Thanks for the reviews. I still have no plan for this fic, I'm just writing it as it goes. I hope you like it.
"Screw The Prophecy"
Chapter 3, "Shall We Dance?"
Neville planned on staying until the party and they studied and played the whole time. He was really coming into his own. His confidence was up, and his clumsiness was down. A few days before the party, the change finally became noticeable to Harry.
Harry was lying on his bed, watching Neville, who was at a desk studying. Harry was a little shocked at the things he hadn't noticed. Neville had shed the last of his chubbiness. And those changes were quite obvious in the muggle clothing of a pair of jean shorts, t-shirt, and trainers. Harry also noticed the Nev's Hair had grown to shoulder length, just like his. He found it, attractive. He couldn't help the feelings he was having. Neville was hot.
Harry found suddenly that he didn't even care if he was gay. He thought that he should be uneasy at the thought, but he truly didn't care what any holier than thou types might think. In fact, all the more to piss them off, he thought. And took pleasure in the fact he was turned on by Neville.
Neville closed his book, stretched, and glanced over at Harry. "What," he said, startled slightly by the look Harry gave him.
Harry smiled lustfully and got up. He lead Neville over to a large, full length mirror. "Look at yourself, Nev."
"What?" he said, his voice going a little dry.
"What do you mean what? You're hot Nev. Look at you," Harry said, lust clear in his voice.
Neville stared at his reflection. He hadn't really noticed that he had finally lost the extra weight he had been carrying. Between the DA training and eating more properly, he had slimmed down and toned up. He found it exciting and erotic how much alike he and Harry were now. He turned a lustful eye to gaze of Harry's reflection, finding a similar look in those beautiful green eyes. He felt drawn to the boy-who-lived. He turned to face the other boy as Harry pulled him in and kissed him deeply. Returning the kiss, he was led over to the bed, removing each other's clothes as they went. They climbed onto the bed, hands roaming over every inch of their bodies, exploring new sensations with the passion of unrestrained hormones. Both Neville and Harry found love and lust for the first time on this night.
Harry sat on the front steps of Number 4, Privet Drive and watched the twilight pass while Neville slept. He had enjoyed his time with Neville immensely, and now he felt his mind clear enough to think on things. He looked up at the clear sky and saw a beautiful crescent moon and thought about Remus. Moony. Why hadn't he visited while he was growing up was the first thing to pop into his mind. He felt a twinge of anger surge through him. Sure, Remus was hurting because of Peter, Sirius, and his parents, but he needed him too, damn it, he thought. A stone near his foot exploded to dust with a small pop as he felt the anger accompany that thought. Harry just glared at the spot where the stoned had been as the dust quickly settled.
"Want me to kill him for you?" came a voice in his head.
"No! What are you doing in my head?" Harry thought back at the Dark Lord.
"You opened the link with that little burst of magic and gave me a headache." Voldemort replied. "I can feel your anger, Potter. Much like my own."
"I'm nothing like you, Tom. I'm pissed at those who hurt me and my friends. You take pleasure in the hurting of others." Harry answered back viciously.
"I do now, I admit. But in the beginning, it was exactly as yours is. I too was hurt by those who were supposed to care for me. I was in an orphanage, left alone by a muggle father who hated me, a mother dead. She suffered her own abuse at the hands of my grandfather and uncle, Potter. When I found I had power to overcome, I took it. Even from the other kids in the orphanage. I had power over them, so I used it. I wasn't about to be put in a position to be hurt again, if I could help it."
"Okay, I'll give you that," Harry said as Voldemort sent a few childhood images with his speech along the link. "But now you want to be immortal. What's the good of that if you're alone? What's the point? Really?" Harry sent a few of his own feelings and images back.
"Everything in life has drawbacks, Potter," the Dark Lord continued. "But with power, you have more opportunities and resources to deal with those drawbacks of life."
Harry thought about this, and reluctantly agreed Voldemort had a point. Magic wasn't good or evil, he had heard once, only the intent of the user. Could he let himself enjoy hurting some asshole that desperately deserved it? After a few moments thought he realised, yes he could. This both excited him and scared him at the same time.
He continued looking around at the neighboring houses, glancing at the night sky, and breathing the clean fresh night air. His relaxation was disrupted by a man from down the street walking his little annoying dog. Yap, yap, yap. The dog kept it up and the owner just stopped.
"What the hell are you looking at?" the man said. "You're that Dursley brat that goes to St. Brutus', aren't you? Should just put you away and be done with you."
Harry gritted back his anger and averted his eyes to the yapping, annoying, rodent dog. He couldn't help himself but to use Legilimancy. The dog's mind was simple, but the thought's were very clear. This little dog was pampered more than the man's son but hated everything and everyone.
"Fuck it," Harry muttered under his breath, angry that his meditation had been disrupted by this little rodent dog and it's arrogant master.
He easily focused his anger and magic and the dog simply crumbled to dust, much like the stone earlier. The man gasped in shock, and before the man could scream, Harry quickly pulled out his wand and cast a silencing charm. Then, without even thinking about it, he cast a full body bind on the man and levitated him to behind a nearby evergreen bush. A quick cleaning charm on the pavement, and the dogs remains were no more.
Harry walked behind the bush and stared hard into the man's eyes to gather a little information before obliviating him. Voldemort stayed back and just watched as Harry ran through the muggles mind easily. What Harry found made him want to vaporize this man, just like the dog. It actually made Voldemort flinch at the anger Harry felt. A righteous anger, beyond what Voldemort had ever done.
The man had lost his wife in childbirth. She lasted long enough to tell him that she was a muggleborn witch who wasn't accepted in the wizarding world, so she returned to live as a muggle. He didn't want to believe it, but he knew it was true. The little things she was able to do that seemed impossible. He had been a snob, much like Harry's uncle, but now it was even worse. He hated his wife at that moment. Both for being a witch and for lying. Then he hated the son for being her spawn. For killing her and for living. For looking like her, and reminding him everyday of his hatred for people who were different. He beat the boy and treated him much worse than Vernon had treated Harry. Ten years old, shaggy blond hair, and fear ruling his life. The boys name was Mark, and he too, was a wizard, though he didn't know this. The man had burnt his letter the moment it arrived. His son was not going to escape from a life he thought he deserved. Icing on the cake, since he wasn't the boy-who-lived, no other letters were sent. No multitude of owls attempting to contact him. No half giant making sure the kid got his letter. No one even cared.
Harry's eyes glowed killing curse green as he pulled his mind free from the muggle. "I should kill you," Harry said through gritted teeth. "You're worse than Vernon, and I didn't think that was possible."
Harry could see in the dark easily with the green in his eyes acting nearly like muggle night vision goggles. He cast imperious on the man with glee before releasing the other spells. He looked back and his uncle's house was dark and quiet. He turned and had the man lead him to his house, where they found Mark in a corner crying quietly. The boy cried even louder as Harry approached him.
"I'm not going to hurt you, Mark," Harry said, calmly.
"But you're that bad kid from the Dursley's," Mark manage to whimper out.
Harry sighed, "no, what I am that my aunt and uncle tried to hide, is the same reason this shit here hates and hurts you so much. Go on, fuckhead, tell him."
The man nodded, still under imperious, "You and Potter are wizards, and your mother was a witch. I burned your letter from wizard school."
Mark immediately stopped his crying in astonishment and ran over to the fireplace and glared at the small pile of ash. "So that's what you were burning. You didn't want me to ever get away from you, you bastard."
"Calm down, Mark," Harry smiled at the boy as he walked over. "Watch this," he said and waved his wand at the burnt letter, which reconstituted itself and flew up into Mark's hands.
Mark read through the letter quickly with awe, then turned to his father with a scowl. "Arsehole," he screamed out and then turned sad again. "How can I get this stuff," he said, looking up at Harry with sad blue eyes.
"Don't worry about it, kid. I'm making sure your father will help you like a father should," Harry kept his smile as he had an idea. He raised his wand again and a large silver stag erupted from the end and zoomed off. He then turned to the man and lifted the imperious from him, after he used Occlumency to plant the thoughts of what would happen if he didn't go along with Harry's ideas.
"What's gonna happen?" Mark asked nervously.
"I just sent a message to the headmaster. He should be here shortly, and I have a few words for him, so don't worry, Mark. I'm gonna fix everything." Mark relaxed a little at that.
Dumbledore apparated in with a pop. "What's the matter, Harry?" he said with concern. "I taught you how to use the patronus as a messenger for emergencies." Then he realised that he may of just lost Harry's trust, again, with that statement.
Harry smirked. "You and the ministry seem to have dropped the ball again, or should I say, missed the snitch? This man was worse than Vernon, and burned Mark's one and only letter. Mark had as much of a clue about wizards as I did."
Dumbledore thought for a moment, recalling this family, and trying to save face. "Oh yes, but his mother's a witch, Harry. She should have explained things to him."
"Oh you dumb shit," Harry groaned. "She died in childbirth, making this muggle hate Mark even more. This secrecy from muggles shit is gonna have to end if you guys can't keep shit straight."
Dumbledore looked at Harry thoughtfully and sighed. He was losing the only person who would be able to defeat Voldemort. "Just what do you expect us to do?"
"You're asking me? Oh that's right, I'm the boy-who-didn't-fucking-die. Fine, you want me to lead? I'll lead. First off, I would like someone here to make sure Mark's father gets his head out of his ass, and I'll ask one of the member's of the DA to escort him to Diagon Alley to help him get his things."
"Dumbledore was slightly shocked and taken aback, but he also felt a twinge of pride there for a moment, and gave Harry a grim smile. "Anything else?"
"Yeah, as a matter of fact there is. Someone is gonna start checking on wizard children growing up in a muggle atmosphere. No more clueless kids to enter the wizarding world, and certainly no more abuse. The muggles can look after their own abuse cases, but the ministry, or the governors, or even you, somebody, is gonna start taking responsibility for the wizard ones. Got it?"
Dumbledore slowly nodded. Harry was still angry, but it was focused on good points. Good enough to make him dangerous, Dumbledore thought, if they didn't start taking the responsibility Harry suggested. "Alright, Harry. You're right. I'll see what I can do."
"You better do more than that, sir," Harry said sarcastically. "You used to have Fudge almost in your pocket, you should do that again. If you don't, I will." Then, turning to Mark, "You'll be okay, now. Any problems, I live just down the street, and here is my phone number," Harry said handing over a slip of paper to the grateful boy. He gave the father a stern look making him jump, before he and Dumbledore left and went back to Number 4.
Back in the kitchen, Harry ran his hands through his messy shoulder length hair. "I'm still not trusting you, sir. Every mistake I discover makes me wonder what the hell I'm fighting for," he said, glaring at the headmaster.
"I'm truly sorry, Harry," the headmaster sighed. "I don't know what else I can do."
"Get more active, for one," Harry glared even harder, his emerald eyes suddenly blazing with magic. "Voldemort, we can expect to kill and torture, but having it done behind our backs by our own, I think is even worse. It smells of betrayal and lies."
Dumbledore stared hard at the boy-who-lived. This revelation hit him like a ton of bricks. He was going to lose Harry with all of the political nonsense and games. I will try harder, Harry," he finally said. "No more games, I hope. But others are set in their political ways, and won't change quickly, if at all."
"I understand that, headmaster," Harry snarled out in a way that would make Snape proud. "But you and I have magical power. We bloody well better use it, or others will continue to suffer. I guarantee you, I will act when the opportunity presents itself. No more hiding."
Harry then turned and went up stairs to leave a worried professor behind. He wrote a quick note to Cho and sent it out with Hedwig before climbing back in bed, and snuggling close to Neville, whose snoring never wavered, even for a second.
The next morning, Cho entered Harry's bedroom to find him and Neville spooned together with happy smiles on their faces. She just shook her head before going to the bathroom and transfiguring a paper cup into a bucket and then filling it with cold water. Back in the bedroom, she smiled at the happily sleeping boys before levitating the bucket directly to the middle of the bed and dumping its contents over them.
"What the fuck?" Harry and Neville yelled together as they jumped out of bed, dressed only in their birthday suits.
Cho was laughing until she got a good look at them. Then she whistled and cat called. A blushing Neville grabbed up his clothes and ran to the bathroom while Harry just laughed and started putting his clothes on right there.
"So, you wanted me to take a kid to get his school stuff?" Cho said when after she calmed a little.
"Yeah, his muggle father is a wizard hating bastard, even worse than my uncle, but I had a little chat with him last night. He's gonna play nice now, or else," Harry said with a tinge of disgust.
"You're such a humanitarian, Harry," she said and Harry bowed.
"Thank you, my lady. I'd like you to tell him about the wizarding world as you go around and get the things he needs. Actually, it might not hurt to give him an overview of sorts, and then perhaps teach him in more of an informal class type setting before the start of term. I think I'll get with Dumbledore and find any others who have the same problem. Will you help me with this?"
"I'd love to, Harry," she nodded and then under her breath she added, "I'd like to do what Neville did as well."
"I heard that," Harry said and she blushed. "After you take Mark shopping, perhaps we could have dinner and discuss that other thing," Harry added with a raise of his eyebrows and a lustful smile.
She nodded as Neville came out of the bathroom, still blushing. "I'll catch you later, Harry," Nev said and started to leave.
"Hang on Nev," Harry said catching his arm. "I wanna start a wizard class for clueless muggleborns and I would your help. There's a kid down the street whose father was a prick, and Cho is gonna take him shopping. Then later she is going to have a little informal class to bring him and any others that I can find up to speed on the wizarding world. What do thing?"
"Good idea, Harry. I'd love to help," he said, his previous shyness and lack of confidence all but gone. "Just let me know when and where, okay?"
"Sure thing, hot stuff," Harry said as he gave Nev a quick kiss, bringing out another blush as he left.
"Okay, Cho. Shall we go see Mark?" Harry said as he led her from the room.
Harry introduced Cho to Mark and his father, and then left them to work out the details. Cho would meet Harry at the Leaky Cauldron for dinner at 7pm, giving him the whole day free. First he sent Hedwig to Dumbledore with a note requesting a list of upcoming first years that might have potential problems. With that done, he settled back in his bed and opened the link to Voldemort.
"Time for some training, Tom," Harry thought out.
"What would you like to learn, Potter?" Voldemort thought back.
"How to crucio without killing or making so insane that the pain no longer has meaning, like Neville's parents." Harry replied.
"I didn't think you would really go through with it, Potter," Voldemort though with a smirk. "We should meet, and make our alliance official."
"I don't trust you as yet, Tom," Harry replied. "I know that wizard's oath you took was meaningless. For one, you said it to easily, and two, such a thing wouldn't work through our link."
"Very good, Potter. You're right. But I have kept my word. There have been no attacks since that night."
"True, and right now I actually think I trust you more than the minister at any rate. Okay, can you put a glamour around yourself to look like an older Tom from the diary?"
"Easily. Where shall we meet, then? The Leaky Cauldron?"
"That will do, Tom. I don't want to be seen, either. Can you show me how to do it over the link?"
Voldemort sent the memories of how to do a full body glamour over the link with a smirk and then they left, to meet at the Leaky Cauldron. Harry turned his hair to a straight white blond, much like Lucius, with his fringe long enough to cover the scar, which didn't seem to able to be hidden by any magic. His eyes he made bright blue and changed his facial features similar to the Creevey's. Once he was satisfied with his appearance, he apparated to the pub to meet with Voldemort, who was already there, but unnoticed by anyone.
"How's it going Tom?" Harry said taking a seat across from the glamoured Dark Lord.
Tom chuckled into his tea at the sight of the boy-who-lived, then quickly regained his composure. "Interesting look, brat-who-forgot-to-die."
"It seems as though regular life might be good for you, Tom," Harry said with a smirk.
"Perhaps. I do find it interesting to be around others without maintaining such an air of control," he said then added through the link, "what shall I call you in this form?"
Harry thought for a moment as he looked around. No one was paying them any attention, but better safe than sorry. "Devon Dursley, I think, no, Devon Snape."
Tom chuckled into his tea again at that, and found it much harder to regain control this time. Perhaps being around people who didn't know who he really was could be a good thing.
"Very well, Devon. So, shall we get this over with?" Tom said, eventually calming down.
Harry looked thoughtful for a moment, then said, "I will trust the wizards oath, but I don't trust your, er, people to always follow your directions."
Voldemort looked around then cast a silencing ward around them. "Using all of your skills makes you my equal in strength, Potter. You held your own at the ministry a few months ago. Right now, I have no doubt you could take out any rogue death eater and do me a favor for doing so."
Harry smiled at that. "Thank you. They were rather pathetic, you know. That lot you sent."
Tom sighed and nodded. "Unfortunately yes, I know. Snape is the only one, I believe, who might be able to stand against you. His Legilimency is strong enough that only someone with Occlumency shields and nonverbal spells would be able to do him harm."
"Good to know," Harry replied with an evil glint in his eyes. "Now, to the oath, no hurting my friends and their families, and no innocents either. Go after the ministry idiots if you must."
Voldemort thought for a moment, thinking on his true goals. "Agreed, anything beyond that would truly be self destructive, as you have so bluntly proved over that last few years. I have mostly what I want, power and immortality."
"Good, now share that knowledge with me, and things will be, shall we say, fun?" Harry smirked.
"Indeed," Voldemort replied and gave a real wizards oath.
Voldemort removed the silencing ward and they ordered lunch, during which, he sent the precise knowledge Harry wanted regarding crucio, though knowledge wasn't enough, practise would be needed to gain the level of control he desired. The source of that practise walked in just as they were about to leave, to Harry's delight, and Voldemort's amusement.
Delores Umbridge.
The former DADA professor walked in and looked around nervously, before heading to the bar and ordering firewhisky. She looked terrible after her ordeal in the forest, only barely escaping the centaurs with her life. She quickly down several shots and didn't notice the two wizards approaching her.
"Hello, Delores," Harry whispered next to her, making her jump and try to get away from the strange wizard, only to be held in place by another on her other side.
"Wh...what do you want?" she managed to gasp out.
"Oh, don't worry, dear. We're going to show you a good time," Harry said, smiling wide.
The firewhisky already started working as she reluctantly let herself be led outside. They apparated her to the basement of Number 4, Privet Drive, the blood wards nullified by Voldemort's oath, allowing him in.
Harry cast a silencing and binding spell on the bitch before dissolving his glamour. "Guess who?" he said to the witch who tried to shriek but couldn't.
"Dobby?" Harry called.
"Yes, Mr. Harry Potter sir?" Dobby said after popping in.
"This is the bad woman who caused so much trouble for me last year," Harry said.
"I remembers her," Dobby said with a scowl.
"I would like an impenetrable, inescapable, and silent cell down here for her. Could you handle that for me?"
"I would be glad to's, Mr. Harry, sir," Dobby smiled gleefully.
Dobby had the cell set up in less than fifteen minutes. The terrified woman was placed in it and the door closed behind the two wizards as Harry got ready for his training.
"Tom, if you would?" Harry said, and Tom dissolved his own glamour. The bitch promptly fainted.
Harry ennervated her, and held her awake with the spell, surprising Voldemort by doing so, as the spell wasn't supposed to do that. "Well, here is the lie I told, you dumb bitch," Harry said to her, and piss started running down her leg.
"It's...he's a fake, he's not real," she stammered, though she clearly believed it.
"Oh, he's real enough. And we've worked out an agreement, he and I."
Her eyes went wide. "But you're...you're..."
"Yeah, yeah, blah, blah, the boy-wouldn't-fuckin'-die," Harry cut her off. "People like you drove me to it. I got sick of fighting you and him, so what's done is done. And..." Harry paused for dramatic effect, "I get to practise crucio on you before I kill you. How's that for making you bed and lying in it?"
She wanted to faint but couldn't. There was no urine left in her. But there was crap, which made it's debut when Harry raised his wand and pointed it at her.
"Oh come now," Harry said wrinkling his nose and casting a cleansing charm. "I don't want you stinking up my new cell now. Are you done? Good. Crucio!"
She screamed out as Harry cast the pain curse and opened the link so Voldemort could guide him. Since the knowledge and feeling was transferred through the link about how to do the curse properly, Harry didn't need more than a few adjustments to get it right. That and a lot of practise in order to maintain the curse properly.
Voldemort watched Harry work, both from outside, and through the link. He was surprised when Harry started sending his own memories of the pain suffered at the hands of Umbridge through the curse, adding to the regular pain. That wasn't supposed to be possible. The Dark Lord was beginning to get unnerved at Harry's ease of advancement. He was actually glad that Harry had contacted him now, so that he didn't make any foolish mistakes that might have cost him irreparably.
Harry felt Voldemort's unease before he managed to hide it from him. He was beginning to enjoy this torturing too much, so he stopped and looked down at the sobbing mess of a woman.
"I told lies did I? You scarred the back of my hand and disrupted the school. You'll be begging me to kill you long before I do," Harry said evilly, surprising his own self at how he sounded.
Harry couldn't help but revel in the justified pain he caused. Yes, it bordered on revenge, perhaps it was, he didn't know. He did stop before he went too far, he thought, so it felt more like justice. Maybe later it would be revenge, who knows? Who cares? Harry thought with a shrug and left as Voldemort apparated away.
Harry had time to meditate before his date with Cho, so he made use of it. He felt himself so much stronger after the torture session that he couldn't believe it. The use of new areas of magic were quite invigorating. At about six, Harry took a shower and got ready to meet Cho. He tied his hair back with a Celtic hair tie, and wore dark blue jeans with a black dress shirt, and dragonhide boots. He was hot, if he did say so himself.
Cho was suitably charmed by Harry's appearance as they sat down for dinner. Mark was fascinated by everything Cho had shown and told him. And this date went much better than the last one. Very much better. Soon, Harry and Cho found themselves on Harry's bed, kissing passionately. Harry pulled out a condom, and they continued exploring each other's bodies, eventually drifting off to sleep in each other's arms after they both had climaxed at least twice.
The next morning looked bright to Harry. Balanced after the day before. Harry looked at the sleeping Cho, and was glad they worked it out the night before. No exclusivity. Harry wasn't going to go down that road, and Cho agreed whole heartedly. They kept things casual.
Harry got the list from Dumbledore, but McGonagall would accompany Harry to each house, which made sense to have an adult come with. Cho couldn't go right then, but Nev could, so they picked him up before beginning to visit those on the list.
It took a few days to get through everyone on the list, luckily, none of the others were suffering from abuse. They only had the surprise about the wizarding world to deal with, as most had thought the child's seeming magical abilities were special. Time was setup for Neville, Cho, and Hermione, who Harry had finally called, to give discussions about the wizarding world on the weekends.
Hermione was proud of Harry for what he had done. Harry thanked her for the compliment, but said he had done a lot of thinking and growing, and had told her that she wasn't to get all preachy like she had in the past when he had made decisions she didn't like. Sometimes rules were meant to be broken. The world was not black and white. She agreed fairly quickly, which Harry thought odd, until she said she had been thinking too, about all the things they had done, and how if the adults hadn't been so adamant with their rules, Sirius might still be alive. A lot of people might still be alive. That made Harry happy. Now if only Ron would stop being a jack ass most of the time.
Harry spent his time up to the start of term exploring the muggle world he had been denied all of his life. That and meditating, or more accurately sucking magical knowledge from Voldemort. Both willingly and unknown at night.
The dementors had left Askaban two weeks before the new term was to start, and many of the death eaters had escaped. Of course, this wasn't news to Harry when he read it in the Daily Prophet. Voldemort had already told him, and he didn't really care, just as long as they kept to the deal Voldemort had made. But, they didn't Harry found out while he was getting his supplies for school.
Harry was sitting outside the icecream parlour with most of the DA, even Ron, when it happened. They were chatting and having an excellent time when Harry's instincts went off. With the agreement, Harry was letting his awareness falter, and he wasn't able to get out of the way completely as a cutting curse zoomed past him, just catching his left arm as he hit the ground yelling.
The DA all hit the ground but no more curses came. Harry looked up calmly at the wand pointed at him, then over to the dozen or so deatheaters behind this leader. His gaze returned when the leader spoke in an all too familiar voice.
"I told you one day you would come to the same end as your parents," came the drawl of Lucius Malfoy.