No control over where my heart beats,
No control over me.
The song was coming to the ending now, and Harry couldn't help but be very impressed with the way the guys had put the song together. Each part of the song complemented the other, balancing off the delicate piano strands with the heavier beats of the drum. The guitars played, supporting the lyrics and pushing the song forward through its climax.
I'm counting down till I'm free,
Of this life been fated me.
Will I ever be in control of my destiny?
It lies before me.
I feel like I'm stuck, (in this moment)
Living a life of fated paths. (I'll find my way)
No control over where my feet lead, (they lead me home)
No control over where my heart beats, (it beats alone)
No control over me. (Fated paths)
No control over me. (Fated paths)
No control.
Harry trailed off on the last words, letting the last piano notes drift into the wild applause of the crowd. Looking out over the sea of dimly lit faces, Harry saw approval. Whew, he thought, wiping a mental hand across his brow, the first time is always the hardest.
"So, what did you think?" Harry asked the crowd. The cheering rose in answer, bringing a smile to his face. He looked over at Jayce and Allie, and saw the two of them sitting close, Allie's head on Jayce's shoulder, the singer seemed to have no intention of moving anytime soon. Turning his head to speak to the rest of the band, Harry said "what so you say I sing till the end of the set? I think Jayce is a little preoccupied." They four guys broke out into wide grins, nodding their agreement.
"'Kay, seems like I'm gonna finish the set up for Jayce guys," Harry checked the song list to see what he would be singing, "and it seems the next song is one of my favourites of Committed's early songs."
The group launched into the next song, then the next, and then the final song of the set. Harry received enthusiastic applause for each song; he gave them his own style, but kept to Committed's overall style, giving the audience something slightly different in the songs that many of them already knew well.
By the time the first set was finished, Jayce and Allie looked very comfortable, having relocated to an unoccupied couch against the wall of the club. Harry and the rest of the band left the audience to pre-recorded music arranged by the club and headed over.
"Hey, you two are looking cosy," Chris teased with a smirk, "I don't suppose there's any more room on that couch?" The two blushed and moved so that they weren't taking up the whole seat. "So, did Harry get the groups approval with that new song?"
"Hell yeah. That was awesome Harry. I still can't believe a guy like you can write such meaningful song lyrics!" Jayce teased.
"Yeah, Evans, where did you get the inspiration from? All I can ever come up with is 'you say tomayto, I say tomahto'!" Lee picked up the teasing while Harry merely rolled his eyes. This was nothing new.
"Well I still can't believe that you guys can manage to put the music to the words. I reckon you've got the hard part." Both Chris and Lee grinned at the compliment, bowing in exaggerated grace. David and Rick merely laughed at their antics, and Jayce was once again preoccupied talking to Allie. Seeing this, Harry looked seriously at the rest of the guys and said, "I think you may have lost your singer, he seems to be in the clutches of a mysterious force. I don't know if he will be strong enough to escape."
Lee, the biggest joker, carried on the charade, and said in an overly dramatic voice, "oh, Jayce, we barely knew ye! You're too young to die!" at which, Allie promptly whacked him over the back of the head. "OW! What was that for?" The short blonde just raised an eyebrow as if to say, you really need me to answer that? "Uh, right, sorry Al's." Lee apologised as he shuffled away from the high-tempered girl.
The group had a good night; the band performed their second set with Jayce spending half his time looking across at Allie, and Harry spent a lot of the time trying to figure out exactly how that had happened. Unfortunately Allie wasn't saying much, except that she had apparently gotten a dose of courage and managed to make the first move. In trying to divert the conversation away from her, Allie tried to talk to Harry about Connie Granger. She didn't seem to believe him when he said he wanted nothing more than friendship from her.
"But you met her four times last week! How can that be only friendship?"
"I needed someone to talk to about Hermione; we both needed to talk about it, and became friends in doing so. Friends, that's all!"
"I think I better ask her. She'll tell me." Harry let out an exasperated sigh at her disbelief. She could be very stubborn when she got something into her mind.
Once Committed had finished playing at around 1 a.m., the six friends had sat around having drinks and talking. The club was mostly empty by the time they left, an hour and a half later at two-thirty a.m.
Since David never drank, he was always the delegated driver, dropping everybody home. Harry was glad for small reprieves as he felt the effects of a long week and a night of drinking begin to catch up to him. He and Allie were dropped off first as they were closest, the two of them stumbling in the door after Allie said 'goodbye' to Jayce.
"Night Al's." Harry murmured as he made his way drowsily to his room. He vaguely heard Allie's reply, but his fogged mind didn't seem to want to recognise it. Drifting off to sleep in a spinning room wasn't fun, Harry mused, but at least he didn't get the dreams this way.
"Harry," Allie called out down the hall, "you got a visitor!" Harry groaned at the feeling of his head when bombarded by loud sound. Allie didn't get hangovers, and loved to rub in the fact that he did. It was getting to early evening, and Harry still had his headache after the night out. Deciding he really didn't want to deal with anyone with a headache the size of Hogwarts, he quickly opened his trunk and pulled out a headache potion – that and dreamless sleep potion were the only two he had.
Heading to the lounge where Allie's voice had called from, Harry stopped short in the doorway.
Why did he always get these sorts of surprises when he was tired?
