I do not own Harry Potter.

...

When Harry woke the next morning, Ron was already up. Harry got ready to go down to the common room while listening to Ron talk about various things. He felt awkward, because usually he would comment on what Ron said and bring up his own topics. But today all he could do was nod in agreement, or make a face to express his opinion on something. He could tell that Ron was feeling awkward too. After all, who doesn't when talking to someone who doesn't talk back?

While they were getting ready the others woke up, one by one. Seamus gave Harry a strange look before heading into the bathroom, but Dean just said a friendly hello. Neville was pretty quiet, as usual, and just muttered good mornings to everyone.

When Harry and Ron were ready they went down to the common room. Hermione was there, waiting for them, and Ron immediately told her what had happened during the night. Hermione was very concerned, and the next thing Harry knew he was being pushed into a chair with a piece of parchment in front of him.

So, feeling like he had no choice, he wrote down what he had been dreaming about. He didn't include his own emotions; just what he had seen in his mind.

Hermione and Ron both read the scroll while Harry relaxed back into the chair, taking a look around the common room. Nearly everyone there was casting occasional glances at him. No doubt things would stay the same for a while, until people got used to Harry's new…situation.

His friends finished reading, and Harry took the parchment back, along with the quill and the ink. He would need them all during the day, so he stuffed them into his school-bag. When he looked up Ron and Hermione were giving him sympathetic looks, but they didn't say anything. So Harry led the way down to the Great Hall for the breakfast, though he no longer felt like eating.

As Harry had suspected, the rest of the school had heard the rumors about him, but no one seemed to know that Dumbledore was dead. The slytherins, lead by Pansy Parkinson, confronted Harry outside the Great Hall, to discover whether or not the rumors were true.

"What do you lot want?" Ron asked when he saw the green-clad group.

"We just wanted to…check…something." Pansy said, looking directly at Harry. Harry felt a blush reaching his cheeks. Everyone in the Entrance Hall had stopped to watch the confrontation. This was going to be the revealing to the rest of the school, the confirmation of the rumors. He had been hoping to leave it until McGonagall's announcement, but it seemed he wouldn't get even that.

Ron and Hermione both moved close to him, on either side. They knew that he hated this.

"I heard you were in the infirmary, Potter. What was that for? Did you get crucioed in the battle?" Pansy said, circling Harry and his friends like they were some sort of prey.

Ron and Hermione didn't say anything. All three of them had their hands in their pockets, ready to pull their wands. But, Harry realized now, that wouldn't do him any good. He couldn't say a spell.

"Maybe it was something more…simple. Seems that all that would be needed to take you down, Potter, would be a simple laughing jinx. And you of all people would certainly get care for anything that might bother you. Is that why you were in the infirmary for three days? You just couldn't stop laughing at your own ineptitude?"

"Stay out of it, Parkinson. I don't want to have to hex you." Hermione snapped.

"Ooh, how terrifying. The mudblood is attempting to be threatening!" Parkinson said to her housemates. They all laughed.

Hermione was now blushing too, but her wand was out. Harry saw Ron drawing his as well.

"Don't insult Hermione." Ron said, pointing his wand at Parkinson.

"Ah! And here is the blood traitor, the weasel."

Harry had a brilliant comeback for that, and he wished he could say it. He would spit out, Oh, and you're really brilliant Parkinson, using all of Malfoy's insults, and then she wouldn't know what to say.

But…maybe he could make her speechless.

"Come on, Potter. Not going to defend your friends?" Parkinson wheedled. At that point Neville, Seamus and Dean came down and saw the situation. Hearing Parkinson's taunt and knowing that Harry couldn't reply, they crowded behind Harry, offering silent support.

But what they didn't know was that Harry did have a trick up his sleeve.

"Actually, I am, right now. Shut Up." Harry mouthed. That did it. Pansy and the rest of the slytherins hadn't expected him to do what he did. They had thought that he would either speak and discredit the rumors or stand by and remain silent. Ron had told him how his silent speech had affected Seamus and Dean, so Harry had just done the same thing here. What the Slytherins had failed to expect was to see him talking but not hear his words. They all stood still as statues, staring in shock at Harry.

Harry took hold of his two best friends' hands and led them, chin up, straight through the crowd of gawking slytherins into the Great Hall. He noticed Dean, Seamus, and Neville following.

They walked to the Gryffindor table and chose their usual spots. Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil were already sitting at the table, as were several other Gryffindors from other years. All of them stared as Harry took his seat with his friends, but then again, the entire Great Hall was staring. And, even though he didn't like it, Harry had to admit that he was used to being stared at.

"What did you actually say, Harry?" Dean asked. Harry was already getting out his writing supplies. The parchment set up really was inconvenient, but his friends waited patiently while he set it all up.

"I said 'Actually I am, right now. Shut Up.'"

All his friends laughed after reading what Harry had said to the slytherins. Harry took the time to serve himself some porridge, which he poured a hefty amount of syrup on. He started to eat with gusto, finally realizing how hungry he was. The heat of the porridge made his throat uncomfortably hot, but he ignored it.

"Oh, that's brilliant Harry! She followed you orders without even realizing it!" Ron hooted. Harry smirked.

"I figured that I could shut them up as well as I've been."

Hermione smiled, knowing that Harry needed to be able to make light of his situation in order to get past it. She nudged Ron, who was staring a little awestruck at Harry's parchment.

"Look guys, please don't walk on tiptoes around me. I don't want anything to be different. If I mention the fact that I am mute, don't gape at me. I need to accept it, so…that means I can't get depressed over it. Okay?" Everyone nodded, including Ron and Hermione. "And if you could tell anyone else that, it would be greatly appreciated. I also sort of realized that I" Harry stopped writing for a minute. This was hard, admitting for the first time that he needed help with something. But there was no way around it. His friends had to realize this too. "…that I can't get into the common room by myself. Or defend myself if some stupid slytherin hexes me." He refused to meet anyone's eyes as they read his message. Not even Ron or Hermione's.

"Don't worry, Harry. We aren't going to leave you by yourself. I'm sure McGonagall can figure something out for the common room, and as for magic, you are going to become the best silent wizard the world has ever seen." Hermione said. "I've already gotten books on British Sign Language checked out, and I've been thinking about how sign language might be used to cast spells. Not to mention that I've checked out books on silent magic and how to best accomplish it." Hermione rambled. Harry smiled, amused at the typical Hermione attitude: research the problem so you can fix it. He knew that she and Ron both cared for him and were going to help him conquer this.

"If you want I'll stick with you too, Harry." Neville said, a little uncertainly. Harry nodded, glad for Neville's support.

"All of us Gryffindors can. We'll make sure no dirty Slytherin gets you until you can stupefy them into next term." Dean said.

"How about it, Gryffindors? Are we going to protect Harry?" Dean's words echoed down the Gryffindor table, and Gryffindors started saying things like, "of course we will," and "who wouldn't?" One of the seventh years stood up. It was Angelina Johnson, from the quidditch team. She shouted down the table: "Harry's one of us! We need to help him. No Slytherin will touch him!" The Gryffindors cheered agreement, drawing the attention of the other houses.

Harry ducked his head in embarrassment. But he wasn't embarrassed that he needed protection. True, the fact chafed him, but he knew that it was true and he was going to try not to be stupid about it. He was embarrassed for the attention, but he was also happy that his house was so willing to help him out.

"Students! Students! Quiet please!" Headmistress McGonagall's voice rang out across the hall. Everyone was instantly quiet. Announcements were almost never made in the morning, but they usually weren't this serious, Harry recalled.

"More has come to light about the consequences of the attack four nights ago. There are two pieces of news, both of them grave. I shall give you the worst news first: Headmaster Dumbledore is dead, murdered by Severus Snape who was helped by Draco Malfoy."

The students were all dead silent, staring in shock at their new headmistress.

"There will be a funeral for Headmaster Dumbledore tomorrow evening, after dinner. I expect you all to be respectful, even if you did not agree with his opinions, or even liked him. Many will grieve for him. Please respect their grief.

"The second piece of news is of a more personal nature, and is about Mr. Potter. Many of you heard that Mr. Potter was in the infirmary for three days with a serious injury sustained in the attack. He woke yesterday at dinnertime, and it was confirmed by Madam Pomfrey that he is now mute. The details of the cause I leave for Mr. Potter to disclose to whom he wishes. Please treat him with the same respect that any student of Hogwarts deserves." At this, McGonagall resumed her seat at the staff table.

The Great Hall was now in an uproar. No one knew which piece of news to discuss first; Harry's muteness or Dumbledore's murder. Harry couldn't bear it any longer. He quickly packed up his writing tools and stood, motioning his friends to do the same. Most had already eaten, so Ron, Hermione, Neville, Dean, Seamus, Parvati, Lavender, Collin Creevey, and most of the seventh years crowded around Harry as he made his way out of the hall. The other houses watched them go, whispering at the unusual show of unity that the Gryffindors displayed.

Once they were out into the deserted Entrance Hall, Harry pulled his class schedule from his bag. He had Charms first. Brilliant. He wouldn't be able to participate in class. Honestly he had hoped for potions, so he could actually do something.

Harry showed his schedule to Ron and Hermione, pointing to Charms. Everyone else looked on, and those whose classes were in the same direction as the charms classroom formed a close knot around Harry. The others said their farewells and headed off to their own classes.

By now the other students were flooding out of the Great Hall, but, seeing that Harry was surrounded by protective Gryffindors, didn't try to come near him. As a matter of fact, they actually seemed to go out of their way to stay out of his group's path.

Harry made it to charms without incident. His house-mates chatted around him, and he just listened, content for the time being and encouraged by their support.

Charms wasn't as much fun as it usually was, at least for Harry. It was more intensive. Flitwick told him to simply practice the wand movements for the charm they were studying, so that is what he appeared to do. But inside his head he was attempting wordless magic, saying the incantation over and over, with force and concentration, in his head. He was so focused that he didn't even hear Flitwick dismiss the class, so Hermione had to notify him and help him pack up his things.

The next two periods were free, so, on Hermione's urging, they went to the library to study sign language and silent magic. Other Gryffindors who had the same period free accompanied them, intending to do their own homework while there.

So Madam Pince was agitated, to say the least, when a pack of fifteen Gryffindors of all ages flooded into the library as one, bringing along their noise. She nearly fainted, Harry was sure, but then she recovered and started to scold all of them.

"Why can't you trickle in quietly, one by one? What is wrong with that?" she asked, throwing her hands up in the air.

"I'm sorry, Madam Pince, but we're all together because we are protecting Harry." Said a first year who had not yet learned what a terror Madam Pince could be. Harry admired his foolish courage. No wonder the boy had made Gryffindor.

Madam Pince looked sharply at Harry, who smiled a little wanly.

"Why? What's wrong with him? Look perfectly healthy to me." The librarian said. Did she really spend so much time protecting her precious books that she hadn't heard the news?

"He's mute now, Madam Pince. It happened during the attack." Hermione explained. She was one of the only students who genuinely respected the irritable librarian, but then again, she respected anyone who loved books as much as she did.

Madam Pince was genuinely surprised at the news, but she hid it well.

"If you must all travel in a gaggle like that, at least bring you conversations to a whisper as you enter." With that, the librarian turned away and resumed her seat at her desk, not even looking at them.

Now all the Gryffindors were looking at Harry. He guessed what they were waiting for, so he gestured to the tables.

They all migrated to the seats and settled nearby each other, so that, even though they were spaced apart, they were still in a tight group. Harry didn't notice until he'd been reading about sign language for half an hour that he was in the precise center of the seated students, being protected to the last.